Finest Conditions for MT, AK and ID Reception on East Coast?

[Steve_Green]

Strictly speaking the AM dial here. The thread about 2011 DX lit up a few embers here in the tundra. I'd originally thought that the thread dealt with a form of want-list or goals for the year.

Of course, there are big obstacles. Directional signals abound. MT and ID don't have 50000 watters that I know of. Sheer distance in most cases.

But after seeing the weather map and that 2000-mile long lariat of climate poised over the country on Monday, I was wondering what conditions would have to align for reception of those and other distant states.

Minimal Auroral conditions, no doubt. A few dozen unmanned facilities off the air due to icicles. A battery radio. Being tuned in at the proper moment/season/day. Ear-drops.

Anything else to enhance the possibilities? Cold, clear Canadian and northern-tier air? A 900-foot long antenna? Solid snowfall between here and there? Would the upper dial be a better fishing hole (excluding the X-Band for a moment) than the lower dial ?

3AM? Sunset? Sunrise? (And if so, SRS and SSS at which end)?

Just askin'

 

[fangio28]

From Coeur d'Alene, ID (but I used to live in New JerKey):
670 KBOI Boise, ID is 50 KW day & night
750 KERR Polson, MT is 50 days but only 1 at night
1180 KOFI Kalispell, MT is 50 days, 10 at night.

Back in the 60s & 70s, the 1370 Butte, MT station (different call then) was
heard from time to time on the East Coast.

 

[KR4BD]

I agree with Fangio about Butte's 1370. It is 5,000 watts day/night and NON DIRECTIONAL. It used to be a "Frequent Flyer" in Southern California in the in the early 1960's when it was known as KXLF. Somewhere along the way, its call was changed.

 

[Lawppy]

The trouble with most of the 50kw west coast stations is that their directional patterns do not favor the populated areas of the Eastern U.S.

For example KKOB 770 Albuquerque (a long-standing station on my wish list) protects WABC in New York, so their null is pointed right at me in southern Michigan.

KOMO 1000 Seattle protects WMVP in Chicago and the tightest part of their null is right in my bearing.

KBOI 670 Boise protects WSCR in Chicago and several other 670's. A lot of their nighttime power gets thrown well into Canada.

KDWN (720) and KXNT (840) protect WGN and WHAS respectively. KDWN's nighttime null is once again pointed right at me. KXNT however is directional directly to the east to protect Louisville and not Chicago. Looking at KXNT's pattern, I would have a slightly better chance of getting them than someone living right down the barrel between Las Vegas and Louisville.

The 50kw ND's (KNX, KFI, KNBR) are the best bets out here. I've received two of the three in my location, but have yet to confirm KNBR. WSCR I-BLOC wreaks havoc on 680 and it doesn't help when the bearing to San Francisco goes right through Chicago!!

Another good bet is hoping that one of the 50 gallon daytime stations can be heard at their local sunsets or that they stay on day power past sunset. Or just hope that a freak longball DX catch falls in your lap some night.

 

[BobOnTheJob]

I've told this story before, but WABC was off the air for 10 minutes in November 1965 perhaps 1+ hours before sunset in NM and KOB (now KKOB) was there...seems it was around 5:40PM EST. So the signal can reach this far when their daytime antenna is engaged. I've never heard them again, but then, I haven't really tried. This doesn't apply to the original post, but I saw where KKOB was on Lawppy's wish list & felt that sub-topic was worth a few lines. Good luck sir!

 

[davideduardo]

I agree with Fangio about Butte's 1370. It is 5,000 watts day/night and NON DIRECTIONAL. It used to be a "Frequent Flyer" in Southern California in the in the early 1960's when it was known as KXLF. Somewhere along the way, its call was changed.

In NE Ohio in the early 60's, any Monday morning as all the EST and CST stations signed off, the channel was completely clear for Butte to present itself, even showing up occasionally in the summer months with all their static and such.

The Monday maintenance period from midnight to 5 or 6 am for most stations slowly disappeared, closing the window to some of the easiest catches... KENO 1460 in Las Vegas, KTFI 1270 in Idaho and similar stations. Even better were the chances to log KFAR wit WNBC off, or KORL with WSM off... or the regular frequency check of KWYO 1410 or KDJI in Holbrook on 1270.

 

[radioman148]

I've told this story before, but WABC was off the air for 10 minutes in November 1965 perhaps 1+ hours before sunset in NM and KOB (now KKOB) was there...seems it was around 5:40PM EST. So the signal can reach this far when their daytime antenna is engaged. I've never heard them again, but then, I haven't really tried. This doesn't apply to the original post, but I saw where KKOB was on Lawppy's wish list & felt that sub-topic was worth a few lines. Good luck sir!

