Few more direct QSL cards

H7H - Nicaragua 2013 - Great signals on 8 bands!

TX5D - Austral Islands - new on CW and on many bands 10/12 included!

FO/KH0PR - IOTA OC-094 - Napuka Atoll - Always great to work.

FO/KH0PR - IOTA OC-238 Reao Atoll - QSO managed on 28Mhz! Just 21 EU stations managed 10m QSO.

Last QSL arrival

Some nice QSL received during Christmas Period. It is now good time to sort QSL cards. 

3D2GC - Fiji - great double QSL card from Stan LZ1GC and his latest activity from Fiji.

5J0R - San Andres sorted on 8 bands and 3 emissions

CE0YHO - Jose , native operator from Easter Island. New on phone mode for me.

J34J - Great Japan DX-Pedition from Grenada. Pleasure to work and pleasure to deal with QSL Manager. Great example how DX-Pedition QSL has to be managed. Well done!

TO2TT - finest Italian job! Great Team from many years and high DX-pedition skills. Looking forward for another TT! Ciao!

Stormy December

Storm over British Isles 26 December 2013

Last few days wind was horrible! Last two weeks Ireland was battered by very strong winds. My antennas are OK. But yesterday noticed some problems when tried to work A63RI IOTA DX-Pedition from AS-124. SWR on my 2ele Delta was very high. Also something wrong was with my rotator. After investigation found problem. Antenna coax was damaged by the wind also rotator cable had similar problem. Cables were touching my shed`s roof. Metal pieces on the roof did that damage.

Damaged coax and rotator cable.

Had enough cable to make them bit shorter without replacing them but looks like my antenna coax need to be replaced soon. Noticed some water inside.

K9W Wake Island - CFM on LoTW

K9W Wake Atoll 2013

Great surprise on LoTW today. K9W electronic QSL arrived. Many thanks for BIG New ONE! 296
DXCC country confirmed on HAM bands. Great DX-Pedition TOP Class DXers and All QSOs to remember!  Still waiting for paper QSL ordered via OQRS on Clublog.

DX-Pedition of the Year 2013

Just voted! DX-World DX-Pedition of the Year 2013 pool is ON now. 2 votes maximum. I have my 3 favourites this year. But only 2 can get my votes. So here it is.

1) TX5K - Clipperton - worked on 8 bands / three emissions with back-up radio in my shack. DXA real time log! Just great!

2) K9W - Wake Atoll - 6 bands / 2 emissions - great hunt on higher bands (10/12)

3) VU7AG - Lakshadweep Islands - at last professional job from VU7! 8 bands / 3 emissions 

I will do some statistics for 2013 later here. With my personal AWARD for one of MOST WANTED operators on HF who gave me EI9KCs QSO of the 2013 year :)

Wind!

Very strong wind is now in Ireland. We were very lucky last time when 2 very strong winds destroyed several places in Europe. This time EI is main target. Hold your antennas!

300 - 1 = .... 301

This is some crazy mathematics here.  300 - 1 = .... 301  What does means ?

300 it was number of my worked countries few days ago (by the Clublog)

Today by the Clublog I am on 299 ....

Why ?

5A1AL Abubaker and his recent activity from Libya is not valid for DXCC. No licence.

So 5A1AL doesn`t count for awards at the moment. 

This is why Clublog removed my QSOs with Libya from my statistics.

I am not interested to get DXCC awards for now.

And my own statistics shows 301 countries worked.

What doesn`t count?

EZ8BP - Turkmenistan - Vlad has no valid licence ....

5A1AL - Libya - Abubaker - same story ....

I have to accept it, even as I said ... not interested in DXCC awards at the moment. But I am licensed HAM radio operator and I should only work licensed operators ... This is not 11m.

I hope to get my 300`th valid country soon ;)

Today "in my box"

Nice package received from Allan W6HGF!

KG4HF - Guantanamo Bay 6 bands and modes CW included CFM!

J8/W6HGF - 15m CW

FP/W6HGF - 20/30m RTTY

Many thanks Al!

Not in log or busted call-sign.

Doesn`t happen so often but it does.

"If you have opportunity work us again" - UFF if you are working rare DX you might not have 2`nd chance to manage 2-way QSO. For example T33A Banaba Island opening on 15m in Ireland on just one mornig! So how to repeat QSO when you call in their log book is busted or your are not in log?

At the moment I am dealing with few DX-Pedition when my call-sign is busted or for some reason I am not logged.

1) K9W - 20M SSB - logged as EI9KF - I will leave that as have SSB on the other band and 20mCW is sorted.

2) XR0ZR - QSO on 17m not in log .... one missing band ....

3) W8A - On 40m/15m logged as EI8KC - on 40m QSO repeated on 15m not. QSO on 17m not in log ....

4) 3DA0ET - QSO on 40m RTTY logged as EA9KC 

5) VU7AG - QSO on 17m logged as EI9KAB - had a chance to repeat and now is correct. QSO  12mCW logged as EI9KAC - had no chances to repeat did RTTY instead.