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ryan_j

Ham radio

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Wooly, it can take upwards of two weeks to be listed on the FCC website. At least that was my experience in February.

 

VHF and UHF seem to have traffic during commuting hours with an occasional net here and there at night.

Ugh, during commuter hours, it's worse than the old days of CB... Bunch of whining guys biotching about traffic that can turn a 5 word sentence into a 5 minute schpeal. I suggest trying to find a net or if you know any nearby clubs, get with them. There are a couple in Bergen/Passaic County area.

 

 

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You might want to have some method of being able to leave messages and retrieve messages totally separate from the internet or phone. In the old days they used packet radio and BBS'  and you could send out email using ham radio BBS.

 

The advantage of packet is that nearly any old computer will do and the terminal node controllers are selling next to nothing on ebay...for $35. Y'all can set up a couple of packet BBS' and run digipeaters.

 

There is also PSK mail, Winlink 2000, Winmor, Sailmail (if you have a boat). The goal is to be able to send messages, text files, lists, photos in an emergency without using the grid or conventional commercial means. With ham radio and some inexpensive used equipment, it is possible to build a string of BBS' from one end of the state to the other with little cost.

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I know, and I'm not gonna take the time to go study and take this test where ever it is if it's something I don't know I like.

That's a poor attitude. The only help you'll get will be from licensed people. It's a tight community. Tech test is easy especially if you have a lil knowledge of electronics. You can practice till you are blue for free. The equipment is the most costly of the whole hobby. License is good for 10 years and doesn't require any more tests to remain at that level for renewal. License is I forget, 12 bux for ten years? Correct me guys if I'm wrong.

Finally, you bought a unit expecting what? Don't you think you should have educated yourself about the hobby first? It's a fun hobby for the most part. I got my first license back in 1975 and was president of our radio group in high school.

 

If unsure about anything, you should have just got a receiver to listen first. Cheaper too usually.

 

 

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A sequentially-issued callsign/license is free (they're currently in the KD2*** range), unless you want to apply for a "vanity" call (like W2MC), then its about $20 for 10 years.  If you test with a site allied with the Laurel MD Volunteer Exam Coordinators (VEC), the test is free, too (otherwise, its $15).  My club is aligned with Laurel VEC, and offers testing every second Wednesday in West Berlin, NJ

 

http://www.k2aa.info/basic-page/amateur-radio-license-exams

 

Jon

W2MC

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Ok, just looked up my renewal. Renewed last week. Mine is a vanity. Was $16.10 for ten more years via FCC's web site.

 

 

 

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If it was just paying a fee I wouldn't care. But I don't even plan on talking on the thing. I just got it for an emergency. I'll eventually just buy a cb and call it a day

 

I actually thought I just changed stations like a cb or radio

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Why not just get the license. Stop being a rebel chicken. Not like it takes long. You can be among the near elite best radio operators in the world..

 

 

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I won't sell it. It'll sit in my garage incase one day someone programs it or I decide to figure it out

:facepalm: For shame. All I can say is, "Buck Buck"!!! Go for the license....

 

 

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I won't sell it. It'll sit in my garage incase one day someone programs it or I decide to figure it out

Before you decide to shelve that rig take a practice exam at hamexam.org (or a similar site).  You want the Element 2: Technician (Starts July 1).  It's 35 questions and see how you do.  You might be surprised how much you know or you can common sense figure out.  Take it a few times and if you see yourself scoring in the 85 to 90% or better area go take the test for real somewhere.  
 
I started that way and once I took the Technician a few times I decided to try the next level General.  Few weeks later, back in February I sat for and passed both elements on the first try and walked away with my General ticket for $15.  The club even had me try the Extra level exam since I did so well on the first two but I hadn't prepared for that and didn't make it from zero to hero on my first run.  
 
Practice exams are free and that radio will do you no good, emergency or otherwise, if you don't learn how to set it up and use it. 

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I have been a ham for about 10 years holding an Extra license and not once did I find it useful for anything but rag chewing. The last big storm I lived through in NJ destroyed our local repeater and all the others were kind of dead. Many chased me off the air because they were being run by Skywarn or ARES. None of my friends and family could be reached by ham radio and I could not get accurate weather information unless I used one of the NOAA frequencies. I ended up using the internet which was working just fine. I sent and received text to all family members and even called them on the phone.

