MD/EA8DBM IO74tg Isle of Man
My tour of the English Isles begins with the Isle of Man.
As always, I had plenty of preparation plans. The most important task was to finalize a quick-mount system for the rotator and antenna directly on the rear of the van, so all the equipment could stay deployed inside, with only the cables needing to be connected to the septum and rotator.
I also needed to replace cracked ribs on the dish, fix the broken central axial bushing, and ideally, set everything up and make a few QSOs on 23 and 13 cm before departure.
Naturally—just as it always happens—things didn’t go to plan.
In the end, I dumped everything into the minivan at the very last minute without testing a single component, then rushed to the port to avoid missing the ferry... but I made it. Now 2,500 km and two more ferries lie ahead. The worst stretch is the last 500 km to Liverpool, where “His Majesty’s subjects” continue their valiant crusade to drive on the wrong side of the road with admirable determination. :))
I’m scheduled to arrive in the Isle of Man late Thursday night, May 22nd—likely close to midnight. Originally, I had planned to get some rest and begin setting up in the morning. But then I received a message from Hiro, JJ3JHP, informing me that the JA EME meeting is happening on May 24–25. That means my only real opportunity to work Japan is the morning of May 23.
So, I’ll be setting up immediately after arrival, aiming to be on the air by moonrise at 02:30 UTC. The window to the east is short—just about 1.5 hours—so I’ll start with JA and VK, and then switch to EU.
If the moon isn’t hidden behind the clouds and I can align the antenna well, I’ll begin in Q65-30B mode. If visibility is poor or I’m uncertain about alignment, I’ll switch to 60C. As usual, I’ll be on 1296.100 MHz, transmitting first.
My return ferry is on Sunday evening, May 25th, at 20:00, which means I’ll need to start packing by 17:00 at the latest and head back to the port.
As always, any updates and logs from GD will be posted in this blog thread—stay tuned!
Got here OK. Had to set everything up in the dark, so it took much longer than expected. The weather is great—no more than 10 degrees, clear skies, and absolutely no wind.
But as usual, nothing goes smoothly. The spot that looked ideal in Google Street View, with a large public parking lot, was bought a couple of years ago and is now fenced off with the entrance blocked. So I had to park on the roadside. The main thing is that the eastern direction is clear. Tomorrow, I’ll probably have to pack up and find another spot with a clear view to the west, since everything here is completely blocked by trees.
The airwaves are quiet—no radar or other interference. I’ve set the output power to 400 watts, the legal limit in the UK. Batteries are fully charged.
As it turned out, the location with an open view to the east wasn’t ideal.
The moon was barely visible through fairly dense forest until it reached about 20 degrees elevation, so there was no real chance for VK. My own reception was mediocre, but I seemed to be heard quite well. About an hour later, the moon disappeared behind clouds, and I had to hope the rotator wouldn’t start accumulating azimuth error. By midday, the moon had moved behind the trees, so I had to shift the car about 30 meters—without dismantling the antenna—to find a gap in the tree line in the required direction.
The “move” went fine, but in the end, everything unfolded as usual: the wind picked up, the antenna started shaking more and more, the moon vanished into the clouds and didn’t reappear. Eventually, a gust of wind twisted the rotator on its mount.
That kind of thing happens—you estimate the azimuth roughly and fine-tune later using the sun. But on closer inspection, things turned out worse than expected. During the night setup, I had accidentally hit and broken the HH12 sensor’s printed holder, and it had slipped off the motor shaft. To avoid switching to manual control, I had to improvise another “Frankenstein” solution using electrical tape and drill bits.
But in the end, it seemed to work out well—66 QSOs in the log.
