Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

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62Grains
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Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#1

Post by 62Grains »

Just wanted to create a post since I see so many topics on requests for info on radios.

First let me state that I am brand new to amateur radio. Ive owned a couple baofengs like millions of others, but didnt do much but turn them on and scanned a few times. I am in no way an expert and might even put up wrong info, but its from my experience only.

I just recently got my tech license and did about a month of studying for it. I used a couple apps and mainly just did it when I was on the shitter or sitting around bored. I also watched a handful of youtube videos.

First thing is that your equipment is absolutely crucial. Like most things in life, you get what you pay for. That goes for the actual radios to the antennas. There are 3 major gold standard manufacturers of radios. Kenwood, Yaesu, and Icom. They all are very similar but very different. They are the same in the fact that if all you use is basic analog communications, they will all serve you pretty much the same. The major difference between them is if you decide to use the digital communications parts. They all have their own different properties and procedures. Being that Im so new, Im concentrating on the analog portion so the digital isnt relevant to me just yet. Everything outside of those brands are either clones (which isnt necessarily a bad thing) or they are pretty much garbage. Baofengs are garbage. They are barely a step up from using a gmrs walmart walkie talkie. I almost want to throw the 2 I have away because they are so bad compared to the nicer ones. The nicer radios will be more user friendly, have more capabilities, more info on them when using the net to learn, hold way more channels, scan faster, and just plain work better. If I could compare it to something gun related, I would compare a baofeng to an M&P 15-22 and an actual AR15 or M16. Sure they are very similar, but they are very different at the same time. You wouldnt want to go into a battle with the 15-22 when you could have an AR for just a little bit more.

Antennas make a hug difference. Ive tried factory, to a couple different amazon ones, to actual good proven antennas. Diamond being the main one. Comet also makes a good handheld antenna. Supposedly Nagoya is a decent one, but I bought a Nagoya clone on accident from Amazon thinking it was a real one and it was dog crap. I tried multiple different kinds on my Yaesu and the Diamond and Comet were by far the best. There wasnt even a comparison in my experience. Amazon even sells these weird folding ones that are really long and then fold up to a smaller package but I saw reviews where they cut them open and found nothing but a tape measure inside. It seems to be one of the favorites that the "preppers" use but its really not a good antenna.

Ham exam tech license info. The test is basically a memorization test. If youre familiar with car electricity (12v), you will already be one step ahead. This stuff basically works off of DC. The best thing that helped me wasnt the ham radio license manual that I bought, it was an app called Ham Study and a website called hamexam.org. Both of them are free. Pull them up and memorize the questions and answers. Some of it you wont understand, but you can still memorize it and get your license so you can get more hands on to learn. The book is great for looking up stuff but wasnt much help for me in learning the info. The app has questions and if you dont know it or get it wrong, you can click a button that will give you the answer, explain it, and then sometimes give you a good way to memorize it.

For people that are really tech savvy with current stuff, you will find this entire system very antiquated. Which is good and bad. But sometimes it will be very frustrating at times. Especially at times like when using a computer to program your radio. The software and procedures are not friendly and they seem to take multiple unnecessary steps. It can get frustrating very quickly. I have chirp, RT systems, and the manufacturers version. All of them work almost the same and both are way more difficult than they should be. If you need to connect your radio to computer for programming, sometimes the drivers work and sometimes they dont. When using a cable, sometimes the cables work and sometimes they dont. Some are made for only upgrading firmware and not programming and some work for both. This is the most frustrating part to me. Its very time consuming just to get something to work correctly.

Here are a couple more things that helped me understand the basic idea of how it works.

- Power and antennas are crucial. The higher and better the antenna and the more power, the further you can transmit without a repeater (simplex-radio to radio).
- You can really only transmit about a mile or two with a handheld.
- Repeaters are like cell phone towers in that they will gather the signal all around it. So if you have a handheld, your radio is not transmitting all the way to the repeater as the repeater is actually grabbing your signal and bringing it back and then sending it out again with more power. When people run higher powered radios with those bigger antennas that you see in backyards, you can transmit much further and receive from further away.
- Without repeaters, the "prepper" idea of using radios is almost worthless. You might as well buy some walkie talkies.
- Its a lot harder to build a decent personal repeater than most people think.
- Different times of the year affect different frequencies.
- Sometimes its hard to get someone to help you with things and that is especially noticeable when not actually licensed. Lots of people will give you a surface answer, but wont explain the whys. Once you get your license, its like youre in the cool guy club and the answers are more elaborate.
- If setup, you can use different radios for different setups. Like using a handheld in a vehicle and connecting a rooftop antenna to it.
- You can actually send pictures and text messages using some of the radios, although Im not even close to that yet.
- There are probably somewhere over 300 different repeaters in Arizona alone. And there are ways to connect them and bounce from one repeater to another. So you can talk to someone from Phoenix all the way to Flagstaff or even further using them. I even heard a couple people talking that said they were in New Mexico and Tucson the other night.
- Check the website for the Queen Creek ARC and they have a calendar of "nets" where groups of people get together and chit chat. It will tell you what frequency to listen to so you can hear them.