 

Down here, a rural area of Florida, the few repeaters are dead on a good day and not one soul could be found during the last hurricane we had. I have one HF and 3 VHF/UHF radios plus two digital scanners and could not get any info or even talk to someone. All public service providers here use digital encrypted communications that cannot be intercepted by anyone outside of their agency. I have $800 worth of scanners that get receive one fire station in a different county than were I live and that it is.

 

My experience in an emergency is that most of us had no power and insufficient battery backups. My handy talkies all had spare batteries but our radio club had all sorts of emergency power to last almost two days but did not do anything to prevent their antenna from being blown away. :) You know that in NJ we can reach a lot of repeaters in NYC but most were dead. This was my first emergency as a ham and I was expecting all sorts of activity but I got silence with the exception of a few others trying to get information like I was. My internet was down so I had no means to communicate and my $20K of ham radio equipment was useless. Now I have Cable internet and AT&T cellular internet and so far one of the other has always worked and the internet was far more helpful than any radio I owned.

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Another interested person here.   Biggest question I have so far is how to avoid lightning risk from a tree-run dipole.  From what I've learned so far this might involve grounding the dipole and 'free-floating' the coax end away from the house when not in use (fishing line pull-in and connect) but what about lightning risk to the trees themselves?

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Another interested person here.   Biggest question I have so far is how to avoid lightning risk from a tree-run dipole.  From what I've learned so far this might involve grounding the dipole and 'free-floating' the coax end away from the house when not in use (fishing line pull-in and connect) but what about lightning risk to the trees themselves?

 

What about it?  The trees are already 'well-grounded'...  :)

 

Actually, yes, lightning can be a hazard.  Best thing to do is to have a good grounding system in the house and the hamshack, and if you are very concerned, disconnect the antenna from the transceiver. 

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question.......jammers. do they effect all possible comms?

 

We have learned from multiple reliable sources close to us that the Department of Homeland Security may be bringing Communication Jamming Devices into the St. Louis/Ferguson Area in preparation for what is to come and in an effort to help and support local law enforcement.  The Jammers would be used to disrupt communications between riotors so that they cannot organize attacks.  It would also take down the internet streaming capabilities of some of the Radical Muslim Organizations and Left Wing Media that seem to be “on the scene” at every major conflict or incident in that area of town.

 

http://tacticalshit.com/dhs-set-help-local-law-enforcement-jammers-st-louis/

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question.......jammers. do they effect all possible comms?

 

We have learned from multiple reliable sources close to us that the Department of Homeland Security may be bringing Communication Jamming Devices into the St. Louis/Ferguson Area in preparation for what is to come and in an effort to help and support local law enforcement.  The Jammers would be used to disrupt communications between riotors so that they cannot organize attacks.  It would also take down the internet streaming capabilities of some of the Radical Muslim Organizations and Left Wing Media that seem to be “on the scene” at every major conflict or incident in that area of town.

 

http://tacticalshit.com/dhs-set-help-local-law-enforcement-jammers-st-louis/

Short answer - no. The frequencies typically used by amateurs is nowhere near the frequencies used for cell phones and streaming internet.

 

Can amateur radio be jammed? Yes; however, there are more frequencies to contend with. Say someone decides to jam 2 meters. Ham ops can shift to 6 meters (50 MHz), or 440, or 222 MHz, if they want to stay VHF or UHF, and the whole HF spectrum (160 meters to 10 meters) is also available. Jamming all of that spectrum is a daunting task.

 

The goal of the jamming in the referenced article is to deny the protesters the use of cell phones and open wi fi as a means of controlling and coordinating their efforts.

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i understand their stated goal. but it seems almost like a test to me, to see how effective it could/would be, and if they could use it should the poop ever hit the fan.........

"They" probably will. The "Arab Spring" stuff was coordinated with cell phones, for example.

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I've been thinking about, and off-and-on studying for my amateur license since 1968. Every few years I buy a book and fall asleep halfway through.

 

This year, as a 60th birthday present to myself, I decided to do something with my brain. 

 

I spent an hour or two per day for the last 4-5 days on HamTestOnline (hamtestonline.com) studying for my Technician license. Although it's not a comprehensive course in amateur radio, the website is PERFECT for studying for the test. I used a book as a reference and to read up on certain topics in greater depth.

 

Today I took two practice exams and scored 100% on both. I feel confident now to take the test on November 21, a week from tomorrow. I hope to get my General license some time in the January-February time frame.

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