[ADXA] w/New Xtal

[w5znjoel at gmail.com]

Greetings ADXA Folks,

 

Every morning since long, long ago Jon, AA1K, is on 1820.6 KHz every morning
calling CQ. The objective is to check DX propagation. Many of us listen to
see what Jon's trolling may attract as he has an amazing 160 meter station
at his Delaware QTH. Yesterday morning Jon was calling CQ on 1817.6 and we
all assumed he had simply misread his dial but that was not the case. Jon
moved a bit that morning because he had a birdie show up on 20.6.

 

That prompted my buddy Dave, W0FLS, in Iowa to spot Jon on the DX cluster
with the comment "w/new xtal" !! Several of us had a nice early morning
chuckle out of that. Now, you old dog hams that remember the crystal
controlled transmitter days know what that meant, and it got me to thinking
about upgrading your station, something we discuss quite frequently within
ADXA.

 

Back in the "old days" buying a new crystal (xtal) or picking one up from a
generous Elmer was a station upgrade! It provided flexibility and options
for you; it gave you an all time new frequency to transmit on. Station
upgrades are much more challenging today. Rigs are sophisticated, controlled
by software, and just working through the menu structure can make you go
cross-eyed. Spectrum pollution from consumer devices creates a significant
challenge to receiving weak signals and a lack of interest in moving beyond
an appliance operator by some people with an amateur license can wreak havoc
on the bands.

 

As we enjoy a time with family and friends over this Christmas celebration
weekend and move into next week thinking about the new year and what our
objectives in 2024 will be, review your station "to do" list and set target
dates to complete the list items. We've had a lot of new ones on the air the
past three months so while you're updating your station to-do list also
update your DXCC need list.

 

Life is grand, amateur radio is great so get a new xtal and 'GET IN THERE
AND WORK 'EM !!!"

 

73 Joel W5ZN 

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