There are lots of places where you can get your license and lots of times its cheap or even free. I got mine through the Thunderbird ARC and they were really awesome. Its in the NW valley and very organized and efficient. Everything was free there, but I joined the club to give a little. They use that money to do things like maintain and upgrade the repeaters that everyone uses, so its money well spent. Those things run into the thousands of dollars, so helping a little is appreciated.

Try to buy local. We have a nationwide company that has a local store here called Ham Radio Outlet. They have a lot of stuff there and have lots of info and suggestions and very competitive prices. They are actually cheaper than places like Amazon on almost everything. Ive dealt with a guy named Ron there who has been super helpful and answered all my stupid questions and recommended certain products. You can contact them by phone or email and pickup whatever it is you need curbside. If he isnt busy, you can pick his brain for a few minutes in front of the store. They also have some really cool places online to buy stuff that are small businesses as well. R&L electronics is another one I really like.

I highly suggest you do a little studying and get your license. I think it will drive you to explore more with it. I will try to update the thread with some more info as I go along in this journey and Im happy to answer any questions with my very limited knowledge base. And it would be awesome if any of the pros could comment or correct me this goes along.


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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#2

Post by tunnug »

Thank you very much for posting, I've been interested for a while but there's always something more pressing so it has stayed on the back burner as something to eventually do, I'll be subscribing to this thread and maybe get motivated to get my license.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#3

Post by Desert Rat »

I am in the same boat, got my license about a year ago and have not done much else, a friends son is well versed in it, but I have not made the time to learn. I was just thinking about upgrading the antennas on my Baofengs. I will need to look at the brands you mentioned.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#4

Post by iammaxwell »

Lots of good info here. Thanks for sharing. Ham license has been on the to-do list for a while now, but like others no time.
Have a gmrs license to legally use the higher powered walkies and channels. I know most don't bother, but all it takes is fill out the form online and pay a fee. Call sign can be used by anyone in your "immediate family". Basically anyone you share bloodline with, i.e. nieces, uncles, grandparents, siblings, etc.
Last edited by iammaxwell on March 24th, 2021, 7:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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62Grains
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#5

Post by 62Grains »

To add to the post, I have a Yaesu ft3dr handheld, a TYT th-9800 (this is a clone of the yaesu ft-8900), and a couple of baofeng gt3's. Currently I have diamond antennas on the yaesu and tyt. I will be replacing the TYT with a yaesu ftm-400xd. It's not that I don't like the TYT, but the yaesu is better and I think as a beginner, I need to keep the brands the same to avoid programming and other issues to a minimum. If you want to do something simple, I suggest replacing the antennas with diamond or comet ones. The handheld antennas usually only run 20-25 bucks at ham radio outlet and they have them in stock. The ones that mount on the cars will typically cost you around 100 bucks for the antenna and the mount and cables.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#6

Post by marlin39a »

I carry a Yaesu FT-65 with a Diamond antenna when out on the motorcycle. I’ve been licensed as a Technician since 5/19. I don’t get on the air much, it’s more for emergency use if out of cell range. The next time I’m up on Mingus Mountain, I’ll hit some repeaters.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#7

Post by High Standard »

Thanks for the info. I was all ready to take my test in Feb and then COVID derailed the location. Then I was scheduled to take it in Mar and my wife’s health took a turn. I’ll get back on track as soon as I can leave my wife alone for a few hours.

Thanks for the info on the radios and antennas. I decided to wait until I have my license before I start looking for what I want.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#8

Post by 62Grains »

If you have issues going to an actual test site to get licensed, due to covid they are actually doing online testing. They have very specific procedures that might involve you using a zoom type thing and also propping up your phone to show your hands, but they are available. They also might have a small surcharge like 15 bucks or something, but if it gets your foot in the door, you should look into it. Here is a link with different clubs that do it.

http://www.arrl.org/findonlineexam
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#9

Post by 62Grains »

So I had issues with my TYT-9800 and it would not go into the programming mode. The only way I could program it would of been to go into each frequencies settings and manually do it on the radio. I have replaced it with the Yaesu FTM400XDR. I like this one much much more.

