I remember hearing about 10 m not too long ago. And besides that I used to have a citizens band radio you know a single sideband model and the single side band part of it sounds just like I'm on ham radio. But the bottom line is so it was a very good feeling. But if I were on 10 meters that would be great but the bottom line is so do I really need call letters for that? And basically since I would be using call letters anyway I get strange looks from people basically what it would mean is if somebody hurt me over the radio give out my call letters I would have to follow the same procedure that I did while I was on the CB radio I would have to give out my call letters every 5 to 10 minutes. Because that's part of the procedure!
@@Spencer.76 Odd how? Southerners have their own dialect, just like people from NY or NJ or Chicago or Texas or California or... Try having a conversation with him sometime, he's a kind-hearted person. If you can't talk fast enough just yell "Contact!". He'll hear ya.
My wife’s first 10m DX contact was mobile from South Carolina USA to Brazil. She has been hooked on 10m DX ever since. 📻 a metal garbage can turned upside down with a ham stick magmount stuck to it using cut up metal tape measure under the magnet for radials makes a great base station antenna.
Great Video! I've been licensed since '76, and 10m is still my favorite band for DX. On 20m its expected, but on 10m you've done something when you work the world with a simple dipole, inverted V, Hamstick mobile... especially when you power down to QRP! 10m is NOT just for tech's, I've ran across lots of folks who got tired of other bands and were revitalized by 10m. I was a Tech when the FCC opened up 10m to us, bought a used Yaesu FT-101E, built a power supply and built a used copper pipe dipole that I hung on my tower (for my 2m vert) using scrounged coax. It opened my eyes to the joy of HF. 10m inspired me to upgrade my license. (been an Extra for a couple of decades now) And don't fall into the trap of thinking you need the latest and greatest whizz bang rig either, You Don't! If your budget's tight there's probably a local Ham who will loan you a rig and help you set it up, and have a big grin on his face when you make your first HF contact. Remember that full size 10m antennas will fit in an attic! Also, you can shorten an old discarded 11m antenna by 4.4% and it works great on 10m, if its a beam flip it horizontal and its easier to mount to boot. (and more satisfying when you work New Zealand because YOU built it) mike N4ONL
I made my first 10m contact a few weeks ago as a tech, and my very first was a DX into Havana, Cuba from my backyard. a G90 pushing 20W into a buddistick got me into the Caribbean. I could also hear the Cayman Islands calling for a DX into Asia. 10m is amazing right now.
Same here Tom, just 20 watts with my very old HR2510 and I have worked with 5 countries in Europe and I am more than 10,000 km away all the way here from the Philippines. DW1QEW. 73s.
After an HF hiatus of about 15 years, purchased a Yaesu FT 891, bought a multiband vertical for the car and worked Jose in Cuba right off the bat. I was like, “Dubbya Tee Eff?!” I love 10 m. When it’s up, it’s my fave. Another great video. Thanks for posting.
I worked 8 countries as a tech on 10m with a 100$ radio shack htx-10 from ebay and 2 MFJ hamsticks on an MFJ dipole mount. I was HOOKED on DX! So much that after 8 years I finally decided to upgrade to General! KC4PPS
I am new to hf and I am proud to share that I have worked with Germany, France, Poland, Finland, England, China and Hong Kong the past few days. Farthest contact was 10,700 plus km. just with my HR2510 which I turned down the output to 20 watts max on ssb to prolong the finals since it's an old rig and my antenna is a homebrewed horizontal aluminum tubular dipole at 19 feet above ground. Boy, it sure is fun with just this setup while the other hams I'm working with have 5 to 7 element yagis and 700 to 1kw of power. Well, mother nature is doing all the work for me.
I can't believe TVZ is still on. Same park and bark as 10 yrs ago when I got back into ham. Used a Cushcraft AR-10 which is a great antenna on a 20' piece fence top rail stuck into the ground (almost a perfect vertical di-pole) Made my 1st 500 contacts with that and RCI 2950
I'm a recent general class. I'm running an Anytone 5555N II 10 meter mobile with a Shark Stick antenna on a mag mount. I have worked Europe & South America. Even got Hawaii all from Indiana and in my car. Its an awesome time for newer hams on 10 meters. Hope to catch you all on the air 73's KD9SFW
10m was super hot for me on Oct. 19. For the first time since I got my license in 1977, I heard my own echo on long path. Worked a Bulgarian guy who sounded like he was next door. Also, if people are willing to spend $260 plus a power supply, you can get a GREAT older used rig that will cover all of the bands at 100w (or more). Performance will be at least as good or better than the 6666 radio. The REAL trick is to put your money into a good antenna.
I’m definitely feeling the pull of 10 meters. A few weeks ago a threw together a 10 meter dipole with some old speaker wire and a banana plug adapter. Hung it in my backyard as an inverted V, and even though it was only up about 10 feet off the ground I made a contact - my first using SSB! - in western Oregon from my QTH in Boston.
I've made cross country SSB contacts with a 25W Radio Shack HTX-10 and a shortened CB whip antenna in the window. When the sun's cooperating, you can make tons of long distance contacts on 10m.
My first ham radio was my last CB radio. It's an ancient Cobra 142 that has been modified for 10 meters (perfectly legal in the amateur radio hobby) and only does about 20 watts. I forced myself to make a slew of contacts on this humble radio (using a re-tuned 11 meter 4 element beam) before buying my first Yaesu.
Thanks to your technician crash course I just passed my Technician several days ago and made my first contact to Norway on my UV5R from Arkansas. The repeater was setup to different parts of the world. Very cool first contact with my new radio.
