Day Time Ham Radio Bands and Solar Cycle 25
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- Опубліковано 4 тра 2022
- In this video, we talk about the various ham bands and which perform better during the daytime.
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I initially wanted to get a tech license and a handheld radio for emergencies. Then I fell into the rabbit hole of ham radio. I ended up with an extra class license, joining a club, becoming a VE and then went back to school for electronics to learn how to build radios ( I started this three years ago on my 59th birthday). I have really enjoyed your videos and most of what I know I learned from you. I'm a teacher and can really appreciate someone, such as yourself, who teaches well. I suspect I'll always be a ham radio student because there is so much to learn due to the vast nature of radio. Thanks again for all the help you've given me as I build my shack.
That's awesome Hugh, thanks! We are all always learning from each other and that's what's cool about HR.
Nice video! One note: the ionosphere doesn't reflect radio waves, it bends them. Seems just a small detail but you have to understand it to understand things like "why in South America the propagation is crazy strong to Europe and Asia, while Australia is extreme rare. And in the north America, Australia is not hard at all but hitting those middle east/ southeastern Asia countries is". If you think that rf get reflected in the ionosphere you won't understand why you beam your yagi right at the angle the azimuth maps tells you to, but you can never hear that DX station.
The ionosphere bends the radio waves not only in the vertical axis but also horizontally, mostly to the "left", influenced by the movement of the magnetic field of the earth. This detail changes a lot when hunting real DX
I work 40M all day every day only during the day and I've been doing it for 52 years!
😉
There is always one! Thanks for checking it out Lionel
12 and 17 are my favorites. No contesting or congestion.
Yeah, that’s a popular opinion. Thanks for watching Frank 👍
Good stuff Ape! Another good use for the NVIS, at least in the military "back in the day", was for the unit to have comms when spread out over a range where VHF wasn't reliable.
Great point Ron, I should probably do more in-depth on NVIS.
Outstanding 'splainer of the bands and the ins/outs of each. Thanks !
Thanks!
Great,,, here is Scotland I have been at this as an SWL and Radio Ham for 70 years .. I Started as SWL days and listening on 30 MHZ Plus Civil Stations from USA Sunspot count was almost 300 in 1957 Listened to HF from USA through the night here on medium wave !!! Through the day LUF was 14 MHZ so what was semi local 80 meter nets were on 14 MHZ Listened through the night to BCST on medium Wave band from USA Local radio stations from different times then ..Great times before digital Sh1t came along Still active mainly on CW Now thank you much appreciated
Thanks for the post and for watching 👍
Thanks! As an aspiring HAM, I try to get all the info I can by the time I do the exam...these videos help with that...
Glad to hear they are helpful Melissa...
" I want to believe him. He's got an honest face" is probably the nicest way I've ever heard anyone say that you think someone is, in fact, not particularly honest.. 😂 Good video. Thank you!
Lol, Charlie is awesome... I just like to joke around. Thanks for checking out the video 👍
@@TheSmokinApe I do too Ape.. I hope folks don't take me too seriously
I’ve been watching your videos for years and your the one who actually made me want to go and get my tech license Last November. I’m about to upgrade to my general and get on HF saving up for a yaesu 991A with an inverted V
That’s awesome, glad the videos have been helpful. Good luck on the 991a, great radio 👍
Great job Ape! Very good summary and Cycle 25 is gonna heat up for sure!
Thanks for checking it out Hayden 👍
Good stuff, Ape! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for watching Richard 👍
This was VERY educational for me. Thank you so very much.
Thanks Gilbert, glad you liked it 👍
Great video pal. Great research!
Thanks Larry 👍
Great information Ape!! This should be a help to all.
Thanks for checking it out Chuck 👍
Good stuff, Ape, thanks. 1)My first handful of contacts came in on 17m. For some reason my Ultimax 100 sloper hanging way too low works best on it. 2) I have bandplan cheat sheet, I dint find the ARRL plan very useable.
Hey Scout, thanks for watching the video. I've only ever used the sheet so that probably why I still do, lol!
