[Elecraft] 4M Question

[Jim Lowman]

As an experiment, one cold and rainy weekend (about as close as we get 
to winter) last year, I programmed all of the local 2m, 220 and 440 
repeaters into a scanner and let it do its job.
Surprisingly, compared with 10 or so years ago, most were dead quiet.

Back then, 220 was a nice alternative to the crowding and overuse of 
many of the 2m repeaters.
And 440 is definitely a different story here.  Most are closed or 
private.  I'm not debating the fairness of this phenomenon; just stating 
a fact.

Most of us have one or a few favorite repeaters anyway.  Mine sits in 
the clear at 8,000' elevation and can be used with a HT from almost 
anywhere in southern California.

73 de Jim - AD6CW

On 5/19/2014 4:07 PM, Rick WA6NHC wrote:
> Another example of how mileage may vary...
>
> Apparently you haven't been to California (lately).  One can't get a 
> two meter frequency to put up a repeater pretty much anywhere (even 
> though the band may appear to be dead) and six is pretty full too. 
> 420-450 is disallowed over much of the state (150 miles circumference 
> from Beale/PavePaws)...  Not a wasteland, just ham politics; often 
> downright ugly.
>
> 10M has open repeater slots; 220 is near capacity in some areas.
>
> At least until recently, the CHP has been using 70 MHz for site 
> linking but that may fade away since they're in the middle of a huge 
> rebuild/remodel of their spectrum.
>
> And there are still low power TV stations using either digital or 
> analog back in that range too...  Typically minority language, 
> Hallelujah or Sellavision channels, but the bottom line is: 4M won't 
> happen here.
>
> 73,
> Rick wa6nhc