Dxers Unlimited

Dxers Unlimited s mid week edition for July 8 and 9 2003

By Arnie Coro

radio amateur CO2KK




Hi amigos radioaficionados ! Yes, you are now listening to the mid week edition of your favorite
listener oriented, technically minded radio hobby program , coming to you via shortwave and via the
world wide web streaming audio from www.radiohc.cu. I am Arnie Coro, radio amateur CO2KK, your
friend in Havana, the capital city of Cuba ! Join me for a bit more than seventeen minutes of all
radio hobby related information, including answers to your questions and the most up to date
propagation updates and forecasts. Here is item one for today amigos: Lots of nice comments about
the weekend edition of Dxers Unlimited that brought you the interviews I taped with several of the
Piña Colada Contest Club members that joined Cuban radio amateurs at the first joint Cuba and USA
Field Day Contest stations. Yes, as soon as Chip K7JA and Oscar CO2OJ have all the paperwork done, I
will be telling you how many points did the two stations were able to accumulate , despite the
extremely poor HF propagation that even included an SID or Sudden Ionospheric Disturbance which
brought all the HF bands to an absolute standstill for a certain time. Item two: Have any you ever
suffered from computer problems ... Sure most of Dxers Unlimited s listeners like you have had their
fair share of computer problems, and yours truly had one of those really bad machine freezes this
past weekend, among the things lost, were the most recent mail from Dxers Unlimited s fans around
the world, something I had saved on a weekly basis and not on a daily backup as I should had
done.... so may I ask listeners who wrote e-mail messages to arnie at rhc.cu to please resend your
signal reports , comments about the program and radio hobby related questions sent during the past
two weeks, again to the same address, arnie at rhc dot cu... Sorry for the inconvenience amigos, but
I am sure that anyone that has dealt with computers long enough will understand ... Item three:
Several listeners that heard our weekend show found the information regarding amateur radio tests
here in Cuba very interesting and wanted to know more about the license structure that is in use
here at present, so later in the show I will explain a bit more about the requirements for each of
the three most common classes of amateur radio licenses here in Cuba and also about the novice entry
level group stations. Item four: Have copper tape with self adhesive backing and you will be able to
build a new version of my famous BROOMSTICK ANTENNA, this one is the COPPER FOIL TAPE STICK of CFTS
antenna, because , yes everything here on Earth most have an acronym as you are fully aware, so item
four of today s Dxers Unlimited will be totally devoted to the design and construction of the COPPER
FOIL TAPE version of the Broomstick antenna, and as always at the end of the show , you will be
asked to have your tape recorder or notepad at hand to pick up Arnie Coro s HF plus low band VHF
propagation update and forecast.

Margarita Delgado is my sound engineer and producer , stay tuned for more radio hobby related
information to follow in just a few seconds.




......

Si amigos , this is Radio Havana Cuba, your favorite short wave broadcast station, and here is item
three of today s program.

