I'm sure I've posted this before in like threads. I have a Heath HW-101 aka "Hot Water" transceiver with RIT mod, Yaseu mic, and a beautiful chrome Bencher paddle with a MFJ-422BX electronic speed keyer.

Free to anyone able to pick them up.

Received my 1st ticket in Jan 1978 and still active with my General ticket. I agree with everything posted so far. This can be be a great hobby for all of the different modes of operation depending on the operators preference. Persons interested can use books or videos or computer programs or actual live in person classes (pre covid) and now some testing now can be done in a remote / in home setting under a controlled setting. The computer programs can furnish sample test for practice testing. Under the current standard of testing almost anyone can pass the written test. Even young children as young as 10 years have passed the test to upgrade to even the Extra Class ticket. Arrangements can be made for the visually impaired . And back when CW (Morse code) was a requirement for ticket even deafness could be worked around. ......73's and 88's...... de KL7JIU... drill sgt.

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
I'm sure I've posted this before in like threads. I have a Heath HW-101 aka "Hot Water" transceiver with RIT mod, Yaseu mic, and a beautiful chrome Bencher paddle with a MFJ-422BX electronic speed keyer.

Free to anyone able to pick them up.

I would love to take you up on that offer and work 40 meters SSB, but the drive to SD is a bit much and I would have to hide a dipole antenna from the prying eyes of the local HOA Nazi.

So is there no morse code requirement for General License anymore? I passed the first level license in high school many decades ago. I could have passed the general written exam but never learned morse code well enough to pass that part.

I had a couple of decent radios then and spent many hours in my early teens listening to ham radio operators and shortwave radio stations around the world. I grew up on a farm with a b&w tv that got 2 stations, so this was all quite exciting - until I turned 16 and got interested in other things.

If no morse code requirement, maybe I'll give it another go.

Nope--No more CW requirement for any class of ham license.

It’s not a hard test, as many have said, there’s been a good deal of info lately on the forum. I know I got a ton of info from reading 911Boss’s posts. I just passed last weekend, so I’m just picking it up. Good luck! K9DRNY

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
I'm sure I've posted this before in like threads. I have a Heath HW-101 aka "Hot Water" transceiver with RIT mod, Yaseu mic, and a beautiful chrome Bencher paddle with a MFJ-422BX electronic speed keyer.

Free to anyone able to pick them up.

Classic rig!

I built a few non-Ham Heathkits in the early 80s, when the Morse Code requirement for a license terrified me. Now that it's no longer required, code is less intimidating and way more interesting.

quote:

Originally posted by GWbiker:

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
I'm sure I've posted this before in like threads. I have a Heath HW-101 aka "Hot Water" transceiver with RIT mod, Yaseu mic, and a beautiful chrome Bencher paddle with a MFJ-422BX electronic speed keyer.

Free to anyone able to pick them up.

I would love to take you up on that offer and work 40 meters SSB, but the drive to SD is a bit much and I would have to hide a dipole antenna from the prying eyes of the local HOA Nazi.

Run it along the eaves of your house on standoffs painted roughly the color of the eaves. Use #30 wire with insulation that's roughly the color of your eaves also.

The combo is essentially invisible from 10 or so feet away unless you know it's there.

I've worked most of the world with a HW 101 modded to operate on 30 meters. Great little rigs.

When my last renewal was due, I was dealing with some serious family member health issues. It slipped my mind. My fault!

When I tied to renew, the FCC said I was a couple of months too late and license was cancelled.

Back to square one. At my age, I’m not inclined to start over. Years ago I learned just enough code to barely pass the test for a Novice.

Never used code. No it didn’t come back.

I may check into the new “no code” requirements but iirc, there’s little available permitted in the HF “talk” freqs with the no code license.

Can someone enlighten me as to what privileges are avail in HF in the no code license?

quote:

Originally posted by maxdog:
Back to square one. At my age, I’m not inclined to start over. Years ago I learned just enough code to barely pass the test for a Novice.

Never used code. No it didn’t come back.

I may check into the new “no code” requirements but iirc, there’s little available permitted in the HF “talk” freqs with the no code license.

Can someone enlighten me as to what privileges are avail in HF in the no code license?

There is no code requirement for any Ham Radio licenses any more due to the continued dumbing down of Ham Radio, so all you need to do is memorize the answers in the "study" guides these days.

https://transition.fcc.gov/cgb...es/MorseCodeElim.pdf

The FCC has modified the amateur radio service rules, eliminating Morse code exam requirements.
The current amateur service operator license structure contains three classes of amateur radio
operator licenses: Technician Class, General Class, and Amateur Extra Class.
Previously, the Commission, in accordance with international radio regulations, required applicants
for General Class and Amateur Extra Class operator licenses to pass a five words-per-minute Morse
code examination. The FCC has decided that is no longer a requirement because the FCC believes
that the public interest is not served by requiring facility in Morse Code when the trend in amateur
communications is to use voice and digital technologies for exchanging messages.

