Welcome to the K8UCL Web site. My name is Corbett Q. Durham, Jr., some call me C.Q., a few call me Corbett, but most people call me Corb. I was born September 16, 1945 in Cincinnati, Ohio and I still live here, along with my wife and a cat. There are some things I really enjoy doing, over and over again. I like to fish for bass, blue gill and crappie and sometimes I like to cook. My wife and the cat like to eat the fish I catch, but not always the ones I cook. My favorite pastime is amateur radio.

Amateur radio is a hobby that offers various avenues of enjoyment, to suit a multitude of interests, for people of all ages. I became interested as a teenager and have been a "Ham" since May 31, 1960 when I was issued the Novice Class call sign KN8UCL. I now have an Amateur Extra Class license and the call sign K8UCL. My greatest hammin' pleasure comes from operating and talking with other amateurs on the air. What follows is a brief account of my latest ham radio adventure.

After an extended absence from the hobby, I resumed activity in September, 1996. I use the only rig I still have left from years ago ; a Heathkit HW-8 QRP CW transceiver that I built in 1978. It had been used only a few times, so it's essentially like new. I use the same J-38 straight key that I had as a Novice. I also have an old "bug" that I use now and then. The only new pieces of gear I have are a set of headphones from Radio Shack (Cat. No. 20-210A) and an MFJ-971 antenna tuner. My antenna is a half wave dipole made of 14 gauge stranded copper wire, trimmed for 14.030 MHz. For a feed line, I use 450 ohm ladder line. The antenna is strung in the attic of my home. It operates on the 15, 20 and 40 Meter bands.

I had never before seriously considered QRP (5 watts or less output power) as a primary operating method, but due to circumstance, I found myself with no practical alternative. I had always preferred to operate CW (Morse code), so that presented no problem. My favorite ham activity had always been working DX. The designation "DX" means distance, it is commonly associated with reference to a far away place or a foreign country. Faced with operating QRP exclusively and using an indoor antenna, I had my doubts about the likelihood of successful DXing. I must admit, I underestimated what could be done with QRP.

Maybe you're new to amateur radio and choose not to invest a lot of money in equipment just yet. Perhaps you don't have space for lots of gear, aren't permitted to use high power or to have an outside antenna. It could be that you're just wondering what you could do with low power, but are reluctant to proceed. If so, then maybe my experiences will be an incentive for you to give QRP a try. A word of caution however, it can become addictive.

A discussion of QRP operations would not be complete without an expression of appreciation for the fellow amateurs on the receiving end of the QRP signal. If not for their operating skill during periods of difficult reception, some of the calls of the QRP station would go unanswered. There are times of heavy QRM (interference) and poor band conditions when only their consideration and persistence pull you through so that the QSO (contact) can be completed.

The information contained in the lists and tables on the pages that follow indicate what I've thus far achieved with less than 5 watts output power, using a modest, low cost station. There are also some links to other amateur radio and related sites.