During the past weekend program I provide some information about the twice yearly amateur radio
license tests, and many of you sent e mail messages asking about how those tests were organized.
First of all let me say that the twice yearly amateur radio license exams are a very well organized
event, in which the Cuban Ministry of Informatics and Communications and the Cuban Federation of
Radio Amateurs cooperate in order to make possible that those tests take place simultaneously at
many locations all along the Cuban archipelago. One of the outstanding features of the ham radio
exams here, is that the tests are delivered by senior radio amateurs that do this job as volunteers,
under the supervision of at least one Ministry of Informatics and Communications official at each
site were the test is administered to the applicants. The entry level class license requires that
the applicants will pass a five words per minute reception test of hand sent Morse Code, which is
sent by a very experienced amateur CW operator. Notice that no machines are used, because what is
wanted is that the applicant will be able to copy the typical hand sending. This test is decisive,
if you are able to copy at least one error free minute of the transmission, then you are given the
opportunity to go for the second test, that is transmitting CW , also at five words per minute,
something that for most people is a lot easier than receiving. After the transmission test is
completed, then there are several more tests that the applicant most pass, among them , an exam that
probes how much the person really knows about both international and national radio and
telecommunications rules and regulations, another test includes basic electricity and electronics,
including safety procedures, and there is a very important test that involves sitting at a ham radio
station and demonstrating to the examiners that you are capable of operating the equipment . During
this past weekend tests, several hundred new radio amateurs have joined the more than thirty five
hundred members of the Cuban Federation of Radio Amateurs, and for them, the most important
challenge is to build their own radio equipment or to modify commercial professional radios for ham
radio use. A third class license holder most operate her or his station for at least one full year
before applying to take the second class license test, that provides many more operating privileges,
including higher power, access to more amateur bands and that requires a TEN WORDS PER MINUTE Morse
Code receiving AND transmitting test , plus a much more comprehensive technical exam. At the top of
the ladder you will find the first class licensees , who are distinguished by the callsigns that
start with a CO, Charlie Oscar, who have to pass a FIFTEEN WORD PER MINUTE CW test and a really
tough technical exam, in order to be able to upgrade from the CM second class license, that they
also must hold for at least one full year of operation before applying to take the first class test.
Now, I am going to tell you about a very special class of introduction to the hobby license that is
granted here in Cuba and that is becoming more popular specially among junior and senior high school
students and also among trade school boys and girls. It is called a NOVICE CLUB STATION LICENSE, and
so far it provides those who request it with the opportunity to operate on a segment of the 160
meter amateur band that otherwise is very rarely used. The power is also limited, but not the great
fun that the kids enjoy by building and operating their up to 10 Watt stations that have a rather
limited communications range, but that on some occasions have been heard hundreds and even thousands
of miles away. The NOVICE CLUB participants usually end up learning the MORSE CODE and much more
about the radio hobby, eventually applying to take the third class full ham radio operator test. As
a matter of fact , many Cuban amateurs continue to use the 160 meter AM modulaton and CW rigs they
have built for the NOVICE STATIONS after they upgrade to the third or higher class licenses,
something that has given birth to a very interesting finding that the otherwise thought as almost
useless area of the radio spectrum between 1.850 and 2.0 megahertz has become an ideal place for
local emergency communications using extremely easy to build with common electronic components
receivers and transmitters !!! Well I hope that all of you who wanted to know more about the amateur
radio licenses in Cuba and the qualifications required to pass the test are now pleased with this
detailed information provided here today .In the near future many of us are looking forward to many
interesting development regarding amateur radio all around the world, in line with the recent
decisions taken at the World Administrative Radio Conference 2003, that just ended in Geneva last
week, and that included among other things leaving the Morse Code testing to be decided by each
telecommunications administration, effectively suppressing the mandatory ITU testing required by
article S25 of the International Radio Rules and Regulations... WARC 2003 proved once again that the
amateur radio service is a highly regarded asset by those in charge of organizing the very complex
use of the radio spectrum !!!

......

You are listening to the mid week edition of Dxers Unlimited, coming to you from Havana, and sure,
we do QSL here one hundred percent, since the very first day when we installed a half wave dipole
for the 49 meter band, and connected a Gates one kilowatt short wave transmitter way back in early
1961 to run our first test broadcasts... something that I remember very well amigos !!! Send your
QSL requests with your signal reports comments about this and other RHC programs via e mail to arnie
at RHC dot cu, or send a post card VIA AIR MAIL to Arnie Coro , Radio Havana Cuba, Havana, Cuba...
and Irma Veitia, from our correspondence department will be sending you a nice QSL letter and QSL
card for your collection... Now here is item four... our technical topics section today devoted to
building your own COPPER FOIL TAPE STICK antenna, a close relative of my now famous BROOMSTICK
antenna that is even easier to build and that is also very nice looking too, almost an avant garde
art object !!! Ready to copy .. OK, listen carefully amigos ...

You will first need to obtain a two inch or 50 millimeters diameter PVC or better yet CPVC plastic
plumbers pipe, of a length of no less than 2 meters or roughly 6 feet. You will also need to buy at
an artist supply store at least two rolls of copper foil tape with adhesive backing. The half inch
width, that is 12. 7 millimeters wide tape is the ideal one for the job, but I have built other
Copper Foil Tape antennas using both narrower and wider tape, without any problem. You will also
want to figure out how to mount the CPVC pipe so that it will keep itself vertical, something I do
by building a base like the one used for the Christmas tree, making a hole were the CPVC pipe will
fit in tightly.

