Any old "HAMs" in the crowd?

January 27, 2020, 09:18 AM

36 here, and fairly new HAM. I got into it for offroading. With all of the cheap chinese radios out these days, lots of people are switching to HF / UHF for communication instead of CB. Most of them amazon'd the radio and have no idea any of the legalities, but I decided I wanted to do it right and got licensed. I probably need to find a local group, because it's only after you get your license you really find out all you don't know.

"The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."
"Odd," said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy."
"I did," said Ford, "it is."
"So," said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't the people get rid of the lizards?"
"It honestly doesn't occur to them. They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates the government they want."
"You mean they actually vote for the lizards."
"Oh yes," said Ford with a shrug, "of course."
"But," said Arthur, going for the big one again, "why?"
"Because if they didn't vote for a lizard, then the wrong lizard might get in."

January 27, 2020, 10:26 AM

19tass

I got my Novice license in 1963 at age 14. First rig was a Knight T-50, and a Hammarlund HQ-110. Later moved to Florida and got my Extra in the 80's. I still keep my license updated, and equipment (Drake TR4-CW) stored away, but have been inactive for years.

January 27, 2020, 11:34 AM

ensigmatic

quote:
Originally posted by Perception:
36 here, and fairly new HAM. I got into it for offroading. With all of the cheap chinese radios out these days, lots of people are switching to HF / UHF for communication instead of CB. Most of them amazon'd the radio and have no idea any of the legalities, ...

You just inadvertently illustrated one reason, the main reason, really, I abandoned the hobby twenty years ago or so.

Back when I first got into Ham Radio the vast majority of Hams got into it for the hobby. And you had to really want to be a Ham, because the entry bar was high--even for a Novice ticket. When you got that ticket, and got on the air, old timers were not hesitant to correct you on the errors of your ways. Particularly if it was poor or incorrect operating procedure.

As the FCC relaxed the qualifications for entry, with ARRL's acquiescence, the lids, kids and space cadets began to so-overwhelm the good operators it became a losing battle.

The straw that finally did it, for me, was participating in the most poorly-run Skywarn net I'd ever had the misfortune in which to participate, then hearing a bunch of participants chime in, at the end, praising the net control operator for a job well done!

To this day I recall standing on my front lawn and staring at my HT in utter disbelief, then turning it off in disgust. (IIRC I was so disgusted I didn't even sign out of the net.) I never turned one of my rigs on again after that. My next vehicle went mobile-less. My fixed station never got set up.

(Yeah, I guess I'm still bitter about what happened to Ham Radio--even after all these years. I used to love it

January 27, 2020, 03:40 PM

10X-Shooter

Ham here. First QSL card was from Maxim’s station.

January 29, 2020, 08:44 PM

GWbiker

A General Ticket here and on VHF/UHF daily. Apartment living here does not allow a HF antenna mounting, so I'm stuck with a dual band vertical.

IMO, the 70cm band is becoming out of control, thanks in part, I believe, to the cheap Chinese Ham radios that people buy at gun shows and swap meets. Pony up $30 USD, charge the battery and you're on the air. FCC license? What license.

The 440 band is now sounding like the old 11 meter (CB) band.