I had my first QSO today on 10 Meter USB! Made contact with Catalina Island, CA (Palos Verdes Amateur Radio Club, K6PV (Club). This is on a Kenwood TS-480SAT using a 4 ft Firestik mounted on a file cabinet in my 2nd story bedroom. Still looking for a real antenna, I can use inside. Tomorrow, I am going for my General. This new hobby is very addicting and rewarding. 73 and hopefully tomorrow, I will be KC9VHA/AG. I want to thank everyone on this forum for getting me interested in DXing!!!

MI-litaria

Thanks again AK4DAV. I corrected QSL to QSO - still learning all these Q codes!

 

First - congratulations! I remember my 1 st QSO, although it was more than 40 years ago. I was a novice, and had just finished building a Heathkit HW 101. Worked a very patient old-timer on the low end of 80 meters. My CW was very bad, but I kept at it.

Make sure you get a QSL card (a "real" card), to post in your shack. You"re just getting active during an apparent increase in sunspot activity, so 10 meters can be a very interesting band. You never know who you might run into...........

One other thing I've noticed. When I'm on a run, with my HF ring in my Jeep, the farther you are out in the boonies, the less noise you'll notice on the HF bands. Makes chasing weak stations much easier.

Have fun!

 

Today I passed my General Test! Now I am KC9VHA/AG. I want to thank everyone for their encouragement!


MI-litaria

 

Congrats! After reading your post I realized that what you meant to say is that you had your first "QSO" not "QSL".....lol. As owl says a QSL is a confirmation of the contact, which usually is like a postcard you will receive. And it also means "affirmative" when you are talking. A QSO is the conversation itself.

Build yourself a dipole antenna and throw it up on the ceiling. A 10m dipole is really pretty small.

And congrats on the /AG....you're off and runnin' now...!!!

 

Dipoles are awesome. I had a 10m rig in the car many moons ago, and tossed a dipole up in a tree. When I needed to kill a little time, I would simply park under the tree and plug in. Morioka Japan from North Texas once. That was a fun contact. The rest of the time when mobile, I just used a trimmed up CB antenna. I always had quite a bit more satisfaction from the home brew antennas than the store bought stuff.

Bryan

 

Congrats on the upgrade you picked a good week for it. The ARRL DX Contest is this weekend. Good opportunity to pickup several countries. Even if you don't get into contesting or DX chasing it's fun to see what your radio and a simple antenna can do. My first International QSO I was in the jeep and the other op Australia. I asked him if he was really in Australia. I couldn't believe my first DX was 8k miles away!


dave

 

Congrats on the upgrade. Even after 24 years I still enjoy making contacts and sending and receiving QSL cards. All QSOs have been made with a dipole or in the Jeep with 100w or less.

N4XGI