[Elecraft] Advice on 6 meters...

[Jack]

Jim, you have several CA neighbors who worked me from Ecuador last year. 
Yes, they all have very good antenna systems but when 6 is open you can 
work many stations, including DX, with a wet noodle.

I have been on 6, intermittently, since 1961 and I *know* you have to be 
listening to catch the openings. It is less true today with Internet 
access and real-time propagation systems but you *do* have to be 
monitoring in some fashion. A great example of this is the day I was 
hearing the KH6HME beacon from coastal Ecuador and worked *no one* 
during that opening. I had no Internet so could not notify the world and 
there was, obviously, no one monitoring since I called CQ for the two 
hour period the beacon was in, often at  an S5+ signal levels!

A big yagi is nice but for typical domestic operations a smaller antenna 
might be better. The big yagi will have a narrow beamwidth and high 
front/side and front/back ratios, making pointing critical. A small yagi 
or a one-wavelength loop might suit your needs and Sean's as well. I 
emphasize the loop because it is simple to build and, if dimensioned 
correctly, can be fed directly with 50-ohm coax. Mine was fed at the 
bottom and was twice as high as it was wide, with only a ferrite choke 
at the feed point to prevent radiation from the feed-line. VWR was under 
1.5:1. It's gain, according to modeling I did, was comparable to a 3 or 
4 element yagi.

Give 6 more of a chance, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Jack, W6NF/VE4SNA

On 2/26/2014 10:27 AM, Jim Bennett wrote:
> Phil,
>
> You'll probably get a ton of replies from the 6-meter / VHF aficionados, but unless you have some means of monitoring the band, either with your radio, or some web site, I think you'll may be disappointed. I've been licensed for 50 years and have made only 20 QSO's on that band; 19 SSB and 1 CW. Most likely because I'm not aware that it is open. For me there are a lot of other bands (HF) where at least one is open 24-7 so I simply don't venture up there very often. That being said, I have operated in a couple ARRL VHF contests and was surprised at what I worked. My very first ever 6 meter QSO was with VE7JH on CW back in 2012. The other 19 QSO's included CA, BC, CO, and NE. All were made with a K3 - 100 watts into my 88 foot long, 450 ohm ladder line fed doublet at 45 feet.
>
> On the other hand, if I were allowed to have a tower (dang CC&R's) I probably would by now have built some sort of yagi for that band. There are lots of articles on doing just that, and the size of the boom and elements makes it something very affordable to construct, install, and tune.
>
> YMMV..... :-)
>
> Jim / W6JHB
>
>
> On   Wednesday, Feb 26, 2014, at  Wednesday, 10:08 AM, Phil Hystad wrote:
>
>> I have seen some comments recently about six meters and I have never operated six meters.  I don't really have a descent antenna for six meters, just my 80-meter (ladder line fed) dipole or my hex beam that I can at least tune to six meters.
>>
>> The band is always dead quiet with the small exception of some noise spikes here and there but very rare.
>>
>> Question:  is there any activity for six meters that I should invest in a nice multi-element 6 meter bean antenna?
>>
>> My most dominant operating mode would be CW but maybe some SSB from time to time.  I have no idea what's there as this band has always been blank to me.
>>
>> 73, phil, K7PEH
>>
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