[ADXA] Shame of US Radio Amateurs - 60 Meters

Thu Nov 19 08:27:56 EST 2020

During the early hours of the CQWW SSB last month, I was listening to all
the big guns working each other, just following the waterfall to see big
signals.  There were Canadiens working 7.120 - 7.125 and I heard several US
stations working them.  It's so easy to learn the band plan and follow it.

To me it is just a hobby.  The idea of cheating is just mind-boggling.
Misuse of a band, like 60 meters, is beyond that.

73,

Trent
N4DTF

On Thu, Nov 19, 2020 at 3:06 AM Jay Bromley <jayw5jay at cox.net> wrote:

> Hi Dennis and Everyone,
> If the mode being used stays inside the 2.8 KHz USB channel, is it OK for
> modes like FT8 signals to use the same channel on 60m as long as they stay
> inside the 2.8 KHz USB channel?
>
> The ARRL web site only mentions two digital modes PSK31 and Pactor III.  I
> am assuming Pactor III is used because of emergency traffic?  They do
> mention using PSK31 and setting it right in the center of passband of 1500
> Hz.  Really that is not center,  1400 Hz would be.  I guess they figured
> close enough.
>
> FT8 is 50 Hz wide and so there could be a lot of stations on and still
> stay inside the 2.8 KHz bandwidth, is that legal?  I can't seem to find the
> right answer on the web.
>
> I've spent hours trying to find an answer to this question.  I am not sure
> why as my WSJT-X 2.2.2 doesn't have 60m on the list.  Plus I don't have an
> antenna up these days for 60m.  I guess I am technically curious more than
> anything.
>
> While watching channel 3 tonight, I didn't see any FT8 stations outside
> the USB channel 3.  Pretty neat was seeing a weak lone CW signal in between
> channels, not inside one of the US channels.  I wasn't able to zero beat
> fast enough to hear who they were.  Other interesting tidbits was seeing
> Radar signatures coming and going while scanning!
>
> 60m is a great band!  Shame folks are misusing it.
>
> 73 de jay/w5jay..
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net <adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On
> Behalf Of Dennis Schaefer
> Sent: Wednesday, November 18, 2020 9:33 PM
> To: w5zn at w5zn.org
> Cc: adxa <adxa at mailman.qth.net>
> Subject: Re: [ADXA] Shame of US Radio Amateurs - 60 Meters
>
> Joel,
>
> Very good comments - people need to be more careful about this stuff.    I
> worked VP6R on practically every mode and band and decided to try them on
> 60M FT8 on the last day or so.  I normally use a Yaesu FT-991 for my
> infrequent HF FT8 efforts.  I have flushed most of the gory details out of
> my memory banks, but I remember reading and studying about things like
> whether a stated frequency was the carrier frequency or the center of a 3
> Khz channel width.  Both methods are  used.  Any signal must be in the
> center of the 3 Khz channel (once you figure out where it actually is) so
> FT8 F/H mode is technically illegal any way you look at it.  More than one
> signal in the channel is too many.
>
> CW is doable, and SSB is easy, but digital modes are hard to figure out.
> However, as much as I struggled with it, I could not make my FT-991 would
> transmit on a legal frequency for digital modes on 60 meters.  I’ll have to
> revisit that someday and see if I was right, but I discussed it with John
> Evans, who is an FT8 guru, and I think we both reached the same
> conclusion.   I tried my Kenwood TS-590S and it seems there was a frequency
> problem with it also.   I think part of the problem was that WSJT-X would
> not allow me to set a frequency that would result in a legal transmit
> frequency with the FT-991.  Maybe WSJT-X frequencies assumed carrier
> frequency and the FT-991 dial read center channel frequencies.  Both were
> designed to “protect you from yourself” and ended up being incompatible.
>  Perhaps I could have done it by turning off CAT control - it’s been too
> long to remember if I tried that.
>
> Makes my head hurt to think about it.  I’ll stick to 6 and 2 meters for
> FT8, with an occasional foray onto the HF bands (but not 60 meters).
>
> Dennis
>
>
>
> > On Nov 18, 2020, at 9:42 AM, w5zn at w5zn.org wrote:
> >
> > Greetings ADXA Folks,
> >
> > 7Q7RU appeared on 60 meters FT8 last night with a nice signal and
