Location: CQ zone 30, ITU zone 59, Locator QF22it, Shire of Macedon Ranges.

Awards: DXCC: CW, Phone, Digital, 80m, 40m, 30m, 20m, 17m, 15m, 12m, 10m, DXCC Challenge, 5BDXCC+WARC. WAZ, WAC.

Member: Wireless Institute of Australia, Midland ARC, Macedon Ranges ARC, ODXG, Radio Amateur Old Timer's Club #1432, FISTS #9697, CTC #2803, 30MDG #2652, DXCC, ARRL, TAPR.

Located in the peaceful Benloch valley, 10km NW of Lancefield, 80km NNW of Melbourne.

About Luke Steele

First licensed in 1981, during second year of Army Apprenticeship as Electronics Technician. Served ten and a half years in the Royal Australian Corps of Signals as a technician, working in workshop and field, fixed and mobile communications units, from line to UHF radio relay, HF and satcoms. Worked through the '90s in private industry, eventually as a technical writer. In 2000 took up professionally a recreational activity - endurance horse trainer, working in Abu Dhabi stables for a few years. Since 2004, built up business trimming horses' feet. So, a childhood hobby of electronics became a profession, and now a hobby again, and a recreational interest in horses has become a profession.

Now I've turned into a DX-er!

Check my HRD OnlineLog at the bottom of this page.

Callsigns previously held: VK5NLS (Jun 81-Oct 81), VK3DIC (Nov 81 - Nov 82), VK4CEK (Nov 82 - Jun 86), VK3CEQ (Jul 86 - Jan 90), VK5HJ (Jan 90 - ?94?). VK3HJ since Jan 1990. (Dates from memory.)

Currently set up on 160m-10m.

HF Station

1: Open High Performance Software Defined Radio (Mercury/Magister/Penelope), FL-7000 or AL-82 (my primary station)
2: IC-735, FL-2100z
3: FT-901
4: FT-817 - My 5 W QRP rig. For DXCC QRP and use during mains outage!
5: FT-102

Antennae:

160m long centre-fed doublet
30m half square
40m bobtail curtain
W5GI multiband antenna
Broadband (G3TXQ) Hexagonal Beam 20, 17, 15, 12, 10m.
80m dipole
160m vertical; 18m top loaded, capacity hat 6 x 6.5m wires, elevated counterpoise
4-way EWE low bands receiving array.

VHF/UHF Equipment: tri-band FT-726R. 3 el Yagi for 6m, 12 el Yagi for 2m, 14 el Yagi for 70cm. Not presently active on VHF and up.

Operating modes: CW, SSB, Digital.

Main Operating bands: All HF Bands and 160m.

Current interests: DX, CW, SDR.

Next project: catching up on QSL-ing! Any direct QSLs received are usually answered immediately. In process of answering latest batch from Bureau.

Working on: Honour Roll, 160m DXCC, QRP DXCC.

Awards: DXCC- Current tally: 307 logged, 307 confirmed 6 January 2013.
DXCC; Phone, CW, Digital, 10m, 12m, 15m, 17m, 20m, 30m, 40m, 80m, DXCC Challenge, Diamond DXCC, 5BDXCC + 3 WARC band endorsements.WAZ, WAC.
Country and Zone winner CQ DX Marathon 2010 (224/39, total 263 pts).
Runner up VK and Zone 30 CQ DX Marathon 2011 (261/40, total 301 pts).

DXpeditions: VK9LA Lord Howe I 2009, YJ0VK Vanuatu 2010, 2011 and 2012, VK4ILH 2012, VK9NT Norfolk I 2013.

Main mode, CW.

With few new DXCCs left to work, I've started on my QRP DXCC, to fill in time! QRP tally 16 May 2013: 87 countries worked. All CW, using only FT-817, 5 watts.

My aim is to pick up new countries and band/mode slots, but I do enjoy a decent chat. Not looking for short QSO, except for that rare new one! I'm happy to work several, or even just one nice DX each day.

I usually upload to LOTW, eQSL, QRZ.com and Club Log on a weekly basis. You can also request a Bureau QSL card by using my Club Log Log Search page http://www.clublog.org/logsearch/VK3HJ

Logbook of the World is my preferred QSL method, but Direct (please include 2GS to help with postage), or via the Bureau is ok too.

My eQSL profile is:http://www.eQSL.cc/Member.cfm?VK3HJ

See my on-air activity below!