8th QRP Minimal Art Session
(with simple QRP-MAS-TX)

To reach one's goal with minimal consumption of materials demands a feeling for essentials and encourages the art of self-restraint. In the spirit of an active -and winking- dealing with elementary ham-radio the QRP-CONTEST-COMMUNITY invites you to take part in the

8th Q R P - M I N I M A L A R T - S E S S I O N (qrp-mas)

Challenge: Contacts have to be made using rigs built by the operator themselves, and from as few components as possible.

Date: May 17th, 2007 (Ascension Day) ; 1900-2300 UTC

MODE: Single Op CW, Output < 5W or Input < 10W

BAND: 80m CW-Band CALL: (cq) mas de...

CLASS A: TX+RX resp. TRX consisting of not more than 100 components
CLASS B: TX consisting of not more than 50 components, RX as you like

EXCHANGE: RST/Class and number of components, e.g.: 559/B25 (feel free to exchange name and small talk)

QSO-Pts: A QSO scores 1 point. 4 points will be awarded for a QSO with another MAS-stn whose log has been received.
BONUS: You will get bonus-points in percentages if you stay below the limit of components permitted for your class, e.g. a 50% bonus will be added to your final score if you only use 25 components (instead of max. 50) for your TX in class B or only 50 parts for your TRX in class A (instead of max. 100). Correspondingly 90 parts in class A or 45 parts in class B would mean a 10% bonus.

REMARKS: Components will be the following: Resistors, capacitors, coils, diodes, transistors, tubes, crystals, ceramic resonators etc. Any selective network in the TX output stage will be counted as if consisting of 3 components. For a better suppression of harmonics you are free to use more components - they will not be counted.

IC's are permitted as long as YOU(!) can give a specification of HOW MANY single components are integrated. Plugs, connectors, knobs, fastening material etc. will NOT be counted. This also applies to power supply, headphones, speaker, key, antenna, switches, relays etc.

LOGS: Must contain UTC, call of stn wkd, RST sent & rcvd (see EXCHANGE).
Please give your callsign, full address and possibly PR-mailbox.

IMPORTANT: A circuit diagram of rig used with NUMBERED (=counted from left to right) components has to be enclosed (and an IC specification if used)! (It is not necessary to send a circuit diagram for a second time, if the same equipment has been used in an earlier QRP-MAS)

DEADLINE: Within 2 weeks after qrp-mas to:
DJ7ST, Dr. Hartmut Weber, Schlesierweg 13, D-38228 SALZGITTER,
Germany. E-mail: dj7st@darc.de

There are some weekends left in which to complete your qrp-mas project:
Why not try the "Michigan Mighty Mite" as published in SPRAT No. 105, p.35, built from just 8 components? A list of other suitable articles, mainly from "SPRAT" and "QRP-REPORT", will be uploaded as "QRP-MAS-Projects". Please find YOUR QRP-MAS-weekend project there.

Cheap and easy to get 3.579 kHz-xtals may serve as a basis for newcomers to qrp-minimal-art. In series with a 200pf variable C and an L of about 60-90 uH you will obtain a reasonable "frequency-window" from about 3579 to 3575 kHz. Two crystals in parallel will make this window even wider. As the QRP-MAS is no real contest (there is no exchange of serial-numbers!), the frequency range 3560-3580 may be used, too.

There have been QRP-MAS events where you could make as much qso by running some hundred milliwatts as by running 100 watts. In times of sunspot minima however bad condx must be expected, too. Any dB may be important!

So in order to avoid disappointment better don't depend on milliwatts and indoor antennas. For instance my 80m halfwave dipole is about 25 dB better than my magnetic loop with 7m circumference on ground floor. When receiving 559 for 1 watt on my dipole I would have to increase my power to more than 300 watts into my magnetic loop for the same report! In other words: Under these condx no-one will hear my 1 watt on the loop! Be prepared: a small class C amplifier out of a handful of components will make reasonable 2-4 watts from your milliwatt design.

(Please visit our homepage http://www.qrpcc.de for further details)

hpe cu in the qrp-mas!

best 73/2 de

'Hal', DJ7ST

QRP-CONTEST-COMMUNITY (qrpcc)
c/o Dr. Hartmut Weber, DJ7ST
Schlesierweg 13
D-38228 SALZGITTER
Germany
e-mail: dj7st@darc.de
web: http://www.qrpcc.de

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