Just in case anyone is still on the fence about getting your license, the FCC is implementing a fee for licensing in April. Might want to jump on it now to avoid it. I think its only $35 or $25, but sometimes every penny counts. Plus Im sure we can all agree we have given the government enough of our hard earned money.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#10

Post by h8pvmnt »

The Baofengs really are not garbage, they have a place. I have been licensed for 10 years or more. Currently a General Ticket. I support off-road racing events such as King of the Hammers (using commercial frequencies). Those little Baofengs are perfect for such things, batteries last a good long time, plenty of power with a better antenna for simplex operation in the pits. If one gets lost or damaged its not the end of the world. Now they are not my front line equipment but a few are thrown under the seat of every vehicle we own. Perfect to give to others on an off-road adventure, can be programmed easily using free CHIRP software. One thing i like to do is program the base frequency of the FRS and GMRS channels into all my radios that way can communicate with others who only have those FRS/GMRS units. In my vehicles i prefer the workhorse Yaesu FT2900 or the newer FT2980 2M 80 Watts. No cooling fan basically a big heat sink with radio circuitry attached. Very robust, easy to program and Modify should someone need to do that. I am not in to HF probably never will just don't have the time, but simplex comms will always have a place. With cell Phones today repeaters are not used as much but still have there place. Internet radio i have never got the purpose for that. If the SHTF internet will not be there just like repeaters probably will be down. But as long as you can charge a battery with a solar panel simplex will be possible. That in my opinion of the real value of Amateur radio.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#11

Post by mikeh »

Great info and thanks for sharing. I'm going to grab those apps and look at throwing my current radio in the trash.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#12

Post by rockbronco »

h8pvmnt wrote: March 24th, 2021, 10:03 am The Baofengs really are not garbage, they have a place. I have been licensed for 10 years or more. Currently a General Ticket. I support off-road racing events such as King of the Hammers (using commercial frequencies). Those little Baofengs are perfect for such things, batteries last a good long time, plenty of power with a better antenna for simplex operation in the pits. If one gets lost or damaged its not the end of the world. Now they are not my front line equipment but a few are thrown under the seat of every vehicle we own. Perfect to give to others on an off-road adventure, can be programmed easily using free CHIRP software. One thing i like to do is program the base frequency of the FRS and GMRS channels into all my radios that way can communicate with others who only have those FRS/GMRS units. In my vehicles i prefer the workhorse Yaesu FT2900 or the newer FT2980 2M 80 Watts. No cooling fan basically a big heat sink with radio circuitry attached. Very robust, easy to program and Modify should someone need to do that. I am not in to HF probably never will just don't have the time, but simplex comms will always have a place. With cell Phones today repeaters are not used as much but still have there place. Internet radio i have never got the purpose for that. If the SHTF internet will not be there just like repeaters probably will be down. But as long as you can charge a battery with a solar panel simplex will be possible. That in my opinion of the real value of Amateur radio.
yes, these baofengs are great for just what you describe. I especially like them on roadtrips rather then trying to use a cell phone. I had a couple out to those who may need a quick handheld.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#13

Post by Electric303 »

Great topic! I have an Amateur Extra license and also one for GMRS with radios and antennas that cover 160M (1.8 mhz) thru 33cm (900mhz). I've had a Baofeng UV-82hp 8 watt ht for years that I use for mobile in the truck with a Tram 1185 or out hiking with its stock antenna. Couldn't be happier with its performance. At home I have a Tram 1480 dual band vertical on a 20ft mast that I normally use a 50 watt Yaesu 7250D with but I can connect the Baofeng to the vertical and have a clear signal through the repeaters on White Tank mtns 70 miles away. Also have a Baofeng RD-5R with the digital mode DMR that I use to transmit to a WiFi hotspot in the house. The hotspot connects to repeaters around the world through the internet and then those specific repeaters retransmit my signal. Echolink is another digital mode that does much the same thing except only requires a cell phone.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#14

Post by QuangTri »

I have been a HAM for about 30 years, but not an active talker. Just not my style to ragchew. More into the tech side of things, like antenna design.

As most of you guys did, I bought handhelds first. You quickly find their low (5W) power limiting. A good roof top antenna while at home is a major improvement if you are allowed (GD HOA's). I built my own VHF-UHF antennas and put them in the attic for stealth. Only working local repeaters does not require much, but if trying to go simplex very far.....

The power of the HT is still limited, but more antenna gain helps enormously. After that, only more transmit power helps. A lot of HAMs will use a mobile rig for home and another for mobile use. I just never wanted to spend that much for a radio I did not use much. They do have a LOT more power out than handhelds, but you need to supply more 12V DC amperage for that. Means car mount or a home DC power supply.

Gets equipment intensive fast if all you wanted was more oomph from your handheld. For a while, there was a market for RF power amplifiers, that would boost the handheld output up to 20-30 watts. Seems the market for those has dried up with newer mobile rigs.

Fleabay has frequent sellers with those amplifiers, I have a couple. The too need a DC power supply, but can be a bridge between the HT and a vehicle mount radio.
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Re: Ham radio and what I've learned so far.

#15

Post by toepopper »

It looks to me you have learned a lot of good information and thanks for sharing. There have been even more good information shared by others. For those looking at getting licensed dont give up..work through it. Like any hobby, there are huge magnitudes of levels to operate at. Decide what direction you want to go in, make the investment to that level, and be happy.
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