Whats needed for the skip connection

[darticus]

I get a ton of skip in my mobile. What do I need as far as equipment to get back to someone? Is there a Trick? I'm running stock. Thanks Ron

 

[Daniel_Boone]

You have to have the right antenna, preferably a 5/8 wave - and you have to have a good radio, SSB preferred and you have to have a really good install.
You will need to be at the highest elevation you can find - forget MT Wilson and any other antenna farm location - because there is too much RF floating around to make it worth your while.
A really quiet place such as Mt McKinley, or Mt Rainier would be a really good spot.

Then all you need is something in the atmosphere for your signal to bounce off of.

VHF Signal Propagation

Back 40 years ago, there were no cell phones, no cell phone towers, very few FM radio stations as compared to today. There were no personal computers, no modems, very few microwave ovens.
Most of the noise you hear today is man made - generated by humans.
The rest is atmospheric noise caused by lightning.

Get away from the noise and have someone in the right place at the right time to talk to, and you can talk half way around the world on 11 meters with 4 watts.

 

[Daniel_Boone]

DX is not hard to do, all you have to do is understand how it works and what not to do.

Radio Propagation & Aurora

 

[Daniel_Boone]

In order to work Skip - you need to have a high sun spot number.
I checked the index and today's number was as low as it could go - a 10.
By comparison a high number would be a 500.

I would forget about mobile set ups for DX, unless you want to haul around a crank up tower and a 5/8 wave antenna.

The best advice I can give you is to buy a couple of ARRL books and study and take your Technician and General Ham Radio License and talk on the 2 meters and the 440.
Even 6 meters can be pretty decent from a good mobile set up.
10 meters with the right circumstance could get you a couple of thousand miles DX from your mobile with SSB and 100 watts and the right antenna.

 

[darticus]

How anbout my little radio with 2000 watts, a tower ,a rotor, and a moon raker. HUH! Thanks Ron

In order to work Skip - you need to have a high sun spot number.
I checked the index and today's number was as low as it could go - a 10.
By comparison a high number would be a 500.

I would forget about mobile set ups for DX, unless you want to haul around a crank up tower and a 5/8 wave antenna.

The best advice I can give you is to buy a couple of ARRL books and study and take your Technician and General Ham Radio License and talk on the 2 meters and the 440.
Even 6 meters can be pretty decent from a good mobile set up.
10 meters with the right circumstance could get you a couple of thousand miles DX from your mobile with SSB and 100 watts and the right antenna.

 

[KC4RAF]

Hey Ron,

you're not wanting to work skip; your station call is VOR (Voice of Ron)! You've got the utilmate for skip to say the least. lol

 

[darticus]

Hate to ask but what do you mean? Ron

you're not wanting to work skip; your station call is VOR (Voice of Ron)! You've got the utilmate for skip to say the least. lol

 

[hockeyshrink]

How anbout my little radio with 2000 watts, a tower ,a rotor, and a moon raker. HUH! Thanks Ron

:lol::lol::lol:

 

[KC4RAF]

By your post, the 2KW,

The MoonRaker, tower, rotator; Your signal is boss. VOA doesn't have anything over you! You make your own skip! lol My privious post was a compliment for a powerhouse station. lol

 

[fischlerpromo]

Had a great setup .. SSB, extra freqs., locked clarifier, 100W linear but that was back in the 70's.

Talked to Austrialia, Hawaii alot...

 

[W2NJS]

Believe it or not there are predictions made every month about the days and times each month when various bands will be "open" to other parts of the world. Much of it is published in the ham magazine QST but there are other sources as well. It ain't guesswork, and it ain't luck, but it requires application and study to determine what you can expect on any DX band, 11 meters included. Once you find out how it actually works you'll understand why it works, what the F1 and F2 atmospheric layers are, and even what the Kennely-Heaviside layer is and how these things affect long distance radio comms.

 

[gewecke]

I get a ton of skip in my mobile. What do I need as far as equipment to get back to someone? Is there a Trick? I'm running stock. Thanks Ron

A ham license is all you need!


73,
n9zas

 

[rfradioconsult]

How do you drive down the road with a true 5/8 wave mobile antenna?

 

[Awesomeman92]

Luck and a channel without idiots on it.

The first one you'll need to find the second one.

 

[LtDoc]

A few thousand watts, a multi-element beam and so on would be nice, but not too practical for a mobile. I think you have an average station, so you should have an 'average' chance of working skip. Then it's a matter of the operator's ability to slip in between things and being noticed. Several ways of doing that, none of them always work. The only thing I can think of that would definitely help you is to just keep trying. If you find something that 'works' for you, then use that. If it doesn't help, try something else. One way of thinking about it (not the best way) is that if you make a big enough pest out of yourself, they'll acknowledge you just to shut you up.
- 'Doc

 

[zz0468]

In order to work Skip - you need to have a high sun spot number.
I checked the index and today's number was as low as it could go - a 10.
By comparison a high number would be a 500.

So all those 10 meter contacts to Japan and South America I made at the deepest darkest part of the solar minimum with 100 watts and a 1/4 wave whip didn't happen?

I would forget about mobile set ups for DX, unless you want to haul around a crank up tower and a 5/8 wave antenna.

I routinely work DX while mobile, and at home with a dipole with 100 watts.

The best advice I can give you...

... is no advice at all. You're either a troll, or an idiot. I don't know which one is worse. :roll:

 

[Murstech]

The most important thing you could ever do is buy and install a 1/4 wave steel whip on your vehicle. It will be about 9 feet long and must be mounted to the vehicles body wich will require drilling holes into the body itself.
There is NO other antenna that can touch it. Its like having a mobile base station!

After thats all done I would buy a sideband DX radio with 5 "band" positions. I dont know how it is now but back 20 years ago Europe used 26.285 MHZ as a calling frequency. Its very quiet down there. Even if you only have 12 watts to work with if you have the whip antenna(And use sideband on the oddball channels) I described you WILL talk to Europe!

Then I would do alot of listening first. And the best time for Europe is in the morning from say 5 AM to 10 AM.
The best time for Japan Hawaii and Australia is from after it gets dark to say 10 PM.

If you do all this then you can buy an amplifier! Good news! You only need 100 watts at most! The antenna and the channels make all the difference.

Of course during the daytime you can talk to South America and USA for kicks. But the real fun is the long haul stuff.

 

[mancow]

I guess I didn't make that full quieting trip into the New York 29.620 repeater yesterday while mobile from Kansas either. :roll:

So all those 10 meter contacts to Japan and South America I made at the deepest darkest part of the solar minimum with 100 watts and a 1/4 wave whip didn't happen?



I routinely work DX while mobile, and at home with a dipole with 100 watts.



... is no advice at all. You're either a troll, or an idiot. I don't know which one is worse. :roll:

 

[rfradioconsult]

If you really have a desire to " talk to the world" study and get you Ham license, a whole new world will be at your feet. No catcalls, whistlers, overmodulated talkers or other childish noise makers.

 

[ve9jmc]

What do you need as far as equipment?

That's easy... it's called a microphone. Pick it up and reply to who you hear.. you never know Conditions may be in your favour to make the contact.