Now you want to make the actual antenna... and this will require the help of another person, so that
the copper foil tape may be pasted to the outer surface of the CPVC pipe forming a tightly wound
spiral, that in the case of the half inch or 12.7 millimeters foil will be leaving about 6
millimeters or a quarter of an inch between turns... Do this very carefully and you will end up with
a very nice looking piece of plastic pipe with the copper foil tape pasted on to it forming
something that looks much like a barber shop sign !!! After completing this first step, then proceed
to step two, a very important one indeed, and that is to spray the completed antenna with a
transparent non conductive paint... Actually several layers of the spray paint are needed to provide
full protection to the copper foil antenna. Phase three is connecting the start of the winding to a
bolt and nut terminal that you will fit at the beginning of the winding, so that the antenna may be
connected to your radio without exerting any force to the copper foil that may damage it. At the top
end of the foil, as in the BROOMSTICK, I like to fit a metal disk of about 30 centimeters or 12
inches diameter, something that gives an even more attractive look to the antenna !!!

A CPVC pipe that is two meters long , or roughly six feet, when wound with half inch or 12. 7
millimeters diameter copper foil tape to its full length, will make an excellent general purpose
short wave receiving antenna , when connected to your radio directly, or better yet, via my PI
NETWORK easy to build antenna tuner ... All of you that have built the BROOMSTICK antenna in the
past, must agree with me that this version of the antenna, built using copper foil tape with self
adhesive backing is not only much easier to build , but also better looking from an aesthetic point
of view, as I said earlier, when properly built and fitted with a nice looking base, this COPPER
FOIL STICK is a really nice looking modern art piece !!! I use it here with two ground radials, each
about 6 meters long, and connect it to the antenna tuner via a short length of 50 ohm coaxial
cable... For your information, I have not only used this advanced version of the BROOMSTICK for
short wave listening, but actually made many two way amateur radio contacts on the 10, 12, 15 ,17
and 20 meter ham bands !!!

If you have any doubts, just visit our website www.radiohc.cu, go to the English page, and there you
will find the script of today s show were you can read this detailed description about how to build
your COPPER FOIL TAPE version of the BROOMSTICK antenna.Also you may want to send me an e-mail
request for the COPPER FOIL TAPE STICK ANTENNA building instructions, so that you can browse trough
the text slowly and fully understand how the antenna is made. I will take some pictures of the
prototype and make them also available via e mail amigos... As always , Dxers Unlimited s policy is
to help you to enjoy this wonderful hobby and what a better way than by homebrewing better antennas
!!!

And now, as always at the end of the show,here is Arnie Coro s Dxers Unlimited s HF plus low VHF
band propagation update and forecast...Solar activity is and will very probably continue to be
MODERATE, with a big group of sunspots making solar scientist very happy at this moment...

THERE IS A REALLY BIG SUNSPOT GROUP AT THIS MOMENT: Sunspot group 375 is still growing. The large
leading spot alone is about the size of the

planet Neptune, and the entire group, which consists of 40 individual spots, stretches

10 Earth-diameters from end to end. But please, take care and although it is easy to

see-- never stare directly at the sun. Always use safe solar observing techniques , that do require
special equipment !!!

Solar flux is now around 140 units, and reports are coming in about exceptional

Sporadic E TRANSATLANTIC propagation reaching up to the FM broadcast band.

Expect more interesting propagation during the next three to five days amigos. As

usual during the summer, you will notice that the short wave conditions actually improve

after your local sunset, so spend some time looking for DX from about half an hour

before local sunset to about an hour after or so, when a noticeable peak in

propagation will almost surely be happening. See you all at the weekend edition of the

program amigos, and don t forget to drop me an e mail to arnie@rhc.cu with your

signal reports and comments about the show, they sure help to make it better and

better !!!