2025-05-23,03:28:00,2025-05-23,03:32:00,JA6AHB,PM53,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-22,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,03:36:00,2025-05-23,03:38:02,SP5GDM,KO02,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,03:37:00,2025-05-23,03:41:56,RA4HL,LO43,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,03:40:00,2025-05-23,03:44:00,YL2GD,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,03:49:00,2025-05-23,03:53:56,RD4D,LO42,1296.101000,Q65,-16,-22,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,03:56:00,2025-05-23,04:00:06,ZS4TX,KG30,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:00:00,2025-05-23,04:04:00,JJ3JHP,,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:06:00,2025-05-23,04:10:00,OK1VUM,,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-19,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:10:00,2025-05-23,04:14:00,ON4AOI,JO21,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:17:00,2025-05-23,04:21:56,OE9ERC,JN47,1296.101000,Q65,-14,-11,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:28:00,2025-05-23,04:32:00,G4YTL,IO92,1296.101000,Q65,-28,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:32:00,2025-05-23,04:36:00,UA3PTW,,1296.101000,Q65,-13,-14,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:36:00,2025-05-23,04:40:00,PE1L,,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:44:00,2025-05-23,04:48:00,SM5DGX,,1296.101000,Q65,-12,-08,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:48:00,2025-05-23,04:52:00,OH3LWP,KP11,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-19,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:52:00,2025-05-23,04:56:00,OK1USW,,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,04:54:00,2025-05-23,04:58:13,UA9FAD,LO88,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:00:00,2025-05-23,05:04:00,ZS6JON,KG33,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:04:00,2025-05-23,05:08:00,G0LBK,,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-19,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:15:00,2025-05-23,05:16:23,IK3COJ,JN65,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:22:00,2025-05-23,05:26:00,IK2DDR,,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:28:00,2025-05-23,05:32:00,YO2LAM,KN05,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:32:00,2025-05-23,05:36:00,PA3FXB,JO33,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:38:00,2025-05-23,05:42:00,GM0PJD,IO85,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-24,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:45:00,2025-05-23,05:46:04,DL8FBD,JO40,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-22,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:46:00,2025-05-23,05:50:00,OK1KIR,JN79,1296.101000,Q65,-14,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:50:00,2025-05-23,05:54:00,PA0TBR,JO21,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,05:54:00,2025-05-23,05:58:00,PA3DZL,,1296.101000,Q65,-18,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,06:10:00,2025-05-23,06:14:00,DL7UDA,JO62,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,06:14:00,2025-05-23,06:18:00,SM6CKU,,1296.101000,Q65,-15,-13,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,06:18:00,2025-05-23,06:22:00,G4CCH,IO93,1296.101000,Q65,-18,-17,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,06:24:00,2025-05-23,06:28:00,I2FAK,JN45,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,06:50:00,2025-05-23,06:52:05,ES3RF,KO29,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,06:54:00,2025-05-23,06:58:00,IQ2DB,JN45,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-25,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:00:00,2025-05-23,07:04:00,OK1IL,JN69,1296.101000,Q65,-19,-22,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:04:00,2025-05-23,07:08:00,RW6HM,LN14,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-14,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:04:00,2025-05-23,07:08:00,RW6HM,LN14,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-14,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:08:00,2025-05-23,07:12:00,HB9Q,JN47,1296.101000,Q65,-08,-10,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:12:00,2025-05-23,07:16:00,DG0FE,,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:22:00,2025-05-23,07:25:07,OL730PLZ,,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:28:00,2025-05-23,07:32:00,PA3EXV,JO32,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-19,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:34:00,2025-05-23,07:38:01,IZ8GGF,JN70,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-24,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:46:00,2025-05-23,07:50:00,PA0PLY,JO32,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-19,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,07:52:00,2025-05-23,07:56:00,DJ7FJ,JN48,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,08:50:00,2025-05-23,08:54:00,DG5CST,JO60,1296.101000,Q65,-11,-10,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,08:54:00,2025-05-23,08:58:00,IK7EZN,,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-18,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,09:00:00,2025-05-23,09:04:00,DL1HUH,,1296.101000,Q65,-16,-15,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,09:04:00,2025-05-23,09:08:00,SA6BUN,,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-15,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,09:08:00,2025-05-23,09:12:00,DF3RU,JN59,1296.101000,Q65,-18,-14,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,09:22:00,2025-05-23,09:26:00,NC1I,,1296.101000,Q65,-20,-12,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,09:26:00,2025-05-23,09:30:00,PA0BAT,,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-18,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,10:56:00,2025-05-23,11:00:00,DK4RC,JO60,1296.101000,Q65,-14,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:00:00,2025-05-23,11:04:00,OK1DFC,,1296.101000,Q65,-12,-15,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:04:00,2025-05-23,11:08:00,DL4DTU,,1296.101000,Q65,-17,-20,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:13:00,2025-05-23,11:16:00,DK3WG,JO72,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-26,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:16:00,2025-05-23,11:20:00,KB2SA,DM13,1296.101000,Q65,-21,-28,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:20:00,2025-05-23,11:24:00,N1AV,DM43,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:30:00,2025-05-23,11:32:00,N5TM,EL29,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-22,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:34:00,2025-05-23,11:38:00,W2HRO,FN20,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-15,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:38:00,2025-05-23,11:42:00,AC2AC,EL96,1296.101000,Q65,-26,-24,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,11:46:00,2025-05-23,11:50:00,PA3JRK,,1296.101000,Q65,-26,-26,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,12:02:00,2025-05-23,12:06:00,PE1LWT,JO22,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-25,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,12:06:00,2025-05-23,12:10:00,K5DOG,,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,12:20:00,2025-05-23,12:24:00,VE6TA,DO33,1296.101000,Q65,-23,-28,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,12:28:00,2025-05-23,12:32:00,AA6I,DM06,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-25,,,,,,,
2025-05-23,12:48:00,2025-05-23,12:52:00,N0CTR,EN26,1296.101000,Q65,-28,-22,,,,,,,
Tomorrow, I won’t have the strength to get up at 4 a.m., so I’ll start operating when the moon is already at about 20 degrees elevation. Once the sun is up, I’ll try to fine-tune the setup and make another attempt to “conquer my personal Everest”—the 13 cm band.
++++++++++++++++
In the morning, I waited until the moon rose to 14 degrees, which gave me a chance to get some sleep. It rained all night, but that wasn’t an issue—the real concern was the rising wind.