Very nicely done, Ape. I've been doing POTA activations on 17m a lot lately. Less traffic and good propagation....well less traffic until now :-)
I’m sure you will see more, thanks for watching Todd 👍
Great explanation of the basics, but the only comment I'd make is explaining the critical frequency before the MUF and LUF might have helped show why angle of incidence is so important, especially when you went on to talk radiation angle and NVIS later.
That's fair, thanks for the feedback Ammocraft.
Thanks for this very helpful set of HF info! Getting back into ham radio I wanted an inexpensive, stealthy, all band HF antenna. I tried a 71' non resonant end-fed fed sloper, with 9:1 unun, 50' RG8x, and common mode choke. It works for me without a tuner on 20, 17, 15, 12 and 10 (with SWR of less than 1.4 to 1). Also works on 160, 75/80, 60, 40, 30 using the tuner in my XPA125B amp (for an SWR less than 1.7 to 1 on these bands). I've made100 watt SSB DX contacts into Australia, Pacific, Asia, & Europe from California on 40, 20 & 17, & get good signal reports on daytime 80 & 40 meter SSB nets. So...I recommend this type of antenna for those wanting to initially explore all the HF bands with a low cost & stealthy antenna.
Hey Jon, 9:1 antennas are great... I am actually planning a build video of one in the next few days.
30m from an hour before sunset to a hour after sunrise is my favorite ft8 band.
For sure, I have to say 30m can be a nice little honey hole for ft8. Thanks for watching Jeremy 👍
Good stuff, Ape! Thanks for touching on 60m! 73 de VE3GKT
Thanks for checking it out Joe!
Good clear explanation. Very informative. I got my Ham License in 1976 and it must have been at the peak of solar cycles. 10 meters was active every day for DX. I contacted Australia from Ohio with a 5 watt radio and a dipole hooked up on a balcony. I am getting back into the hobby now and am sad to listen to the bands and hear nothing on 10-15 and only limited DX on 20. I hope the solar propagation improves it sure makes Ham Radio more fun.
Hey Keith, glad you liked the video! We should be in store for some good times the next few years.
20-10 meters have been quite active here on the south coast of MA for the past few weeks.
I worked into the middle east on 4/27/2022. I worked OD5TX in Lebanon on 28.410 running 100 watts on USB into a 10 meter dipole at 30 feet.
The bands are slowly coming back to life!
High bands are picking up, bear with it.. one reason the bands seem vacant during daytime and weekday is many hams don't, and in some cases won't, turn on a radio unless there is a contest in progress.. unfortunately for some of us, the hobby has changed..
I am constantly listening to amateur radio, GMRS, FRS, MURS, LPR433, 49Mhz, Citizen's Band, Shortwave, Medium wave, Long wave, military, marine, beacons, civilian aviation, commercial aviation, military aviation, clandestine operators, and much more! I love radio! The one that seems super interesting with connected repeater systems from coast to coast is GMRS! Best of all, it is free where I reside! If I had better conversational abilities, I would have got the GMRS license long ago. But, I can not hold a conversation to save my life. I have no friends to practice the art of conversation. It is almost a skill.
All that listening, good thing you have two ears!
@@TheSmokinApe I have no life. But I can listen to what others are are doing on the air. I have heard some things that directly effected the immediate area I was living, at the time. An anonymous mailing of a microcassette to the person that was about to be grossly betrayed, or victimised, changed the outcome of a situation that would have got very ugly. But that happens very rarely.
@@TheSmokinApe Ah, tomorrow, I get parts to repair a Icom IC-7000 that was given to me in trade for a destroyed Yaesu FT-991A. The man saw it in my possession when I got it for parts and he wanted it for the screen, housing, and a few other parts. He must have really wanted it because the Icom IC-7000 only seems to need the common Mitsubishi MOSFETs I have already ordered. I found out the package with four of them is arriving tomorrow. I may be listening to the world, in many bands, in a compact package soon!
Congrats on the 7000, hope it works out for you.
