Ham licensing

8/19/2017 | canalabamian

[canalabamian]

Any Ham operators here on FR?

I'm thinking about starting it up as a hobby and would like some advice on starting up. Pie-in-the-sky: I'd like to build my own set. Lesrn morse code, etc.

Any advice is appreciated.

[rstrahan]

Been a while but some licenses don’t require Morse Code. Watch your antenna as it can bleed over nearby home electronics

[William of Barsoom]

First, buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Ham-Radio-Dummies-Ward-Silver/dp/1118592115/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1503146565&sr=1-1&keywords=ham+radio+for+dummies

Don’t be put off by the title. It’s an excellent overview of the whole thing.

73 and GL.
(I’d put my callsign here, but it’d violate my stealth program.)

[mad_as_he$$]

Lot’s of Hams on FR, even a few amateur radio people!

The requirement for Morse code as dropped years ago for a Technician ticket. Easy enough to get and find out if you want to get deeper into it. Plenty of stuff online.

http://www.arrl.org/

I studied on a Friday and passed the test the next day.

[exDemMom]

I don’t have any practical advice, but my son has also developed an interest in ham radios. He just bought a licensing guide.

http://www.arrl.org/ham-radio-license-manual

[shalom aleichem]

http://kv5r.com/ham-radio/how-to-become-an-amateur-radio-operator/

[lgjhn23]

I’ve been one since the early 1980s.
It’s been a dying hobby for years, but it is now starting to make a small comeback.
I would suggest going ARRL. They’re website is: www.ARRL.com They have tons of tech, training & educational materials available.
As far as “home brewing” your own equipment, it can be done. In the old days, there were companies like HeathKit that you could buy all the components to build your stuff in kit form. I don’t believe any of them exist anymore.
ARRL usually has some home-brew ideas every month.
Like anything of this nature, it can get expensive, but it doesn’t have to be if you keep it simple.
Good luck and let me know how you make out. 73’s.

[Strac6]

Morse was dropped in 2000!

Get with a local ARRL club. Get a test prep book. Got my General in 6 hours study.

http://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-class

It’s easy. Good luck

[lgjhn23]

I had .com on their webpage, but it is ARRL.org

[novemberslady]

bkmk

[dhs12345]

Agreed. And your neighbors. All semiconductor chips have a diode junction formed with the chip substrate that can partially demodulate HAM. My grandmother lived next to a home that had a HAM setup and it was annoying.

You will need an FCC license too. Don’t know which type.

Apparently, you can transmit digital data and modem communication?

[wally_bert]

Same here.

[Two-Shoes]

There are a number of online resources, canalabamian.

One is the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) website.

Some others, in no particular order:
http://www.w5yi.org/page.php?id=19
https://www.qrz.com/
https://hamstudy.org/

Good luck.

[lgjhn23]

“..Morse was dropped in 2000...”

Yep. But it’s still good to know, a lot of fun and a lot of the older HAMs still use it.
Plus, ya never know.....it may come to the point that it’s the only way we’ll be able to communicate again IF space aliens take over the world.....LOL. :)
When I went for my Extra Class it was still required. I liked to never have passed it. Finally, on the 3rd attempt, I jut barely made it.

[109ACS]

I’m a Ham since 1972. Find a club in your area and attend their meetings. See http://www.arrl.org/find-a-club. A local club usually conducts license tests and some offer classes.

Morse code is not required for any license class, but is still quite popular. Do a search for SKCC and you’ll see.

My first transmitter was built from parts from a TV and put out a massive 8 watts. My first contact was with Mobile, Alabama all the way from Atlanta. Fun times!

There are many facets of the hobby including dozens of digital modes, satellites (search for AMSAT), public safety, fox hunting, etc.

The hobby is like a rabbit hole. You never know where it will lead.

[lgjhn23]

“..Apparently, you can transmit digital data and modem communication?....”

Absolutely and in a big way too. Some of the newer “older guys” have blended both the old and new technologies into our DXing efforts (long distance contacts). There are a lot of different areas & facets to HAM. It’s a great hobby. Never regretted becoming one.

[dhs12345]

Cool!

What kinds of data rates?

[lgjhn23]

“...What kinds of data rates?...”

Just about as fast as your equipment can handle. Boils down to how much do you want to spend. Me? I’m an “old guy” and don’t mess with digital too much. My “data rate” is abt 10-13 wpm (words per minute, morse code” in my old age....LOL
The technology has changed so fast, I’ve not kept up. I’m not sure what the fastest data rates are nowadays. I’ve been to my buddy’s HAM shack and he’s BIG into it. I’ve seen the contact conversations come across the his computer screen in a blitz...faster than one can read it as it comes across.

[pghoilman]

Ham since 1969.
Operate almost exclusively high speed Morse.
Don’t be afraid to learn the code!

[Vermont Lt]

If you want to get it quickly, download one of the many test apps. There are only so many questions. You can memorize enough answers to pass it easily.

I tested for all three tests in a month.

There is a huge world of hams. Most of them are eager to help. But the test is the step.