My experience yesterday made me recall this video! I have been a ham for only one week (sat for both Technician and General exams on the same day). After getting familiarized with my Icom IC-7300 and my Chameleon Tactical Delta Loop I managed to make my first contacts in Europe - the Netherlands, Italy and Bulgaria! That rush is something I will never forget and I'm looking to keep pushing that DX out further! 73, KJ5CLT.
When I was a tech my first contact was in Canada, second was French Polynesia in the south Pacific... All on my Kenwood TS-440 and a homebrew dipole... W6PXL
My first voice DX was on 10 meters a couple cycles ago. Lived in WV at the time and had just converted an old 23 channel Radio Shack mobile to 10, hadn't even put the covers back on it when I became the receiving end of a pile up of South American stations that needed WV on 10. Yep, that hooked me to 10 being my favorite band to work DX.
Talk about a long term investment, a buddy and I went _all over_ Southern California about 17 years ago Hoovering up the RadioShack HTX-10s they had on sale for $39.99 (we even got a sano display model got $20) and sold them off when the last peak hit for $220. I saved one (NIB) and used it to good effect. They are marvelous radios with 25 watts and even 10m FM repeater capabilities. I think I'll dust mine off and give it a lash! Great channel, by the way!
I got a contact in Italy on 10m AM with my IC-7300 here in Tennessee. 25w out and got a 5x5 signal report. About an hour or two after the sun comes up 10, 12 and 15m opens up.
January QST arrived today. What a nice article on pages 82 and 83 by Steve (K5ATA) and featuring our "Master" Josh, KI6NAQZ and HRCC!!!! Our NAZ is in EVERY photo appearing in this article! This is worthy of framing and other preservation (what say, Leah?). A huge "CONGRATULATIONS", to the most honorable "Hoshnasi" (apologize if misspelled). Keep on videoing, creating and sharing with us!!!!! Mike
This video inspired me to throw my 817 and 1/4 wave antenna into my SUV and head to the beach. There is the possibility of DX activity on 10m regularly now, you just need to put out the calls rather than waiting for others to make the first move. The 10m band seemed dead, on 11m CB I could hear 'The Superbowl' rolling in plus a handful on European stations on mid band FM. Tuned around 10m again and picked up SV9RKU in Crete at 20 over 9. Nice 5 minute QSO. At first glance the band seemed dead, only it wasn't. I find 6m the same, only thing on there is FT8 but that shows there are openings. Being persistent on 10 and 6m pays off. Even better if you spot yourself on the DX clusters or do a POTA.
I have the CRT SS9900 which is the exact same radio sold in Europe. They are absolutely fantastic for the price. I worked Australia from the east coast the other evening on my way home from work. 60ish watts and a 10m hamstick. KC3UVF
Not only is 10m open, the CB bands were as well today. From Oregon, I could hear Alabama today among many other states with a crappy short indoor telescoping antenna and an RTL-SDR stick.
I got my Tech+ ticket (extinct) back in '94 specifically to work that tiny 200khz of HF bandwidth and I wasn't disappointed. I worked 49 states and the rest of the world with 25 watts and a dipole using a cheap hamfest-bought Uniden President and I have to say, it was thrilling. All these years later, I recently worked a VK (from Idaho) with my little G90 and the thrill was back. Merry Christmas to you and yours Josh. -N7BWB
Radio Shack HTX100 and a quarter wave whip back in 1993. Also got my first RF burn from improper grounding / bad transmatch with all 25 watts while running CW with a streight key and the key bit me lol.
Its funny, because when you're doing POTA or SOTA, YOU are the DX. My very first contact on my very first POTA activation was Spain on 20m on a G90. The next contact was also Spain, and then Italy. I pretty regularly get Europe and the Caribbean from upstate NY doing POTA. It definitely makes it more interesting and enjoyable. Heck, I worked the Dominican Republic on 20m on a (tr)uSDX, so you definitely don't need a ton of power either
I run a IC705 into a Chameleon PLoop on 10meters 10watts and have made several SSB contacts from inside my apartment! You don’t need a lot of power and a large outdoor antenna to have fun on 10 meters or any of the hf band anyone can make contacts with 100watts or more but the real challenge is to do it with less!
Got myself a used Realistic HTX100 (25 watts)built an inverted V using some 16ga speaker wire and a 1:1 balun. Contacts so far Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia, N and S Carolina, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, PR to name a few. All from a 25 watt radio and a homemade antenna.
Hi ! Unlock the radio for CB band 11m, then go on .555, and there you find the "radio paradise" of free bands and DX. The radio is the last one from an new line radios made in China.
Found your channel in the QST article. First video watched. Great production and quality. If you want to do HF with a tech license look into getting a 10-10 number. It fun to do and my local group has a weekly local check in so you use your equipment even when propagating isn’t good. 73
The quad 6 is an awesome radio. With a mfj-2012 and feed point 25 feet in the air, I made contact from Michigan to Northern California. Perfect rig for technicians like myself to do something different.
I use an Anytone 6666 coupled with an RM Italy KL 503 HD (to achieve the 200w max power a tech is allowed), and a Sirio 2008 5/8 wave vertical ground plane antenna, and have made 398 contacts in 78 countries so far. I've only been at it since October. I've even made contact with you using the 6666, Josh. You were working POTA that day. I'm a tech, licensed for just over a year. Definitely jump on 10m folks! It has been and will continue to be on fire for a while! 73 de W8RKW
Hi, Josh! If a technician really only wanted to remain a technician, then something like the Anytone would good. But someday that techie may graduate to general. The he/she has to shop for a new radio. I believe one should always buy more capacity and features than needed at the present. That is why I would suggest a Yaesu FT-891, currently $639.95 at Gigaparts. 100w, all mode, HF plus 6 meters. Digital modes with external audio interface. Works out of the box, nothing extra to buy to make it work. A techi could get practice (and whet his appetite for general) by listening to the other amateur bands and practice tuning in stations. Just resist pressing the PTT. Maybe not connect the mic to avoid temptation. With the FT-891 and a general license the ham will be ready for almost everything.
