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| Banned for showing his ass |
Yes, this thread is cool ! Though busy in my life, am studying bits here and there for my license. Is it recommended to take both Tech and General on the same day if I am ready ? | |||
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Now Serving 7.62 |
Absolutely! | |||
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His Royal Hiney |
There's a local club in my area and they give free license classes. The book I got was free because apparently they just switched to a new version. The bulk of the benefit is practice questions from the actual pool of questions with the answer given. It's not my style of learning but I'm sure it's good for others. The first part of the book is more my style in that it gives more of text book delivery but it's not dry. The title is Technician Class FCC Element 2 Amateur Radio License Preparation. It helps if you have some electronic background and that takes care of about a third. One third is about rules or the administration of the airwaves. And the last third is about radio wave spectrum and propagation. You only need to get 26 questions correct out of 35 multiple choice questions. 74% is a fairly low bar. I think like most things, passing the test doesn't mean you know enough; I certainly would look forward to learning and getting a lot of help. "It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946. | |||
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Member |
I think Rey HRH is right on with this comment: > I think like most things, passing the test doesn't mean you know enough; I certainly would look forward to learning and getting a lot of help. Between taking Intro to Electrical Engineering as a mechanical engineering student, some DIY audio electronics hobby knowledge, and being able to memorize stuff quickly, I passed the Technician, General, and Extra exams in one session. Years later I’ve barely used my license and have virtually zero knowledge about the actual practical use of HF radios. | |||
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Told cops where to go for over 29 years… |
Absolutely. Unless it has changed, a single testing fee covers any and all tests taken at the same time. Worst that can happen is you pass one but not the other. KI7YQW What part of "...Shall not be infringed" don't you understand???  | |||
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אַרְיֵה |
FAA Examiners have a built-in phrase that they use when handing the paperwork to an applicant after a successful check ride for a pilot certificate or additional rating: "This is a license to learn." הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים | |||
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I Deal In Lead |
Absolutely. Get yourself an Elmer that can help you out in the early days and it makes life easier. | |||
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| drop and give me 20 pushups |
Absolutely take the tech and general test together. they have some overlapping question especially if yo have looked at the general study but not really studied for...As per V-tail post that these are "license to learn". have been at it since Jan 1978 but still learning.. Remember that a blind hog can find a acorn ever so often......Need to get off mu lazy back side and go for the Extra License. ..............KL7jiu aka... drill sgt. | |||
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Better Than I Deserve! |
Passed my general upgrade last month and studying for my extra. Really enjoying the hobby, and lots of Ham radio in the valley of the sun. Participating in the Chandler Amateur Radio Club Net as I type this. ____________________________ NRA Benefactor Life Member GOA Life Member Arizona Citizens Defense League Life Member | |||
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| Banned for showing his ass |
Thank you ... gonna try to take both tests on the same day. | |||
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| His Royal Hiney |
I personally know the guy giving out the exam tomorrow outside of the club. He wore his label every time I saw him but never really "pushed" the hobby. But he was quick with emailing me links when I told him my nephew got his technician license and wanted me to get mine. I'll also probably pop in here to get people's recommendations for the radios when I'm ready to buy. I prefer to buy once cry once now. And it's not like I want the Gucci product, I just want to avoid buying something I will quickly drop. I see that as money wasted and I hate wasting money. "It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946. | |||
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| Member |
Without getting into specific models, Yaesu, Icom, and Kenwood are kind of the big 3 for quality ham radio handheld transceivers. Baofeng is very popular because it is extremely cheap. It is extremely cheap because it is extremely cheap Chinese junk. If it’s what someone can afford and they want to get into the hobby, I’m glad there are cheap options available, but if you have a little more to spend and want something good, look elsewhere. | |||
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| Better Than I Deserve! |
I'll add that I have the following HT's,Yaesu FT5D, FT-70DR, FT-60R, AnyTone AT-D878UVII Plus, and Wouxun KG-UV9PX. The FTD5 was nearly $500. That said, I use the $200 Wouxun KG-UV9PX almost exclusively and find it to be the easiest to use. The others all do what they are supposed to but I'm always drawn to the Wouxun and use it as my daily carry HT. If you want to check them out, they are exclusive to BetterSafeRadio.com. ____________________________ NRA Benefactor Life Member GOA Life Member Arizona Citizens Defense League Life Member | |||
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| SIGforum's Indian Off the Reservation  |