@@TheSmokinApe Thank you. The IC-7000 is running now. The repair was just a few common Mitsubishi MOSFETS. However this is the Icom IC-7000 version S01. I know the nations for 2 and up. But, I can find nothing on version 1. It receives 30Khz to 145.99Mhz then jumps to 430Mhz to 439.99Mhz. This makes 2 meters and 70 centimeters unusable for any sort of repeater activity. That is a favourite listening area for me. Is there a modification for version 1 that will allow the use of the North American frequencies? There is extremely low information on the version 1 of this radio.
Good video and explanation
Thanks Thump
Thank you sir 👍🥰
Thanks for watching Aname!
Late as usual and this was a great topic. Not being nice but alot of hams do understand this. I wish you would go over this in more detail. It's a great topic that some don't understand.
Back in the 90"s 10 mts was wide open. Work my but off it was like field day
Thank you for this video and content
KQ4CD Paul ⚓️
Hey Paul, thanks for watching... I am planning more detailed videos on the topic.
Say I was on 20 meters at 11:30 pm the other night and 20 meters was still coming in great.
That’s awesome 😎
Good overview. I think our generation of hams has a unique opportunity. With our weak signal modes and the ability to use the internet reporting programs like WSPR, we will have a visual look at propagation during a solar cycle in abundance. I do hope someone looks at it systematically. Maybe you can use your UA-cam programs to explore this part of Ham as it evolves. I have a binder at my station with band info including the band plans. I like Kenwood'
s version, but replacements are hard to find.
I agree, I think we are seeing and will continue to see propagation in a way that we haven't in years. Should be fun!
Very good explanation. I think a lot of the "bands are dead" stuff that seems to come up is people not checking what is happening on the higher bands - if there is a blackout, the lower bands are affected far more than the higher ones. People shouldn't assume that 40 or even 20 being quiet at some point in the daytime means there's no DX about.
Completely agree with you! Thanks for watching Stuart...
I called called cq on 15 the other day, local sdr’s suggested it was dead, but bingo Cyprus🤷♂️ m0udb
Sweet!
What does short, medium and long distance translate into when talking about propagation? (actual KM/ Miles)
Really enjoyed the vid. I'm getting very interested in the HF bands specifically as it relates to NVIS. I like the idea of being able to communicate state wide without reliance on infrastructure.
Thanks Cr0cket, it's one of the things that got me interested in radio as well. NVIS is pretty popular out in your neck of the woods due to the mountainous terrain. I will do a video more specifically targeted to NVIS.
@@TheSmokinApe I use an NVIS antenna on 40 meters and the fun thing is that when the band is open for DX the NVIS does just fine.
As the saying goes: "Conditions, Conditions, Conditions!"
Nice video!
73 de N1WOM, John in Massachusetts
(New Subscriber)
Thanks do you have a video on night time bands ? 73's KG5PTE.
I don’t but that’s a good idea! Thanks for watching James 👍
How about the same type of video on the Night time ham bands. Those are important to me since I am trying to use a stealth antenna.
Great Idea, I’ll add it on my list 👍
...the suspense is killing me!
Lol…
If the suspense doesn’t kill ya, the soldering iron from the desk of The Smoking Ape will! Then he’ll hang ya with his EARCHI EndFed Dipole from Hawaii. 🤣😂🤣😂
Great. But you have a small typo on your 2nd slide regarding the 60 meter band being 'channelized'
D’oh!
I'm getting my ape smoked tonight!
Haha, awesome 👍
My favorite band is the WHO. I also like the 18 and 20m bands but they can be a bit Meaty Beefy Big and Bouncy;)
The Who is awesome!
I used to talk on CB radio in the 70's and am thinking about getting a ham license. Is ham radio like CB back in the day where you and your friends talk or find someone to talk to? I don't know anyone that does this and don't want to spend lots of time and money if it is not something I can do in my apartment.