I don’t have 10M equipment but have been playing around on the band by way of the KQ2H repeater in NY through a linked 2M repeater not far from me. I’ve made contacts in France, England, and Northern Ireland. The 1400 watts of that repeater sure helps but I gotta say even this little bit of HF fun has me very interested. 73’s!
Answered a British Wales station’s ‘CQ’ yesterday morning on my kx2 @5watts. A cw contact. He came right back! Just a multi band endfed half wave sloppily put over a low branch. I like that anytone rig there but for the money I’d get a President Lincoln 2+. 45 watts and it does 10/11/12 meters and is all mode including cw. I believe you have to add a 1meg ohm resistor for the cb stuff. $300
I still have my Anytone 6666 from when I first started out in the hobby and they are great for the price. The only thing that I would recommend is that you run a fan at the back of it as it gets a little warm. 10 metres is great at the moment and from the UK I have had some great contacts with my Yaesu ft991a and a simple multi band vertical that cost £99 ! Simon.
I monitor 10m SSB from Interior Alaska every day - but focus on grayline sunrise/sunset since its our winter here. 10m FT8/FT4 is insane here resulting in an immediate pile-up situation when I transmit on 10m. Don't even need to hear the complete call of KC4TVZ to recognize it. He's always on.... Based upon what I've seen during the latest 10m ARRL contest, the 10m band will be crazy fun this Alaska summer when its active 24/7 - our sun does not set.
I don't normally do the higher bands because I tend to get to the parks too late, but yesterday, they were hopping for me. I made more 12m contacts yesterday, than I ever have, and 10m was doing well, too. I love that the ambient noise floor is so much lower than the lower bands. I'm slowly finding myself spending more time on 10-15 than I am 17-40. I just wish I could get 6m working for me.
This time of year 6m is very slow, we are just seeing the winter E-skip bump the last week and it will go into the first week of January. Solar Flux is to low for 6m F2 propagation.. if you see 180 and above start listening. And if you hear a watery echo sound on US station that is a sign F2 propagation is there but not how high it goes in frequency. 50.313 is where they all hang out for FT8, 50.110 is the DX CALLING frequency. Make a quick contact or move up the band. Parking there is considered bad form.And using it to work stateside stations will get you hollered at! 50.125 is the USA SSB calling frequency, and above... saw a dozen station on 3 days ago on e-skip. 50.090 is the CW calling freq then people spread out around it. CW can and does get used up in the SSB area if it is a really weak station. What do you have for an antenna?
100% agree Josh yesterday I made my first contact to the Solomon Islands and magnetic island on 10 and 15 m 73 and it’s great fun as well working into zl and up the East coast on 10m 28mhz with 10 w
Cb radio falls in this area where dx and skip does wonders. There's days I hear from people from California, Florida to Canada and very good skip can get across the pond. Most hams will laugh at this but try doing this with only 10 watts instead of 100 watts most hams use for hf.
I have an at-6666 and use a mixer with eq/comp and a shure sm7b for the mic. People think I am on a big time ham radio :P They are great radios for sure.
I have that Moxon and it is fantastic. You can build your own Moxon but my advice is use Aluminum tubing rather than wire to get more of the band. A 10 meter dipole is a great choice as well and I would add, that you will get gain on 10 if you can get the dipole up over 16 feet. BTW, a cheap way to do this is to go to Home Depot and get a couple of chain link fence top rails. Very inexpensive way to get a Moxon up in the air. My 10m and 6m Moxons are on top of top rain and I turn it by hand.
I ran a 53ft random wire in the attic and got a FT-450D for the same money as the G90, 100W and an SCU-17 and I’ve now worked 101 different countries on FT8 in less than 12 months, so don’t get too focused on the antenna situation, just get something going and you can build from there.
For all the techs that fall in love with DX don't stop at tech. When the cycle turns the corner, and 10 closes your off the air. Study study study, and test at least to General. I got my ticket at the low end, but 20 was still good for DX.
HF is why I'm now studying for General. Hitting a repeater to talk to a buddy while we are mobile in vehicles or listening to a local net is cute, but HF tickles my brain.
10m SSB has been hot for months now here in northern Minnesota. Just waiting for more to join in on the fun as its been the band to use for DX. 42 unique DX entities on that band alone since July. The simple g5rv jr at 30ft has been the hot antenna. 100 watts or less.
when you are running on sideband a power mic makes all the diffrence. i run a stryker 955 with a road devil mic. or a d104 mic if you are not afrade to rebuild them with the w2ney kit from ebay.
I got started on HF two years ago with the G90, a Miady battery, and a KG6HQD speaker wire dipole. If people want in the game on the cheap, that wasn't a bad way. I might urge people to go with a coax fed quarter wave vertical instead of the fairly compromise dipole, but those are cheap to homebrew too. I look forward to the higher bands being open at night, that's when I have the most time to operate. I only have a handful of contacts on 10m right now, but I'm excited for it.
30 plus year old ten tec omni d.....60 ft of coax and a dipole built from junk in my shop, nanovna to tune antenna, a good tall pine for hanging the antenna....having a blast for next to nothing.
