Hi all,
Up here in FN55mf that was our *sixth* ice storm of the 2021/22 winter
season. Two of three significant snow storms have been very wet, sticky,
nasty stuff that was no fun to move. That last storm was both! This is
getting ridiculous. Normally by now temperatures have plummeted and we
get mainly dry powdery snow. Yesterday it hit 34 degrees with bright
sunshine and relatively light winds, so all the antennas are free of ice
*at the moment*. Today's forecast is snow and 29 degrees (still too
warm!) so I'm not sure what state things will be in by evening.
Given my track record I'm not going to make any promises about tonight,
regardless what the weather brings. However, like the one 222 Activity
Night I was on for, this is a rare Tuesday that I don't have my usual
schedule that leaves me exhausted and brain dead, so there is more hope
than usual. If I am active I will also be on ON4KST chat.
I like the idea of some sort of newsletter or activity bulletin and
would sure like to read it whether I am able to be active or not. I
think these days an online format like a web site or blog would be best.
I read the idea about using Facebook and while it provides ease of use
and a good set of attractive features, my experience has been that a
significant number of hams hate it and won't use it. Whether that
includes any of the 222 crowd or prospective newcomers to the band, I
have no idea. As Dave knows I am on Facebook, so that platform would be
OK with me.
73,
Paul N1BUG
FN55mf
On 12/27/21 12:30 PM, Bill Olson wrote:
Hi all, Well welcome to winter in Maine. I have the same icing
problem as Dave.. 2M,222,432 are useless and 6M has a 5:1 VSWR which
pretty much shuts down my FT991.. (6M beam hears better off the back
too!) Hope we get some warm melting days before the January contest
but I don't see anything in the forecast near-term..
oh well
Hello 222 folks,
Well, I picked the right time to bow out of the Tuesday evening
activity periods. The weather has turned much in favor of winter
here, and there have been three ice storms and enough snow to make
me realize that winter has arrived for good. Everything is now ice
encased and covered in white stuff. Temps have plummeted. To make
the trip to my shack, I need to strap on the snow shoes and trudge
uphill about 1/2 mile then shovel out the doors to the shack, then
nurse the diesel generator on and start the heating units to warm up
the room. The problem is that when the temps drop to single digits,
heating up such cold metal items as HV supplies, and transformers
will cause water to condense on the cold metal. HV arc overs and all
sorts of failures can occur. It is not smart to try and operate with
such conditions.
Just before all the bad weather hit, I climbed the tower to lower
the entire H frame so that the main mast does not have to support a
300 lb antenna system perched 4 ft above the tower top. Now the
center of gravity is only about 18" up. I think a 2" high strength
steel mast with 1/4" wall will support that! In the Spring I can
raise it back up with a come along.
What I did not get done was to haul the K3, the transverter, and
other "delicate" electronics out of the shack. I really need the
vehicle up there to haul it all, and I missed that window! Unless we
get some significant melting, the truck cannot get up there. I might
have to rescue them with a sled and plastic bags!
It sounds like last Tuesday was a good evening, activity wise, and I
hope it continues thru the winter months and that I can join in again
in the early Spring when the temps moderate. In the meantime, I am
researching how I can keep a 222 station up there with heat. No heat
is very bad as condensation will ruin anything in short order. Big
tube amps seem to take it if you don't turn them on, but delicate
circuit boards and teeny weeny coils tend to fare much worse. (Been
there...Done that!) I am looking into another propane vented heater.
The only problem is there is very little room for one in the cramped
shack!
I have been toying around with a few ideas for 222. One idea involves
a new meteor scatter antenna. I am hoping to stack a pair of 16
element yagis one over the other on a side arm, to be partially
rotatable from SW to NW. I tried running two skeds with ND0B in N
Dakota during the Geminids, but we did not complete. The distance is
a bit over 1400 miles. We heard each other but did not have enough
meteors to complete a contact. The signals were strong but very
scarce. I suspect my 4 yagi EME array is too sharp. The pair of 16's
will be over twice as wide in beamwidth, and probably have enough
gain to make the trip. I have been re furbing the yagis in my shop,
and they are ready to go as soon as I can get some decent weather.
I was also thinking about resurrecting the K5FF 220 Activity
Newsletter. She had a mimeographed newsletter that was mailed out to
interested operators. It had all the news of what the 220 MHz ops
were doing back in the 1980's. The time factor was better than
seeing results in the QST VHF column. Today, one of the good methods
would be to have a website with chronological entries maintained so
they could be accessed at any time. I think Stan KA1ZE had a similar
page for promoting 144 MHz morning activity back a few years ago.
Another method might be a 222 Activity @Groups.io type e mail, but
graphics would be a bit more difficult. I don't have a website that
I can use, but I have a feeling that a 222 Newsletter in some form
would be a good activity builder. It might draw in new 222 operators
when they see what people are accomplishing on the band. What do you
think? Is this a good idea, or as K1OR tells me..... "You are NUTS!"
So plan to get on 222 this coming Tuesday evening. All you need is a
222 rig and an antenna! I wish I could join you there.
73
Dave K1WHS
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