You might look for a pass that is way east of you over the ocean. Fewer people on at that time. Also coming up from the south. There are operators in South America that you might reach. But anyway, the less land in the visibility circle of the satellite, the less busy it will be.
Good luck and 73!
Burns WB1FJ.
On Sat, Feb 16, 2019 at 10:48 PM Les Rayburn les@highnoonfilm.com wrote:
Since getting back into satellites a few months ago, I set my first goal to be completing VUCC. 76 grids confirmed, and hoping to possibly finish up this week.
I’m meeting with the VUCC card checker this week to sign off on my 2 Meter VUCC. That took over five years, since I’m limited to a single 6 element Yagi in the attic. At least half of those contacts came via WJST meteor scatter.
Thought it would be nice to get both 2 Meter and Satellite at the same time.
Most of my contacts have come on the linear birds, with over 2/3 of them on FO-29. I realize that there is a lot more activity and grid activation on the FM birds—so I need to spend more time there.
But the chaos of that type of operation just doesn’t appeal to me. Plus the noise levels in the attic make it difficult for me to hear the FM birds very well. SO-50 comes in “pretty well” but the AO birds are often covered with noise and difficult to hear.
Any tips to improve my success rate on FM? Other than completely avoiding weekend operation! :-)
73,
Les Rayburn, N1LF Maylene, AL EM63nf AMSAT #38965, ARRL Life Member, CVHS Life Member, SVHF Member
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