> several USA stations are in their log. Normally, this would be a good thing
> however last night was an embarrassment and a shame for amateur radio in
> the United States. Why? Because 7Q7RU was operating on 5354 KHz and that is
> NOT a frequency authorized for use in the USA. I don't know if 7Q7RU is
> aware of this or not, nor do I know if they are even allowed to operate
> from Malawi on 5357 KHz which is where US radio amateurs can operate FT8. I
> was monitoring 5354 KHz and the first two stations I saw calling are, to be
> blunt, stations who do not care about the FCC rules and in fact don't care
> about any rules as one of those stations was disqualified from the DXCC
> program some years ago.
> >
> > Sadly, the good followed the bad and eventually a number of other US
> hams began calling on 5354 KHz and the ones I saw calling should have known
> better. I was in an email exchange with a buddy of mine down in south Texas
> about it and sadly even he, after a while, said "to hell with it, everyone
> else is calling so I'm going to as well". I told him that wasn't the case
> because I wasn't calling and did not intend to unless they move up to 5357
> KHz.
> >
> > So what makes this particularly egregious? This is a shared band.
> Amateur radio is not a primary authorized user on 60 meters. Now, you may
> say "well, I don't hear anyone else there so the primary user's must not be
> using it". That is an extremely flawed position because the band is in fact
> used by the United States government and they are watching us!
> >
> > Allow me to give a little background. As I have stated before, the
> United States was the first country in the world to obtain authorization to
> use 5 MHz. I was ARRL First Vice President at the time and Jim Haynie,
> W5JBP, was ARRL President. The FCC came on board with allowing amateur
> radio use rather quickly however the National Telecommunications and
> Information Administration (NTIA), the Executive Branch agency that is
> principally responsible for advising the President on telecommunications
> and information policy issues, was staunchly opposed to it due to ongoing
> use by government. The process drug on for several years and finally we
> were able to obtain the five discreet frequency channels with the power
> limit we have today.
> >
> > Now, you are also aware that during the World Radio Communication
> conference in 2015 (WRC-15) that amateur radio obtain a small allocation at
> 5 MHz which the United States has not yet adopted. We are not allowed to
> use the new WRC15 allocation until the FCC authorizes it. Let me give you a
> bit more "inside info". ARRL was the driving force within IARU at WRC-15 to
> make this happen but the United States government refused, on several
> occasions, to sponsor the agenda proposal or to support it. Guess which
> IARU society was able to convince their government to sponsor the item and
> get it on the agenda.....CUBA! Yea that's right, our own government
> wouldn't support the effort.
> >
> > Now, think about this for a second. The United States government did not
> want radio amateurs on 5 MHz. They were opposed to a 5 MHz allocation for
> the amateur radio service at WRC15. They still have NOT adopted the WRC15
> allocation at 5 MHz so now amateur radio operators in the USA are giving
> the US government a good reason to NOT do so! And to top it off it is not a
> bunch of unruly CB operators who obtain an amateur radio license doing
> this.....it is a group of well season Morse examined Extra Class DX'ers
> doing so!
> >
> > Shame on them. The 5 MHz amateur allocation in the United States could
> well be in jeopardy.
> >
> > So, is there any good news in all of this? Yes there is and ADXA folks
> are to be commended. We refrained from the temptation to violate the
> amateur radio rules. I did not see any of you calling. That takes a good
> bit of will power and also shows the integrity each of you have as a radio
> amateur, and DX'er and an ADXA member.
> >
> > Keep it up, ADXA !!!
> >
> > 73 Joel W5ZN
> > ADXA President
> >
> > p.s. 60 meter contacts are not allowed for any DXCC credit so you really
> didn't miss anything!!!
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Trent Fleming

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