Since around 2004, Morse Code is no longer required for an FCC Amateur license.

I had a hell of a time learning 5 WPM for the Novice exam I took in the late 70's. I passed the test, but never advanced further and after one year, my FCC license expired.

I may try to study code again. With electronic keyers and readers, code should be a lot easier to send and more important, read.

For anyone interested in learning Morse Code, this link to a free Internet lesson...

http://www.hamwhisperer.com/p/morse-code-course.html

One big advantage to CW is less power to reach out.

JAllen was a good friend of mine and we talked a lot about radios and investing.

After he passed away his wife called me and asked if I would like all of his radio gear. I considered it an honor to put it back in service.

A few months ago she wrote me and asked if I wanted a book - it was the one he co-authored. He never told me he wrote a book.

Amateur radio is going to become more important as more and more of our communications systems become corrupted or taken over by a hostile entity.

When cell service and internet is down you can count on ham radio.

quote:

Originally posted by nhtagmember:. . . Amateur radio is going to become more important as more and more of our communications systems become corrupted or taken over by a hostile entity. . . .

Sadly, you may well have a point.

I learned basic Morse Code as a Scout, by buddy and I would pass notes in class in Morse Code, the teacher caught us, opened the note to read it out loud to the class. She didn't know Morse Code.

I got my Ham years ago, haven't been active in the past couple of years, not even set up in our house in Utah. I need to get to work.

Online exams scheduled tomorrow night. 6p pacific, from the East coast...

Hoshnasi on youtube said that exams given online allow the VE to send the info digitally to the FCC. In some cases new Hams are getting their call sign within 48 hours from passing. There really is no reason to wait for and take the in person exam right now.

I started studying for the Tech exam on 11/6. The social media purge was what finally kicked my butt into gear. Had a few issues delay my getting into an exam. So I started studying for the General as well. Feeling cautiously optimistic about passing the Tech and General class exams tomorrow.

For those looking for study guides HamStudy.org is a great resource.

Several years prior to the outright dropping the CW (morse)code requirement for General class ticket was 13 wpm (words per minute) and the novice class was 5 wpm. At one point the general ticket was reduced to 5 wpm. Again at one point if you could document that you had previously sucessfuly completed the novice ticket (5 wpm) and had sucessfuly completed the written general class ticket then the FCC grandfathered into the general class ticket. This was in the middle ?? 90"s. At this time frame i was working/studing the 13wpm cw speed and immedately went to a radio club test session submitted my orginal novice ticket along with a copy of a page from the 1979 copy of the Call Sign Book showing my call listed and addresses matching. Then the FCC upgraded my ticket to General...... Now it is so easy to get even a entry level ticket compared to when i started in 1978. .. Some say that the dropping of the code requirement was going to kill the hobby but it is still very much alive. And with the written test the study materials give the actuall questions and answers so if you can memorize the questions and the actuall answers which are in a different order then it is easy. ...............................73"s and 88"s...de..KL7JIU

Passed my Technician and General exams Friday night. Weekend and Monday holiday means waiting an excruciatingly long time for my callsign to be posted. Still I'm checking.... hourly.

Congrats.

I am studying for my Extra and like anything else the hobby is what you want to make if it. You have your foot in the door.

I am more about learning the theory and technology and less about the actual operations at this point. I am hoping to be someone’s Elmer at some point when I get smarter.

I was one of the group that won Field Day Class 8A Battery for over 20 years straight and my function with the group was troubleshooting stations and getting them on the air and making contacts, something that is not quite as easy as it might seem when you're out in the woods setting up stations.

You won't learn how to do that from the study guides or even the books but by experience or through an Elmer.

The books and guides are a good starting point, however.

^^^^^ I agree. Hopefully you will be able to find and join a good, friendly, active, happy, ham radio club in your area. A really good Elmer is a wonderful resource.
.

There is something for everyone in amateur radio. My start into the hobby began with a cheap Chinese Baofeng VHF/UHF 5 watt and free classes held by our local club for Technician class. My only previous experience with radio only included using VHF/UHF, CB, and military PRC77 radios in LE, Military, and civilian life. The Technician classes made the Tech exam a breeze. I’d been bitten by the bug and bought equipment for HF and using just the 100 watts with my Icom setup and a g5RV jr antenna, tuner, and power supply (and of course coax) have talked on the small amount of 10m voice allowed a technician from the far end of South America up through Central America, US, Europe, and the Atlantic and Caribbean Islands. Amazing what one can do with a basic high frequency setup, especially at solar peak. We even had a teenager taking the same classes and our local sheriff. It’s probably the last bastion of free communication. Go for it Oat. Will have to meet up again at Knob Creek one day.