Dog Days Already?

The summer radio doldrums continue.

I got the long holiday weekend off to a good start, logging six 13 Colonies stations by Thursday. I also nabbed Belarus on FT8. As a bonus they immediately confirmed on LOTW.

Then the heat hit, our family holiday plans kicked in, and my radio remained off the rest of the weekend.

Best laid plans, etc., etc., etc.

One positive radio development of the week was finally squaring away my IC-705 setup. First, I installed the USB-C board upgrade. Easy enough other than my old man eyes struggling with getting the little latch that locks the ribbon into place closed properly. I ordered and connected the appropriate jumper cables so I can use the Micro PA50+ amplifier. I thought my antenna was resonant but the amp kept tripping because the SWR was slightly over 2.0 on a couple bands. So I added a MAT 705 Plus tuner. As you do.

It took me a minute to determine best practices for this setup - turning off the amp to retune on band changes, then adjusting the rig power for optimal output - but I believe I got it all dialed in. I made a couple nice contacts from the backyard last Tuesday before conditions fell apart.

With that arrangement in place, it leaves me with one major radio To Do for the coming months: determine which portable setup I prefer, the IC-705 or the FT-891, and then decide if I keep both or move one on to another op.

It remains to be seen how long that will take me. We are entering a period where there are lots of family activities and visitors, not to mention the brutal heat and humidity Indiana is famous for. I fear my testing will be done more from the backyard in mornings and evenings than getting out to a park and sweating it out at a picnic table.

Originally this week had thunder in the forecast each day, limiting my opportunities to get on the air. The latest update has removed many of those rain chances, so maybe this will be a better radio week than I hoped. Then again, it is July in the Midwest, and lightning can pop up even when it isn’t in the forecast.