26.285 USB Calling Frequency

Thanks Mike.
I would probably build a T2LT for those frequencies I think and hiltop it. My Sirio gainmaster pulls in a lot of noise at homebase, I cant seem to be rid of it despite tuning the coax to the half wavelengths. Then again I am a very new M7 and know almost nothing at the moment, still finding my feet so to speak.
Probably need to join a proper ham club and find out more about building antennas and equipment that way.

Hi. Simon.

Yes. Good idea join Ham club. I started @ Chester & District Ham
Club in '59 & Hastings area club from '72/85. A word of caution a
Home base not a good idea. If like me u get S7-9 Qrm from 27.000
2mths ago. I sold all my H/base gear. I only go mob/portable now.
I was having a Qso with 6/7 Hams y/day they all say it's not easy
working from Qth. The MFJ 1025/6 were mentioned but only drop
it S2/3 @ best @ £200! I've tried different Ant's & locations. It's the
Modern Urban design/development ie. Switch mode p/s Led lights
Solar panels etc.etc. Saying that I can still work 80/40/20 @ Qth.
With S 2-3 Qrm. You'll just have to try & see. But check ur Qrm first
or u could spend a lot of cash for nothing. Also it'll be difficult for
the next 18mths as we're in the low. Good luck Dx 73's Mike.

Hello everybody!
I still listen on 285 every now and then but I usually have a lot of QRN there and around all the frequencies around there. That band is often unusable for me because of the QRN. I get allsorts of strong high pitched signals which is ptobably the radar stations in the Adriatic that people have talked about. I live in SW 14 division. It would be good to have another Calling frequenct but that one is no good for me and probably a lot of other continental divisions.
73 everybody
Ady 14CT010

Sorry about the spelling mistakes I had to type quick.
Ady

Hi. Ady.

Nice one. How's u? Had any more good contacts 44/31 etc. Yes
I'm hoping we can get the S/lows up running for EU. E. Nxt year.
I've been having a Qso with Ian last couple o' days. 73's Mike.

When the band is open the radar is about 75kHz either side of 26285, so really it would be better if we could all agree to use 385. I think in the end we will have to do this as solar activity picks up because the radar is a constant pulse of 80W into ground plane antennas - it will propagate worldwide just as easiy as us calling on SSB. I could hear 14SW077 calling on 285 on Sunday when I was over the IoW, but he was listening on the frequency and we couldn't sort out a QSY so there was no QSO.

I'm yet to hear any Radar QRM on 26.285

Must just be lucky up here in the North East

Yes, QRN is a bit of an issue in the modest shack.
I have avidly been reading up on how to minimise it, alas I may need to blow up my local substation and run my shack on battery packs if I can't sort it out.

I don't think I'll be very popular with the Electricity network or neighbours. I will have to keep reading...

I don't mind going down to that frequency and seeing if anyone's on. On the muppets channel 19 usb heard morse code so anything's possible.
And on triple five it's always the same people and i have three hams in a straight line within a mile of me so a change would be good.
Plus other hams and cb'ers pushing some serious power near me so hopefully i might get some of you guys?
Will have a try Delboy and see what happens buddy.

Delboy wrote:

I'm yet to hear any Radar QRM on 26.285

Must just be lucky up here in the North East

I went on that frequency and heard no radar and i put out a shout but noone came back.
Be cool if we all agree a chanel but 26.285 is cool with me

Muppet  channels don't have USB
And there is a radar on that frequency it also goes 20kc each side of the frequency has done since late 70s early 80s but saying that we always used it back then so it's nothing new really infact it was a good frequency for stateside and Canada back then .

https://youtu.be/PIWz4LAmKQw
Here is a video I made 5year ago this is what you hear every so often it could be heard all over the South East and Essex

https://youtu.be/1M1p5mUfQoc
It's back, I said there was radar on this frequency done this video today 11 Jan 2020

Just checked and nothing heard up here in the North East

Perhaps your lucky Del or the N.E. is its blind side,as I said we use to hear it regular in the South East and Essex and London ,actually if I remember Mark in Essex CT/TM 037 also made a video about it some years back , I will say it did get weaker as time went on today but I could still hear it very faint in the end have a listen now and then Del see if you do hear anything mate.

Yeah we don't seem to suffer from it up here.

It's not as strong as it use to be and today was the strongest I've heard it for a long time ,but also I was hearing some very sporadic unusual dx on all modes today even voices on ch 6 mids AM ie: superbowl, and a mobile in Bosnia calling on T5 .just wondering that when the conditions are good it brings it in because when it was at its highest that noise was back in the late 90s to mid 2000s and conditions where very good then

Delboy wrote:

Yeah we don't seem to suffer from it up here.

I live in East Lancashire and I have a constant high-pitched tone at S4 on 26.285 USB (LSB is clear though).

Never heard just a high pitched tone before Phil, just the noise of what we called the old steam train because that's what it sounds like

NUBSTER wrote:

Never heard just a high pitched tone before Phil, just the noise of what we called the old steam train because that's what it sounds like

The one you linked in your earlier post (the steam train sound) reminds me of the "Russian Woodpecker" over-the-horizon radar that we used to hear during the "Cold War" back in the 1980s. As you're in London there are probably lots of radar / radio / telex etc signals flying around from airports, embassies, military bases etc. I often listen to low-band & super-low but so far I haven't heard any QSOs......maybe we'll get some once the Summer sporadic E season starts.

Until the T5 is so chocker again people need an alternative, it is likely to be a bit quiet, but I always put calls out down there and QSY well out of the Codar QRM from Italy when I am out portable - that is the slower pulsing in the Youtube vid.

It's chicken and egg, if people call down there, put their contacts on the cluster so others can see what's going on, it will be a useful alternative to the T5 when the solar cycle picks up again. Maybe something for the FB group to think about might be an "activity day" down on 26MHz in the meantime.

Back in the day I use to get more of the U.S. and Canada on 26mhz than on the T5 and was able to make easy contacts too but I saw a video on YouTube the other week about CB in the U.S.(cant find it now as I would have posted it)and TBH it looks dead on there frequencies not much on there Superbowl (Ch6 AM mids) which is or was normally packed with power stations the video even recond the T5 was quite too ,be nice to get nice conditions on any of the frequencies ATM,still another 2 or 3 years and its supposed to start up again.

Last week I and another station was on there for over an hour TBH we actually stayed on the calling frequency to see if anyone else came on or got the normal "GET OFF THE CALLING FREQUENCY " lol, and not one person came on and we not local to each other I'm in North London and he was in Biggin Hill in the S.E outskirts of London, I know the other station we make contacts on the other used frequencies but this was a surprise because it just so happened that we was both monitoring the 285 at the same time just to see if anyone was about.

The band has been so dead lately I don't suppose many people had their radios on!