Dear Bill and Pete,
I would like to claim an entry in the SolderSmoke Homebrew To Homebrew
(HB2HB) log. Here’s the story. On Sunday 24th April 2016 I drove two
and a half hours north east of Melbourne into the edge of the Great
Australian Dividing Range, to climb two summits, for the fun of
operating my 40 meter SSB QRP (5 watt) rig in a beautiful, RF-quiet
setting, and to activate two Summits Of The Air (SOTA) peaks.
My first summit was Mount Bullfight
(http://www.sotawatch.org/summits.php?summit=VK3/VN-002), in the
Rubicon Ranges, at 1,490 meters ASL not high by American or European
standards but a good heart-racing climb through thick Australian bush.
After a successful activation with good signal reports into Tasmania
(VK7), around Victoria (VK3) and New South Wales (VK2), I descended,
and drove about 2 miles up the valley to an adjacent SOTA summit,
Pyramid Hill (1,314 meters) where the activation also went well. Just
as I was finishing up with the chasers, Peter Parker VK3YE called me,
operating portable from his beloved Chelsea Pier, and we had a very
pleasant beach-to-summit ragchew QSO. The RF path is about 62 miles.
Peter was running his MDT double sideband rig, with 2 watts. I was
using my MST400, with 5 watts SSB. Both rigs are kit radios from OzQrp
(http://www.ozqrp.com/). Both are assembled by hams — I built my
MST400 18 months ago and Peter was using the MDT rig that OzQrp
founder Leon, VK2DOB designed, built and kitted, the one he sent to
Peter for a YouTube review. So it was built by a ham, just not by
Peter.
Now, I know that there may be some, possibly even you Bill, who may
question the legitimacy of my claim on a coveted HB2HB log entry in
this particular case. I can assure you that we did experience the Joy
of QRP/P operation, Peter basking in the late afternoon Australian sun
on a beach and I on the mountain top. And to further add authenticity
to my HB2HB claim we discussed QRP, aerial experiments, and ‘whats on
your bench’ topics for a full 20 minutes.
However, I would not want to risk disturbing the wrath of the Radio
Gods with a dubious claim.
I admit that neither radio was scratch-built, on copper board
ugly-style, or had the form of a wild birds-nest of separate modules
and interconnections, with parts loosely screwed onto an Italian
chopping board or a discarded lump of wood. Indeed, neither can it be
claimed that both operators built their rigs. So I will take a
rejection of my request with acceptance and dignity, acknowledging
that you are duty-bound to maintain the highest of standards, and that
entry into the SolderSmoke HB2HB log is not to be granted without
proper consideration.
I do understand that you may feel that accepting this QSO could set a
dangerous precedent and risk opening the flood gates to a tsunami of
dubious HB2HB QSO claims from hams using minimal assembly rigs, like
some of the Elecrafts. Who knows, some individuals might even be
tempted to claim HB2HB QSOs from VHF FM hand-helds after managing to
screw on the rubber-ducky antenna. Even unboxing a shiny new
Yae-com-Wood is, to some, a form of ‘handiwork’.
Bill, the decision is yours. Peter VK3YE and I look forward to your
decision. Judge wisely.
73 from down under, Paul VK3HN, with agreement to this claim from Peter VK3YE.
Details of this day of activations are on my blog at:https://vk3hn.wordpress.com/
Peter’s MDT review is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OtZeFkb1xw
