Heads Up!: 2015 Spring VHF-UHF Field Day

[VK3BQ]

Your amplifier was turned up to ""11.5"" as advised by you no wonder it went pop. Had a chance to edit the good camera photos too. They are below. Look the same as 2012/13/14 too!!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/asphotos/ ... 1270119935

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[vk1da]

Just uploaded my log for the third time, after editing out errors discovered in various ways. Did not realise there were bonus points depending on /P or not added to callsign. Re-checked all portables. Then had to remove /P from VK2HZ as they were not a field station. So, 3 uploads so far, apologies to whoever deals with the log files (Roger?), just delete the earlier ones.

More changes possible having read the comment about upper case for grid locators.

Poor conditions but with increased contact numbers due to reduced gap between repeat contacts.

Thanks for the contacts, especially 3ER 3KQ 3HY and 3ALB (chased you for a while on Saturday night, finally caught you on Sunday morning).

[vk1da]

Bizarre scores when MaidenHeads are entered in capitals:


01:47 144 SSB VK2IUW 59001 59002 63 QF56HG QF56IF
01:51 50 SSB VK2IUW 59002 59003 21 QF56HG QF56IF
02:20 144 SSB VK2CZ 59003 59005 3 qf56hg qf56oe
02:22 420 SSB VK2CZ 59004 59006 105 QF56HG QF56OE
02:41 144 SSB VK2YOC 59005 59008 3 qf56hg qf56hi

BMARC VK2HZ operating from Andrew VK2XPT's place, East Blaxland.

are you suggesting that the score is different if everything is constant other than the lower case/upper case? your quoted examples does not support that because they have different bands on each contact. Were you using the Grid Square award rules or the Distance based scoring rules?

Curious...

[VK4ADC]

Bizarre scores when MaidenHeads are entered in capitals:


01:47 144 SSB VK2IUW 59001 59002 63 QF56HG QF56IF
01:51 50 SSB VK2IUW 59002 59003 21 QF56HG QF56IF
02:20 144 SSB VK2CZ 59003 59005 3 qf56hg qf56oe
02:22 420 SSB VK2CZ 59004 59006 105 QF56HG QF56OE
02:41 144 SSB VK2YOC 59005 59008 3 qf56hg qf56hi

BMARC VK2HZ operating from Andrew VK2XPT's place, East Blaxland.

It's actually quite simple: Each new grid square on each new band is worth more initial points, the total being set by the band multiplier (see the FD rules for the mult details). Subsequent contacts into the same grid square on the same band gains only a few points.

Rules: http://www.wia.org.au/members/contests/ ... 202015.pdf

It makes no difference to VKCL if the grid square details entered are capitalised or not.

[VK3QI]

Andrew,

Thanks for the qsos on 1.2 Ghz on Sunday morning.

It only goes to show how effective the old morse code is!

I had oodles of S/N left to add to your signal before it would have become unreadable. Definitely next time we try for 2.4Ghz, even if it is on CW!

Peter VK5PJ was also an excellent signal on 1.2Ghz on Sunday morning. We were probably one day early as far as the optimum position of the high pressure system to guarantee enhanced signals over the entire southeast of Oz.

Cheers

Peter VK3QI (VK3ER/p)

[vk1da]

Peter,

Thanks to you also. Agreed, the CW contacts are equivalent to adding 10db compared with the same power on ssb. Most cw ops can copy down to about -8db s:n, at least I can, according to the WSJT S/N test.

Would have been interested to try 2.4 GHz but with conditions as they were, it did look like a lot of setup for zero result. If the field day had been two days later, I think we would all have had a better time! But we cannot choose our weather.

73

[vk1da]

It's actually quite simple: Each new grid square on each new band is worth more initial points, the total being set by the band multiplier (see the FD rules for the mult details). Subsequent contacts into the same grid square on the same band gains only a few points.

Indeed, it is a good illustration of the anomalies of the grid square based rules. They don't appear to be logical unless the user is aware of which set of rules they are using. The distance based formula (Division 2) is far more logical, where every contact at a given distance on the same band is worth a consistent number of points.

Beware - VKCL defaults to the Grid Square rule system in the VHF/UHF field contests and you have to change it to the other Division - before you start logging contacts! Analysts and commentators studying the takeup rate of Divisions 2 v 1 should bear that in mind! (not a criticism of the software - "radio buttons" which present the user with choices need a default value so whichever way it is programmed there will be a decision needed).

Thanks for reassuring me that it isn't case sensitive, Dave. Let's hope this Div1/Div2 thing is resolved soon.

[VK3AV]

I note in Andrew VK1DA comments above,mention of the /P for portable stations and the impact on scoring. Having a look through the current rules it is not mentioned nor was it included in the Summer 2915 rules but is detailed in the 2014 rules.

Is this still part of the rules/scoring? (As this was my first Field Day participation I had not read the earlier rules until now.)

