OT - How many HAMs here?

dz86 · Post by **dz86** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 4:43 pm

I noticed that board member "don Thomas" has a call sign, KA6HDW, as part of his signature line.

How many other amateur radio operators do we have on this board?

I just got my technician license last November. Working towards my General license now. Hope to have it soon.

73!

Dave KC9MIB

don Tomás · Post by **don Tomás** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 4:49 pm

Hey Dave,
Congrats on the Tech. There's more than a few of us here that have a 2 meter rig attached to our leverguns...

Tom

eric65 · Post by **eric65** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 4:51 pm

Not an operator, but I listen in on my scanner all the time.

dz86 · Post by **dz86** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 4:59 pm

eric65 wrote:Not an operator, but I listen in on my scanner all the time.

You're in Middlebury? Small world! You need to get a license. You could hit the ECRA and Goshen (Bristol) repeaters easily from where you are. We'll get a "Leverguns net" going!

Dave

eric65 · Post by **eric65** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 5:09 pm

Sounds like a party, have to look into that. My wife will be thrilled with me having another expensive hobby.

Rusty · Post by **Rusty** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 5:13 pm

KE4VBB, a General here in Central Florida. The easiest way to upgrade for me was to go to one of the online sites where you can practice taking the test. Keep taking it over and over till you can score at least 90%. You are basically memorizing the test questions that way. When you hit the 90% mark go take your test.

73's,
Rusty <><

Dakota7 · Post by **Dakota7** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 5:33 pm

General class N0HIC.

JReed · Post by **JReed** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 6:51 pm

I used to be KD6UHD but I let my ticket expire

Now that you dont need code for general I need to get off my but and take the exam. Shouldnt be hard I work on radios and electronics for the Corps.

Ken41 · Post by **Ken41** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 6:59 pm

w3kmp, advance class. Not very active at the present time.

AJMD429 · Post by **AJMD429** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:03 pm

I have a Tech license, but what little I knew about the operation of my transceiver is long gone, and all I manage to do is listen to the weather-net when it is up. A few years ago I tried to get involved with a local group, but I can't say the reception to anyone who is a 'newbie' was very warm, so I just gave it up. I hope maybe one of my kids will pick it up, then we can figure it out together and at least call and bother each other.

salvo · Post by **salvo** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 7:15 pm

Extra Class here. Congrats on your license dz86!

QuarterChoke · Post by **QuarterChoke** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 8:04 pm

KC5ZSR, Cheyenne, WY, General Class. A stealth antenna and 75 watts of raw power.

Post by **Chuck 100 yd** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 8:39 pm

I thought I would see a picture of a pile of pigs!

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 9:08 pm

ex KN7RKO and
ex WL7BDN

I would like a link to the online practice sites Rusty mentioned.

Code was a breeze for me, I have trouble remembering numbers, like the band edges, and mundane technical stuff that I never need to know.

Had some great 10M contacts from my fishing boat back when novices could use 10M phone. Fun to pile up calls when they realize I was operating maritime mobile..,

Kurt · Post by **Kurt** » Thu Feb 14, 2008 9:21 pm

N7VSG, General class.

Billaz · Post by **Billaz** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 1:27 am

congradulations dz86, on your tech license..

Bill ka7koq (extra class)

TxHunter · Post by **TxHunter** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 3:53 am

KB5AMX 13 wpm General. www.qrz.com has the practice exams as well as some other sites. Congratulations on the ticket !!

jengel · Post by **jengel** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 9:18 am

KC0HBR (General Class) in NW Kansas here. Before I took this gun shop manager job, I was the Emergency Management Director for my county. I started an Emergency Communications Team that performed RACES, ARES and SKYWARN duties. Had a lot of fun doing it. Congrats.

pshort · Post by **pshort** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 10:03 am

.... ..
KA0IAB General, here in Central MN.......

P

Retro · Post by **Retro** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 11:45 am

73 from a very inactive ZS1KE

dz86 · Post by **dz86** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 11:55 am

eric65 wrote:My wife will be thrilled with me having another expensive hobby.

It really doesn't have to be expensive. I'll put it this way, it can be as expensive as you want it to be.

It costs $14.00 to take the technician class exam. You can study online for free.

As a tech you can get on the air with a handheld (HT) 2 meter or 2m/70cm radio.
I got my Yaesu FT-60R 2m/70cm HT http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/ht/0060.html for just over $200 shipped but I ordered a car charger cord with it when I ordered it.
You can get a very nice 2m only radio for alot less money. http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/ht/0170.html I've seen these as low as $115 lately.

