Ham Radio Test

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Beowulf said:
Kevin,
The tests are multiple choice; 35 questions. They cover the FCC rules, proper operating protocol (e.g. no music or profanity), and some really basic electronics. Power, current, voltage types of questions. You will *not* need any physics. You will *not* need a calculator unless you can't do simple division in your head.

Example: 60 / 12 = ?
Choices:
1. 720
2. 6012
3. 5
4. 0.5

This is as complicated as the math gets for the Technician test. Even a cave man can do it. :D

-Mike-
Click to expand...

Mike
I've been taking the online tests and have been able to do the calcs in my head....but for a sanity check I break out the calculator for the frequency v. wavelength calcs and found the 1.25 meter discrepancy.

Oh no are going to be saturated w/ Cave man uprisings?
 
CB's, while not exactly going out of style, are not becoming more cost effective as quickly as Ham radios (obviously, or they would be giving them away by now). I would not be surprised to find a working system this weekend for $100 - and my experience is that Ham people are generally honest types, so I wouldn't be concerned about one working if the person you buy it from there says it works.

I think the big thing is take the test, because that will be out of the way, then when you do buy one you can communicate (legally) right away.
 
Steve,

How about a HAM primer? Tell us about the radios, antennas, what we would need to do should some of us move to 2M. Where does one get this stuff. I assume Walmat and Radioshack are out.

Jon
 
There are some holdover Radio Shacks with old equipment, but they haven't been getting any more. As far as I know there are no "stores" in New Mexico to walk in and buy ham "stuff". I bought mine from hamcity.com . Here's a primer:
http://www.baproducts.com/ham.htm
Here's their main organization, as far as I can tell...
http://www.arrl.org/

I talked to Ali Saturday from near the Big I - he was at the end of Southern in Rio Rancho. This was without a repeater.

"Dual Band" or 2 meter (vhf) and 70 cm (uhf) wavelength radios are pretty popular, although I'm not sure what good the uhf is for - I haven't used it yet. Maybe faster data xmission or something. The shorter the wavelength the more line of sight is required. Cruise Moab, Norcal, and all the other cruiser uses I've seen are 2 meter.

You can hook up to a computer and send to many repeaters around the world. They have modem capabilities where you can send in to a computer and download data as well. - although 9600 bps seems to be the limit right now. That's a little beyond what I'm planning on...

There are many threads here:
https://forum.ih8mud.com/forumdisplay.php?f=129
 
pappy said:
Steve,

How about a HAM primer? Tell us about the radios, antennas, what we would need to do should some of us move to 2M. Where does one get this stuff. I assume Walmat and Radioshack are out.

Jon
Click to expand...

It's not really a primer on antennas and stuff, but I wrote this up for the group up here. I've been an inactive ham for quite a while now, but getting back into it because there's some interest in the Alaska Cruiser Crew.
--------------------------------------------

There are 3 main groups of Ham frequencies:

1. The HF band (High Frequency) is generally from 1.8MHz to 50MHz. These are considered the long distance bands for worldwide communications. These frequencies are extremely dependent on environmental and atmospheric conditions. These are the frequencies where morse code is used quite a bit, with some voice modes.

2. The VHF (Very High Frequency) band starts at 50MHz up to over 220MHz. These are somewhat shorter range communications although under some atmospheric conditions can go hundreds of miles. This is the band that includes the 2m (146MHz) sub-band we're getting set up. Most of the repeaters in the area also use the 2m band.

3. The UHF (Ultra High Frequency) band is for 220MHz and above. These are usually considered shorter range communications, although with good antennas and the right conditions they can do very well. There are fewer repeaters in the Ham 440MHz sub-band, but there are a few around.

The beginning level of Amateur Radio license is called Technician class. A Tech license will get full privileges in the VHF and UHF bands and a sprinkling of privileges in the HF bands.

The next level is the General class which gains almost full privileges in the HF bands.

The next level is the Advanced class which gains full privileges in all Ham bands.

Here's a somewhat complicated chart showing all of this:
http://www.arrl. org/FandES/ field/regulation s/bands.html

If you're looking for a book to get started, I'd recommend this book: http://www.amazon.com/Technician-Class-Gordon-West/dp/0945053452/?tag=ihco-20
 
kmc22 said:
Oh no are going to be saturated w/ Cave man uprisings?
Click to expand...

