Join me as I make my first KILO award for the Parks on the Air program using the buddistick antenna system. This was one of my first few videos when I started doing POTA.
Congratulations on the award Dewayne. A nice short and sweet video there. I’m still waiting to get the Buddistick Pro over here in the U.K. shouldn’t be too much longer I imagine. Really nice to see you using the 891 out there this time, man I wish they’d put 2&70 on that. I had a play with a friends at the club when it was first released it seemed to be a great radio. Anyway friend as always thanks for the content and I wish you and the family a very happy holiday and best wishes for the coming year. Stay safe Dewayne, 73.
Thank you very much for the kind words. I totally agree, I wished they had left 2m and 70cm on the radio.. this video was one of my first few youtube videos but I wanted people to see how easy it is to get out and do these park activations. I hope you get your Buddistick pro soon because i know once you learn to tune it, youll love it! Happy Holidays to you and your family, I hope to catch you on the air sometime! 73 friend.
Right on brother! POTA has become an amazing activity! I'm not allowed to put The Magic Kingdom on-the-air, right?!? LOL
Excellent video that shows how easy it is to make contacts, get some fresh air, and try out different equipment configurations. POTA ON friend!
Congrats! It takes a lot of dedication to make that many contacts with a portable rig and a poor antenna. Few observations about my BuddiStick if you decide to get one: I have a BuddiStick but only use it when no other antenna can be deployed. It's nearly impossible to tune it to resonance without an antenna analyzer, especially on 40 meters. So, every time it's deployed or bands are changed, I need to use the analyzer to fine tune the whip length and sometimes the radial's length to resonance on a given frequency. It's bandwidth is very narrow on 40 meters. Obviously, it won't cover the whole 40 m band without adjustments. I don't like to use any antenna tuners due to additional coax losses on an already low efficiency antenna system. Having an antenna analyzer with me is no big deal unless I pack my gear into my motorcycle. Another box takes space and adds weight. This is why I always prefer to deploy a dipole or an end-fed for portable work. Sometimes no trees or any other supports are available. Then the BuddiStick comes out. I clip it to the handlebars or bring a lightweight tripod (like in this video) with me. The reason I wrote the above is to tell people that BuddiStick is not a miracle antenna some may think and it's not the answer to antenna problems you may be having. It's good for some applications but don't expect it to perform as good as a full size dipole (at a proper height). I'm sure many will argue that they work DX on a BuddiStick. Sure, why not. It's all about propagation. I once worked Japan on a 100 watt light bulb connected to my home made, 50 watt radio instead of the 4 el. Cubic Quads antenna (home brewers with gray hair would know what the lightbulb was used for). Got a 5/9 report too. This was on 10 meters in 1991, when solar cycle was "on fire". The lightbulb antenna was marginally better than a dummy load but excellent propagation got the job done.
I just want to say I got 2 of those KILO awards in 2021 with a Icon706 Original and a Hustler VP-1 20/40 meter roof magnet mount antennas. At Parks. K-2171 and K- 2177 in the Mobile.
Congrats Dewayne! Always wanted to activate - in the process of moving (ugh) - off to binge on your channel!
