Messages

16

HF Beacons / Re: Wednesday Morning 2 MHz Report 9 Jan 2013

« on: February 06, 2013, 0736 UTC »

2008 and 2018 are very low-power (below 10 mW), 2025.16 "Inyo Dark Ditter" is 1.5 watts, so it might be the next obvious choice for long-DX rather than the lower freq. beacons.  The "IDD" goes on at dusk and off sometime in the wee hours when the battery goes below 11 volts.

73 -v-

17

HF Beacons / Re: Kelsie back on air, 4096.6 kHz, 08 Jan, 2013

« on: February 06, 2013, 0733 UTC »

Kelsie has not had a repair visit in 6-plus years - it is a wonder it still is going on a obviously poor battery now - any sudden appearances of Kelsie are quite mysterious... -v-

18

HF Beacons / Re: SD Oct 16

« on: October 19, 2012, 1434 UTC »

The SD op and I both copied SD here at my QTH in the e. CA desert at about 0230 UT 19 Oct. on about 5484.11 kHz. SD is in AZ.

73 - v

19

HF Beacons / Re: UPdated Desert beaconlist - Oct. 2012

« on: October 17, 2012, 1338 UTC »

yeah GF, I need to get there one day and hike up to its site and check out what happened (if the thing is still there).  73 - -v-

20

HF Beacons / Re: UPdated Desert beaconlist - Oct. 2012

« on: October 17, 2012, 1257 UTC »

Hi Chris,

You're very welcome! Your HFU site and apps/sorftware are EXCELLENT! Thank you! -v-

21

HF Beacons / Re: Update the beacon list

« on: October 17, 2012, 1138 UTC »

Version two (corrected beacon listing) is on a new topic posted at 1040 UT / 17 Oct. 2012 - 73, -v-

22

HF Beacons / UPdated Desert beaconlist - Oct. 2012

« on: October 17, 2012, 1019 UTC »

Updated (partial) Desert PHifer Beacon List - October 2012 - v2. 

2025.16 kHz "Inyo Dark Ditter" 67 dits/minute.  Night-only, about 2 watts output
  to inv. vee on granite rock-pile. (s.w. USA in Calif.)

4096.24 "Hexie" 1 second-long dashes, 24/7, Joshua Tree NP, 400 mW
  on since Dec. 1997!

4097.25 "Inyo Whooper" daytime-only, about 90-chirping dashes/min.
   3/4 watts. First on April 2007

5205.3 "Sally" diter beacon in the Saline Valley, CA - east-facing
  solar-panel so mainly morning only (a daytimer). 1/2 watt.
  First on-air Feb. 2006

6626.3 "Rainy" - Mojave NP, CA - daytime ditter/chirper in
  Mojave NP, 1.5 watts, first on-air March 2003

6626.2 "Rocky" a "buzzer-beacon" located in Inyo, Co, CA
 with about 300 mW output - daytime only, first on-air Spring 2007

6700.5 "Hexy2k" Joshua Tree NP, 24/7, 100 mW to inv. vee, 150 mW
  first on-air 29 Dec. 1999

8193.75 "MarinDit" - 24/7 in Marin County, CA - about 80 dits/min.
  10-15 mW only - on-air since spring 2000 (an "attic beacon")

----------------

DOA beacons due to battery failure in need of battery replacement

4096.1 "Coxie" - Joshua Tree NP - battery dead...
4096.6 "Kelsie" Mojave NP - battery dead...

Mysterious sudden disappearance:

4089 Death Valley Ditter "Scotty Beacon" suddenly QRT NOv. 2011

----------------- - 73 - v

23

HF Beacons / Re: Update the beacon list

« on: October 17, 2012, 0618 UTC »

Updated (partial) Desert PHifer Beacon List - October 2012

2025.16 kHz "Inyo Dark Ditter" 67 dits/minute.  Night-only, about 2 watts output
  to inv. vee on granite rock-pile. (s.w. USA in Calif.)

4096.24 "Hexie" 1 second-long dashes, 24/7, Joshua Tree NP, 400 mW

4097.25 "Inyo Whooper" daytime-only, about 90-chirping dashes/min.
  on since Dec. 1997! 3/4 watts.