If your into experimenting, the 6666 is a great option. I don't like to buy radios that are unmodifiable. With some change of capacitors and a few resistors, the transmitted audio is clean and full sounding. I don't find much action on 10 meters, everyone is on 11 meters including most hams, I hear them. Out of band above us cb frequencies is Europe's cb frequencies where you often get multiple stations coming back to you. You can also hear other continents as well if you know the mode and frequencies they use. It's a DXers paradise.
450 unless you watched the black Friday live stream and got it for 399 with the stand and computer interface 😉 Now I just have to find time to assemble the DX Commander Classic I also bought after seeing the Livestream 😆
Thank for this, please please more, I have a tyt 9800 that can do 10m fm, did the 6666 do am or fm or both, I'm not grasping what I can use on 10m. More please on The technician class.
Those with beams, do try africa from time to time. Lots of us on 10m when the bands are open. With 20W i had qso's with F4, S5, OM4, and OK2 during a sota activation before the radars messed up the band in europe....
You bet I live in Tennessee. And get cb digs. From east to west coast. My 10 meter rig is finding nuggets now and again. . But my best dx was the prc 25 I carried in the army reserve. I got cross talk from plum bruck Ohio to ft hood back in 1973. Hope it gets that good for portable fm milltary fm good hunting kv4li 73.
@@don_n5skt Yeah, Six is certainly unpredictable. It earns the title "Magic Band!" I once worked Ireland from FN04, using five watts! LOL Merry Christmas!
6m e-skip has 2 seasons, major one in spring, and a weaker one around Christmas. I have heard a little 6m e-skip the last week, and a lucky few snagged New Zealand on multihop e-skip and FT8 with very weak signals. If you hear local stateside signals on 10m get a watery echo sound that is a sign of F2 but not an indication of how high it reaches in frequency. Typically you need the solar flux above 180 for 6m F2 and above 220 for reliable openings. When strong F2 is in it is like an E-skip opening!
6 is for sure the magic band. On one of the cycles I have worked the most of European area running QRP and it is fun. My close friend now a SK use get on and have so much fun. Yes 10 Meters also is a blast. Take care and good DX fm N6JOJ.
oh Josh, really, the Anytone AT-6666 is a superb radio, it has a great modulation; especially with Astatic 575M6 (really high tone punch) or DM1000 in AM or SSB (mid, mid-low punch). Here in our local radio club we know it very well since some years, thanks to a local technician that got out from the radio even more by the factory "tech tuning" with some custom setup he found; I had it in the car for a couple of years, it was very good. Now since there's a motherboard design update with the 5555 and the 5555NII, where they add noise reductions circuits, perhaps they'll do the same with the 6666, who knows?
That KC4 station just calls QT and never hear him talk to anyone, I tried and his response was comical, he gave my complete call sign then said can’t understand you and went back to calling CQ for several hours
Haven't heard him in Minnesota lately. I did at the bottom of the cycle, but as conditions have improved so much in the past few months I think the hop distance is much greater than MN to Georgia
"Not a 59 but i can hear ya" has to be the most southern qso reply
That guy... He's on that same freq pretty much every day. He's an odd one for sure...
I remember hearing about 10 m not too long ago. And besides that I used to have a citizens band radio you know a single sideband model and the single side band part of it sounds just like I'm on ham radio. But the bottom line is so it was a very good feeling. But if I were on 10 meters that would be great but the bottom line is so do I really need call letters for that? And basically since I would be using call letters anyway I get strange looks from people basically what it would mean is if somebody hurt me over the radio give out my call letters I would have to follow the same procedure that I did while I was on the CB radio I would have to give out my call letters every 5 to 10 minutes. Because that's part of the procedure!
@@Spencer.76 Odd how? Southerners have their own dialect, just like people from NY or NJ or Chicago or Texas or California or...
Try having a conversation with him sometime, he's a kind-hearted person. If you can't talk fast enough just yell "Contact!". He'll hear ya.
My wife’s first 10m DX contact was mobile from South Carolina USA to Brazil. She has been hooked on 10m DX ever since. 📻 a metal garbage can turned upside down with a ham stick magmount stuck to it using cut up metal tape measure under the magnet for radials makes a great base station antenna.
Great Video! I've been licensed since '76, and 10m is still my favorite band for DX. On 20m its expected, but on 10m you've done something when you work the world with a simple dipole, inverted V, Hamstick mobile... especially when you power down to QRP! 10m is NOT just for tech's, I've ran across lots of folks who got tired of other bands and were revitalized by 10m.
I was a Tech when the FCC opened up 10m to us, bought a used Yaesu FT-101E, built a power supply and built a used copper pipe dipole that I hung on my tower (for my 2m vert) using scrounged coax. It opened my eyes to the joy of HF. 10m inspired me to upgrade my license. (been an Extra for a couple of decades now)
And don't fall into the trap of thinking you need the latest and greatest whizz bang rig either, You Don't! If your budget's tight there's probably a local Ham who will loan you a rig and help you set it up, and have a big grin on his face when you make your first HF contact.
Remember that full size 10m antennas will fit in an attic!
Also, you can shorten an old discarded 11m antenna by 4.4% and it works great on 10m, if its a beam flip it horizontal and its easier to mount to boot. (and more satisfying when you work New Zealand because YOU built it)
mike N4ONL
I made my first 10m contact a few weeks ago as a tech, and my very first was a DX into Havana, Cuba from my backyard. a G90 pushing 20W into a buddistick got me into the Caribbean. I could also hear the Cayman Islands calling for a DX into Asia. 10m is amazing right now.
you must be so proud the government let you speak over the air!
