2018 Winter VHF/UHF Field Day - 23 and 24 June 2018

[VK4ADC]

This event is now only a few weeks away ( 23 and 24 June 2018 ) so it really is time to get the VHF, UHF and Microwave gear percolating at its best, prepare antennas and cabling and get your FD site organised.

Full info is at http://www.wia.org.au/members/contests/vhfuhf/

The general contest rules should essentially be the same as the Summer 2018 rules, dates excepted, unless a new PDF appears on the above page of the WIA web site beforehand.

Good luck all...

[VK2ZRH]

A PDF of the Rules for the 2018 Winter VHF-UHF Field Day have been posted to the website. 

http://www.wia.org.au/members/contests/vhfuhf/

[VK4OE]

Greetings to all and thanks to Roger for organising things, plus to Doug for making this notification medium available!

Weather permitting, for the forthcoming Winter VHF-UHF Field Day Contest I propose to be operating on the Saturday evening from Mt Gravatt in Brisbane, QG62MK, and on the Sunday morning from Kamarun Lookout (near O'Reillys Resort) QG61NU.  Commencement times should be around 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m respectively.

I should have equipment available for all bands from 50 MHz up to and including 76 GHz, with initial talk-back/liaison happening on 146.5 MHz FM simplex or 439.0 MHz FM simplex.  My mobile 'phone is 0428 191 066 but, understandably, resorting to that is only infrequent.

Here's looking forward to good weather and many folk having many contacts on many bands!

Cheers and 73,

--Doug Friend, VK4OE.

[VK3CWF]

Weather permitting I will be backpack QRP portable on Flinders Peak (SOTA VK3/VC-030) in the You Yangs Regional Park (VKFF-0982) early on Saturday afternoon for an hour or two. I will be on 144.150 SSB and 146.500 FM. Then back down the mountain to the vehicle where I will also have 6m SSB.
Hope for calm dry weather like last weekend.

[VK4EA]

Sunday morning I’ll be at Howell’s Knob to enjoy some low dew point micro/millimetre operating on 5.7/10/24 and 47GHz. if i get motivated I may have 1.2 and 2.4GHz as well.


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[VK2WP]

With the freezing winter, temperatures at zero or worse, winds and snow about think I will give the field day a miss.

2 metres (which is all I have), DX activity is virtually zilch west of the Blue Mountains in any case.

[VK4ADC]

Hi all,

My field day activity will be restricted to that of a home station (QG62LG51) on 6/2/70 SSB and FM for probably at least a few hours Saturday afternoon, maybe into early evening. 

FT8 was a possibility for digital contacts on 6/2/70 but the Division 2 rules expressly require 6 character grid exchanges - which the WSJT-X software can't routinely do on that mode - but which is acceptable/possible for Division 1 entries - where now-a-days I normally enter only Div2.  Not planning to operate the other WSJT-X modes eg FSK441, JT4, JT65, MAP65, PSK31, RTTY.
 
Microwave activity this time around is simply not happening. 

The forecast temps of 6-23C for the Saturday for my area aren't particularly conducive either - even if not as bad as down south..

Good luck (and weather) to all participants.
73 Doug VK4ADC

[VK2KRR]

2 metres (which is all I have), DX activity is virtually zilch west of the Blue Mountains in any case.

  Interesting comment. West of the Blue Mountains is where the majority of Australian 2m DX activity is found.

[VK4EA]

Sunday morning I’ll be at Howell’s Knob to enjoy some low dew point micro/millimetre operating on 5.7/10/24 and 47GHz. if i get motivated I may have 1.2 and 2.4GHz as well.


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Changing to McCarthy’s Lookout due to a poor path to Kamuran Lookup from Howell’s Knob.


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[VK2WP]

2 metres (which is all I have), DX activity is virtually zilch west of the Blue Mountains in any case.

  Interesting comment. West of the Blue Mountains is where the majority of Australian 2m DX activity is found.

There is little dx activity in the Central Tablelands/West not many ops on air from my observations. Most people whom are on air are around southern N.S.W, in Sydney region or VK1, VK3 or in VK4.

Out in the country very few and far between.

[VK2KRR]

2 metres (which is all I have), DX activity is virtually zilch west of the Blue Mountains in any case.

  Interesting comment. West of the Blue Mountains is where the majority of Australian 2m DX activity is found.

