2017 Spring VHF/UHF Field Day

[VK4ADC]

Spring 2017 - Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 November.

The VHF-UHF Field Days provide VHF-UHF operators with the opportunity to "head for the hills" and see how far and how many they can work. 


The Field Days have separate sections for single and multiple operator stations. The duration of the Field Day is 24 hours, but there are also 8 hour sections for operators who may not be able to camp overnight. Most club stations prefer to operate for the full 24 hours. 

The Field Days also generate plenty of activity from home stations, so there is also a separate Home Station section. 

All contacts must be simplex: contacts through repeaters or satellites are not allowed. There is plenty of FM activity, but one feature of the Field Days is a high level of SSB activity. 

It is possible to do very well with only modest antennas if you pick a good hilltop. Another option, if your station is easily transportable, is to operate from more than one location during the contest period. 

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

PDF of rules for this event are not yet on the WIA web site. The rules will likely be the same as these (dates excepted):
Spring VHF-UHF Field Day Rules 2016

2016 Spring VHF-UHF Field Day Rules.pdf

To be confirmed.....



'Reserve' your weekend (with the family) now !

[VK4ADC]

This event is just over 3 weeks away now so a big BUMP as a reminder for you to start preparing for it.

The rules have now been made available on the WIA web site: 2017 Spring Field day rules

So...  Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 November 2017
Duration, all call areas other than VK6: 0100 UTC Saturday to 0100 UTC Sunday 
Duration in VK6 only: 0400 UTC Saturday to 0400 UTC Sunday

In brief:

Still two divisions, distance and grid-square based.

Sections 
A: Portable station, single operator, 24 hours (A1) OR 8 hours (A2). 
B: Portable station, multiple operators, 24 hours (B1) OR 8 hours (B2). 
C: Home station, 24 hours (C1) OR 8 hours (C2). 
D: Rover station, 24 hours (D1) OR 8 hours (D2). 

Note that 8 hours means any period up to 8 hours (but the period must be contiguous); i.e. you can submit a log for a few contacts (even just one!). Likewise, 24 hours means any period from 8 hours up to 24 hours.  

Sub-sections 
(a) Single-band only: any single band permitted on the operator’s licence. 
(b) Four-bands: 6 m/2 m/70 cm/23 cm – any two, up to the four – only. 
© All-bands: all bands 50 MHz-up permitted on the operator’s licence. 
(d) Digital: contacts using non-voice digital modes (e.g. FSK441, JT4, JT65, MAP65, PSK31, RTTY, etc) are encouraged for any Section–Sub-section, but entries must be submitted in a separate log, scored separately. 

Operators may submit a log for any other section in addition to their digital entry. ‘Digital’ means those modes where the received signal is decoded by a computer. Stations entering the all-bands sub-section cannot enter additional logs for the four-bands or single-band sub-sections. A station operating on any number of bands cannot enter the single-band section for each band they use. That’s not in the spirit of this section!

[VK4OE]

Greetings to all readers.

I am proposing to 'do' this event in the same manner as I have for many recent FD contests, weather permitting, of course.

That will have me on Mt Gravatt, QG62MK, in Brisbane from about 6:30 p.m. on the Saturday evening, and in the Border Ranges National Park in Northern VK2, QG61NP, on the Sunday morning, starting there about 7:00 a.m.

As usual, I propose to have available all bands from 50 MHz to 24 GHz, and possibly 47 GHz depending on other protagonists. For liaison/talk back I generally rely on SSB on one of the 'lower' bands, but for much of the time I keep 146.5 and/or 439 simplex channels open for other folk to make contact. But on the Sunday morning, there are many amateurs in Northern VK2 who like to use 146.5 MHz FM simplex as a 'local' chat channel. This is fair enough but during the contest it leads to the volume control on my radio often being turned down or the radio set to 146.55 MHz simplex.

My mobile 'phone number is 0428 191066 but it'll only be possible to use it on the Saturday evening - the BRNP location 'sees' so many strong base signals that mobile phones don't work there unless a directional antenna is used to select a base down near Kyogle.

Here's hoping again for good weather and enthusiastic station operators!

Cheers and 73,

Doug Friend, VK4OE.

[VK4ADC]

DougF

Unsure at this stage what I will be doing this Field day. Firstly, we have to vote in the Q'ld Election on Saturday and if I am going out into the field, I would be gone from home probably before the local voting locations open at 8AM. I still haven't managed to make it to Kamerun Lookout (QG61OR ? - grid to be checked) on the road to O'Reillys and that is my planned destination IF I go out, weather permitting also. Normally operating frequencies 6M to 3CM would typically apply if portable.

I may end up operating from home (QG62LG51) for the Saturday afternoon and early evening '8 hour section' but I should be able to do all bands 6M to 3CM from here in lieu once the microwave gear is set up. I haven't paid any attention to the uW gear in a while so can only assume it is operating as previously. As is my normal FDs practice, I won't be operating Sunday AM.