Same here Tom, just 20 watts with my very old HR2510 and I have worked with 5 countries in Europe and I am more than 10,000 km away all the way here from the Philippines. DW1QEW. 73s.
After an HF hiatus of about 15 years, purchased a Yaesu FT 891, bought a multiband vertical for the car and worked Jose in Cuba right off the bat. I was like, “Dubbya Tee Eff?!” I love 10 m. When it’s up, it’s my fave. Another great video. Thanks for posting.
I worked 8 countries as a tech on 10m with a 100$ radio shack htx-10 from ebay and 2 MFJ hamsticks on an MFJ dipole mount. I was HOOKED on DX! So much that after 8 years I finally decided to upgrade to General!
KC4PPS
Love it!
Just ordered that model myself second hand for a technician taste of HF and SSB
@@cchalfantusa be careful, you’ll get addicted 😂
I am new to hf and I am proud to share that I have worked with Germany, France, Poland, Finland, England, China and Hong Kong the past few days. Farthest contact was 10,700 plus km. just with my HR2510 which I turned down the output to 20 watts max on ssb to prolong the finals since it's an old rig and my antenna is a homebrewed horizontal aluminum tubular dipole at 19 feet above ground. Boy, it sure is fun with just this setup while the other hams I'm working with have 5 to 7 element yagis and 700 to 1kw of power. Well, mother nature is doing all the work for me.
Great video Josh, This is the way I get started in QRP HF outdoors operation circa 50 years ago. 73 PY1AHD Alex
I can't believe TVZ is still on. Same park and bark as 10 yrs ago when I got back into ham. Used a Cushcraft AR-10 which is a great antenna on a 20' piece fence top rail stuck into the ground (almost a perfect vertical di-pole) Made my 1st 500 contacts with that and RCI 2950
I'm a recent general class. I'm running an Anytone 5555N II 10 meter mobile with a Shark Stick antenna on a mag mount. I have worked Europe & South America. Even got Hawaii all from Indiana and in my car. Its an awesome time for newer hams on 10 meters. Hope to catch you all on the air 73's KD9SFW
Great video! thanks.
Tech since May this year and have never made a contact. This was a good motivational video. Thanks for the push...
My XYL(KF5ZRA) first DX on 10m Mobile from Aiken, SC was to Brazil several years ago. She has been hooked on 10m DX ever since.
I just worked Australia on 10 meters on 100 watts (FT-891) at 7:45 in the evening! Its getting exciting again!!
10m was super hot for me on Oct. 19. For the first time since I got my license in 1977, I heard my own echo on long path. Worked a Bulgarian guy who sounded like he was next door.
Also, if people are willing to spend $260 plus a power supply, you can get a GREAT older used rig that will cover all of the bands at 100w (or more). Performance will be at least as good or better than the 6666 radio. The REAL trick is to put your money into a good antenna.
I’m definitely feeling the pull of 10 meters. A few weeks ago a threw together a 10 meter dipole with some old speaker wire and a banana plug adapter. Hung it in my backyard as an inverted V, and even though it was only up about 10 feet off the ground I made a contact - my first using SSB! - in western Oregon from my QTH in Boston.
I've made cross country SSB contacts with a 25W Radio Shack HTX-10 and a shortened CB whip antenna in the window. When the sun's cooperating, you can make tons of long distance contacts on 10m.
My first ham radio was my last CB radio. It's an ancient Cobra 142 that has been modified for 10 meters (perfectly legal in the amateur radio hobby) and only does about 20 watts. I forced myself to make a slew of contacts on this humble radio (using a re-tuned 11 meter 4 element beam) before buying my first Yaesu.
Thanks to your technician crash course I just passed my Technician several days ago and made my first contact to Norway on my UV5R from Arkansas. The repeater was setup to different parts of the world. Very cool first contact with my new radio.
My experience yesterday made me recall this video! I have been a ham for only one week (sat for both Technician and General exams on the same day). After getting familiarized with my Icom IC-7300 and my Chameleon Tactical Delta Loop I managed to make my first contacts in Europe - the Netherlands, Italy and Bulgaria! That rush is something I will never forget and I'm looking to keep pushing that DX out further! 73, KJ5CLT.
When I was a tech my first contact was in Canada, second was French Polynesia in the south Pacific... All on my Kenwood TS-440 and a homebrew dipole... W6PXL
10M has been on fire. During the ARRL 10M contest, south Brazil, EU and AU wasn't out of the question.
My first voice DX was on 10 meters a couple cycles ago. Lived in WV at the time and had just converted an old 23 channel Radio Shack mobile to 10, hadn't even put the covers back on it when I became the receiving end of a pile up of South American stations that needed WV on 10. Yep, that hooked me to 10 being my favorite band to work DX.
Talk about a long term investment, a buddy and I went _all over_ Southern California about 17 years ago Hoovering up the RadioShack HTX-10s they had on sale for $39.99 (we even got a sano display model got $20) and sold them off when the last peak hit for $220. I saved one (NIB) and used it to good effect. They are marvelous radios with 25 watts and even 10m FM repeater capabilities.
I think I'll dust mine off and give it a lash!
Great channel, by the way!
I got a contact in Italy on 10m AM with my IC-7300 here in Tennessee. 25w out and got a 5x5 signal report. About an hour or two after the sun comes up 10, 12 and 15m opens up.