There is little dx activity in the Central Tablelands/West not many ops on air from my observations. Most people whom are on air are around southern N.S.W, in Sydney region or VK1, VK3 or in VK4.

Out in the country very few and far between.

Sorry for hijacking the thread. 
Not sure of your QTH VK2WP, but if your on the Blue Mountains and have access to paths to the west, dont miss out on DX paths such as these from stations to the west (of the Blue Mountains) on 2m. They dont always occur during a contest though is the only problem. These paths were in the morning of the 22nd of May.
   

Apologies for the post.

[VK2WP]

Alas on the 22nd of May was up north in Queensland without any radio gear except 2M FM and was doing other things than radio.

Such openings are rather infrequent to say the least and in my part of the world 2M DX ops are few and far between.

The nearest op I have had a contact with is at Blackheath in the Blue Mountains and is only on air now and then. Apart from him have worked another in Sydney and occassionally ops in Canberra and Nimitabel.

Apart from putting up a taller pole for my yagi pretty well as far as I will go for the activity.

Getting back to the contest which is the subject matter see little incentive to set up a field station in the middle of winter when there are so few stations on air.

[VK4TS]

We Sunshine Coast Amateur Radio Club will be active from the club rooms for the Winter Field Day as VK4WIS

Trying out the new antenna systems 

QRV 6 2 70 23 and maybe higher 

Ops will be VK4FSCC VK4LHD VK4SN and VK4TS 

Radios will be ICOM 7300, ICOM 910 

Hope to hear you all on the bands 

[VK4ADC]

BUMP : This weekend...

[VK2KRR]

I may be available from home at different times on Saturday, but more than likely wont be around on Sunday morning.
2m WSPR data will be available at other times.
Currently tropo in the south east, west of the divide could be above average and the weather is looking great!
DONT write off 6m because its winter, 6m WSPR has been showing quite a lot of sporadic E over the past week, there have been Es propagation about the east of Australia and across to New Zealand from some areas. I even received VK4FP today on a makeshift piece of wire, so fingers cross its good tomorrow.

[VK2KRR]

As luck would have it, conditions Sunday evening are quite exceptional across the south east.
Thats just the way it goes I guess.

[VK2JDS]

Activity on Saturday in the Bathurst Orange region was good as usual, but down a bit on the microwave bands.
Heard and worked some sydney stations and vk1 activity, with some portable stations (vk1da vk2uh Andrew, and vk2io Gerard) on mountains including mt Bindo. I was active from 6 metres to 23cm. John vk2ejm was on air from orange on 23cm initially then got going on 2 and 70 after some reading of the manual for his new 9100.
I wasnt available sunday morning so unsure how it all ended up.
73 Dave vk2jds

[VK4EA]

I got active for microwave only contacts Sunday morning from QG63mk, Maleny escarpment. The weather initially promised low dew point conditions however the persistent Southeast breezes we had over the last few days pushed the dew point to 15 degrees. Easy contacts to Doug VK4OE/p at Kamuran Lookout (QG61nu) on 5760 and 10368MHz, 150km path length. I was pleased that my effort to relocate the 10GHz preamp to the feed point made contacts quite easy. We then attempted 24GHz and while I heard tones and was able to peak up my dish on Doug he was unable to hear anything from me. With nothing to lose we had a go at 47GHz and again I could hear Doug’s dits, he could not hear anything from me. I am running fairly modest RF levels where Doug had 1W in 24GHz and 0.5W on 47GHz. So it appears that a bit of brute force was required to punch through the moisture.

The we had a bit of fun with Scott VK4CZ operating from his driveway with 10GHz. Once he had completed with Doug we worked on a reflection path that we _think_ may have been off the CBD buildings.

And then Stefan VK4CSD came on with 5, 24 and 76 GHz.

Rare to have a 3 way chat on 5.7GHz!

While Stefan and Doug attempted a 24 and 76GHz contact I sat back and enjoyed the view

Unfortunately Stefan’s 24GHz had a receive issue so unable to complete a contact on that band. I suspect my QRP level transmit and high dew point conditions did not help.

Lessons learned, even though it was a cool morning, dew point was quite high for this time of year & I need more pocket money to buy a couple of PAs :-).......


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[VK2KRR]

Nice report Peter and looks like a great location!

[VK2FLR]

I worked 1DA on 23cm from both his summits, plus 2IO Mt Bindo on 2m. I was unaware of activity from Orange. A pity because Orange is eminently workable. My best DX was Grant 2MAX on 432.