I am very happy for you guys getting your ham licenses, congrats! But, here is where I kind of take a turn. I probably could have passed both tech and general maybe 10 years ago. At the time, I knew enough, had taken multiple practice tests, and was even scoring 100% on a lot of them. But, I never tried to take an actual exam. Now, apparently, things have changed. I tried one of the practice tests in the OP, didn't pass. Questions on subjects I have never even heard about. Then the, "this is what the correct answer is." Which tells me nothing, except I guessed wrong. So, about 2 months ago, I became interested again in ham. I made a huge effort to drive 50 miles to the closest "ham event," try to meet some new folks, learn about ham, etc. I gave out my business card with my name, number and email, to try and learn more, perhaps even attend a class, take a test? Nothing. Not a word from any of the "members" I made contact with, no invite, nothing. Now, I am sure there are other clubs, most about 75-90 miles away. But this last meeting has really soured me. I have been on CB radio for the last 35 years. I have shot skip on SSB to Australia, Germany, Hawaii many times. I can even install a diode with my soldering iron without burning it up. I have radios in every vehicle, and even a base station set up in my office. But trying to become a ham? For me in the middle of nowhere, who actually uses a radio, and has the time to work on them, and talk; I am running into a wall. Perhaps the systems for learning are unacceptable to my brain now? Maybe I haven't found the right club? Maybe I need to find the right book, or online learning source. I am not sure. Radios, whether CB or ham have been an instrumental part of my life. Now no one talks on CB, and ham, to me, seems out of reach, unless I decide to move to a big city, and that ain't happenin'. I would appreciate the forum member's ideas, websites to try, perhaps, a club. I am eager to learn, just no teachers. Thanks for letting me vent guys. Mike You can run, but you cannot hide. If you won't stand behind our troops, feel free to stand in front of them. | |||
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| I Deal In Lead |
You went to the wrong club. I made the exact same mistake back when I decided to become a Ham. Went to a meeting because I was told they were going to have a class, sat through a boring meeting where most of the people didn't seem to be interested in talking to the new guy, just as I was leaving, one of the guys came up to me, told me what club to go to and where and when. It was a whole different world. Some of the people I met there changed my life forever, including the future Mrs. Flash. They gave a Novice class which I took to get my morse code back in shape, then I joined because the people were so nice and friendly and helpful. I ended up being a Club Officer in that club for over 25 years and went to Field Day every year with them where I worked 75 meter CW and was the Technical guru who fixed stations that had trouble getting on the air. Together we took 1st place in 8A Battery class for over 20 years, a record to this day. One of the guys owned his own company and was the guy who got me into the line of business I ended up doing for many years as the owner of my own company. I'm still friends with the people I met there the first night. Find another club. | |||
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| Member |
If you want to actually learn the material, get the ARRL Ham Radio License Manual and read it. If you just want to pass the test, go to hamstudy.org and use the "Read Questions" option to look at the entire pool of questions that can appear on the exam. I am far from an active ham, and wouldn't be much help with how to actually do ham radio as a hobby, but if you're having trouble with any of the technical information on the exam, I can help with that. | |||
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| His Royal Hiney |
I went to the club's website and signed online for classes. It was two Saturdays for the Technician class. Knowing that these people volunteered their time to teach showed me they were gung ho about sharing their hobby. The class was free and they even had coffee and free snacks. They gave us the book for free because a new edition came out. But the old one still had good info. The book was 2018 / 2022 Technician Class FCC Element 2 Amateur Radio License Preparation by Gordon West. I'm sure the new edition is by him also. The first section is relatively short but I think it gives an overview. The bulk of the book is ALL the questions in the pool test that would come up. They give you the correct answer with a short explanation. It's good enough to pass the test with since you familiarize yourself with all the questions that could ever come up. But it's not my style of learning. I prefer the traditional text book content. I'm going to find something like that. On the other hand, I did take the technician test today. There were five proctors. I mention this because they were there to do this for free. Apparently, you can't earn any money doing anything with Amateur Radio unless you were a teacher in a school and your use of a radio in class was incidental to whatever you are teaching, in which case, you can still collect your normal teacher pay. I did pass the test. I took the general as a lark and didn't pass. But I apparently won a raffle among the test takers and my prize is a preprogrammed hand held radio. I plan to go to the General class in October and get my general license. But I want to buy books ahead of time. "It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946. | |||
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| Dances With Tornados |
The FCC changes the test question pool every 5 years (or something like that) and thus the book becomes obsolete when the new one comes out. The old test book and questions are still good questions that you should know, but if you want to take test questions, you'll need a current book etc. Don't the grumpy old farts disappoint you and run you off. Screw them. As mentioned above, find another club. Good luck to you. . | |||
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| SIGforum's Indian Off the Reservation |
You're right, of course. Mike You can run, but you cannot hide. If you won't stand behind our troops, feel free to stand in front of them. | |||
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| SIGforum's Indian Off the Reservation |
Thanks. Yes, I just want a "textbook" type read, so I can understand it, as opposed to the just pass the test type questions. Seems this has changed over the years. Mike You can run, but you cannot hide. If you won't stand behind our troops, feel free to stand in front of them. | |||
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