Archive - May 2025

The following is taken from Tim, M0URX) website. As usual I Charles (M0OXO) and myself met at Tim’s home to put this mailing together. It just shows that the bureau system is not free as you all think.
QSL cards have been posted to World Bureaus –Tuesday 27^th May 2025.

This mailing is a joint mailing between M0OXO Charles & M0URX Tim. (also thanks G1VDP Chris)

I would very much appreciate feedback from you when the QSL cards start arriving at World Bureaus or received by hams around the world?

Delays are due to issues caused by the World Customs Organisation regulations. Please remember that with the new customs tax we cannot guarantee that the parcels will get through to your bureau. We now suggest sending only direct QSL route. All bureau requests are at your own risk.

The parcels are sent by Priority Business Mail to get to the Bureaus quickly.

At last I have started gathering the parts for the QO-100 station that I have been wanting for a few years now. I was given the dish and LNB mount by one of our club members, thank you Tony (G7FSD), and cleaned it up with a quick coat of white car spray primer – could do with a second coat to be sure and make it look pretty. It is a steerable dish with all the controllers, but as I will not be needing to move it due to the satellite being a geo-stationary one, these bits will be redundant. 

After a bit of research I started on the route of using a 70cm transceiver with a transverter for the uplink, and the DX Patrol LNB and receiver for the downlink with the RSP 1A SDR receiver I have here in the shack. But I quickly changed my thought process after joining the QO-100 group on Facebook and asking a couple of questions. I decided on the path the same as David Trewren (G7IYK) and his YouTube channel videos.

A Pluto + SDR from Ali-Express, SG Labs amplifier, and almost all other bits off eBay or websites selling them. Total outlay should come in under £500.00 – though I am still looking for the helical antenna and cone which may just be a homebrew one if I can find someone to print some 3D parts for me. 

I will keep you informed as the bits go together and arrive.

This website article has just been shared on Bluesky by Michael, G7VJR, and is well worth a read by any newcomers into the hobby. Remamber it is always worth making contact with a club local to you, or a local radio amateur who will assist you. You could even contact Hinckley ARES (my local club) and we are more than happy to help any one with advice and tips, or even if local will come and help with antennas (hinckleyradiosociety@gmail.com).

https://offgridham.com/2025/05/new-to-ham-radio/

Taken from Charles’ (M0OXO) Facebook page this morning. Interesting presentations booked.

Friedrichshafen 2025- IOTA Forum

The presentations for the IOTA Forum in Friedrichshafen this year have been finalised. We have two presentations from recent IOTA activations in Scotland (Flannan Isles) and Tanzania (Mafia Island), as well as a catch up on planning for two eagerly sought after upcoming operations to Bouvet and South Georgia.

 The following has just been released by ARDX. Excellent news to follow on from their Bouvet and Peter 1 expeditions in 2026.

– Press Release #1 May 23, 2025 –

Amateur Radio DXpeditions (ARD) is proud to announce plans for a ground-breaking DXpedition to South Georgia Island, set to take place in March 2027.

Operating under the allocated callsign VP0SG, this ambitious activation will target one of the rarest and most logistically challenging DXCC entities, well ranked on top of the ClubLog’s Most Wanted List, with particularly high demand in some areas of the world.

The remote sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia poses access difficulties due to its protected environmental status, mountainous terrain, and volatile weather conditions. After extensive negotiations and ongoing permitting discussions with the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI), ARD is optimistic about securing authorization for an onshore operation.

The team has reserved a rugged, ice-strengthened expedition motor vessel known for its support of polar science missions for the period of the DXpedition to South Georgia. The ship’s versatility and compact size make it an ideal platform for staging low-impact landings and providing continuous logistical support to the operator team.
“Our goal is to deliver a world-class, environmentally responsible DXpedition with global reach” said Rune LA7THA, one of the ARD leadership team. “This project combines technical innovation, strategic planning, and a strong commitment to youth mentorship.”

As a project that aligns closely with the values of international amateur radio collaboration, education, and high-impact DXing, ARD is currently seeking sponsorship and support from key organizations in the amateur radio community to bring VP0SG to life.

About Amateur Radio DXpeditions (ARD):

ARD is a non-profit organisation committed to activating rare DXCC entities through sustainable, technically sound, and globally impactful expeditions. ARD projects emphasize youth inclusion, operational excellence, and environmental stewardship.

For more information or to support the VP0SG DXpedition, please contact:

board@ardxpeditions.com

www.ardxpeditions.com/dxpeditions/vp0sg

This weekend is the annual Dayton Hamvention in the USA. It is attended by many of the top Dxers, contesters and DX clubs, with their DX diner and other announcements taking place. It is where the “Hall Of Fame” inductees are presented with their plaques, DXpeditions announced, and new products on display. Along with a huge “flee market” it is one of the many places to visit in the amateur radio world. From here the following has been announced by the Northern California DX Foundation – they sponsor almost all the big expeditions – and has been sent out by the Weekly DX.

$50,000 USD NCDXF Top 20 Incentive Award

To encourage the activation of a Top 20 entity listed on the Club Log DXCC Most Wanted List, the Northern California DX Foundation (NCDXF) is offering a cash incentive for DXpeditions taking place on or after July 1, 2025, that meet the following conditions:

Get permission and a license to operate from a Top 20 DXCC entity according to the Club Log DXCC Most Wanted List on the date the DXpedition operation begins. *
Securing permission to operate and a license for the DXpedition operation must not violate any law or regulation. **
The ARRL’s DXCC Desk must approve the DXpedition for DXCC credit.
The DXpedition must have qualified for funding by NCDXF. (Note: This award is above and beyond any NCDXF funding for the DXpedition.)
The DXpedition must log over 50,000 QSOs.
Within 90 days of the completion of a DXpedition to an entity described above, an application for the award must be submitted to the NCDXF with all required documentation.
The application form for this award will be posted on the NCDXF website.

