[K3PZN-List] QRP Smackdown - FD2008
geobra at att.net
geobra at att.net
Tue Jun 26 17:11:17 EDT 2007
Curt,
Actually I wasn't questioning you, I was trying to goad you into QRP Smackdown - FD2008.
Here's the concept. Instead of station captains we'd have mode captains, CW and Phone. If John wants a piece of this action we'd have a Digital captain as well. What we'd do is have two major stations apiece (perhaps three if the 1000' diameter will support it), each with portable - no permanent antennas. At a club meeting we'd set up ratios to level the playing field - what's a CW QRP QSO worth versus a Phone QRP QSO versus a Digital QRP QSO. (It's very difficult to find a phone mode contest on QRP-ARCI). Then we have all year to recruit club members, design antennas and build rigs if necessary (or plug together K3s). The idea is to have 6 (or 9) fully staffed, constantly working stations trying to win the K3PZN QRP Mode trophy. Of course the big winner would be the club as a whole. We'd probably blow away any previous scores. The other thing I think we could prove is that QRP is not only CW mode.
I was doing some math from the K3PZN.org spreadsheet. As I calculate it there were 3 HF CW stations that made 476 contacts for an average of 158 per station. Our one phone station made 120 contacts and it was using a vertical - which I think is better than you'd expect for QRP phone. If we got decent antennas for digital their scores would have jumped.
I understand that previous Field Days used the Tower as well as the Bunker area. If that is so, then we were crowded into one side of our 1000' diameter allowable area. We never got near the tower.
Anyway, as a phone team member that's what I was trying to do when I suggested that digital share CW antennas.
73, Rich, N3III
-------------- Original message from Curt Milton <wb8yyy at yahoo.com>: --------------
> Rich
>
> Good thing to question my sanity after putting a lot
> of hours working CW, and spending a couple hours
> erecting a dipole on a fiberglass pole with W3JJH ....
>
> I am merely saying that we should aim for better
> antennas vs. trying to do all in parallel. The PSK31
> station likely could have made the same number of
> contacts in 1/3rd the time with better antennas.
> Ditto for phone. So this is my premise to share
> better antennas - and enjoy the rest of FD away from
> the rig!
>
> It would be an interesting analysis to consider (1)
> using EOC vs (2) an open field. I don't think we can
> spread the antennas out much further in a field per
> the rules. My premise is with 2 good antennas per
> band we can still get enough radio time for each mode.
> I merely suggested the digital/phone sharing since we
> probably logged less hours on these modes than CW
> during FD.
>
> I operated all three CW rigs, and we clearly had nice
> antennas (thank you W3JJH !) on 80, 40 and 20.
> Supplementing these with 3 more high quality portable
> antennas will boost our productivity. If we had a
> nice 20m extended double zepp we could conceivably
> have two decent signals on 20m, scheduling 3 modes
> across these 2 antennas - and similarly address the
> other bands.
>
> 73, curt
>
> --- geobra at att.net wrote:
>
> > Curt,
> > What are you talking about? In 13 rig hours phone
> > did 120 QSOs. Digital can share CW's antennas!
> > Seriously, though, I don't think we need EOC (FTC)
> > antennas for a QRP field day, if we go that route
> > next year. Digital was on a portable antenna, phone
> > was on a portable antenna and I believe 40m CW was
> > also. And if we don't use EOC (FTC) antennas, the
> > antennas can be spread out much farther for less
> > interference.
> > I also think that the 60 80m phone contacts in 8
> > hours and the 60 40m phone contacts in 5 hours shows
> > that phone is a viable (and for us a really
> > untapped) way to get QRP QSOs. I'll bet that if you
> > ran 2 QRP phone stations continuously you could
> > easily get 300 QSOs, probably 400.
> > Rich, N3III
> >
> > -------------- Original message from Curt Milton
> > : --------------
> >
> >
> > > John
> > >
> > > Thanks for the nice post. Yes I like to poke a
> > little
> > > fun at the digital mode station since it has a
> > thirst
> > > for using DC power, and even the power to boost
> > its RF
> > > output may not be that great compared to how much
> > the
> > > PC uses ! (But I do enjoy working some PSK31 at
> > home,
> > > and it will be even more fun now running 30 watts
> > > instead of 5 watts with my K2 ! And last night I
> > > turned on my TT1340 QRP rig, worked a VE2, heard a
> >
> > > LY3-station that I could not work, so I did use
> > the K2
> > > to work him on 40m).
> > >
> > > Lets see 5 to 50 watts is 10 dB ...
> > >
> > > Maybe we can boost your RF signal next year with a
> >
> > > better antenna ! Maybe an extended double zepp
> > will
> > > get half of this 10 dB (or more) on 20m compared
> > to an
> > > outbacker? And on 40m likely it still would have
> > > about 5 dB gain over an outbacker ?
> > >
> > > Next year I suggest we focus on fewer, better
> > > antennas. It might mean sharing them between
> > digital
> > > and phone, but our productivity would go up a
> > bunch.
> > > And more time to chat between radio operating.
> > >
> > > And I wonder if a K2 on PSK would output less RF
> > > across the band ....
> > >
> > > Maybe we need a play radio event at the EOC to see
> >
> > > what we can do as a rehersal.
> > >
> > > I wonder if there is a way to install halyards at
> > the
> > > EOC for easy temporary antenna lifting (??).
> > Probably
> > > no as we would have already done it.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > --- John Hart wrote:
> > >
> > > > Hello to all,
> > > >
> > > > I had a great time at the 2007 Field Day event.
> > The
> > > > HF Digital Station was
> > > > a little slow getting started on Saturday due to
> > a
> > > > few little technical
> > > > glitches but everything ran smooth all night
> > > > (especially with the 4, 5 or more cups of
> > coffee)
> > > > and club member support.
> > > > Batteries are the way to go, but I would like to
> >
> > > > have alittle more RF OUT
> > > > maybe 50 watts would be nice on the digital
> > modes.
> > > > I guess I will need more
> > > > batteries and MORE AMP-HOURS (you know you
> > cann't
> > > > have too many AMP-HOURS
> > > > stored up for these events) .
> > > >
> > > > John, K3KWO
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > >From: geobra at att.net
> > > > >Reply-To: Carroll County Amateur Radio Club
> > > >
> > > > >To: Carroll County Amateur Radio Club
> > > >
> > > > >Subject: Re: [K3PZN-List] FD2007 Initial Report
> >
> > > > >Date: Mon, 25 Jun 2007 18:46:38 +0000
> > > > >
> > > > >Great thanks to John who ran Field Day!
> > > > >
> > > > >Rich, N3III
> > > > >
> > > > >-------------- Original message from W3JJH
> > > > : --------------
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > > QST de W3JJH:
> > > > > >
> > > > > > The initial report for FD 2007 is posted at
> > . In
> > > > summary, 478 CW
> > > > > > QSOs, 43 on digital, and 72 on Phone, with a
> >
> > > > total of 1800 bonus points
> > > > >for a
> > > > > > provisional total of 7370.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Thank you to everyone who helped!
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > > 72 de W3JJH
> > > > > > John
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> -----------------------------------------------------
> >
> > > > BREAK
> > > > > >
> > -----------------------------------------------
> > > > > > Next CCARC meeting Monday July 9, 7:30 PM at
> > the
> > > > Emergency Services
> > > > >Training
> > > > > > Center in Westminster.
> > > > > >
> > > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> -----------------------------------------------------
> >
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> > > > > >
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> === message truncated ===
>
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