26.285 USB Calling Frequency

26TC62 wrote:

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

That's nothing new about the bands being dead LOL gotta another 3 or 4 years before we get sunspot conditions to start up again that's if it does.

I always have a shout on there when I am out and about and it usually nets a couple of contacts. I don't really expect a lot more, the main point of things is to keep the frequency in peoples' minds for when the band is back up and the T5 is jammed. Plus being a MHz lower than that T5 there will be a tiny, tiny marginal advantage in being on 26MHz rather than the T5 while we are bumping along the bottom.

TBH alot of people dont know about 285 or have totally forgotten about it which in one way I like ,because it might keep the idiots away from it and let them stay on T5, cos I've noticed acationally there is a few of the UK19 Muppets getting on the T5 trying to block it out like they do on 19

Only issue if people have a legal rig can not get to the T5 or down to super low .

73 Matt

Matt86 wrote:

Only issue if people have a legal rig can not get to the T5 or down to super low .

73 Matt

Well you use a Yaesu so your OK ,plus if your a licensed Amateur you shouldn't be using those frequency using that equipment ,but I know what your saying but there is a lot out there who only use totally 100% legal equipment and most probably not interested and lot of us who know about these frequency have been around cb for years that's why we know about them

Hello Martin,

I have had some great contacts on 26.285. I used to regularly talk to 2/141 Charlie from Vermont and an expat called John (cannot remember his call-sign) over in Reykjavik, Iceland. The first time I talked to John, I thought it was a good ground-wave contact. Lol. Still had quite a strong west country twang.

There used to be a lot of 44/31/2/9 Div around there. 26.420 was always good for talking to the Charlie Oscars too. Used to get some good contacts on 25.835 back in the day too. It will be great when the good conditions return.

Hello John mate , yeah it was good around 26mhz we did get some good contacts, I hope it comes back but apart from a couple of prearranged networks that are on here there is nothing about it really is totally dead around London apart from one network ,I would love to know when this so called conditions are coming back , cos if dont perk up now if it does come back there will no one to use it lol

Good to see 26mhz has still got some users as its been a place i have used since the early 80s...As mentioned John in Iceland is a regular as are a few from USA so lets hope for better conditions and it gets some decent qso`s going again...

I think this is a good frequency to use tbh

antenna1 wrote:

I think this is a good frequency to use tbh

I used to speak with a guy in Tenerife (Mike) a few years ago when conditions were far better,we spoke often as i used to visit Tenerife regularly and one of our chats a guy in Vermont Canada asked to join the chat.

We spoke for over an hour just like talking on the phone and i was only using radio power (12w) but we was at the peak of an amazing cycle then.I do hope we have those conditions again in a few years.
The Canadian Outlaws as mentioned earlier are good to chat with on 26.420 and there are plenty of them using that freq so a chat is always possible..In fact check out even lower down on 25mhz as ive worked a few 2 div down there too...Keep an eye on your swr though..

The bandwidth on my half wave vertical is really quite good and I can get down there without a tuner.
I have been going down and giving a shout on .285 and .420 but am yet to hear anything, in fairness, the skip has been sporadic the last few weeks so I will keep trying.

Hello Alan,

Always Worthing giving a shout out, around there. As we get closer to the peak of the next cycle, you will definitely hear activity down there. Like Martin says, it can be good when T5 goes manic.

I have started doing just that since I read the post I know one day I will catch some of you there, I did hear another station down there today, which was a first, so others are clearly doing the same thing to.
There is only so many times you can hear the air raid siren and ola ola coco cola before you lose the will to live hahaha...

Keep going Alan, you'll have luck one day mate.

I often scan around the band if the T5 has the "Hola-Coca-Cola" brigade in force, I know the propogation is up and keep away from the idiots

To be fair the recent prop has been iffy. For a short while the other week I got some short skip with Ireland, Wales and Scotland coming in but too jumpy for firm contacts, (still worth a try though!) Maybe you were one of the 108 divisions I heard shouting

Sun spot's a coming up - we'll have more luck to come.

All the best,
Victor

I hear some activity on 27555 from my shortwave ,,and have noted down the other frequencies ,, just waiting for the radio I'm after to be back in stock ..I'm getting the whole lot power supply and swr meter coax and I have a bazooka coming , might also try the  Hawkins thunderbolt SSD 58   Here is one I caught on video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sB6GXkKcpxE&feature=youtu.be

leno51 wrote:

I hear some activity on 27555 from my shortwave ,,and have noted down the other frequencies ,, just waiting for the radio I'm after to be back in stock ..I'm getting the whole lot power supply and swr meter coax and I have a bazooka coming , might also try the  Hawkins thunderbolt SSD 58   Here is one I caught on video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sB6GXkKcpxE&feature=youtu.be

I was having a look at the Hawkins Thunderbolt too, it gets good reviews and appears to have excellent bandwidth.  I have a tree in the garden I was thinking about one of the fishing poles up through the middle of it with one of these attached to give me another stealthy antenna that shouldn't catch the neighbours eye and it gives me more height than the current vertical I am using too.

Yea ,I'm definitely going to try that Hawkins. He has a black version also that might be even less visible ..

I thought I'd give .285 a quick go as T5 seemed to be pretty washed up for the day, I have been going down there putting out a few calls fairly regularly but other than some very distant stations I havent heard much, until today that is.

A station called me back, a Sierra Whiskey station operator name Max from the South of France, unfortunately, the rest has slipped my memory but it turns out he used to live just a few miles away as when I told him my general vicinity, ten miles East of Stirling, to my surprise, he listed off several of the local villages.

We managed a decent QSO until some local interference wiped the radio out completely for me at least but it seems very promising as the propagation seemed to have held out a little later down there and very little noise either (until my nieghbours washing machine came on that is)

I like the idea of .285 it is an excellent alternative to T5 which can be a little hectic at times in addition to the other benefits it offers and is clearly worth giving a go!

Kind of forgotten about this freq untill i read this so from now on ill give a shout out .Quite a lot of Germans favour  26MHz from what i can remember from back in the day .
Had a contact today with a guy called Derek in south west Ireland and i could not convince him that my qth was north east Scotland  its a good feeling when you get a good signal report  when the skip is iffy to say the least  all i seem to hear nowadays is 14 div oh la la.

I thought I would monitor 285 yesterday out in the shack like I use to years ago I called out a few times too most of the day aswell as the family was out in the garden near the shack I heard nothing , shame really but like saltire said it was better than hearing the same old 14 division and Ola Ola lol

Alan - Mirror Man wrote:

I thought I'd give .285 a quick go as T5 seemed to be pretty washed up for the day, I have been going down there putting out a few calls fairly regularly but other than some very distant stations I havent heard much, until today that is.

A station called me back, a Sierra Whiskey station operator name Max from the South of France, unfortunately, the rest has slipped my memory but it turns out he used to live just a few miles away as when I told him my general vicinity, ten miles East of Stirling, to my surprise, he listed off several of the local villages.  

We managed a decent QSO until some local interference wiped the radio out completely for me at least but it seems very promising as the propagation seemed to have held out a little later down there and very little noise either (until my nieghbours washing machine came on that is)

I like the idea of .285 it is an excellent alternative to T5 which can be a little hectic at times in addition to the other benefits it offers and is clearly worth giving a go!

Good stuff, Alan.

Still call out at different times of the day everyday, and  I did for 1 week not long back still nothing LOL ,mind you I think radio has gone back in to a bit of decline again, dont care what anyone says ,ok people maybe buying them but dont seem to be using them .