Sad news indeed. Our first QSO was in 92 when I was using an octagon copper tube short loop for 160 in northern Illinois. The next few were when I was using a 30' random wire in Indiana. 5W would get into the telephone so I was pretty much QRP all that time. The next were when I moved back to CT. All our contacts were on 160
73, old friend, thank you for the fun. Say hi to my Dad, W1BML for me. Gary KA1J > Hello Gang > > > I am truly saddened to have to pass along the contents of an email I > just received from Carl Leahy who was one of Jack Leahy, VE1ZZ's > sons. > > > It is short and sweet - but I will add some personal comments after > sharing his note to me. > > > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++= > > > > > > Carl Leahy [email protected] > > To > k1zm [email protected] > > > > Jeff, our family wanted you to know that dad passed away last evening. > If you could let the people in the ham world know we would really > appreciate it. It was a very big part of his life . He had just been > talking about you and the book you gave him a few years ago.. > > > Carl Leahy > Signing off for VE1ZZ > > > > > ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ > > > A few comments from my memory now follow - as best I recall them: > > > VE1ZZ was not only a personal friend to many of us - he was probably > one of the finest Topband Dx'ers ever to have lived. He goes back to > not long after W1BB came back on the band at the end of WW!! - and was > one of the strongest signals I have ever witnessed on Topband. His > signal was almost LEGENDARY all over the world. EU stations used to > say - "He is almost as loud when he calls in Asian pileups as the EU > callers are over here"...and that says it all! > > > Jack Leahy was personally responsible for my migrating to VY2ZM and > was here at my home twice - once is 2002 and once in 2012. I last > visited him and Opal (his XYL) in August of 2014 with Mike OE6MBG who > wanted to meet Jack and see his QTH . > > > When I finally had the time after building my house here on PEI to > visit Jack which was probably in July of 2003 or 2004, at first blush > his place did not make a huge impression on me because it had only a > short triangular portion of land at the road in the Head of Jeddore NE > of Halifax - and the land rose rapidly behind his home. One initially > wondered "How does he get out so well from here down at the road?" > > > The answer came shortly thereafter - Jack took me out behind the house > - and we climbed that hill - up and up and up for something like a > MILE - it was a pizza slice in shape and very wide at the top of the > hill in the woods - with only about 100 feet (if that) at the road > front side of the parcel. > > > Some distance up the hill was Jack's 160m 4sq array - which was made > of ROHN 6 tower - that was sitting on 18 wheeler truck tires as base > insulators. The towers were not tall - perhaps 55 feet or so and the > rest of each radiator was wire - so it was really a WIRE inverted L > 4sq. Jack was the "ultimate scavenger" and his radials were all 1-2" > diameter pieces of HARDLINE!!! Hundreds of them all over the hillside > I think he had a friend in CATV or at his local dump - but he got > most of it for next to nothing he said. > > > From that point of his land, he could reach around the HILLTOP on 160m > to acquire a clear shot to EU and the South was wide open and to the > SW was also clear looking over the water. Looking straight up the > hill was probably blocked to some degree - but often this does not > matter all that much on Topband. > > > The day I was there was shortly after Jack had managed to communicate > across the pond on what I think was 600m - I may be wrong about the > frequency - but the antenna he used to make the SLOW SLOW SPEED CW > contact was something out of this world! > > > It started about 1/3 of the way up the hill - and ran all the way to > the rear of the property to near the furthest reaches of his land - > and this was a LONG LONG LONG walk to get there - through some land > that I recall was swampy. It had to have been at least 3000 feet > long. > > > Part way up the hill, Jack had built a small shelter in which he > placed the BIGGEST homebrew loading coil I have ever seen. It was > about 4 feet tall and about 8 feet in diameter and wrapped around some > kind of coil form he had created. > > > Jack explained that it took him awhile to resonate the system to his > desired operating QRG - and this was done by taking a pair of > alligator clips and through trial and error he tapped the coil he made > - trying to use a DC ammeter to find the point of peak current into > the system - which he explained seemed to indicate the system was > reasonably matched. > > > His was among the first to work across the pond with that antenna - > just one of his many achievements. > > > When I was in the US Navy stationed at Bremerhaven, Germany I used to > listen to Jack and W1BB on 160m. W1BB would sit around 1801, KV4FZ > often was around 1803 