Getting Started

[ocTJ]

What is available with the Tech license which I believe is the low level license. Then from there it goes to a general license? I want to take mine soon

just took the test for the fun of it and got 69%..I haven't read a single word of any study packet lol ...anyone know a link where I could get a study packet with general information? personally I'm not against having to learn morse but not memorizing it doesn't hurt to get more people licensed

[Materdaddy]

ocTJ,

I moved this to it's own thread since it was off-topic to the original thread you posted in.

Technician licenses are the lowest available now. There used to be a "novice" level which has since been removed. There is also no requirement for morse anymore and not many people use or know code anymore.

There are a lot of great resources online for becoming licensed. A lot of people will simply take practice tests memorizing the correct answers. Some people want things "written out" in sentence form, or others. Here are a few good links for those:

• Entire Technician Question Pool - (Good until June 30th) with ONLY the correct answers.
• QRZ.ocom - Best place for online practice tests
• Study guide - This one is great to read the questions in sentence form. The wording is used like the test questions and are in bold throughout the document.

[ocTJ]

Thank you and my apologies

[SAR Jeeper]

Morse code is fun!

[ocTJ]

I think so you still need it for general license don't you?

[Dave_W6DPS]

I think so you still need it for general license don't you?

Nope--no code for any level anymore, including Extra.
I did Extra when they dropped all the test to 5 words per minute, and then shortly thereafter it was dropped completely.

The General written test is very similar to Tech, but the Extra test is a lot harder.

The only difference between privilidges for the three remaining classes of license is the bandwidth you can use on the HF bands. If you want to talk to Australia, you should think General class. For local VHF/UHF, repeaters, APRS, etc., then Tech includes all that and more.

[platnumb4x]

A buddy of mine said he and his family are going to get qualified. They went to Barnes and Nobles and got the book. He said it seems pretty easy. We talked about the radios and he said he heard the hand held radios would be fine for Jeep'n.

[robk]

If you're going the book route, the Gordon West books are excellent as they give background on the technology/regulations behind each of the questions. Couple the books with the practice tests at qrz.com and you'll have a good idea of when you're ready to take the test.

Good luck!

Rob

[Dave_W6DPS]

A buddy of mine said he and his family are going to get qualified. They went to Barnes and Nobles and got the book. He said it seems pretty easy. We talked about the radios and he said he heard the hand held radios would be fine for Jeep'n.

The Technician test is not very hard. A little study and most people pass the first time. As mentioned, uae the practice tests at qrz.com to see how close you are and take the test when you consistently score 90% or better.

Hand held radios are fine for the majority of uses on VHF/UHF voice. Couple a decent HT with a good mobile antenna and you should do fine. If you decide to get better stuff later you still find that an HT is very handy.

Far and away the most popular type of ham radio is a 2 meter or dual-band HT. Most hams have at least one.

Dave_W6DPS

[platnumb4x]

Thank you Dave.

[Roger]

It's getting a little off topic but I disagree on the hand held. I have leared over that years that if you are remote and need help, you can't beat a 50 watt dual band mobile. Except for a few places in California (a few spots in the Panamints & Death Valley comes to mind)you can access a repeater with 50 watts. Hand helds are fine in the city, suburban areas, and communicating with others in your group.

Just my humble opinion!

[sarah]

It's getting a little off topic but I disagree on the hand held. I have leared over that years that if you are remote and need help, you can't beat a 50 watt dual band mobile. Except for a few places in California (a few spots in the Panamints & Death Valley comes to mind)you can access a repeater with 50 watts. Hand helds are fine in the city, suburban areas, and communicating with others in your group.

Just my humble opinion!

I'd say get both with cross-band repeat of course!

[ocTJ]

Is there anyone in Orange County or here abouts that holds classes? It's one thing to learn what you need to know to pass that's usually too easy it's a whole nother thing to fully understand it...which I prefer since i am allergic to sounding like a dumb@$$

Am I wrong or the HAM Radio's you cannot have HAM and Citizen Band on the same radio?

[OU812]

You cannot buy a HAM radio that has the CB available on it. Partially because CB is limited to 5w. There are radios that you can modify to work on the CB band but you shouldn't do that because it is illegal.

[robk]

It's getting a little off topic but I disagree on the hand held. I have leared over that years that if you are remote and need help, you can't beat a 50 watt dual band mobile. Except for a few places in California (a few spots in the Panamints & Death Valley comes to mind)you can access a repeater with 50 watts. Hand helds are fine in the city, suburban areas, and communicating with others in your group.

Just my humble opinion!

I agree with you -- a 50+ watt radio can be had for cheap if you look around. Couple it with a good antenna and coax and you're pretty much set for "local" communications.

I'd say get both with cross-band repeat of course!

I've had a Yaesu FT-1500 (2m, 50W) that has served me well for many years of desert & mountain exploration -- quite a rugged rig. My F250 isn't the smoothest ride in town, so the radio takes quite a beating. Still works like new.

More recently I picked up an FT-857D (multi band, 100W) and it's been a terrific rig so far. I don't think it'll do cross-band repeat though.

Rob