Re: [IRCA] [mwdx] DXing the Western US [ Grandpa, DON'T Tell Me About the Good Ole Days ]

[Russ Edmunds <wb2bjh@xxxxxxxxx>]

I still occasionally do SR/SS DX although not often live. Planning is key
for this. I still use GeoClock as a part of it. Figuring out which targets
have a favorable pattern, good power, antenna height and then coupling that
with when interfering stations may change power or pattern.


Russ Edmunds
15 mi NW Phila
Grid FN20id
<wb2bjh@xxxxxxxxx>

AM: Modified Sony ICF2010's (2) barefoot w/whip
FM: Yamaha T-80 & T-85, each w/ Conrad RDS Decoder;
Onkyo T-450RDS; Tecsun PL-310 ( 2);
modified Sony ICF2010 w/APS9B @ 15';
Grundig G8 w/whip; modified Sony ICF2010 w/whip


On Fri, May 22, 2015 at 10:30 PM, James Renfrew <jim.renfrew@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

> Les,
>
> I'd have to say that in my experience it's a slow grind with few immediate
> miracles.  Sometimes it's a target with a strategy other times it's just
> being lucky.  Spectrum recording should enhance the opportunities, but in
> my experience I could easily end up with several lifetimes of recordings to
> review.
> Being lucky is mostly being in on a tip that a certain dominant station is
> off the air for a few hours or a few days.  That's what happened when
> Montreal 690 went off for an extended time; I got Vancouver BC, something
> in Minnesota and a lot of others.  Or a station can't or forgets to power
> down at sunset.
> One specific strategy is to make a serious study of sign/off, power
> reductions and pattern changes,  Kaz has actually worked out charts to
> indicate which stations are in greater darkness prior to sign-off in
> certain months.  The key is understanding that the time marker is in
> quarter hour segments, while the terminator may be slightly earlier than
> that. This is more subtle than just knowing that the last half of the month
> is better through December, and that the first half of the month is better
> after January.  For specific stations there are some specific months when
> there is a distinct advantage, when compared to other months. Kaz can tell
> you more.
>
> Antennae are also a big factor.  For most of my DXing life I've had little
> choice with them, other than just send the wire out the window to the most
> distant corner of a city lot and hope for the best.  Now that I'm in the
> country I have a lot more room, and choices of directions.  Phasing
> antennae is an important strategy when you can put out several longwires.
> Numerous visits to Newfoundland with a three kilometer longwire aimed at
> Brazil have sold me on the value of aiming at the things you want to get.
> Terminating the eastern end of the antenna  also enhances reception to the
> west.  A Flag antenna also has this property, pushing domestics to my west
> down into the mush while lifting up TAs to the east.
>
> So after DXing in the Rochester area since 1976 I have heard every state
> except for Alaska and Hawaii.  Oregon was the last to fall, somewhat
> ingloriously by finding Disney on the X-Band.  I think one of the eastern
> stations was off at the time.
>
> I have had immediate miracles.  One day I heard Glenn Hauser report a
> station from Bermuda with a limited schedule in the 2 MHz region of the
> band.  I went right to the frequency and there it was.  Not MW, but fun to
> log.   Then there's the time I sent away for a sample bulletin from the
> WTFDA, read about e-skip (something I'd never known about), went up the
> attic and immediately logged TV from Louisiana.
>
>
> Jim Renfrew, Clarendon NY
>
> On Fri, May 22, 2015 at 8:46 PM, Les Rayburn <les@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> > With apologies to the Judds for their hit song.
> >
> > My primary interest in AM DXing is logging domestic stations in the
> > Western part of the U.S. Probably because i enjoy traveling in that
> > scenery, and the people are wonderful. No matter the reason, any station
> > with a "K" call is a thrill for me to log.
> >
> > I started my DXing career in the late 1990's, right about the time that
> > Total Recorder software made automated monitoring possible. That fit well
> > with my busy lifestyle, so it's continued to dominate my efforts since.
> Not
> > spending much "live" time at the dials, I've never appreciated the
> > opportunities for Sunrise and Sunset (SR/SS) DXing to it's full extent.
> >
> > One fond memory is setting at a state park with a portable receiver at
> > sunset, waiting for a daytime station in the East to sign off, revealing
> a
> > Nebraska station loud and clear giving farm reports underneath. I don't
> > recall the call or the frequency, but it's in my log.
> >
> > Fast forward to 2015. I'm not eager to add to my totals for Western
> > stations. I'd like to ask other DX'er what strategies, equipment,
> antennas,
> > etc they use when looking for new ones out West.
> >
> > I've asked this question before, and usually receive a lot of stories
> > about "how it used to be" before the rules changes, when the clear
> channels
> > dominated, etc. Many articles written about SR and SS DXing also either
> > focus on the historical aspect, or assume that everyone reading knows how
> > it used to be, and only talk about how bad it is now.
> >
> > So--while I appreciate the history--I'm more interested in putting new
> > ones in the log today. Any DX'ers have suggestions on how best to do that
> > now in 2015?
> >
> > Knowledge is always appreciated. Thanks in advance.
> >
> >
> > --
> > 73,
> >
> >
> > Les Rayburn, N1LF
> > Maylene, AL
> > EM63
> >
> > Member NRC, IRCA, & Medium Wave DX Circle
> > Former CPC Chairman for NRC/IRCA
> >
> > Elad FDM-S2 SDR, SDR-IQ,Funcube Pro, Wellbrooke ALA-1530+ loop, Clifton
> > Lab Active Whip,
> > Quantum Phaser, Kiwa Loop, Palstar MW Pre-Selector
> >
> > --
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