My HF journey
Hi all, I will try to keep it short and give you my HF experience.
I would like to elaborate to the HF area because many people think that you need a lot of money to start transmitting on the HF.
So me and a Ham Radio Friend 5B4ANU, we started researching value for money ways to get on the HF. After a very detailed research to find the cheapest way VALUE FOR MONEY gear we ended up buying a Xiegu G90.
Personally I bought also an EndFed Sloper(20m) for under 80Euros. This antenna could Transmit from 10m-80m bands. I installed it with directionality to europe. Now Why i bought this Antenna? Well its a portable Antenna so if i was going to upgrade later i could use it at field days. Therefore was an investment.
I got the Radio from Radioditty for 380 euros including Shipping, 75 euros the antenna. I installed them, of course i had to ground both of them minor cost for a 2mm grounding cable etc. and i was ready to get on the HF. With this Setup from my QTH in Nicosia managed to have QSOs from East Europe to West. (If i had the capability i could do a DIY dipole 20m 1:1 antenna. This would cost around 25 euros therefore you could transmit on HF even cheaper than 500 euros)
I had QSOs with Spain, France,Italy and generally all south Europe and some Central European Countries. Then i got hooked. I was having HF QSOs with 500 euros.(Power Supply i got one from a friend who didn't want it, but buying a new one was like 50 euros)
I upgraded my antenna to a Diamond CP6S antenna. A ground Plane one. So now i could also have QSOs not only towards Europe but Also towards middle East. Now here is when the magic begins. Once you get hooked you can't stop. I had QSOs with middle East countries. Up to UAE,Oman and Saudi Arabia. I Felt like i was rediscovering HF. Then all changed.
One Day Propagation was really great. I could hear Stations from Canada, Norway, Japan, Australia,Indonesia. Now i can't talk to those countries with 20W. But i can with a 100W amp. So I planned on buying one. Now you will say ok i spent a lot of money. Well The course of upgrade in this hobby does not end.
The important thing is that my starting point was a lot cheaper than many people think. A step by step process really helps the hobby so you can have always something to do and never get bored. I adjust my budget accordingly and i improve my setup whenever i can. This was an advice i got from another fellow Radio amateur who is always keen providing advice.
Thank you for reading this short story.
73
5B4APB
