Bernard KT4BCS
kt4bcs.bsky.social
Bernard KT4BCS
@kt4bcs.bsky.social
190 followers 240 following 740 posts
I like amateur radio, tho I'm not very deep into the sport / hobby yet. Stuck in UHF/VHF/DMR...
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I had forgotten about Morsle. Thanks for the reminder.
Yeah, sweepstakes seemed to own all of the CW portions.
Kind of a disappointing and "down" day for radio today, for me... Don't talk to anybody, and I'm convinced my radio probably sound awful anyway. Kind of embarrassing to even try. And I suck at CW.
The things that trouble me most? Yeah, I don't share those with anybody at all.
I have decided that my "serious radio" is going to be a Xiegu G90. It's not a 100W, but it's more than 5, and it has a tuner built in, etc. I like what I see. The price is manageable and I'll have a new radio of my own. Hoping I can convince Santa.
I didn't feel like I knew radios enough to challenge anything, and didn't see any that I knew the specs well enough to know if I even want them. I don't mind playing Pawn Stars with people, but I hate to if I don't have any dough, lol.
I really would have liked to ham radioed tonight, but....
Only got to go to one this year, and I could have got some stuff if I had 400 on me, but I couldn't justify that.
Nothing beyond QRP rigs are actually financially feasible for me right now.
The IC706 seems more appealing to me than the FT891 quite honestly.
100w matters because I want it to be capable of decent distance in a true emergency / disaster and QRP has limits. I'm also tired of just barely reaching Ohio. Alaska and Hawaii are hopeless.
There's just really no money in the coffers to do it with. So I just wait and assume that I'll run out of interest before I get a good radio. Cause I'm very cyclical in the things I do.
I've had a few folks loan me rigs "to see if I like HF". THAT isn't the question. I hate using borrowed radios. Always afraid I'll screw them up and have to pay for something that was possibly junk anyway. I want one that is MINE. But I need it to do FT8 and Winlink and good SSB and decent CW.
Yeah I use that app regularly.
Everybody wants to take new pricing and drop it by 50 bucks even tho the rig is 20 years old. 500-550 for an FT891 is too much when a new one is 650.
Did the fence cause any interference?
Just trying to create a way to make myself feel that I earned it, because I really can't afford it.
I told myself the lie that I would try to figure out some way to reward myself with a real 100w mobile HF radio if I get my Extra. But wow, dang it - that test is for real. Not sure I have a chance.
Every post on QRPer.com makes me wish I really had the time to do this hobby right, to really play radio with Morse code and trips out into the woods, but that's just not seemingly possible right now.
Q R P e r
Connecting an international community through low-power field radio adventures.
QRPer.com
I might be a wimp, and I might be slow, and I might breathe heavy the whole time, but dangit, I did at least run. Did you?
I could reach much farther with a high flattop dipole, but haven't gotten that installed yet. May not ever be able.
South America has even evaded me on FT8. I'm trapped by a mountain and can only throw NVIS to the south. (I live on the north facing side of a ridge. Weather is similar to Alaska, lol ..)