January QST arrived today. What a nice article on pages 82 and 83 by Steve (K5ATA) and featuring our "Master" Josh, KI6NAQZ and HRCC!!!! Our NAZ is in EVERY photo appearing in this article! This is worthy of framing and other preservation (what say, Leah?). A huge "CONGRATULATIONS", to the most honorable "Hoshnasi" (apologize if misspelled). Keep on videoing, creating and sharing with us!!!!! Mike
Thank you Mike!
This video inspired me to throw my 817 and 1/4 wave antenna into my SUV and head to the beach. There is the possibility of DX activity on 10m regularly now, you just need to put out the calls rather than waiting for others to make the first move. The 10m band seemed dead, on 11m CB I could hear 'The Superbowl' rolling in plus a handful on European stations on mid band FM. Tuned around 10m again and picked up SV9RKU in Crete at 20 over 9. Nice 5 minute QSO. At first glance the band seemed dead, only it wasn't. I find 6m the same, only thing on there is FT8 but that shows there are openings. Being persistent on 10 and 6m pays off. Even better if you spot yourself on the DX clusters or do a POTA.
I have the CRT SS9900 which is the exact same radio sold in Europe. They are absolutely fantastic for the price. I worked Australia from the east coast the other evening on my way home from work. 60ish watts and a 10m hamstick.
KC3UVF
Nice!!
lolllll, the 10m beacon actually came back to you!
I know. I was actually shocked.
I've had a number of Asian contacts on 10m recently. Fun for a somewhat newbie.
Great video for 1st timers on HF, that is, 10m! 73 de WA4ELW in TN 🇺🇸 dit dit 😀
I've talked to the UK on my Anytone on channel 27 (27.275) AM with S5 noise. They're great radios.
Not only is 10m open, the CB bands were as well today. From Oregon, I could hear Alabama today among many other states with a crappy short indoor telescoping antenna and an RTL-SDR stick.
I got my Tech+ ticket (extinct) back in '94 specifically to work that tiny 200khz of HF bandwidth and I wasn't disappointed. I worked 49 states and the rest of the world with 25 watts and a dipole using a cheap hamfest-bought Uniden President and I have to say, it was thrilling. All these years later, I recently worked a VK (from Idaho) with my little G90 and the thrill was back.
Merry Christmas to you and yours Josh.
-N7BWB
Radio Shack HTX100 and a quarter wave whip back in 1993. Also got my first RF burn from improper grounding / bad transmatch with all 25 watts while running CW with a streight key and the key bit me lol.
Time to pull out my 10m/12m HT again.
I had this version of radio made by CRT france, SS9900, great experience back in 2020. Nice radio at a decent price
Its funny, because when you're doing POTA or SOTA, YOU are the DX. My very first contact on my very first POTA activation was Spain on 20m on a G90. The next contact was also Spain, and then Italy. I pretty regularly get Europe and the Caribbean from upstate NY doing POTA. It definitely makes it more interesting and enjoyable. Heck, I worked the Dominican Republic on 20m on a (tr)uSDX, so you definitely don't need a ton of power either
I've made DX contacts on 10m SSB with a 10w transceiver and 40m EFHW antenna from SOTA summits. It's cool.
I run a IC705 into a Chameleon PLoop on 10meters 10watts and have made several SSB contacts from inside my apartment! You don’t need a lot of power and a large outdoor antenna to have fun on 10 meters or any of the hf band anyone can make contacts with 100watts or more but the real challenge is to do it with less!
I've been getting great 10m DX lately with a very modest setup
Getting my at-quad 6 tomorrow and hope to hit 10m as I work my maple lines this weekend!
I'm so ready. I just ordered my Xiegu G90. Will be building a doublet antenna in order the preserve all my watts for the airwaves.
During Solar Cycle 23 I was able to achieve DXCC on 10 meters Phone without too much effort. It's truly excellent band to work DX.
This was my first hf radio when I was a tech. I now use it for road trips since you can turn it into a cb radio
Not that I would break the law but does the radio maintain 60 watts on 11 meters?
Got myself a used Realistic HTX100 (25 watts)built an inverted V using some 16ga speaker wire and a 1:1 balun. Contacts so far Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia, N and S Carolina, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, PR to name a few. All from a 25 watt radio and a homemade antenna.
Hi ! Unlock the radio for CB band 11m, then go on .555, and there you find the "radio paradise" of free bands and DX. The radio is the last one from an new line radios made in China.
It's like the first time you hook a big fish and it takes drag.... that and the dx pose some serious vices for me... lol
Found your channel in the QST article. First video watched. Great production and quality. If you want to do HF with a tech license look into getting a 10-10 number. It fun to do and my local group has a weekly local check in so you use your equipment even when propagating isn’t good. 73
Josh, thanks for the great video. K0LXA here. I need to get a 10m hamstick and give it a try. 73
The quad 6 is an awesome radio. With a mfj-2012 and feed point 25 feet in the air, I made contact from Michigan to Northern California. Perfect rig for technicians like myself to do something different.
I have been making contacts all over the world on 10m, I get Brazil and Europe a lot.