With the excellent ECRA repeater that we have in Elkhart county, that's all you'd really need to get started. I know that you can hit that repeater with an HT from Middlebury because I've done it, although a better antenna would really help.

The next step would be a magnetic mount antenna for your vehicle at $35-$50 or so. These really improve performance.

Then you could put up a base station antenna at your house. I bought an Arrow Antennas dual band J-Pole for $49.00 delivered and mounted it on the roof of my house using a TV antenna tripod ($25.00). It took 60ft of coax to get from that antenna to my "radio room". "CB Specialists" in South Bend sold me 60 ft of RG213 and soldered connectors on both ends, ready to go, for around $75.00. It is amazing what you can do with an HT connected to a good J-Pole antenna that's about 35 feet off the ground.

But like I say, it doesn't really take much more than an HT to get started. You can add things a little bit at a time from there.

Dave

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:43 pm

Dave, do you have a link to the online free study sites?

I have a VX-7R with me and left my all band rig at my place in Alaska.

Anyway, I'm interested in getting the tech license.

salvo · Post by **salvo** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:52 pm

Her you go Grizz
http://www.qrz.com/ham/

Grizz · Post by **Grizz** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 1:12 pm

Thank you Scott

those radios are the only thing that work when the poop hits the propellor...

Idahoser · Post by **Idahoser** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 2:02 pm

[callsign deleted]
I crammed and passed the exam for Extra, but that doesn't mean I know what I should. That's some of the fallout of removing the code requirement-- people like me who can pass tests but don't really know what that license says we know.

Now the code wasn't what kept me from doing this before- in fact code is one of the things that draws me to this since I was a kid. And still, my intention is to make this the cheapest hobby my wife ever heard of (not BECAUSE of her, but it doesn't hurt for her to know that) because the building stuff and scrounging stuff and low power and Morse code and all that is what I'm actually interested in. Not that I know how to do any of that, but getting the ticket first made sense to me because it's what I had the resources to do at the time. I'll learn after the fact to know what the ticket says I already know. I will make a supreme effort not to be a pain int the butt to those who would expect more from me and regret allowing me into their fraternity.

Still, I haven't hardly started down that track of my intention. I did get a "Code Warrior Junior" for Valentine's Day to go with a keyer kit I got for Christmas (and haven't had time to assemble) so I'm at least making a little progress. I've been researching and believe that a Small Wonder Labs SW+ (have to choose a band) will be my first HF rig.

So far all I have is a dual band H/T I traded a revolver for. Playing on the repeaters and listening to satellites is fun, but it's not what I want out of this hobby (well, at least it's not ALL I want) so it's tiding me over and well, it is actually useful in the event of a disaster.

Mostly I just read though, I don't actually do much of anything but participate in the 'nets once in a while.

But I'll get there.

Oh by the way, it's ham, not HAM. It doesn't stand for anything, it's not an acronym, just a word.

Hairy Clipper · Post by **Hairy Clipper** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 2:18 pm

Lincensed since the early '70's. Extra class.

Hairy

bsaride · Post by **bsaride** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 3:47 pm

I am not an operator.

I would like to know if you had to have a radio to use in an emergency
that would give you coverage outside cell phone range what would be
your first choice and why?

I will be adding a radio to my truck and possibly a handheld in about a year.

Thanks for your help,
Jay

Rexster · Post by **Rexster** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 5:59 pm

When I get time off later this year, I plan to join the ham thing. My wife is already a ham, an outgrowth of some of the other volunteer work she does. Last year, I worked as a volunteer with her ham group on an MS150 bike ride.

JReed · Post by **JReed** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 10:03 pm

BSARider
A 2 Meter hand held is all you would need. You are in Orange county right? there are a ton of HAMS on 2M in OC and there are a ton of repeaters that you can hit with an HT putting out 1.5 watts.

bsaride · Post by **bsaride** » Fri Feb 15, 2008 10:25 pm

Thanks Jer,

I know there is a shop within a mile from me but it's low on my list.
So does anyone use CB anymore?

Mike S. · Post by **Mike S.** » Sat Feb 16, 2008 12:29 am

KB0VXN. Still have the equipment, but haven't been active for a while. Enjoyed it a lot a few years back tho.

JReed · Post by **JReed** » Sat Feb 16, 2008 12:33 am

bsarider
Once you go ham you never go back.

Swampman · Post by **Swampman** » Sat Feb 16, 2008 8:20 am

My brother has a CQ card from every single country & island but one. He contacted an operator in that country during some special event but he couldn't get the card because of some kind of political turmoil.