I have been a stalwart activator of the FDs for quite a few years but the seemingly dropping participation numbers, particularly for microwave in SE Qld, are making it harder and harder to justify the effort in prep, travel, set-up, participation, pull-down and pack-away phases. I am already contemplating what my future FD involvement will be like from this year onward - and operating portable in every VHF/UHF FD is very unlikely.

73 DougH

[VK2ZRH]

Avoid going out and battling the queues at voting venues on the Saturday - put in your postal vote now !

[VK4OE]

Or 'Pre-Poll Voting' - that's what my wife and I always do!
Cheers and 73,
--Doug.

[VK4ADC]

The nearest PrePoll to us is about 12KM by crow, and probably 20KM each way by road in a direction we don't ever travel, given that we are semi-rural dwellers these days.   The on-the-day voting booth is about 3KMs away and much easier to access so that will undoubtedly be the method. Anyway, who said that 'they' could hold an election on a Field Day weekend ??

There is still rain showing in the forecast for the end of next week for the possible portable QTH locality, 40% of 0 to 1-2mm, but it is still too early to get a proper outlook. Probably Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday will see the forecast firm up.  I have done enough wet weather outings to avoid any more at this point so I will operate from home if the weather outlook is wet. (Yeah, I know - what a whimp   )

[VK2KRR]

I'll hopefully be available from home. Trying to get 4 yagi array ready on 2m, but fast running out of time.
6, 2, 70, 23 should be available in some form or another.

[VK3QI]

I'll hopefully be available from home. Trying to get 4 yagi array ready on 2m, but fast running out of time.
6, 2, 70, 23 should be available in some form or another.

That's great news Leigh.

We will be looking for you from VK3ER/p  at QF22DM  as usual.

Predictions and weather look reasonable - not brilliant, but certainly doable.

Cheers

Peter  VK3QI  (VK3ER/p  on 1296 and above)

[VK4ADC]

Despite the slightly improved weather outlook for Saturday (SEQ Southeast Coast area: Partly cloudy. Slight (30%) chance of a shower in the morning and afternoon. Light winds becoming easterly 15 to 25 km/h during the day then becoming light during the evening. Overnight temperatures falling to between 14 and 18 with daytime temperatures reaching around 30.), changed family arrangements will rule out portable operation during this Spring FD. Having to go and vote on Saturday  in the Q'ld Elections only adds to the arrangements disarray.

Still, I am hoping that the microwave gear will be set up at the home QTH (QG62LG51) by late Saturday morning or early afternoon so that operation from 1296 to 10368 can happen in addition to 50/144/432 SSB, 52.525/146.5/439.0 FM. It can't be set up earlier if rain is likely (as waterproofing was optional.....), and the 600mm dish/transverters will have to be 'dropped' and packed before closing for the night (because of 60% chance of 1-10mm rain forecast for Sunday !!).

Hope to work you in the contest..
73 Doug VK4ADC

[VK2JDS]

The central west group will be operating from my place at qf46pu today and tonight.
We will have all bands from 6m to 76Ghz, so we will be looking for contacts from sydney, blue mountains area or south.
Try us on our long range club repeater on 147.2MHz +600 offset, no tone required. 
A station from st ives was getting into it a few days ago with a yagi and 50 watts, so sydney stations should get into it ok.
Phone or text to 0429 109 622
73 Dave vk2jds

[VK4ADC]

It is funny the way things turn out. My 'normal' process in preparation for going portable is to gather all of the required bits, pre-test everything, pre-install and pack as much as I can on the trailer used for the FD ops, ditto the transport case for the actual radio gear.... That couldn't happen this time due to family commitments during the latter part of the week. 

My plans for operating on microwave from home in this event went bad on Friday when the old IC-706(Mk1) IF transceiver decided that it didn't want to power on after sitting basically idle since the Winter Field Day. No IF transceiver = no operation on 23cm to 3cm. I also now have suspicions that my 70cm yagi may have issues because comparing the gain and polar pattern of my 2m yagi (of the same basic design)  against it shows discrepancies in overall operation - either that or the coax feeder has an open or short circuit somewhere along its length. Up the top of the tower maybe ??

My revised plans to not go portable were probably just as well: according to the BOM radar view, I watched a storm front pass over the top of the envisaged Kamerun Lookout portable QTH before arriving near the home QTH,  complete with lightning and thunder. I may not have encountered 70cm yagi problems as portable but "rain, field day operations and I" are no longer on my want-to-do list.

I called it quits after 50 contacts achieved across 6m, 2m & 70cm in several operating periods during the 8 hours of Saturday arvo and evening and will submit my log if for no other reason than to provide a cross-check on others' logs. Greatest distances: north to VK4KSY at 259KM, south to VK2QJ/p at 273KM.

I hope your FD operation turned out better than mine and you grabbed lots of contacts to submit in your log.

73 Doug

[VK2KRR]

VERY quiet from my QTH, I've only confirmed hearing (and working) 2 stations.