I use an Anytone 6666 coupled with an RM Italy KL 503 HD (to achieve the 200w max power a tech is allowed), and a Sirio 2008 5/8 wave vertical ground plane antenna, and have made 398 contacts in 78 countries so far. I've only been at it since October. I've even made contact with you using the 6666, Josh. You were working POTA that day. I'm a tech, licensed for just over a year. Definitely jump on 10m folks! It has been and will continue to be on fire for a while! 73 de W8RKW
Hi, Josh! If a technician really only wanted to remain a technician, then something like the Anytone would good. But someday that techie may graduate to general. The he/she has to shop for a new radio. I believe one should always buy more capacity and features than needed at the present. That is why I would suggest a Yaesu FT-891, currently $639.95 at Gigaparts. 100w, all mode, HF plus 6 meters. Digital modes with external audio interface. Works out of the box, nothing extra to buy to make it work. A techi could get practice (and whet his appetite for general) by listening to the other amateur bands and practice tuning in stations. Just resist pressing the PTT. Maybe not connect the mic to avoid temptation. With the FT-891 and a general license the ham will be ready for almost everything.
Made a contact Puerto Rico from my qth Santa Rosa Cali on 10m with 50watts last week. Small delta loop 20ft high :)
I got a kick out of working California from Phoenix when I was in High school (late 1960s)
I don’t have 10M equipment but have been playing around on the band by way of the KQ2H repeater in NY through a linked 2M repeater not far from me. I’ve made contacts in France, England, and Northern Ireland. The 1400 watts of that repeater sure helps but I gotta say even this little bit of HF fun has me very interested. 73’s!
Update - upgraded to General and got me a 7300. Oh boy has 10 been a blast!
Im an aspiring tech operator. This video was greatly enjoyable and left me looking forward to my next steps. I appreciate your dedication 🍻
Amazing times are coming with this max solar cycle.
27 385 or 555 love it
Answered a British Wales station’s ‘CQ’ yesterday morning on my kx2 @5watts. A cw contact. He came right back! Just a multi band endfed half wave sloppily put over a low branch. I like that anytone rig there but for the money I’d get a President Lincoln 2+. 45 watts and it does 10/11/12 meters and is all mode including cw. I believe you have to add a 1meg ohm resistor for the cb stuff. $300
I still have my Anytone 6666 from when I first started out in the hobby and they are great for the price. The only thing that I would recommend is that you run a fan at the back of it as it gets a little warm. 10 metres is great at the moment and from the UK I have had some great contacts with my Yaesu ft991a and a simple multi band vertical that cost £99 ! Simon.
I monitor 10m SSB from Interior Alaska every day - but focus on grayline sunrise/sunset since its our winter here. 10m FT8/FT4 is insane here resulting in an immediate pile-up situation when I transmit on 10m. Don't even need to hear the complete call of KC4TVZ to recognize it. He's always on.... Based upon what I've seen during the latest 10m ARRL contest, the 10m band will be crazy fun this Alaska summer when its active 24/7 - our sun does not set.
I don't normally do the higher bands because I tend to get to the parks too late, but yesterday, they were hopping for me. I made more 12m contacts yesterday, than I ever have, and 10m was doing well, too. I love that the ambient noise floor is so much lower than the lower bands. I'm slowly finding myself spending more time on 10-15 than I am 17-40. I just wish I could get 6m working for me.
This time of year 6m is very slow, we are just seeing the winter E-skip bump the last week and it will go into the first week of January. Solar Flux is to low for 6m F2 propagation.. if you see 180 and above start listening. And if you hear a watery echo sound on US station that is a sign F2 propagation is there but not how high it goes in frequency. 50.313 is where they all hang out for FT8, 50.110 is the DX CALLING frequency. Make a quick contact or move up the band. Parking there is considered bad form.And using it to work stateside stations will get you hollered at! 50.125 is the USA SSB calling frequency, and above... saw a dozen station on 3 days ago on e-skip. 50.090 is the CW calling freq then people spread out around it. CW can and does get used up in the SSB area if it is a really weak station.
What do you have for an antenna?
10,12 & 15 meters has been hot lately and I just started running FT8 on them and it's great.
My first HE contact was with that AT-6666 and a dipole. Over 1500 miles to Mexico. Nice radio. Also works on 11 meters.
HF, not HE. lol
100% agree Josh yesterday I made my first contact to the Solomon Islands and magnetic island on 10 and 15 m
73 and it’s great fun as well working into zl and up the East coast on 10m 28mhz with 10 w
Lol you worked the 10M voice beacon!
I just bought one of those anyone 6666. It is a well made radio.
Cb radio falls in this area where dx and skip does wonders. There's days I hear from people from California, Florida to Canada and very good skip can get across the pond. Most hams will laugh at this but try doing this with only 10 watts instead of 100 watts most hams use for hf.
I have an at-6666 and use a mixer with eq/comp and a shure sm7b for the mic. People think I am on a big time ham radio :P They are great radios for sure.
the quad 6 all the cbers around here are getting those, sweet little radio
I have the same radio but it's called a CRT 9900 over here in the UK.
I have that Moxon and it is fantastic. You can build your own Moxon but my advice is use Aluminum tubing rather than wire to get more of the band. A 10 meter dipole is a great choice as well and I would add, that you will get gain on 10 if you can get the dipole up over 16 feet. BTW, a cheap way to do this is to go to Home Depot and get a couple of chain link fence top rails. Very inexpensive way to get a Moxon up in the air. My 10m and 6m Moxons are on top of top rain and I turn it by hand.
Merry Christmas Josh from Alabama..KS4QF
I run this as a CB radio. And I love it. Best cleanest CB I've ever ran. At6666
Thanks for sharing!
@@HamRadioCrashCourse most welcome
I ran a 53ft random wire in the attic and got a FT-450D for the same money as the G90, 100W and an SCU-17 and I’ve now worked 101 different countries on FT8 in less than 12 months, so don’t get too focused on the antenna situation, just get something going and you can build from there.
For all the techs that fall in love with DX don't stop at tech. When the cycle turns the corner, and 10 closes your off the air. Study study study, and test at least to General. I got my ticket at the low end, but 20 was still good for DX.