and Jack was down at the low end as well - > calling CQ listening QSX up at around 1825-1830 in what was then known > as the "DX Window". > > > Jack had a huge signal even then - using equipment that was popular in > that era. I recall a Hammarlund HQ 160 Rx or something close to that > model - there is a photo of that station from the late 1950's in my > book "Dx'ing on the Edge." > > > Jack's More Recent Station - Inside > > > When I first visited Jack in 2003/2004, it was in his old house - not > the newer one he built further up the hill some years later. The > station was vintage (much like my own on Cape Cod) - and Jack used a > TS830 driving a HB amp to something around a KW DC input. Jack's > operating table gave me a chuckle because there was only about 4 > inches of space between the front panel of the radio and the edge of > the table. Jack was a "leftie" and placed his paddle parallel to the > front of the TS830 and did his best to keep his forearm on the table > while he sent. > > > Jack's keying system triggered a bunch of interconnected relays as he > operated and he had quite a number of vintage antenna switches which > selected his many Rx antennas. > > > After visiting his shack, Jack later showed me around other parts of > the rest of the house - and I recall several rooms CHOCK FULL of stuff > most of us would die for. One room was full of EIMAC xmitting tubes - > 4-400's, some 304TL's, some 4-1000A's etc > > > Another room had shelves loaded with vacuum relays and vacuum > variables he had collected over the years. Not one or two - but > something like a 100 of them. There were also rotary inductors for HB > design and many other things that made me drool. > > I think I remember a third room full of vintage ham radio gear as > well. Older stuff he had used previously over the years I guess. > > > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ > > > I will relate one story about Jack when I was operating at 7O6T over > in Yemen in 2012 I think it was. I was calling CQ arond 1823kHz > waiting for SS to occur in NA - and this bone crushing signal came at > me that almost blew me out of my chair. You can listen to this clip > on my VY2ZM website - and you will see what I mean. > > > I told Jack that I was operating in the snippet - and later asked him > to please tell me when OTHER NA stations were calling. I said, please > do NOT tell me the calls - just tell me that USA stations are now > hearing me and calling me. Jack did as I asked and about 15 mins > later a very weak in the noise caller was Dave Patten, NN1N who was > probably 3-4 S units down from Jack's signal. Dave's station is first > rate - but there is something truly magical about operating from the > Maritimes along oceanfront property. It is just how things work - > Jack had what I call the "front door" to the NE path and it often > shows up as it did that evening at 7O6T. > > > Here's how to listen to what I heard: > > > 1) Go to http://www,vy2zm.com > 2) Select the sound bites tab > 3) Click on Sound Bite #4 and play VE1ZZ - Booming. > 4) If you also wish to hear NN1N's piece look further down the list to > hear the difference in signal levels. > > > JACK's last years > > > I last spoke with Jack in the summer of 2016. He told me he then had > COPD and that his amp needed repairs and that his antennas were > largely broken. I had heard him sparingly in 2015 and probably not at > all in 2016 - and that explained why. > > > > > JACK's 160m DXCC Achievements: > > > For many years JACK held the #2 position WORLD in the Topband DXCC > rankings. He finished his legendary Topband career at 334 countries > confirmed at position #6 in the current rankings. This is only a > HANDFUL of entities below that necessary to have qualified for DXCC > HONOR ROLL - single band 160M. His mild, unassuming manner was also > the measure of the man. He would stop DX'ing and work ANYONE who > called him - which says alot as well. His was a special person and I > have always admired him and what he managed to do in HAM RADIO. > > > Not only did he make DXCC on 160m - in the summers he got me hooked on > 6M and he had a 6M DXCC as well - just to keep himself occupied during > the summer doldrums on 160M. > > > I will close now and stop reminiscing about Jack - but I think it is > altogether fitting that we stop and pause a moment to remember this > fine 160M operator and gentleman and what he achieved on the band we > all love to operate. He will always occupy a special place in our > memories of Topband! > > > 73 and thanks for the bandwidth. > > > JEFF K1ZM/VY2ZM > > > Email: [email protected] > > > > > > > Jeff Briggs > DXing on the Edge: The Thrill of 160 Meters > Available worldwide through BookBaby, Array Solutions, DX Engineering, > Royal Society of Great Britain, & Amazon > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > _________________ > Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband _________________ Topband Reflector Archives - http://www.contesting.com/_topband
