Amateur Radio Topics by VK6LW/VK6T

CQWW CW from a VK6 perspective. High levels of solar disturbance affected some regions but once again all bands were very busy with another record breaking year.

Preview of the CQWW SSB contest, 48 hour duration held on 25-26th October.

Low noise loop antennas, with vertical polarisation for receive on the HF bands.

Kevin, VK6LW with a general comparison between these 3 HF transceivers.

Commonwealth Contest (CW) 2025. Results, activity, propagation and comments on new rule changes. This podcast is the audio content of a video you can find on my VK6LW YouTube and Instagram channels. https://youtu.be/_S1xtdoBswE

Commonwealth CW Contest, a review from a VK6 perspective by Kevin VK6T ( VK6LW)

Commonwealth CW Contest March 8th -9th. New rules, DXpeditions to rare countries various categories. Great contest for newcomers and regular participants.

Kevin, VK6LW talks about the most important aspect of your station….The antenna system. With some practical ideas about design and construction, this podcast features the Tri OCF. A simple multiband wire antenna with some gain at low angles on the HF bands.

Kevin with a wrap up of CQWW CW contest from a VK perspective, raw scores now available on the CQWW website.

Emir D4DX (E77DX) joins Kevin VK6LW to talk about his recent visit to Cape Verde Islands for the CQWW CW contest. A fantastic result with nearly 10000 QSO’s and 21M points in the single operator category.

Kevin, VK6LW discusses his recent change in equipment from the 2 x Icom 7610 to a Flex 6600M SDR.

WPX CW contest, band conditions, scores and comments from a VK6 perspective.

Results of my recent experiences with various receive antennas for the LF and HF bands. Low noise with good SNR characteristics. Preamps and switching options. Bandpass filters and SO2R. Details of my latest delta loop designs can be found on instagram @vk6lw

2ele over 2ele stacked X beams for 20, 15 and 10m. EZNEC modelling, design, switching, results and conclusions.

BERU Commonwealth Contest 2024, wrap up, band conditions and observations from my operation as VK6T

Steve VE6WZ shares his thoughts on beverage antennas and explains the interesting development, improvement and detailed evaluation of his new BOG/BOL for 160m. For more information check out his YouTube channel @VE6WZ

This first episode for 2024 is mainly about CW and some history of the various Morse keys and paddles I’ve acquired and used over last 50 years

After some tower problems I designed and built a new X Beam with stacked elements 2 over 2 on my second tower. Intended to use this for CQWWCW…however some problems with 80/160 prevented an all band effort this year. So it was just 40m single band for me. See more on instagram @vk6lw

New antenna for 160m, also working on the 80m antenna with a second element to be added for some gain, with switching direction from the shack. Propagation on 160m, upgrade to HF tower crank up system. RX antennas, QRP CW on HF bands using simple antennas. New Shack and upcoming Contests. Any questions or comments to [email protected] also check out my instagram www.instagram.com/vk6lw

BERU Commonwealth CW contest, 11th/12th March. Good condx forecast for HF Bands. Great contest for both serious and casual participants. Low band antennas with 80m switched 2ele/ omnidirectional array. Homebrew Bandpass filters for SO2R with automatic band switching. EDZ antenna for 20m, with good performance on 15m and 10m also. Any questions or suggestions please contact me via [email protected] www.instagram.com/vk6lw

Perspective from VK6 of the CQWW CW 2022 contest. Comments on high scores, conditions, TX and RX antennas I used along with observations on how to maximise 2BSIQ/SO2R operation from VK6. Any questions or comments please email to me [email protected]

Headphones, everyone has a favourite pair. There is so much choice now in comparison to when Steve and I first got started back in the early 70’s. In this episode we discuss our shared experiences and compare some models that we have found to be the best performers for HF DX, Contests and CW. Let us know about your choice of headphones and what features work for you. Send to [email protected] and we can include your comments or questions in a future Headphone podcast episode.