Can you tell me which device is the orange and white one? and where to buy it
I have the exact radio with an MFJ 1979 on a small tripod in my backyard. From Chicago to Mexico & Brazil to the tip of Argentina ! Yee Haa KD9TTQ
HF is why I'm now studying for General. Hitting a repeater to talk to a buddy while we are mobile in vehicles or listening to a local net is cute, but HF tickles my brain.
I'd recommend checking out the anytone 5555 or whatever it is as well
10m SSB has been hot for months now here in northern Minnesota. Just waiting for more to join in on the fun as its been the band to use for DX. 42 unique DX entities on that band alone since July. The simple g5rv jr at 30ft has been the hot antenna. 100 watts or less.
My priority is HF now.👍
when you are running on sideband a power mic makes all the diffrence. i run a stryker 955 with a road devil mic. or a d104 mic if you are not afrade to rebuild them with the w2ney kit from ebay.
From Kenya , Hello
I got started on HF two years ago with the G90, a Miady battery, and a KG6HQD speaker wire dipole. If people want in the game on the cheap, that wasn't a bad way. I might urge people to go with a coax fed quarter wave vertical instead of the fairly compromise dipole, but those are cheap to homebrew too. I look forward to the higher bands being open at night, that's when I have the most time to operate. I only have a handful of contacts on 10m right now, but I'm excited for it.
Oooo I know what the radio is resting on…… naughty naughty 😂😂
30 plus year old ten tec omni d.....60 ft of coax and a dipole built from junk in my shop, nanovna to tune antenna, a good tall pine for hanging the antenna....having a blast for next to nothing.
If your into experimenting, the 6666 is a great option. I don't like to buy radios that are unmodifiable. With some change of capacitors and a few resistors, the transmitted audio is clean and full sounding. I don't find much action on 10 meters, everyone is on 11 meters including most hams, I hear them. Out of band above us cb frequencies is Europe's cb frequencies where you often get multiple stations coming back to you. You can also hear other continents as well if you know the mode and frequencies they use. It's a DXers paradise.
Tech here. I'm in love.
This is a neat radio for Technicians! Is there a "simple" way to also do FT8 or other digital modes? That would make this radio simply amazing.
Sadly nothing simple.
450 unless you watched the black Friday live stream and got it for 399 with the stand and computer interface 😉 Now I just have to find time to assemble the DX Commander Classic I also bought after seeing the Livestream 😆
Thank for this, please please more, I have a tyt 9800 that can do 10m fm, did the 6666 do am or fm or both, I'm not grasping what I can use on 10m. More please on The technician class.
Those with beams, do try africa from time to time. Lots of us on 10m when the bands are open. With 20W i had qso's with F4, S5, OM4, and OK2 during a sota activation before the radars messed up the band in europe....
Some people say the newer Anytone AT 5555N 2 is even better, especially when tuned. 80W output and a great receiver.
You bet I live in Tennessee. And get cb digs. From east to west coast. My 10 meter rig is finding nuggets now and again. . But my best dx was the prc 25 I carried in the army reserve. I got cross talk from plum bruck Ohio to ft hood back in 1973. Hope it gets that good for portable fm milltary fm good hunting kv4li 73.
'Unleash' that Flipper! ;)
I did 🤘
If Ten is becoming active, I wonder how SIX is doing? I've had a lot of fun in the past QRP 6M SSB. Thanks for the video!
Six is on and off. It opens in the spring into about mid summer. However, it also can open at just any time.
@@don_n5skt Yeah, Six is certainly unpredictable. It earns the title "Magic Band!" I once worked Ireland from FN04, using five watts! LOL Merry Christmas!
@@kbjerke Yes, 6 is a great band.
6m e-skip has 2 seasons, major one in spring, and a weaker one around Christmas. I have heard a little 6m e-skip the last week, and a lucky few snagged New Zealand on multihop e-skip and FT8 with very weak signals.
If you hear local stateside signals on 10m get a watery echo sound that is a sign of F2 but not an indication of how high it reaches in frequency. Typically you need the solar flux above 180 for 6m F2 and above 220 for reliable openings. When strong F2 is in it is like an E-skip opening!
6 is for sure the magic band. On one of the cycles I have worked the most of European area running QRP and it is fun. My close friend now a SK use get on and have so much fun. Yes 10 Meters also is a blast. Take care and good DX fm N6JOJ.
Last solar cycle I talked to Japan from Mich 25 watts 11 meter vert in back of truck.
oh Josh, really, the Anytone AT-6666 is a superb radio, it has a great modulation; especially with Astatic 575M6 (really high tone punch) or DM1000 in AM or SSB (mid, mid-low punch). Here in our local radio club we know it very well since some years, thanks to a local technician that got out from the radio even more by the factory "tech tuning" with some custom setup he found; I had it in the car for a couple of years, it was very good. Now since there's a motherboard design update with the 5555 and the 5555NII, where they add noise reductions circuits, perhaps they'll do the same with the 6666, who knows?
I talked to that guy from GA. He was 4500 miles away.
That KC4 station just calls QT and never hear him talk to anyone, I tried and his response was comical, he gave my complete call sign then said can’t understand you and went back to calling CQ for several hours
Haha. Yeah, we call him “the beacon”
He is annoying!
Haven't heard him in Minnesota lately. I did at the bottom of the cycle, but as conditions have improved so much in the past few months I think the hop distance is much greater than MN to Georgia
There's a whole story about him... it's something.... look up his call and the 10-10 club.