Cigar Smoking HAM RADIO Operators

[NullSmurf]

Thanks for th elinks. Took the technician test for fun. 70%

Cparker

Chip, I don't remember. Is that a pass? Last time I took a test, it was at the FCC district office.

 

[switters]

I think you have to get 74% to pass.

 

[Rod]

Need 74% or higher to pass.

I'm off the air until I can find normal people in my area to talk to, or at least someone who can IRLP into Los Angeles.

 

[NullSmurf]

Need 74% or higher to pass.

I'm off the air until I can find normal people in my area to talk to, or at least someone who can IRLP into Los Angeles.

That does not bode well for the LA VHF bunch. When last I was active, Denver was pretty fun with all these mountains and all. Its kind of nice having a 10,000 foot tower (relative).

 

[StatHaldol]

Just got my licence - VE3WTU

Now to get a radio ... :whistling:

Great news! What kind are you looking at? We've got a couple of ICOM's but our first one was an Alinco.

Yaesu is very popular around here for HT's and mobiles (Rally and wilderness event support is always on 2m around here.)

I just love how effortless the progression from "a radio" to multiple radios happens. This was my progression over the two day course:
1. Sat. morning: 2m mobile. under $200 (plus home power supply, antennas for car and home, plus an SWR meter kit, plus ... )
2. Sat. afternoon: Maybe a 2m HT instead. $200 (plus spare batteries, a mic, aftermarket antenna, external antenna, various power supplies, etc.)
3. Sun. morning: Multi-band mobile (so I can have a funky antenna powered by a screwdriver motor on my car)
4. Sun. afternoon: mobile w/ cross-band repeat + dual-band HT + HF @ home + + +

Bah. I was thinking I could get into this for the price of a box of "ultra-premium" cigars, i.e., $300 total.

So far, I've noticed a relative excess of facial hair and pipe smokers in local HAM circles

LOL! I read your last line just as I was lighting my pipe!
It can be an addictive, expensive hobby. My wife is a ham (KE5FYS)
and she's an antenna junkie. She has wire strung all over the neighborhood! She has a birthday coming up and wants a new antenna tuner....

Our first radio (the Alinco) was a cheap e-bay special and it's still working...

Good luck!
KE5FYR

 

[OpusXKC]

This is a hobby I've picked up in the last few years, and am absolutely loving it. Yea, I'm a nerd, a big techny nerd, so duh of course I like ham radio. Currently an Extra Class licensed VE with just enough kit to make everything fun. If there is ever enough of us with IRLP/Echolink/D-Star kit or HF kit we could have a fun net
 

 

[BlindedByScience]

My curiosity recently got the best of me and I ordered a Baofeng UV-B6 for $36.00 from Amazon:
 
http://www.amazon.com/Baofeng-Newest-Walkie-Talkie-5-watt/dp/B00BLPCAZG/ref=sr_1_10
 
I did pick up a better antenna and a programming cable:
 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008Y2SPE4/ref=oh_details_o07_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008RZJHJU/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
 
I have to tell you, for the money, you cannot beat this small radio..!!  I am consistently blown away by how well it works, I get great reports, there's lots to recommend for the price.  Battery life is good, and it came with a drop in charger.  Wow.  
 
The down side, is that the user interface is horrible to the point of being almost unusable (IMHO).  But, there's a simple way to fix that.....you program it using CHIRP open source software (free) and that cable I showed before:
 
http://chirp.danplanet.com/projects/chirp/wiki/Home
 
This makes programming the radio as simple as filling out a spreadsheet on your PC, then downloading the settings to the radio.  Easy stuff.  Once it's programmed, you can scan and scroll through the memories easily.
 
Now, is it as good as a $3-500.00 Kenwood / ICOM / Yaesu...??  Not likely, but for field work, sitting on the patio, keeping in the glovebox of the car, it's the bomb.  They are so cheap you can have a few around for convenient use.
 
If anyone was looking for a very inexpensive dual band handheld, I can recommend this one without hesitation.
 
Cheers - NY7D

 

[StatHaldol]

I bought a Wouxon portable last year at a ham fest.  I was surprised how well it performed.  I noticed that one of the Chinese companies has a dual band mobile on the market too.
 
73's
 
  KE5FYR

 

[Bu11dog]

Bumping the thread as I have the bug. My son and I are getting into this. We play fair amount of airsoft and the outdoor stuff with teams works better when you have good radios.
I saw the links, going to start studying and see if I can figure out all this new tech and get licensed by the end of the year.

 

[Rod]

Top.

Got my Yaesu FT DX 3000 setup again finally along with a Yaesu FT8800R. I have a dipole strung high in the trees for HF, and a VHF/UHF vertical up about 35 feet. Amazing how much I'm hearing on 146.52 simplex; 40+ miles away no problem. I'm up around 1800 feet or so, so that helps too.

When on HF, I've been on 40M primarily. Anyone been operating lately?