The antenna was shaking badly, so I was only able to work with relatively strong stations. I logged 5 QSOs.
2025-05-24,05:35:00,2025-05-24,05:39:56,OK1UGA,JO80,1296.101000,Q65,-15,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-24,05:43:00,2025-05-24,05:47:56,OK2DL,JN79,1296.101000,Q65,-16,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-24,05:49:00,2025-05-24,05:52:02,EA8DBM,IL18OH,1296.101000,Q65,-12,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-24,06:20:00,2025-05-24,06:24:05,ON5GS,JO21,1296.101000,Q65,-22,-16,,,,,,,
2025-05-24,06:41:00,2025-05-24,06:47:56,IK5VLS,JN53,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-16,,,,,,,
And then, as usual—in the rear window of the minivan, instead of a “dangling dish,” I saw a “flying dish.” As tradition dictates, of course, it happened during the TX cycle. It’s the same old issue: the weakest point is the joint between the rotator and the azimuth bracket.
The hardened bolt couldn’t withstand the constant movement and snapped.
There were two options:
either find a suitable replacement bolt or switch to manual rotation.
Thanks to the generous help of Mike, GD6ICR, and access to his workshop, I was able to remove the broken bolt and fit a new one. The rotator is back in action!
Today, there’s no time to operate on the air, and I also need about two hours to fully charge the batteries. I spent the day scouting and found a great coastal location—the eastern horizon is wide open, and I hope for another small grand gain.
Tomorrow, Sunday 25 May, I’ll be active for a few hours starting at 03:00 UTC. Later in the evening, I’ll take the ferry to England, then continue on to Jersey.
++++++++
It rained all night, but fortunately everything calmed down by morning. I found a spot right on the seashore — beneath a cliff that offered at least some protection from the wind.
Everything was ready, the moon had risen — all was fine except for one thing: the sky was completely overcast, and there wasn’t a single patch of light. Luckily, Eric OE9ERC showed up with his 10-meter dish and kindly “illuminated” where to aim. It wasn’t ideal, of course, but better than nothing.
In total, seven lucky stations made it into the log:
2025-05-25,04:41:00,2025-05-25,04:43:44,VK2JDS,QF46,1296.101000,Q65,-23,,,,,,,,
2025-05-25,05:22:00,2025-05-25,05:26:00,DF2VJ,JN39,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-25,05:28:00,2025-05-25,05:32:00,BA7NQ,OL63,1296.101000,Q65,-25,-22,,,,,,,
2025-05-25,06:04:00,2025-05-25,06:08:00,UA9YLU,MO92,1296.101000,Q65,-26,-17,,,,,,,
2025-05-25,06:11:00,2025-05-25,06:15:56,UN6PD,MN69,1296.101000,Q65,-27,-23,,,,,,,
2025-05-25,06:14:00,2025-05-25,06:18:00,PA7JB,JO22,1296.101000,Q65,-24,-21,,,,,,,
2025-05-25,06:36:00,2025-05-25,06:44:04,OK2AQ,JN89,1296.101000,Q65,-35,-29,,,,,,,
Total: 79 QSO
Lots of requests about the 13 cm band — this isn’t my first attempt, but I haven’t lost hope (and I hope you haven’t either).
Once I felt I had worked everyone who could and wanted to on 23 cm, it was time to try activating 13 cm again.
Half an hour goes into changing the feed, switching all the cables — and then I realize I forgot the spare set of phasing coaxials. Somewhere during setup, I lost the diagram showing how to connect to the coupler without reversing the polarization rotation. I screwed it on at random, quickly assembled everything, and pointed the dish at the sun to tune.
The sunbeam is exactly centered, but I can't hear anything on receive. I quickly sweep left, right, up, and down — and finally catch 2 dB of noise. The antenna is “squinting” about 8 degrees upward and a couple of degrees to the left. A quick inspection shows that yesterday’s fall didn’t go unnoticed: one of the mounting flanges is bent, the entire mount has shifted upward, and one of the fiberglass ribs is cracked. As a result, a sizeable “belly” has formed on the dish — about one-fifth of the working surface.
But time is short, and I have to try before the moon disappears behind the rock. I ask Zdenek OK1DFC to call CQ — and, oh miracle! I hear someone on 2320 for the first time!
I call — they can't hear me… everything as usual ;-((
I suspect I connected the coupler incorrectly. I take a break: remove the feed, swap the input and output, reinstall it, aim again and… they can hear me! But now I can't hear anything. I quickly check the sun noise — nothing, no matter what I try. Transmit power is 200 watts — perfectly normal.
I quickly do a reverse switch — now I can hear again, but they can’t hear me!
I'm out of ideas, the moon has slipped behind the rock, and I’m completely out of energy… The ferry to Liverpool leaves in four hours. I need to pack everything up and go. I’ll try again in GJ.
Many thanks to all the donors:
NC1I, ZS4TX, IK2DDR, PA3DZL, IK3COJ, OK1IL, PA0BAT