5205.3 "Sally" diter beacon in the Saline Valley, CA - east-facing
  solar-panel so mainly morning only (a daytimer). 1/2 watt.

6626.3 "Rainy" - Mojave NP, CA - daytime ditter/chirper in
  Mojave NP, 1.5 watts

6626.2 "Rocky" a "buzzer-beacon" located in Inyo, Co, CA
 with about 300 mW output - daytime only

8193.75 MarinDit - 24/7 in Marin County, CA - about 80 dits/min.
  10 mW only

----------------

DOA beacons due to battery failure in need of battery replacement

4096.1 Coxie - Joshua Tree NP - battery dead...
4096.6 "Kelsie" Mojave NP - battery dead...

Mysterious sudden dissappearance:

4089 Death Valley Ditter "Scotty Beacon" suddenly QRT Nov. 2011

-----------------

24

HF Beacons / Re: Update the beacon list

« on: October 16, 2012, 0537 UTC »

Oh, and another thing - a far-worse "threat" to legit HF operations, besides our beacons that we try to have on non-QRMed freqs., are all of those obnoxious switching power-supplies, dimmers, touch-lamps, TVs, etc. etc. that radiate crud all over MF and HF (and beyond) that the USA-Feds. have allowed to swamp the "market" out there, so to get all fussy over a beacon on a coherent frequency, then allow all of those crud-producing devices to be plugged into the grid is preposterous and very hypocritical.

73 - -v-

25

HF Beacons / Re: Update the beacon list

« on: October 16, 2012, 0525 UTC »

Token and cwguy both have very valid points - but indeed, don't put a 24 hour blaster on your own property, unless very temporary.

I tend to consider all of my beacons (the 13 out there beeping and dashing in the desert boonies), as fairly safe, but esetially, they are all "disposable beacons" and if one is taken down or "busted either by feds or the mil or not-nice radio people, another can be implanted in another even more "impossible" area to get to.

Most FCC agents drive bulky SUV;s and are loath the get out of their Chevy gas-guzzlers to hike way out in the desert wilderness where they might get bitten by snakes or get a cholla catci in their ankle, so they stay away and "bust" esaier targets like HF broadcast pir8s or FM pirates which can be tracked to their "operator" and thus, money/fines can be "conjured" from the poor op., so I have no fear of implanting beacons hither and yon - but it is good to rig up a circuit that has the beacon shut off during periods of the day where prop. is poor (like the increasing amount of lower-HF/high-MF night-only beacons - just try to DF one of those in a remote location at night... 10 x more tough than in broad daylight...

So beacon-on and don't sweat the Fed. Freaks...

-v-

26

HF Beacons / Re: A 2097

« on: October 11, 2012, 1531 UTC »

it is NOW 38W. -v-

27

HF Beacons / Re: HF Beacon X

« on: October 11, 2012, 1530 UTC »

It is not in the central Inyo County region, as it is not a daytime, short-skip audible beacon, unlike some of the 4096/7 kHz cluster were, but it is strong at night here in the northern Mojave Desert. -v-

28

HF Beacons / Re: Microwatt Miracle - sand-dune temperature drifter

« on: October 03, 2012, 2130 UTC »

It might be it, but over time it should show drift one way or another - rarely does it sit still for more than 15 minutes - it is quite temp. sensitive - about 8.5 kHz freq. swing day to night.  You should also see two frequencies about 2 kHz apart, plus and minus a few hundred hertz. This 1 mW beacon is def. the weidest one I've planted...

-v-

29

HF Beacons / 5205.3 saline Valley ditter strong this morning

« on: September 30, 2012, 1930 UTC »

The Saline Valley ditter on 5205.3 kHz is strong this morning and now at 1928 UT in Inyo Co. Ca.

This beacon uses an east-facing Siemens 1.8 -watt solar-panel so mainly morning-only beacon...

CODAR radar QRM as usual on this freq...

73 - v-

30

HF Beacons / Re: Microwatt Miricle - sand-dune temperature drifter

« on: September 30, 2012, 1907 UTC »

oh, i need to emphasize this 2671-2680 kHz FSK drifter-beacon is 1 MILLI-watt (not 1 microwatt) and thus might skip some skywave...

73

-v-