I had promised to start posting my activations so that others could start planning on how to find me. This weekend, I will be trying to get first on 902 and then 1296. There are just a few stations that will be getting on 902, but they seem to be spread out across local Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Weather permitting, I will try to work the few on 902 and then move over to 1296. This will not be optimum for stations with limited moon in common to me here in Oregon. Please do not worry that you will miss me. I will be in Oregon until early May.
I need about 15 degrees elevation to get over the near-field rooftops. I will always be on HB9Q when I have internet connectivity. I will likely not stay on until moon set. If you have a special need or want, please send me an email. It is listed at QRZ.com.
Updated – I did not attempt to get on during the 24th local time. The rain was too often and too much. On the 25th, I did get the system assembled and tried to get on 902 MHz. I made a mistake and blew one of my two 902 amplifiers. I need a day or two to finish the modification of the second amplifier. I will be more careful with it. After the final confirmation that the 902 amplifier was dead, I moved over to 1296 MHz. I worked a number of stations including KB2SA for his 49th state. I took a break for dinner, When I came back, the station would not function. I found that the USB hub had failed. I do not have a spare. I will need to replace it before I can try again on 902 and 1296.
For an informal operation, it was a bit of failure and success. I’ll take the success and learn from the failures. More to follow in other posts. Tentatively, I will make a larger effort on 1296 during my local Friday afternoon and evening, March 31 to April 1. This should allow for a better window to EU. I will be at a nearby farm with a much cleaner view of moonrise.
