"Twistedhed" wrote in message
...
Organized, long term freebanders are very aware where they
operate and take great measure to ensure against talking on an amateur f
requency or one that isn't heavily used on the freeband.
If the non-U.S. stations can operate ssb there, why shouldn't I,
especially if I want to have a nice DX contact with one of them?

I've been a so-called "freebander" since the late sixties but rarely for DX.
The primary reason I talked outside of allotted frequencies was for privacy
or to contact a specific distant station I wouldn't normally hear on the
allotted band. We used to run Ch. 16 -5khz down and 15A a RC Channel running
slightly above stock power on 3-4 element directional and easily talk 75-100
miles. I spoke all over the world with better than 1000 confirmed QSL
contacts from a slightly peaked Golden Eagle Mark III/IV running through a 4
beam element at 60 feet from Central NJ.