I switched my 23cm over to work on my transverter yesterday and this morning I've damaged the pre-amp as I thought I could just manually switch it in and out, turns out if you forget it once, thats it.
Then something weird was going on with my 2m transverter in regards to reflected power, so that was it for me. Shut down in disgust.
Some nice contacts with VK3ER/p and VK3KQ/p. Up to 23cm no problems @ 347 and 398 km.

I guess the bad weather down south is possibly keeping people away from being portable. If only people had home stations.

[VK3QI]

VERY quiet from my QTH, I've only confirmed hearing (and working) 2 stations.

I switched my 23cm over to work on my transverter yesterday and this morning I've damaged the pre-amp as I thought I could just manually switch it in and out, turns out if you forget it once, thats it.
Then something weird was going on with my 2m transverter in regards to reflected power, so that was it for me. Shut down in disgust.
Some nice contacts with VK3ER/p and VK3KQ/p. Up to 23cm no problems @ 347 and 398 km.

I guess the bad weather down south is possibly keeping people away from being portable. If only people had home stations.

---

VERY quiet from my QTH, I've only confirmed hearing (and working) 2 stations.

I switched my 23cm over to work on my transverter yesterday and this morning I've damaged the pre-amp as I thought I could just manually switch it in and out, turns out if you forget it once, thats it.
Then something weird was going on with my 2m transverter in regards to reflected power, so that was it for me. Shut down in disgust.
Some nice contacts with VK3ER/p and VK3KQ/p. Up to 23cm no problems @ 347 and 398 km.

I guess the bad weather down south is possibly keeping people away from being portable. If only people had home stations.

---

Leigh,

Sorry to hear that the transverter spat the dummy whilst your were talking with me.  I guess the high power must have arced the changeover relay and zapped the preamp.   I have had that happen a  number of times on the Field Days and it is not pleasant changing a preamp or relay at midnight under torchlight in driving rain or winds whilst standing on top of my trailer!

If there is anything we can do to help you with parts just drop us a line.    Thanks for the qsos on 1296 and lower during the contest - much less activity this year from VK2 and VK1 down towards VK3, although propagation to VK7 and eastern VK3 was great (but little activity as usual from there).

Cheers

Peter  VK3QI   (VK3ER/p)

[VK3AV]

Hi Leigh,

I feel your pain as I seem to have done the same thing with my 23cm PA and after replacing a MMIC twice I gave up and bypassed it. (Damn those components are small...) Then on Saturday I responded to a test call from VK3ER/P (Peter VK3QI) on 23cm to hear that my signal was distorted and largely unreadable. So the PA, that I had spent weeks putting together, was also unplugged and I went from a planned easy 100W back to 10W for the Field Day.  

In any case, I still had quite a few contacts over the weekend on 6 bands though I could not hear you, only VK3ER/P working you. By the Summer Field Day I will be fully operational I am sure. I might even do something about the 70cm pallet that I have on the shelf...  

I also wish that there were more stations operating, be they portable or home, as each event in the past few years has had fewer participants. 

Finally, a big thank you to those that I have on my log, and to those who have answered my questions and provided guidance to this 'beginner' at non-out of the box RF projects.

Regards
Bernard   (Home station)

[VK4ADC]

Log now uploaded via VKCL !  I'm done...

[VK2JDS]

That reminds me I must put in the contest log from our saturday activation with the club guys.

Re that preamp for 23cm Leigh, is that the dish mounted one I built for you ?, if so I will be happy to repair it and post it back if you want to get it down off the tower.

73 Dave vk2jds

[VK2KRR]

Hi Peter, not the transverter that spat dummy, was just that I TXd drive power into the pre-amp which fried it, I didn't switch the switch. I will have to organise a sequencer.
Something started going on with the 2m xvtr where it was showing reflected power coming from the rest of the 2m system, I couldnt drive the 2m power as per normal. I changed the cable back to the IC910 and it was fine. 910s are renown for limiting TX power if theres and SWR issue, so initially im suspecting a possible issue with the Xvtr. I'll test it when I feel like turning it back on again.
My apologies for taking so long in getting the station up and running.

Bernard, I'd say we just didn't cross paths at the right time, I can usually hear most people from Melbourne area. Maybe next time, good to hear you were running as a home station. Sorry to hear about your 23cm PA Disappointing when these things occur after the time taken to put them together.

---

David, thank you very much for the offer, but no, that one got green with moisture quite a while back now. Since then Ive been using one I sourced from EU somewhere, https://www.thedxshop.com/masthead-pream...igned.html
Im not sure but I might still have yours somewhere around here I will have to have a look.

[VK3CWF]

Sunday morning was the only time I could get on air and I used 2m SSB from home.
There were not many stations around the Melbourne area.
Longest contact for me was VK3EV in Gippsland, about 190 odd km away.
Hope to go portable on the summer field day.
Bill VK3CWF.

Log uploaded. 15 contacts.

[VK5ZD]

Noticed an odd thing when preparing my logs. In division 2, VKCL allocates bonus points for portable to portable contacts but there's no mention of this in the rules.
Curious...