TZ4AM  Mali
Jeff Dorsey
Mali Africa Mali
QSL: QSL via W4VAB
Ham Member Lookups: 37390
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Date : 15/Aug/2016 2025UTC
Freq : 18074kHz CW
Rig : SDR(PI4THT)
ANT : Mini-Whip(PAORDT)
PC recording
TZ4AM is the call sign authorized by Mali's regulatory agency (AMRPT) for Jeff Dorsey based on his US license and the CEPT agreement. Jeff started in amateur radio in 1957 as K1MMB and operated mostly on the low end of 40m CW until the mid-1960s. He got back into radio after 50 year hiatus acquiring his Tech, General and then Extra Class licenses over the course of 2015. He also was fortunate in being able to get back his old call sign. His old friends Fred Hopengarten (K1VR) and Marshall Goldberg (K1LUV) provided much needed encouragement and support. The Everglades Amateur Radio Club in Homestead FL and its members helped him through the testing process and loaned him equipment to get started.
He currently operates from a station in Bamako Mali with an ICOM-718 (maximum power 100 watts). He has a forest of antennas up 10 meters above the roof of a 3-story building. There are no obstructions in any direction. He currently uses dipoles for 80, 40 , 30, 17, 15 and 12 meters and a fixed 3 element wire beam for 20 meters pointed at 303 degrees (toward North America). Except for 80 mters, his signal reports are generally good despite the low power, even in Japan. He operates CW on all bands and SSB on 20 meters (usually 14,200) and higher bands.
Current projects include getting a 500 watt amplifier. Chip Cohen (W1YW) has been providing technical support on improving his operations. Jeff is working with Spiderbeam in Germany to get a beam to Mali and installed at his QTH to cover all 5 bands between 30 and 12 meters.
He currently QSLs by mail. W4VAB is his QSL manager. He will be soon on LoTW, perhaps by the time you read this bio.
Tips on working TZ4AM:
Jeff normally works SPLIT, usually listening UP. When working split, he does not answer any stations calling on his frequency. If you have low power or are trying to be heard over Europeans who come in like locals, move up several kHz; he listens up and answers weak stations as well as the KWs with big antennas. Please call UP (or DowN) but NOT ON FREQUENCY.
If you are QRP, please don't make "QRP" part of your call sign. Copying your real call sign is hard enough as is without trying to figure out if QRP is part of the call. Also QRS makes reading weak signals easier.
NO TAILENDING please: Jeff tries to pick out call signs and RSTs from weak stations. With no filter or a wide filter in his receiver, other stations calling on top of the station currently being worked are a problem. Tailenders also interfere with getting callsigns and RSTs right. KN means KN (no calls at all until QSO is over). Please wait for a QSO to be really over (TU is the signal) and a request for new calls is made such as "TZ4AM UP2" and then call, UP two (or more) kHz. This speeds up contacts so more operators can be reached in the same amount of time. Jeff's best QSO rate is 1.7 contacts per minute; 2+ is doable with a little help from his friends.
If Jeff calls a partial call sign and none of the letters or numbers in your callsign are included, chances are he's responding to someone else. Please wait and call again after the next QSO or after the request for calls.
If he calls for ASIA or JAs and you're from Maine or New York (even CA), please be patient and let him work the weaker stations first. Then he'll go back to working all stations noted by QRZ ALL. Europeans and most North and South American stations come in like locals even on the lower bands. Please remember: TZ4AM is established in Mali permanently, so if our QSO does not happen tonight, I'll be looking for you tomorrow.
Time of day: There is not set time of day, but Jeff often operates in the middle of the night (GMT) on lower bands. Also he sometimes does grey line operations taking account of local sunrises and sunsets in Asia and the Americas.
Frequencies: he usually operates at the bottom of each band (1 KHz above the bottom of the band where possible) and listens UP one or two kilohertz (not answering stations calling him on frequency). However, on advice from Jack Sanders (K1IFJ), he is careful to remember the frequencies allocated to General Class license holders in the US and operations often on 3526 and 7026 and above on bands where there are restrictions of frequencies for General Class operators.
Modes: Mostly CW currently. That may change when he gets an amplifier and beam for the higher bands.
73,
Jeff - TZ4AM
He currently operates from a station in Bamako Mali with an ICOM-718 (maximum power 100 watts). He has a forest of antennas up 10 meters above the roof of a 3-story building. There are no obstructions in any direction. He currently uses dipoles for 80, 40 , 30, 17, 15 and 12 meters and a fixed 3 element wire beam for 20 meters pointed at 303 degrees (toward North America). Except for 80 mters, his signal reports are generally good despite the low power, even in Japan. He operates CW on all bands and SSB on 20 meters (usually 14,200) and higher bands.
Current projects include getting a 500 watt amplifier. Chip Cohen (W1YW) has been providing technical support on improving his operations. Jeff is working with Spiderbeam in Germany to get a beam to Mali and installed at his QTH to cover all 5 bands between 30 and 12 meters.
He currently QSLs by mail. W4VAB is his QSL manager. He will be soon on LoTW, perhaps by the time you read this bio.
Tips on working TZ4AM:
Jeff normally works SPLIT, usually listening UP. When working split, he does not answer any stations calling on his frequency. If you have low power or are trying to be heard over Europeans who come in like locals, move up several kHz; he listens up and answers weak stations as well as the KWs with big antennas. Please call UP (or DowN) but NOT ON FREQUENCY.
If you are QRP, please don't make "QRP" part of your call sign. Copying your real call sign is hard enough as is without trying to figure out if QRP is part of the call. Also QRS makes reading weak signals easier.
NO TAILENDING please: Jeff tries to pick out call signs and RSTs from weak stations. With no filter or a wide filter in his receiver, other stations calling on top of the station currently being worked are a problem. Tailenders also interfere with getting callsigns and RSTs right. KN means KN (no calls at all until QSO is over). Please wait for a QSO to be really over (TU is the signal) and a request for new calls is made such as "TZ4AM UP2" and then call, UP two (or more) kHz. This speeds up contacts so more operators can be reached in the same amount of time. Jeff's best QSO rate is 1.7 contacts per minute; 2+ is doable with a little help from his friends.
If Jeff calls a partial call sign and none of the letters or numbers in your callsign are included, chances are he's responding to someone else. Please wait and call again after the next QSO or after the request for calls.
If he calls for ASIA or JAs and you're from Maine or New York (even CA), please be patient and let him work the weaker stations first. Then he'll go back to working all stations noted by QRZ ALL. Europeans and most North and South American stations come in like locals even on the lower bands. Please remember: TZ4AM is established in Mali permanently, so if our QSO does not happen tonight, I'll be looking for you tomorrow.
Time of day: There is not set time of day, but Jeff often operates in the middle of the night (GMT) on lower bands. Also he sometimes does grey line operations taking account of local sunrises and sunsets in Asia and the Americas.
Frequencies: he usually operates at the bottom of each band (1 KHz above the bottom of the band where possible) and listens UP one or two kilohertz (not answering stations calling him on frequency). However, on advice from Jack Sanders (K1IFJ), he is careful to remember the frequencies allocated to General Class license holders in the US and operations often on 3526 and 7026 and above on bands where there are restrictions of frequencies for General Class operators.
Modes: Mostly CW currently. That may change when he gets an amplifier and beam for the higher bands.
73,
Jeff - TZ4AM
7128670 Last modified: 2016-03-01 00:08:48, 4586 bytes
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