whats the big deal?

[toyrunner95]

whats the deal with everyone wanting a ham raidio in their truck? ive never had a problem with cell coverage or getting signal out on my cb, however i have never known ch9 to be monitered by any emergency service.

and why do you have to have a licence? do the feds really watch that?

is it really worth it to buy one?

O and another thing, what is the set up in govetnment vehicles with radios? when i used to go to work with my dad, he could literally call home on his radio, but i dont know how? now that would be a slick setup for a truck.

p.s. please explain this to me like im a 5yo, all this wkrp cincinati/98.lg-qrf 10-90 stuff confuses the hell out of me.

[Scott Brady]

It is like driving with 30 year old KC driving lights and then switching to HID's...

Yeah, that much better.

The KC's work, kind of, but there are much better solutions available now.

CB's are fine for 3-4 miles, but in a long convoy in the desert, getting 20 miles between trucks is not uncommon. A 2M can go 50+ miles in open terrain and sound as clear as a land line.

[Willman]

:xxrotflma

I'm right their with ya brother!! I'm new to the 2m ham radio has well!!!

:bigbossHL:

[toyrunner95]

i like my trailblaver light bar, instead of 2 100,000 cp lights, like KCs it had 6 forward, one on either side, and 3 backward. it has over a million cp in all. hahaha

so is it worth the investment? who would i talk to, no one else has one up here that i know of. do i need to take the test? how hard is it? where can i take it?

[vengeful]

http://www.arrl.org/ has all of the information you need!

Also, you can google "Amateur Radio Practice Tests" to get an idea what the tests are like. They're not very hard, but you do have to study for them, unless you've got an extensive background in radio communications and FCC regulations.

I'm in the process of getting my License, but dag gone some of those radios are pricey!

[kcowyo]

who would i talk to, no one else has one up here that i know of.

This is the biggest reason I've dragged my feet on getting licensed. I've started and stopped the process several times....:rolleyes:

I do have a great book for newbs looking to get started with 2M's - Now You're Talking! All You Need for Your First Amatuer Radio License

You can find the where and when for tests on this website (http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml)

[Grim Reaper]

whats the deal with everyone wanting a ham raidio in their truck? ive never had a problem with cell coverage or getting signal out on my cb, however i have never known ch9 to be monitered by any emergency service.

and why do you have to have a licence? do the feds really watch that?

is it really worth it to buy one?

O and another thing, what is the set up in govetnment vehicles with radios? when i used to go to work with my dad, he could literally call home on his radio, but i dont know how? now that would be a slick setup for a truck.

p.s. please explain this to me like im a 5yo, all this wkrp cincinati/98.lg-qrf 10-90 stuff confuses the hell out of me.

I won't even turn on my CB's with the kids and wife in the car. Its just lude and if they are not cussing they are talking about looking down blouses. That's what happens when a band is deregulated.

I plan to get a Ham. I carry a FCC GROL because of my bench tech background on wirelss devices. I don't think that I will have that hard of time with the test. Just not had the time.

Ham can get out when a CB can't. You can talk half way around the world on "Skip". So if you have a back country emergency where there is no cell coverage you have a very good chance on getting out on a Ham.

Plus I think it would be cool to talk to WB6ACU
http://www.arrl.org/news/features/2004/03/11/1/

[shawkins]

My dad and I used to use handheld CB radios for communicating while hunting, but they have a short range and arent very clear.

2 or 3 years ago my Dad, Mom, and I all got our licenses. My dad and I each have Yeasu VX-5R's. They work great for everything we use them for! Hiking, hunting, house work (when someone is in the attick or under the house), etc.

My dad has been talking about getting a mobile unit with repeater capabilities (or something like that?) to put in his 4Runner for when we are hunting in case we get really separated.

[toyrunner95]

well i still dont know, i might wait till im out of college to buy one an learn, im doing enough learning at the moment,

so you have to have alicence to buy one or can i buy one then get my licence?

[Rockcrawler]

Anyone can buy a radio and can technically use it for monitoring. You only need to have a license to transmit.

[goodtimes]

CB's transmitt at 4 watts. You are limited to that...and so is everyone else. Yes, you can add [illegal] amps to it, but then people can hear you, but you cannot hear them (unless they are inside that 4 watt range). With the lowest level HAM license (tech), you can transmit at 1500 watts....on ALOT of frequencies...not just the 40 you are limited to with CB. Most of the mobil 2 meter radio's are only pushing 60 or 75 watts max...but 75 watts will reach out in excess of 100 miles...legally...and since the "other guy" has the same power...you can have more than a one sided conversation.