WPX CW 2022, wrap up, band conditions, activity and top scores. With comments from a VK6 perspective. Preview of UK and EU field day CW contest this coming weekend. Any questions or comments please email to [email protected] and if you enjoy these podcasts please share with your friends or local club

In this episode I preview the upcoming WPX CW contest, this is a great contest especially with current improved HF band conditions. Use diversity reception with separate RX antennas, this works well in stereo mode if you have a sub receiver. X beam tri band HF antenna developments building and testing with only a single mast support, 4 directions with gain and F/B and just one feedline . I’ll be using VK6T this weekend during the contest. If you enjoy these podcasts then please share with your friends or local club. Any questions or comments you can contact me via email [email protected]

Steve VE6WZ has built a great remote station, 10 acres of land on a hilltop about 100 km from Calgary. He describes the setup and operation of the station along with details of the development of his transmit and receive antennas and the outstanding results achieved on the low bands from this fabulous radio location. A tremendous amount of thought and work has gone into this station. Steve also has a You Tube channel and this is definitively worth exploring, just search for VE6WZ. If you enjoy these podcasts maybe share with your friends or the local Radio Club. It helps with the rankings and of course that also means more people will find my podcasts. Any questions or comments just email me at [email protected]

Mike G3VYI visits Gozo and operates as 9H6YI, Don G3XTT goes to The Gambia as C56DF and Colin travels to Cayman as ZF2CA. Listen to their travel adventures and fun they had in the BERU contest. Any questions or comments about Amateur Radio Topics podcast please contact me: [email protected]

Review and discussion of the recent BERU Commonwealth CW Contest. Conditions on LF and HF, report on various antennas we used and tested both for TX and RX. Merits of SO2R in this contest, activity, HQ stations and travellers.

I’m joined by Steve, VK6VZ for a preview and discussion of the upcoming Commonwealth CW Contest (BERU) this weekend, 12th/13th March. Join us for some insights and to find out more about this long running DX contest with a difference. One of my favourite contests. Any comments or questions please contact me [email protected]

CQWW CW report, TX and RX Antenna review. Band Condx from VK6 during and after contest. SO2R with VK6T contest call. Any comments or questions please email to [email protected]

CQWW CW preview, Antenna modelling and rebuild, HF Rx antennas for SO2R contesting. 40m 2 ele, switched wire beam. I will be using VK6T in CQWW. Any questions or comments please email to [email protected]

In this episode I’m joined by Steve VK6VZ and we discuss the Extended Double Zepp, 2 Half Waves in Phase and simple Parasitic Wire Arrays, all of which provide gain over a dipole or a vertical. With some theory combined with our on air experiences using these antennas on the HF bands. If you have any questions about today’s podcast please email to [email protected]

Wire Beams for receive and transmit. SO2R with RX bandpass filters. Single mast beam for 40m with relay switched elements. Commonwealth contest. WPX CW contest. IC 7610 Screen problem. Tower and new shack project.

CQWW CW contest, SO2R operation, improved HF band conditions. Improvements to LF and HF antennas, new directional 160 and 80 m antenna. RX antenna options

Summary of recent WPX CW, Rx antennas for HF bands, SO2R training and contest setup. 160m season and antenna evaluation. IC7610 and TS590.

Summary of the recent 160m CW contest. Band conditions from VK6.

Preview of CQ 160m CW contest this weekend. A perspective from VK6, this is a great opportunity to work some DX on Topband as activity levels should be very good.

CQWW CW condx and report. Low Band condx and antenna experiments and performance. SO2R setup, upcoming Commonwealth Contest.

LF Antenna Design with results of on air Tests on 160 and 80m. Upcoming CQ WW CW contest, HF Band conditions.

I visit the Ham Radio Show, Friedrichshafen, located in beautiful Lake Constance region. Fantastic 3 Day event for anyone interested in any aspect of Ham Radio. A great opportunity to try out the latest gear and find bargains in the massive flea market. WAE CW contest this weekend and general comment on band conditions from VK6

Review of the recent WPX CW contest, band conditions with antenna transmit and receive performance.

Construction and practical ideas for HF fixed wire beams with reversible switching coax feed system.

SWR, how important is a low SWR on the HF bands? Loss figures for SWR discussed.

Beverage receive antennas for low band DX. Latest band conditions in Perth WA

Spiderbeam on air tests, antenna feed systems, fixed wire beams on 40m, contests reviewed

Wire Beams, Spiderbeam HF, switched direction beam for 40m, receiving antennas. BERU Commonwealth Contest

Overview of Quad type antennas for the HF bands. Configuration, feeding and matching the antenna. Comparison with a dipole antenna. Advantages on receive.

Antenna design and modelling tools. Antenna analyser equipment for testing, optimisation and adjustment

Characteristics of popular multiband antennas such as the G5RV and ZS6BKW with ideas for installation, feedlines and matching.

Intro • Feedlines and matching the antenna

Wire antennas design and construction overview