HAM Radio operators
 

Anyone here? In light of recent events I'm seriously considering getting my license and a nice home base station. Any suggestions from current radio operators?

What recent events?

I like HAM sandwiches - that's about all I have to offer in this thread. :shrug:

My father was an avid ham radio operator. He was on his gear every single day/evening. I still remember his call sign/letters: w0pgk. He would talk to people all over the world.

I'm licensed, but haven't done much with it in years. Now that I live in an apartment, that puts an end to anything but local stuff on 2 meters.

Grandpa was one. He had a lot of good friendships over the HAM.

I don't know what the equipment is like these days, but his had a giant apparatus on his roof. I always had to climb up there and monkey with it if there was monkeying to do.

The radios themselves have changed. All digital, smaller, but still expensive. Antennas are still big, unless you just use a long wire like I always did (antennas can't' help it, they are limited by the laws of physics concerning radio waves and radio wave propagation).

Played around on it a lot when I was in Boy Scouts and knew nothing whatsoever about how they worked.
Now I know how they work and haven't seen one in person in decades.

Ham radio? Is this a real topic?

Nerds gonna Nerd.

No. I live in 2017. Not 1987

DC can't respond right now, he's out back digging a ditch to bury the school bus full of canned goods he bought on Craigslist.

I have my license and play around a bit with it. Getting the license is really easy to do. Search a study guide online and practice a few times and you'll get the hang of it pretty quick. If I remember right it was 14 bucks to take the test. I recommend looking at a baofeng handheld unit on Amazon cor your first radio. Very cheap compared to other models and works great.

Rail car but otherwise accurate.

Yeah it is fairly inexpensive for the license. I didn't know you could use a long wire in place of an antenna tho?

You will piss off the neighbors with the long wire. My neighbor has been a ham radio enthusiast for 30 some years he has been here. When he was on it the TV would go haywire even cable. About 10 years ago he put up a 30' tower with big ass antenna on top and a natural gas generator if power goes out. When that went up the interference stopped. Hell he even has a big ass antenna on his car and he and his buds meet up on Weekends and all drive off with similar antenna for what I dont know.

My dad was very active in amateur radio for a very long time. He was into both the typical HAM radio stuff and also the MARS military stuff. If you're from the KC area, over 60, and into amateur radio, then you probably know my dad. He's not as active now that he's in his 80s, but he still plays around. I never got into it.

Kilo
Delta
Five
Delta
Yankee
Tango

I don't have an HF rig, though

Ham radio makes me feel alive. Better than cutting.

Yes. You'll need an new antenna for your vessel.

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...aa59dc6bf3.jpg

LMAO

Mine too. WBØSRO

My old boss was big into Ham radio. We used to call it CB radio just to mess with him. He hated that. :D

So.....what recent events, DenverChief?

Long wire antennas are great if you have the room and don't run a lot of power. I lived in a semi-rural area in Texas at the time and never ran more than 100 watts, so I never had complaints about interference (and I asked).

I've got an HF transceiver, antenna tuner, and power supply that I'd love to sell.

Anybody else's parents have the huge CB antennas on their bumper.

'CB Man' was the closest my dad had to a superhero secret identity because he put his antenna on a disc of rare earth magnets. That way, the only time we had the antenna on the back of the Station Wagon was when the CB was in use, long trips and the like. Otherwise, we blended in with the squares!!

I have one to listen to the weather reports when something bad comes in. I am a storm spotter but do not have a HAM license so I cannot talk on the radio. Maybe when I retire.

Radio Shack used to be the place to get HAM stuff. They are gone now. There is a store here that has everything needed to jump in. There would also be just as many forums out there for that hobby.

Denver Chief is worried about NK.

What store?

Radio city-mounds view, mn. http://www.radioinc.com/

Just found this thread... I recently got back on the air as KD0WBT.

I have a couple Baofeng handhelds, but no license. The furthest I've gotten is imaging and programming them with Chirp. I'd like to get a license and get a more powerful base station & antenna. Not sure when I'll find the time though.

Yeah I've been playing with the Baofeng for a couple years; finally bit the bullet and acquired an HF rig and threw a dipole up into the trees. So far so good!

I miss my HF station. I live in an apartment now, so running HF is not likely to happen. When I was sitll married and had a 1/2 acre lot, I had a nice G5RV antenna.

I considered the G5RV strongly, but a buddy of mine talked me into the W5GI Mystery Antenna... Said I'd like it way better, similarly built with "much better" performance... Thats actually what I have temporarily strung up now but only up like 25 feet. Got a tree guy coming to work on high limbs this weekend and he said he'd help put it WAY up (like 65' or so)

I'd not heard of that antenna of yours before today. I put up my old station (with the G5RV) more than 10 years ago.