Time Traveling with a Straight Key

Amateur Radio traces its origin all the way back to the early years of the 20th Century prior to the Great War.The setting was cacophony of CW spark transmiters on tmedium wave frequencies where scientists, commercial interests such as the Marconi Company, maritime developments triggered by the loss of the Totanic in 1912, the pressures from the Navy ,and the presence of Radio Amateurs some how converged on radio as we know it. Amateurs were pushed off these frequencies in 1912 and we have just gotten back with the FCC creation of the 630 meter band in 2017.The band has a pioneering feel despite its vintage status, as we relearn how the propagation works, what antennas work and which don't, and figuring out what homebrew equipment is required to work along side of our fancy star-of-the-art rigs. Most QSOs use digital modes to combat the very high noise levels, particularly in the summer, but CW is the gold standard when noise and propagation permit. A small group of mid-western and east coast operators began knocking around the idea of working SKN on 630 meters. All antenna are small compared to a wavelength of 630 meters and their efficiency is very low - 1-3%. We share ther bacd with the power grid control sysrtems, so our FCC maximum permitted EIRP is 5W, so everyone is essentially QRP. My 100W final amplifier results in perhaps 1.5W of radiated power! Fortunately, while the band is very noisey, it also has the potential for long distance propagation. Conditions were quite favorable for a short time after the start of the SKN event and most of us were able to work a handful of other stations. Desoite some tired arms, everyone had fun and it is very likely we will be back next year!

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