Re: [IRCA] 30 years of skywave DXing

["HASCALL, DAVID CIV DFAS" <DAVID.HASCALL@xxxxxxxx>]

Wow!  Very interesting reading.  I'm now 48.  I got my start as many of
you did from my father.  He was a DX'er but doubt that he knew of DX
clubs.  He had several old Hallicrafters before his brother-in-law (my
Uncle, of course) got him a new Hallicrafters S-120A at the Army PX.  My
uncle was a manager and "dented" one up for him so he could get it for
$10 off. :)  Dad wrote stations and received QSL cards or written
veries.  One of dad's relatives was driving around his house and clipped
his longwire antenna with his truck and it pulled his 38-D off of the
table and busted it.  D'oh!  

I liked DX'ing all bands, AM, FM, TV, SW (both broadcast, utility  and
amateur) and Public Service.  Caught my first TV sporadic E signal in
the mid 1970's (KBTX 3 from Bryan TX and then Tampa, FL).  My old GE
tabletop radio heard all kinds of MW skywave, nightly including Orilla,
ON and X-Rock 80 (XEROK).  I received something from the ANARC from a
radio station that I QSL'ed.  I joined NASWA, the NRC, Miami Valley DX
Club and the WTFDA.  I corresponded with Ed Shaw (Lexington, KY), Glenn
Hauser (Knoxville, TN at that time) a TV DX'er from Florida (Wayne
Thompson?), Rick Dau and quite a few others.  

I had a Hallicrafters S-53A, an S-38E ($3.50 Flea Market find in 1976),
RS DX-160 and later a RS version of the Uniden CR-2021, the DX-400.  I
also had GE and Grundig long range portables for the MW band.  I wish
that I had the DX-160 back.

My primary focus while in college was AM, FM and TV.  These days just AM
and FM.  I jumped on the ULR bandwagon.  Actually the radios' barefoot
are not quite as good as my GE Superadio or Grundig S-350 but thanks to
a Curtis Sadowski supplied SRF-59 (at his cost) and a gift from Gary
deBock, my MW DX'ing hobby has been reenergized.  Now I am dreaming of
air core loops, ferrite transplants and Superloops. 

I got my ham ticket in 2006.  I feel bad as dad always wanted to get his
ham ticket but had "code-phobia."  Now he is almost 80 and could most
likely pass the written tests up to General with ease but on a fixed
income doubt he could get on the air.

73,
Dave in Indy

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