Whilst I have the floor, a big thank you to those that I managed to contact and also for your patience as I worked out what this was all about. I look forward to the Summer event.

Regards
Bernard

[VK3LL]

Hi VK1DA Andrew,

Beware - VKCL defaults to the Grid Square rule system in the VHF/UHF field contests and you have to change it to the other Division - before you start logging contacts!

I'm not sure that is the strictly the case. You can go back into VKCL after the event, change from Div2 to Div1 (or Div1 to Div2) and VKCL recalculates the score.

Great working you on the weekend as well. Incidentally, our QSOs on 70cm were after our PA blew up, so our RF out was only a few watts.

Many thanks,
Ralph VK3LL

[VK2ZRH]

FINAL CALL FOR LOGS

THE DEADLINE IS MIDNIGHT MONDAY 30TH OF NOVEMBER. Yes. Tomorrow !

Submit your logs, folks – make the other participants happy.

May I suggest you do it before you start on your Sunday BBQ prawns.

GET CRACKING and get those logs in, people !

What with the new sections to enter, you never know how it might turn out.

Logs already submitted have poured-in from all over – EVEN VK6, this time !

If you had a go in the Spring VHF-UHF Field Day and handed out a few serial numbers – it does not matter if you had just one contact – three contacts – ten contacts, or a hundred – write up a log and submit it.

If you made a small number of contacts, you can prepare a log with nothing more than a text editor – just as I’ve done in the past. Otherwise, you might consider using the VKCL application to score your contacts for ¬both Division 1 and Division 2.

It’s not hard these days. Guidance is on the WIA website, on the VHF UHF Field Days page, which is found under Contests. But you know that, I'm sure.

You can submit your electronic log using the log upload facility on that page.

Logs uploaded after 2400 hours Eastern Daylight Saving Time will not be accepted.

So – one contact, ten contacts or a hundred – portable or home – GET CRACKING !

But wait – there’s more !

Pretty soon, we’ll be calling for submissions to gauge your views on development of future VHF-UHF Field Days. Keep an eye on the website and an ear on the news for YOUR opportunity to have your say.

[VK4TS]

A good change to the rules:

Home stations may enter as a multi-operator station, but only one callsign can be used.

[VK2ZIW]

BMARC also operated from a fixed location, location of a quadriplegic amateur Andrew VK2XPT.
We were portable in that we erected a rotated pole and 6,2,70 and 23 at his place.
He has only 2 & 70 on a vertical. East Blaxland.

Alan VK2ZIW (BMARC secretary, VK2HZ)

[VK2JDS]

You would have entered as a home station though Alan, as to be portable Everything has to be taken to the site and set up. Bmarc had all the comforts and power of a home station.
Same happens here on the mountain, as i have a solar charged battery system and a hut up here its not eligable for 'portable' as such, even though all the radio gear, laptop and aerials are set up on the day. I have to operate as home station.
This field day it was more about debugging microwave gear and the number of contacts was small... lots of cutting, drilling, tapping waveguides, feeds and dishes etc, comparing different setups, all part of the field day spirit !
73 Dave

[VK4TS]

You would have entered as a home station though Alan, as to be portable Everything has to be taken to the site and set up. Bmarc had all the comforts and power of a home station.
Same happens here on the mountain, as i have a solar charged battery system and a hut up here its not eligable for 'portable' as such, even though all the radio gear, laptop and aerials are set up on the day. I have to operate as home station.

Operation may be from any location. A station is portable only if all of its equipment is transported to a place that is not the normal location of any amateur station.

Under that definition Dave you are portable - also note under the rules there is nothing about having to operate under "portable power" eg you could be using mains as long as "all of its equipment is transported to a place that is not the normal location of any amateur station. "

[VK2JDS]

Thanks for the clarification Trent,

"Operation may be from any location. A station is portable only if all of its equipment is transported to a place that is not the normal location of any amateur station. "

It says 'not normal location of ANY amateur station' ... does that mean if (for example) our radio club central west group vk2acw, or bmarc, sets up at a members shack then they arent portable. ? Or if some mates turn up here and set up a kilometre away from my house with completely portable microwave setups, are they truly portable in the eyes of the contest manager if they are still at the residential address of my station....

Or in my situation , the station address on my licence is where i would be operating from, but i would just be in a different spot on the property (same address, slightly different subsquare). This spot on the mountain does have an amateur station there, i run vk2jds-1 aprs digi and thats where i operate in the contest.
(By the way, for a propagation indicator APRS makes a relly good log of long haul openings, with date and time stamps and number of times heard etc, recently right to the qld border, even showing a map of pings too. Aprs.fi , search vk2jds-1, click on info, scroll down to heard list )

Its a bit of a can of worms and nit picking, and we are getting away from the topic of this thread..... but its this uncertainty that is why i enter as a home station to be on the safe side.

Edit : how about we all just say we are portable when we Are setup portable, regardleas of whos place its on, and let common sense prevail when we sign the 'in the spirit of the contest' declaration
73 Dave