Any Hams Left?

[Billk9kz]

I used to hear hams nearly all the time on 40 and 20 meters on any station, whether it be a portable receiver and the whip antenna or nearly anything. Now I haven't heard hardly a signal ANY time on either band. Are most of the hams dead? I listened for years with good success but not anymore. Anyone hearing anything? Don't tell me it's the bands because I don't believe they could be wiped out all the time. I hear some on 80 at night but not nearly what I used to. I haven't heard hardly a thing on 40 or 20. Do you?

Bill

 

[KR4BD]

Bill:

I have not had this problem. 20 and 40 meters seem OK to me. I have been hearing many stations on both bands. Yes, band conditions are not good. In fact, we are supposedly at the bottom of the sunspot cycle, so things should start improving soon. In recent days, I have heard New Zealand on 20 meters just after sunset. During the day, 40 is pretty dead, but this is normal except for close-in QSOs. Late at night, 20 will "die out" but 40 is usually working well over night for me. I would look at your antenna set up to see if something is not working properly.

 

[Billk9kz]

Bill:

I have not had this problem. 20 and 40 meters seem OK to me. I have been hearing many stations on both bands. Yes, band conditions are not good. In fact, we are supposedly at the bottom of the sunspot cycle, so things should start improving soon. In recent days, I have heard New Zealand on 20 meters just after sunset. During the day, 40 is pretty dead, but this is normal except for close-in QSOs. Late at night, 20 will "die out" but 40 is usually working well over night for me. I would look at your antenna set up to see if something is not working properly.

I think my antenna is fine. I hear MW and many shortwave stations on 6, 7, and 15 Mhz. When I first got my ham license in 86 it was supposed to be at the bottom of the sunspot cycle then too. But I had MANY qso's and heard stations almost continually on 40. 20 was packed. Now almost nothing here.

 

[Rover]

I have heard stations on 20 meters.. no problem and CW on 40. I have heard local Hams on 2 meters talking about contacts on 10 meters....73 Ray KB4OMO

 

[VernM]

Also true is the fact the active ham population is aging and you younger guys have better things to do and more sophisticated stuff to do it with. It's a pity but a fact. There just isn't the interest in amateur radio any more, what with tests to take and the expense of equipment since we've gotten so far from the build-your-own-station days. It is a hobby and a service that is on the wane. And, I for one, regret it and wish I had -- at age 75 -- the energy to do something about it; stay on the back of the staid ARRL, push for trained and equipped emergency communications resources for local and area disaster commands, keep amateur radio in front of the public for what it is and can be to them. But my jousting days are now past too.

 

[WA1CRZ]

Unfortunately, video killed the radio star and I think the internet is killing the ham radio hobby.

 

[k9rzz]

Okay, we won't say that it's band conditions (but it is). Seems like plenty of activity to me, but certainly if prop. is lousy, what fun is it to operate? Things will pick up. 10 and 6 meters have been hopping with E skip lately. Have heard quite a bit of 10 FM out of the east coast lately.

 

[Billk9kz]

I wonder how the ham population of today compares with that of 1986. I know there were MANY hams in 86 who were quite old back then and surely many are gone now. So new hams now can't realize how the bands were twenty years ago as far as usage goes. 20 meters used to be hopping on nearly every available frequency nearly every day. In 86 it was often difficult to squeeze in the novice CW bands. It doesn't look too good for ham HF from what I've seen.
Most of the broadcast stations are long gone too.
Bill

 

[nexus]

The ham population is actually increasing. Ever since the recent removal of the morse code requirement for all licenses, people who had been stuck at no-code technician class are now taking and passing their general and extra class exams. Over here in south mississippi we're running several classes. Currently there are 6 hospitals who received a federal grant, and out of their own money to establish an emergency communications network and they're using ham radio. My club is teaching 2 different groups of people 5 nights a week for a month long to get them all technician class licensed. They're installing repeaters in all of the 6 hospitals with fixed stations and handheld radios.

Anyhow we're averaging about 50 new hams a month, and most of those new hams and the old techs have been going to "general only" and "extra only" classes and then taking their general and extra class exams.

We just did FIELD DAY a few weeks ago and made thousands of contacts all over the HF bands. The hams aren't gone, ITS CONDITIONS! I'm sorry to say but plain and simple its conditions. Some days most of the hf bands have absolutely nothing on them because of extreme solar blackouts. It's not that there aren't any hams there its because their signals aren't getting out.

And back in 1986 the sunspot cycle was on the high end of its 11 year cycle, meaning the HF bands were very active. But we're in the LOW end of the 11 year cycle (and near the end of that 11 years currently) so in the next couple of years we'll go back UP in sunspot activity which will increase HF propagation worldwide.

