[SOC] what key did you use?

[JMcAulay]

At 06:18 PM 09/25/2003 -0400, "Bill Cunningham" <k4ksr@qsl.net> wrote:
>>
>> Actually, my favorite key is a J-37, but in that instance with the piano I
>> must have been playing in the key of L.  At least, it sounded like L.
>
>Don't tell us you keyed the foot pedals!  QLF fer sure.


You are right, I was only keying the leftmost pedal.  :) 

Actually, SOC that I am, once actually tried both QRF and QLF.  That was
after the first quart of my finest dark, hoppy hausbrau in the shack one
night more than 25 years ago.  Found to be much better with QRF.  Yet,
after a second quart, scheduled a contact with W6BF, and operated 100% real
QLF.  Ran 15 mW to a tunnel diode on 15M into a Hy-Gain vertical.  Maybe
not the worst setup ever, but certainly close.  Had also tried it into a
quarter-wave wet string (salted) but didn't get out.  Some people will do
strange things while appropriately ingesting anti-freeze for those chilly
evenings.  Got RST 519.  He was almost a mile away.  Fun.  Drank two more
quarts of finest malted-barley anti-freeze about midnight Pacific time,
then called CQ UK for twenty minutes using the same rig.  Why not.  Had
wanted to call CQ Czechoslovakia, but that was too damn hard to QLF.  No
replies, so went back into main house.  Anti-freeze was good to have, as
reception in house was even colder than receiver listening for UK replies
to 15 mW signal.  

Reminds me not very much of the old days as W4TLB, back in 1960, when I may
have been the first ham ever to run 6 meter wideband FM mobile from a
garden cart (QSO with K3IEW).  Another first for Amateur Radio!  Wow.  And
what have I done recently to further the cause of our avocation?  Stayed
off the air, mostly.

73
John WA6QPL  SOC 263