As for the test...if I can pass it....anyone can pass it!

[97kurt]

Also if you pick up a dual band or wide band ham you can program in and listen to police,fire and emergency channels. Sometimes its nice to know what is going on if you see a bunch of cops in an area.

[Martinjmpr]

Also with a 2m or 440mhz rig many repeaters are set up so that you can connect to a telephone. Repeaters are usually owned by clubs but most of them are open to all HAMs. Sometimes you have to be a club member to get the CTCSS codes to activate the dial-up, others will extend courtesy to non-club members.

Why is 2m better than CB? Much, Much better quality sound (most of the VHF bands are FM, whereas CB is AM.) Longer range (VHF generally goes "line of sight" but since repeaters are usually mounted on high elevations, you can talk to someone on the other side of a mountain as long as you can both hit the same repeater.) On 10m you can talk around the world.

You will need a license to transmit. The FCC levies heavy fines against people who use amateur radio equipment without licenses. Besides, in order to talk to anyone else you need a call sign.

Martin

[cruiser guy]

Hey Goodtimes, are you sure on that 1500w transmit power? Everything I've read says 1000w maximum. I know my Icom 706 is 100w max on HF and 50w on 2m.

Toyrunner95, there IS phone capability with Ham radios IF you know the tone to open the phone patch wherever you might try to use it.

I've been where we've had clear communication of in excess of 80 miles on 2m! Try that on CB.

[edgear]

I've been rather disappointed with my CB. It's come in handy on a few trips. But from what I've experienced, a simple FRS/GMRS radio is much more effective & reliable than a CB. And after learning more about 2M, I hope to take the test soon & pick up an inexpensive unit. I pretty much now only use my CB to occasionaly listen to the NOAA weather updates. But listening to that computer voice gets old pretty quick!

[Accrete]

Sorry for the ramble below, please don't blast me to hard, just wanted to give my honest heart felt opinion of my HAMventure.

I got my HAM license back in 1999 as a sort of father/daughter bonding time while i was home schooling her (with huge help from my wife...the main teacher). My daughter wanted to get some extra credit and also wanted to somehow get the required "Second Language" thingy under her belt...so we picked HAM radio as her second language class. hehehe. Gota luv homeschooling for being flexible ey?

OK, so seven years of Ham'in later i can say that i've not been on the airwaves much at all except when my daughter and i would go out camping with the family. I'm not much into chit chat with what i would call strangers, and i'm not into talking just to talk either. What really put a damper on my HAM time was the advent of PalTalk and the Instant Messinger technologies as I am a currency trader in my time away from the regular job and i can talk privately with any one of my currency buddies worldwide (Oz land or Scott Land : )...try that with a HAM radio. Every body and their brother can hear your conversation and it has to also be by-the-rules; no idle chat stuff.

I agree with the idea that CB is not for family-ears these days. But then it wasn't back in the late 60's either! Fortunately the FCC licensing for HAM has kept the airwaves safe. But unless you have something HAM-Radio-Specific, or life threatening communication then i don't really see that HAM is of much use as the regulations (or at least what i still hear locally on the Oregon Coast, and the old'timers enforce/police the conversations and will butt in if you start talking about "life" and "stuff"!) is just not much fun. I mean just how much fun is it to talk about this radio or that antenna or whatever. 8 years of listening and it's still all business and not much FUN-talk about life or living.

Maybe it's just the area that i live in and most of the HAM opperators are well into their 70's (i'm no spring chicken as a sputnik baby...1957) but i wanna have FUN conversations about LIFE when i talk to people. And i'm just not seeing HAM as an option for that with the current FCC rules...unless i'm just hanging around the wrong radio waves here in Oregon ! !


Cheers,
Thom

[thallca]

You don't have to just talk about ham radio, you can discuss anything you like as long as you are not using the ham band for business reasons. In other words you can't, for example, use ham radios to dispatch trucks, etc.
There are a lot nets that use the ham bands to talk about all sorts of things. I have heard hams talk about model railroading, computers, tv shows and, in my area, I think there is 4x4 net that meets once a week.
Thom, if you really like to "ragchew" as we hams call it, you should upgrade your license to general and work the HF bands. Some of those guys just can't stop talking!
I am in the middle of upgrading myself...

Tim



Sorry for the ramble below, please don't blast me to hard, just wanted to give my honest heart felt opinion of my HAMventure.