Ham radio is what ever you want to make of it. Most all hams have challenges, especially when it comes to antennas. Living in an apartment, rental property, condos, HOAs, etc. One of the greatest newer additions to ham radio is the “digital modes” such as C4FM, DMR, P25. You can get a handheld radio that is capable of one of these modes and a “hot spot” (radio internet gateway) and talk from your handheld to the hot spot via radio, and the hotpot connects via the internet to a repeater, “Talk Group”, reflector, etc to just about any place in the world. Some repeaters are “linked” together that may cover very large areas. For example, I could be on my couch with a hand held ham radio in New York City and talk to another ham hiking in the outback of Australia thanks to the help of the internet. You can do this with the lowest/ entry level license class, Technician. If you purchased everything new, you could be set up and talking with about $300 invested. If you can find some used equipment, you could probably cut that in half with some hunting. If you live in an area with repeaters close by, you can also use that same handheld to talk directly into those repeaters. Most ham handhelds that do a digital mode, are also capable of regular analog frequencies that many local repeaters use. Now where you go from there, depends on you. There are many that live in apartments, condos, hoa’s, etc that get real creative with their antennas and go the HF route. To really get into HF, you would need at least a General Class license (USA). How much you invest is all up to you. The FCC charges $35 for a 10 year license. If you can find a local ham club, find out when they meet, and attend a meeting. Ask questions. I can guarantee that you will be treated with enthusiasm and leave with a mind full of new information. There is so much to tell, it can’t be done in a comment on UA-cam.
@@kirk1618 thanks for the reply. I am going to Dayton ham fest and see what I find. I live 10 miles from Xenia fairgrounds where it is held. Hopefully I can find someone willing to point me in the right direction.
Have fun in Dayton John!
@@user-he6nj1zv9f ... Kirk forgot to mention the test that you have to take to get your amateur radio license. There are 3 levels: Technician, General and Amateur Extra classes. They are actually fairly easy tests and CW (Morse Code) is no longer a requirement to get your license. Of course, each class is a little harder than the previous but all in all not so hard. I knew a young lady when I lived in Texas who got all three levels in one sitting (and back then you had to know CW) and she was only 13 yrs old.
I always tell people that are interested in getting a ham license that (and it is the truth) if I can pass the test, anyone can!
You will be able to get the study materials for the tests at Dayton and you will find many helpful hams from both the ARRL and the W5YI VEC systems to help you out!
73 and good luck getting your license, look forward to working you on HF someday soon.
John, N1WOM in SE MA
@@jfrphoto01 thanks. I have HRE-Tech on my iPad and been looking into taking the test. I bought a Diamond antenna for a Yaesu FT-65. I was trying to buy one from a person on market place, sent the payment and never received the radio. I bought the antenna while waiting for the radio to come. A brand new one is $89 and the programing software and cable are another $45. I am hoping to find something at ham fest next weekend.
17:27 Why is it referred to as "Top Band" when there are two bands below it?
Haha, good question 🤔
Probably because 160m was top band for many decades before 630m and 2200m were approved for amateur use!
This guy's grandfather-in-law was a ham.
😎
Radio is an exact science; antennas are pure voodoo😊
Agreed 👍
Hello Ape. Pls help me by remove the chat ban for Arne Carlsson from CAHR. So he can contribute both with insight and donations! Thank you very much!
We don’t expect insight or donations from anyone, especially Arne. If we did unban him what assurances do we have that he won’t be up to his old tricks?
they really need to change that "MUF" acronym! It's very distracting!😮
Right
LOL!
Additional fun fact about 75/80 meters is that when you're not listening to a net after dinner time, it's pretty much 100-year-old guys talking about the weather, if they're going to get their 4th or 5th covid booster shot, and their latest colonoscopy report. /hi hi
Lol
I learned CW from the Boy Scout Handbook and by listening to 40M. I was first licensed in 1962, so I take offense when I hear one of you kids making fun of old folks.
Be careful how you talk about the Metamucil nets (Korean/Vietnam vets) or I'll have to give you a good bash with my walker!
73 DE W8IMP JD LAS CRUCES NM USA
Hey J.D. its all in good fun... BTW, I had to recently switch to a high fiber diet!
Great idea. Thanks. VE6KBI
Thanks 👍
Well done. de w0vet
Thanks Bruce 👍