The NCDXF Board of Directors will decide on making an award at its next meeting after receiving the application and all required documentation.

All applications submitted will be maintained in confidence by the NCDXF Board.

Only one award will be made per DXCC entity.

No Officer, Director, or advisor of NCDXF shall be eligible to receive any benefit from this award.

This program may be terminated at the discretion of the NCDXF Board.

* Bouvet, Peter 1, and St. Peter and Paul Rocks are excluded as previously announced in 2025.

** For example — no bribes or payoffs are used to secure either the license or permission to operate.

This morning this was posted on a Facebook group. Looking at the Kenwood Japan website it does seem to be true, so is the rumour that Kenwood are going to be launching a new radio, with a 70th Anniversary edition? Maybe at Dayton Hamvention this weekend – 16th to 18th June 2025 – or will they wait until the Tokyo Ham Fair in August? Would be nice to see at FHN if launched at Dayton, but we may have to wait another year for that one. I will be interested to see and will be following the rumour mill.

As we get towards mid may it is now getting closer too the annual visit to Friedrichshafen and the Ham Radio show at the Messe. To say I am looking forward to this one is an understatement. For some reason I think this year will be bigger and better than previous years, and I am going to be meeting friends in the beer garden for afternoon drinks – something I have missed over the past couple of years. 

It is not just the show that I am looking forward to, it is spending time with old friends, making new ones, and generally enjoying the beautiful town on the lakes of Lake Constance. Everything from the start of the journey on the Tuesday when Charles (M0OX) calls at my home to take me to the airport, then call at Ady’s (G6AD) for him to travel to Heathrow the day before our flight. Chilling out in the Premier Inn on Bath Road, Hounslow before an early start on the Wednesday to get our flight from Heathrow. Hopefully at that time in June we get god weather and can sit in the garden and watch the aircraft come in to land, where it feels you could reach out and touch them they are that close. A meal and early night ready for the alarm at 3:00am.

Get to the airport, check in, go through security, and have breakfast. Or just sit with a coffee ready for the flight at 06:35. Arrive in Zurich at 09:20 (local) – as long as no delays and the flight is on time – to get our luggage and head into the “Circle” for the train to Romanshorn and a ferry across Lake Constance. Hopefully arriving in Friedrichshafen in time for lunch in one of the many bars and cafes the town has to offer. A time to chill, relax and have a look around the town. Probably an early night with the long day and travelling taking it out of us.

Last year, 2024, on the Thursday we paid a visit to the Zeppelin Museum in the town, and we were joined by Grant (VK5GW), a friend from Australia who we met face to face for the first time. A quick trip in the afternoon to the Messe to check out the IOTA stand and start setting up, meeting more old friends who were there setting their stands up ready for Friday morning. Dinner and a few beers in the evening and meeting even more friends from the UK, Europe, and far flung countries of the world in the hotel bar.

Friday is show day number one, getting to the Messe to be greeted by Markus (DL1AN) on the German DX Foundation (GDXF) stand, usually with a coffee. The Mediterraneo DX Club (MDXC) will be there with Antony and his wife. Frank, Franco, and others will be at the Clipperton DX Club and across from them the Chiltern DX Club (both CDXC – one French and one from UK) with the British contingent. And as the day goes on more friends and visitors will say hello and speak to the team about the IOTA Awards. As I mentioned earlier a trip out into the gardens to see more friends with a beer at lunchtime, then a look around the halls full of used equipment and antique radios before looking at the new shiny equipment in the main hall again.

In the evening a meal in one of the restaurants down by the lake, before a walk back up into town and the bar Pier 41 to see the guys from Northern Ireland. A few more beers and laughs before back t the hotel for a night cap and chat with our Norwegian friends who will be passing by. A very good social scene as can be seen.

Saturday and we have to do it again. Breakfast in the hotel, a taxi and back in the hall for a coffee with MDXC or GDXF again. A few jokes and a look around before the crowds arrive. And we start again. More friends come and say hello, all DXers and expeditioners. Lunch in the beer garden, and yes a couple of beers will be involved. End of the day and it will be a meal in Tiffany’s steak house – do visit if you go to FHN as it is the best steak meal I have ever tasted. Back into town and a walk down to the lakeside to meet more friends and have a couple more beers before back to the hotel and Pier 41. 

Sunday is the last day and the return journey. Maybe a short visit to the Messe to pack away the stand and say our farewells before we get the ferry to Romanshorn and train to Zurich. Our flights are at 19:40 local time so we have time to get a meal when back at Zurich, and relax in the airport departures before our flight home. Usually there will be a few more of the British contingent around, or one or two of our friends who are also flying at the same time. Duty free bought – sorry I am a sucker for the Orange flavoured Toblerone that are for sale over there – and gifts for family we board the flight back to Heathrow and our bed in the Premier Inn again. Charles will drop us off home on the Monday ready to get back into the routine on the Tuesday at work. 

Maybe this is why I am looking forward to Ham Radio 2025 so much, to see old friends, make new ones and relax in a beautiful city in Germany.