[Lowfer] DX record?

Fri, 22 Feb 2002 04:01:35 -0500

Les,

I appreciate your sharing this information with us. I personally didn't 
realize the extent of the cheating going on in the good old days but was 
always curious as to the reasons for seeing such heavy-duty power supplies 
in the pictures of early transmitters. This news places a cloud over any 
accomplishments achieved back then, which is the 'real' problem for those 
that don't follow the rules, and it affects us all.

With the advent of various digital modes there is no reason what-so-ever to 
exceed the 1w level to achieve a large number of ski wave contacts. I hope 
we can all move forward, from this point on, with a clean slate.

Hope to see other's feelings on this.

Bill Ashlock

>From: Les Rayburn <[email protected]>
>Reply-To: [email protected]
>To: [email protected]
>Subject: RE: [Lowfer] DX record?
>Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2002 11:36:46 -0600
>
>
>Actually, the lowfer distance record is currently held by Dexter and Steve
>McDonald
>for their reception earlier this year. I don't have the exact distance
>handy, but it
>was around 80 miles longer than the Z2-Sheldon Remington reception.
>
>Also, I've debated mentioning this but I think it's important to set the 
>record
>straight. "Back in the day" in the 1980's lowfer beacons routinely ran
>power levels anywhere from 5 watts to hundreds of watts! Not in a total
>disregard of the rules, but rather to simply be heard by others.
>
>Without going into too many details, I can tell you that TH was running
>at least 25 watts on the night in question, SUK in California used to
>run over 100 watts, Vince Pinto's beacon was routinely on at those levels,
>and many others too.
>
>Even Mike Mideke admitted that he could not verify that the Z2 beacon
>wasn't transmitting at around the 5 watt level on the days of the
>Hawaii receptions. Mike actually used his beacon for communication
>purposes from his rural home at the time, lacking telephone service
>and even AC power as I recall. So he sometimes ran the beacon at
>higher power levels for communications and would forget to switch it
>back down to 1 watt input.
>
>I'm not saying this to diminish the accomplishments of anyone, but
>you really cannot compare modern lowfer accomplishments with those
>from 20 years ago for this reason. One of the things I found refreshing
>when I got back into the hobby is that most folks who were interested
>in weak signal receptions are sticklers for running only 1 watt of power.
>
>So if you read claims about 2,000 mile receptions on CW, or hundreds of
>miles on SSB using a 1 watt beacon from that time period be very skeptical.
>I can state for a fact that no propagation anomaly will allow a 1 watt SSB
>antenna on LF to be heard more than a few miles away.
>
>And only a once in a lifetime anomaly would allow 2000 mile receptions
>of a 1 watt CW signal on LF. Think about it logically, we have at least
>an 18-20db advantage on QRSS60, about the same on BPSK, and
>even better on WOLF...and yet receptions like this are still front page
>news despite having DSP, modern receivers, low noise pre-amps,
>and better computers in every shack than were available in the
>Fortune 500 company headquarters back in the 1980's and yet
>these feats are only now exceeded? Not likely.
>
>As I said, this is not to diminish the accomplishments of others.
>A reception of a 25 watt NDB from New Jersey to California
>is still an impressive feat...but does not begin to compare
>what Dex and Steve accomplished just a few months ago.
>Let's give credit where it's really due.
>
>The fact is that some lowfers have always ran a lot more than
>legal power and continue to do so today. Fortunately, most of them
>seem to have no real interest in weak signal work...so you don't
>have to compare apples to oranges these days. Live and let live, I say.
>I don't really object to these types of QRO operations, but I'd hate
>to see their claims diminish the truly spectacular achievements made
>just this season.
>
>73,
>
>Les Rayburn, N1LF
>XMGR
>
>
>
>
>:
>>Not too many guys know this but Carl L, TH, was copied in California the
>>same night. That's a good hop too! This must have been one of those 'each
>>100 year' alignments of the ionosphere that night.
>>
>>Bill
>>
>> >
>> >I am wondering what the longest distance is that anyone has actually (by
>> >ear) copied another part 15 LOWFER station.
>> >
>>
>>Hi Bob,
>>
>>That remains the California-to-Hawaii reception of Z2, 'way back when.
>>
>>73,
>>John Davis
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>Les Rayburn, director
>High Noon Film & Interactive
>100 Centerview Drive
>Suite 111
>Birmingham, AL 35216
>(205) 824-8930
>(205) 824-8960 FAX
>(205) 253-4867 CELL
>http://www.highnoonfilm.com
>
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