Dunno. :D


BTW, the correct answer to the above sample problem is #3. ;)

-Mike-
 
So what does a 2M antenna look like? Is it attached like a CB, or is it something else? How small can the radios be?
 
Nice summary Bob! The only thing that I would add is to describe what a repeater does and why getting access to one is important. And explain that "Simplex" is for a group to select the same frequency for transmitting & receiving (i.e. "radio-to-radio") like we do when we use Ch 40 on the CB radios.

Here in NM, we are fortunate to have something called "The Mega Link" This is a group project by the amateur radio operators throughout the state. They have set up repeaters on all the mountain tops such that a radio operator driving through the Carlsbad area in far Southeast NM can communicate clearly with a radio operator in Shiprock (at least that's what I think it does... haven't tried it yet ;) ).

"All of the repeaters shown on the maps are open to any Ham radio operator."
http://www.urfmsi.org/graphics/map_urfmsi.pdf

Here is a map of the NM repeater system:

-Mike-
NM-Repeater-Network.webp
 
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pappy said:
So what does a 2M antenna look like? Is it attached like a CB, or is it something else? How small can the radios be?
Click to expand...

Jon,
I chose an 18" rubber duck style for trails and truck-to-truck where I want something that will survive contact with a tree. The other antenna that I got is a 38" fold-over antenna for reaching longer distances in case I need to get to a repeater that is 50-100 miles away. I will keep it tucked away unless it is needed.

You probably didn't even notice my antenna or Ali's antenna on Saturday.

-Mike-
 
One observation is the 2M antennas exceed the length limit for events like CM. There were several dual-band antennas that were short enough, but with little to no gain.

Bushrat
 
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The tall one with the tennis ball impaled on it is my CB antenna, mounted on the center of the tire carrier on the Slee rack. The UHF/VHF dual band antenna is mounted to the rear hatch and is about 18" tall.
-Mike-
 
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Re the map - correct me if I'm wrong, but the + or - means your transmit (the repeater receive) frequency is either above or below the repeater transmit (your receive) frequency, respectively; and the number e.g. 100 is the PL (private line) tone frequency.
 
"2m" is the wavelength, not the antenna length. Generally the antenna length is some binary fraction - 1/2, 1/4, 3/8, etc. of the wavelength.

Like Bob says, there are only 10 types of people in the world...
 
I understand that. The length of the 2M antennas was 57 inches. The length of the dual-band was longer and shorter than 57 inches.

Jon
 
A dual band antenna will work for a radio that's just 2m. However, I have posed the question to the Rising Sun Ham guys - hopefully we'll have an answer today.

Also, the gain is not that much different. One dB gain amounts to a difference in range (discounting the increased probability of a hill in between) of 1.25^.5, or about 12% more (or 14% less). IIRC. One dB is ~ 25% increase in potential. 3 dB is ~ double the potential, 10dB is 10x the potential.
 
Jon,

A 1/4 wave CB antenna is 108" (9 ft) (CB is the 11m band, 27MHz, high frequency aka HF, which has a 36' wave length)
We all know that you can use shorter CB antennas with the resulting loss in "range" (antenna gain.)

A 2m antenna that is 57" long is probably a 3/4 wave and would have very good gain. You don't have to use one that long though. To get the equivalent 3/4 wave on CB (11-meter band) you would need a 27 ft antenna. Hardly practical on a vehicle.

http://www.qsl.net/g3yrc/antenna basics.htm <=== This is information using a CB antenna for reference since we are all familiar with CB antennas.

wave.jpeg


chart.jpeg


-Mike-
 
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SteveLCetc said:
I have posed the question to the Rising Sun Ham guys - hopefully we'll have an answer today.
Click to expand...

I saw your question but that is not the RS group. Try your question on the RS forum. You can link to it from the Clubs section here on 'Mud.

-Mike-
 
I intentionally posted to the ham group as there are hams from Rising Sun there. I figured we have a better chance of getting it changed if Rising Sun members who are hams push for the change, as they will know how to go about it - rather than maybe getting knee-jerk denial from some stressed CM official at Rising Sun who is already overloaded. We will see.
 
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