First HF QSO!

Aced my general exam a week and a half ago and have since been working on getting a beginner home station setup. The VHF/UHF antenna was easy, but deciding on my first HF antenna was considerably harder.

At first I decided to try a multiband antenna like the Maldol HVU-8 but gave up when the one I bought had one incorrect part, some damage, and required spending so much additional money on an analyzer/tuner.

I decided to go much simpler and get a Buckmaster dipole. I found that I had just enough distance between some trees next to my house and was able to get it up high enough to be useful. LMR-400 sends the signal into a Yaesu FT-991 which so far has been a joy to learn to operate.

I have called CQ several times and not gotten any responses. Partly due to current band conditions, partly due to the fact that no one happened to be listening. That changed about 30 minutes ago when an operator picked up my CQ and called me back.

What a thrill!

submitted by /u/KnightOfNight
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