 

[zz0468]

I think in general, HF activity is down. Like the others, I'd attribute most of this to poor propagation conditions. But I do hear plenty of activity when the band is open, and on weekends. Is the ham population aging? I don't know... I've been a ham over 30 years, and I've NEVER personally known more than one or two kids who are hams. That was true then, and it's true now. It's always been an older guy's hobby.

 

[7of9]

re ham vs internet

Unfortunately, video killed the radio star and I think the internet is killing the ham radio hobby.

Perhaps the evilness going on on the internet will make ham very important. Here in DC, what I hear from those security folks, friends in govt, they are running around like 'chickens with their heads cut off'

If cells in secure places must be off, skype at 1.8 gz go around the wirewalls, 911 at 800+ is having problems, just how important do you think radio is? Add together that the creeps that hacked our pcs left for me to find that they are scanning in the 56k and isdn frequency. As a rank radio beginner, was scratching my head trying to figure out what frequency or range of frequency that may be in.

I have the 'mind of the child', but even before seeing that I was thinking 'radio'. I tried to find books but found little. Don't yet have moolah to get equipment, but what if ham, even 'tweaked' a bit could stop which is looking more and more week after week like a global 'digital pandemic'?

Most think me batty, but it is so bad, none of their equipment can stop this stuff. My little talk with myself convinces me it is not time for all the bricks to tumble. The solution to every vulnerability, every nasty trogan, scam must be one thing. The war will not be won by putting out little fires, always on defense. After 8-9 months of tracking and hacking(my own pcs), my gut says now what it did in the beginning. 'It is not high tech but low tech' and 'maybe it is radio, afterall is not nearly everything radio'?

 

[gcgrotz]

Listen on 14,238.50 KHz between 07:00 and 08:30 eastern time for the Southern Cross DX net. They are on every day and usually have a couple stations from Austrailia, Japan, Korea, etc on the frequency. More often than not, I can barely hear them with my puny diploe but guys on tha east coast ARE working them. Last week I actually heard V8BDS from Brunei and RW0LG in Vladivostok the same morning.

Also, check the ARRL or QRZ web sites for upcoming major DX contests. You will hear plenty of activity those weekends.

 

[elk2370bruce]

Lately, 20M has been jumping! Yeah, the sunspots are at the lowest ebb but mid-day for 20 lately has been hot. The past weekend, with the IOTA contest, things were hopping until late at night. Worked Bosnia Saturday, along a solid Japanese station although single and double hops seemed to predominate.

 

[K3GI]

The bands have been lousy on all my off days this summer. But weekends they tend to perk up because more people have time to use them. The bottom back in 1996 seemed to have more activity than we have now, but that might just be an illusion because in '96 I was pretty new at it and worked hard at getting contacts. I'm working today so they might be pretty good. lol

 

[jay427]

20 and 40 were very active last week when I was on. The bands are not great but 40 was full. I had a tough time to find a spot for a QSO. Needed to run a little power to get over the summer static though. From what I have read they think we are on are way back up. Will be nice to work 10meters with 10 watts again.

Jay

 

[K3GI]

20 and 40 were very active last week when I was on. The bands are not great but 40 was full. I had a tough time to find a spot for a QSO. Needed to run a little power to get over the summer static though. From what I have read they think we are on are way back up. Will be nice to work 10meters with 10 watts again.

Jay

Just my luck, when I'm busy at work the bands open up. Oh well, looking forward to the improvement. It's still fun, and it will be more fun again.

 

[eorange]

Seems to me that 20 has been open longer into the night over the past few months. I'm not as active in the summer, though, because I like to be outside.

However, I did work HI3TEJ on 14.202 on 7/29 with 100w using my vertical, no problem. Catches like that keep you coming back!

As a 5 wpm Extra I am also thinking about re-learning CW this fall/winter when there's less to do. PSK31 to Venezuela on 20w has piqued my interest in trying QRP CW.

 

[Rover]

I was on 40 meters at 3am on a Sunday here in Florida heard CW stations in the lower part of 40 meters and SSB in the voice section of 40 meters. 73 ray

 

[elk2370bruce]

For those of you who hang out on 20 meters, there is a Michigan Boys and Girls Club operating on 14.267 (or 14265) that you may want to look out for a good contact. K8DAR. Nice group of kids to speak with and you'll make their day with a contact that is more than an exchange of callsigns and signal reports.

 

[scansomd]

Check your antenna. I hear a lot of activity on the HF HAM bands. Some are better than others, but often it's a challenge just to find an unused frequency, especially during the weekend.

I used to hear hams nearly all the time on 40 and 20 meters on any station, whether it be a portable receiver and the whip antenna or nearly anything. Now I haven't heard hardly a signal ANY time on either band. Are most of the hams dead? I listened for years with good success but not anymore. Anyone hearing anything? Don't tell me it's the bands because I don't believe they could be wiped out all the time. I hear some on 80 at night but not nearly what I used to. I haven't heard hardly a thing on 40 or 20. Do you?

Bill