I got my HAM license back in 1999 as a sort of father/daughter bonding time while i was home schooling her (with huge help from my wife...the main teacher). My daughter wanted to get some extra credit and also wanted to somehow get the required "Second Language" thingy under her belt...so we picked HAM radio as her second language class. hehehe. Gota luv homeschooling for being flexible ey?

OK, so seven years of Ham'in later i can say that i've not been on the airwaves much at all except when my daughter and i would go out camping with the family. I'm not much into chit chat with what i would call strangers, and i'm not into talking just to talk either. What really put a damper on my HAM time was the advent of PalTalk and the Instant Messinger technologies as I am a currency trader in my time away from the regular job and i can talk privately with any one of my currency buddies worldwide (Oz land or Scott Land : )...try that with a HAM radio. Every body and their brother can hear your conversation and it has to also be by-the-rules; no idle chat stuff.

I agree with the idea that CB is not for family-ears these days. But then it wasn't back in the late 60's either! Fortunately the FCC licensing for HAM has kept the airwaves safe. But unless you have something HAM-Radio-Specific, or life threatening communication then i don't really see that HAM is of much use as the regulations (or at least what i still hear locally on the Oregon Coast, and the old'timers enforce/police the conversations and will butt in if you start talking about "life" and "stuff"!) is just not much fun. I mean just how much fun is it to talk about this radio or that antenna or whatever. 8 years of listening and it's still all business and not much FUN-talk about life or living.

Maybe it's just the area that i live in and most of the HAM opperators are well into their 70's (i'm no spring chicken as a sputnik baby...1957) but i wanna have FUN conversations about LIFE when i talk to people. And i'm just not seeing HAM as an option for that with the current FCC rules...unless i'm just hanging around the wrong radio waves here in Oregon ! !


Cheers,
Thom

[Accrete]

...There are a lot nets that use the ham bands to talk about all sorts of things. I have heard hams talk about model railroading...

Thom, if you really like to "ragchew" as we hams call it, you should upgrade your license to general and work the HF bands...

TimHi Tim, good thoughts in your post. I tried to be kind in mine about what i hear out on the coast in Oregon. It really is all about radios! A couple times i tried to stir up a conversation about something else (excluding religion, politics and sex) and got shut down by an old timer policing the band. Basicaly if it aint about your gear or something to do with say packet radio, ARS-GPS, or similar "HAM" stuff its not a topic to be discussed out in my area from what i've gathered over the last 8 years of being involved.

I passed my written general but the code threw me, and i haven't felt the need to attempt to learn the code again. I've made contact from our club's radio room aboard the Lightship Columbia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightship_Columbia), it was during a contest weekend and i helped man the radio for a shift. Quite fun talking to someone in OzLand or Asia.

: ) Thom

[DaveInDenver]

Hi Tim, good thoughts in your post. I tried to be kind in mine about what i hear out on the coast in Oregon. It really is all about radios! A couple times i tried to stir up a conversation about something else (excluding religion, politics and sex) and got shut down by an old timer policing the band. Basicaly if it aint about your gear or something to do with say packet radio, ARS-GPS, or similar "HAM" stuff its not a topic to be discussed out in my area from what i've gathered over the last 8 years of being involved.

That's not right unless it was a tech net or something. During commutes, tuning in the repeaters here will cover just about anything. Places guys have been, things they do, stuff about traffic and work and cars. It's just a open ended conversation. The whole point of radio is to connect people together and so you are free to talk about whatever you want (except illegal things, business and a few morally sensitive things). Definitely no foul language, too. That old timer I think might have been out of line, I wouldn't worry about it.

[goodtimes]

Basicaly if it aint about your gear or something to do with say packet radio, ARS-GPS, or similar "HAM" stuff its not a topic to be discussed out in my area from what i've gathered over the last 8 years of being involved.

I passed my written general but the code threw me, and i haven't felt the need to attempt to learn the code again. I've made contact from our club's radio room aboard the Lightship Columbia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightship_Columbia), it was during a contest weekend and i helped man the radio for a shift. Quite fun talking to someone in OzLand or Asia.

: ) Thom

Conversations are certainly not limited to gear talk, unless like DaveinDenver mentioned, it was during a tech-net or similar deal. I don't think I have ever talked about gear with mine. There is also no need to learn code for a tech license anymore.

Personally, the only time I use my 2 meter is when I am travelling with someone else who is running the same. I rarely talk to 'strangers'...but when your own group gets spread out over large distances, it is nice to be able to talk to each other. By large distances, I am talking 50+ miles.