Nov 65--was that the same day as the big east coast blackout?

 

[fangio28]

Re the November, 1965 NYC blackout. I was a junior executive with JC Penney
then. I was on the crosstown bus on the way to my apartment when all of
a sudden it got real dark, real fast! Traffic gridlocked and I walked a few
blocks to get to my 4th floor walkup apartment which was in the dark, of
course.
We spent the evening next door at the original Fridays (63rd & 1st) which
had auxiliary power (candles, I think). Power was restored sometime
the NEXT day. Now you know the REST of the story.
Ron Schiller W5VYS/7 NRC

 

[BobOnTheJob]

I've told this story before, but WABC was off the air for 10 minutes in November 1965 perhaps 1+ hours before sunset in NM and KOB (now KKOB) was there...seems it was around 5:40PM EST. So the signal can reach this far when their daytime antenna is engaged. I've never heard them again, but then, I haven't really tried. This doesn't apply to the original post, but I saw where KKOB was on Lawppy's wish list & felt that sub-topic was worth a few lines. Good luck sir!

Nov 65--was that the same day as the big east coast blackout?

Yes...I listened to WABC every evening while doing my homework. Imagine the shock 'n awe when my 12 year old ears heard KOB rather than WABC! It took a massive blackout to mute WABC, but luck was on my side & I was on 770 during that 10 minute outage!

 

[radioman148]

I've told this story before, but WABC was off the air for 10 minutes in November 1965 perhaps 1+ hours before sunset in NM and KOB (now KKOB) was there...seems it was around 5:40PM EST. So the signal can reach this far when their daytime antenna is engaged. I've never heard them again, but then, I haven't really tried. This doesn't apply to the original post, but I saw where KKOB was on Lawppy's wish list & felt that sub-topic was worth a few lines. Good luck sir!

Nov 65--was that the same day as the big east coast blackout?

Yes...I listened to WABC every evening while doing my homework. Imagine the shock 'n awe when my 12 year old ears heard KOB rather than WABC! It took a massive blackout to mute WABC, but luck was on my side & I was on 770 during that 10 minute outage!

Dan Ingram has often told the story of how he had to drive out to the transmitter in Lodi, NJ with a stack of records because they had power there, but none in Manhattan.

 

[BobOnTheJob]

I've told this story before, but WABC was off the air for 10 minutes in November 1965 perhaps 1+ hours before sunset in NM and KOB (now KKOB) was there...seems it was around 5:40PM EST. So the signal can reach this far when their daytime antenna is engaged. I've never heard them again, but then, I haven't really tried. This doesn't apply to the original post, but I saw where KKOB was on Lawppy's wish list & felt that sub-topic was worth a few lines. Good luck sir!

Nov 65--was that the same day as the big east coast blackout?

Yes...I listened to WABC every evening while doing my homework. Imagine the shock 'n awe when my 12 year old ears heard KOB rather than WABC! It took a massive blackout to mute WABC, but luck was on my side & I was on 770 during that 10 minute outage!

Dan Ingram has often told the story of how he had to drive out to the transmitter in Lodi, NJ with a stack of records because they had power there, but none in Manhattan.

Somewhere on line is an aircheck of the WABC jock playing records that were speeding up & slowing down as the power was becoming unstable. It was a memory maker for a lot of people...on the transmit end and on the listening end.

 

[radioman148]

I've told this story before, but WABC was off the air for 10 minutes in November 1965 perhaps 1+ hours before sunset in NM and KOB (now KKOB) was there...seems it was around 5:40PM EST. So the signal can reach this far when their daytime antenna is engaged. I've never heard them again, but then, I haven't really tried. This doesn't apply to the original post, but I saw where KKOB was on Lawppy's wish list & felt that sub-topic was worth a few lines. Good luck sir!

Nov 65--was that the same day as the big east coast blackout?

Yes...I listened to WABC every evening while doing my homework. Imagine the shock 'n awe when my 12 year old ears heard KOB rather than WABC! It took a massive blackout to mute WABC, but luck was on my side & I was on 770 during that 10 minute outage!

Dan Ingram has often told the story of how he had to drive out to the transmitter in Lodi, NJ with a stack of records because they had power there, but none in Manhattan.

Somewhere on line is an aircheck of the WABC jock playing records that were speeding up & slowing down as the power was becoming unstable. It was a memory maker for a lot of people...on the transmit end and on the listening end.

I have a copy of that aircheck. I would be happy to send an MP3 to anyone who wants a copy. Just PM me if you do.