Amateur (Ham) Radio BS and Callsign Thread!

Yes

I have not had the pleasure of testing the FT-65r yet. The FT-60 is a fabulous radio though. The Icom IC-T70 is also excellent.

 

Sorry if this was already posted.

Does anybody have the time to fact check this?

Seems like lunacy. But it is California...

 

This is impacting one repeater site. The lawyer's letter was poorly written and made it appear to be statewide.

The real issue is that large, old, antiquated (often poorly installed) amateur equipment is taking up valuable rack space, for free, in these state-owned vaults. So much space, the state is arguing, that there isn't adequate room for their own public safety equipment. In my opinion, amateur repeaters should be operated at sites separate from public safety services if only for added redundancy.

Here is a more informed and nuanced (although somewhat long-winded) discussion about the issue.

 

Hey everyone, obvious amateur here.
Question... If one was to buy 2 or 3

$20 Baofeng uv-5r VHF/UHF Dual Band Radio 144-148MHz 420-450MHz Transceiver

Baofeng uv-5r radios, took them out of the box and turned them on, would they be able to communicate with each other straight out of the box or is there programming that has to be done to get these two to talk or is it as simple at putting them on the same channel?
Not looking to get into a debate regarding a license, what's legal or not. It's a question.

 

Just a heads up, and I don't want to be that guy, but to postface your question by alluding to scoffing at the law is generally a bad way to get licensed hams to answer.

Anyway...

They generally come pre-programmed with several test frequencies they use at the factory in China for quality control. Some of these frequencies are FRS (462.5625), GMRS (467.7000), MURS (154.5700), and even a frequency licensed to Union Pacific for railroad communications (160.7400). These exampled frequencies are outside of the amateur bands.

So, the short answer to your question is yes they will transmit and receive if they are tuned to the same channel/frequency.

But I feel obligated to also say that even if you have the amateur radio license required to transmit with these radios it is illegal to transmit on the above mentioned frequencies.

 

Thank you sir for answering. Seemed to be a pretty extreme precedence.

 

Have anyone visited the website where this fiasco originated from?

The town has an Emergency Radio Communications plan that is pretty extensive

http://shastadefense.com/ShastaEmergencyRadio.htm

 

I just bought a pretty much brand new Yeasu FT-70dr for $115 shipped. It had been charged less than 10 times and still had the plastic on the screen. Dual band and has C4FM digital on it. You can find decent big 3 for deals if you just look around. I bought a Baofeng to start with and some of the local guys hooked me up with some nicer gear to use and once using it I wouldn’t even bother with a Baofeng. You get what you pay for. Yes you can buy 3 for the price of one from the big three or you can buy once and not have to worry about it from here on out.

 

Excuse my noobness, what’s the big 3?

 

Icom, Yaesu, Kenwood.

 

Yaesu
Icom
Kenwood

 

What is everyone's preferred method of mounting a mobile radio like a yaesu ft857d in a gen 2 tacoma? looking for something that make it look like it grew there.

 

I like to keep the head units low, out of the sun and sight, so I use a seat bolt mount from Lidomounts.com

I run it from the seat mount along the center console, and up to position near the center console button pannel. It comes with a U-bracket that holds it secure to the center console to eliminate a lot of movement.

 

Those Bow-Fang chi-com radios are garbage. They are dirty splatter interference machines. Which is why they are cheap. The crappy Chinese factories knock off R&D done by others, half-ass the construction of questionable quality junk, then flood Ebay markets.....

 

Mine looks the same as his just on the passenger side. Same radio also. Believe the 857 has a remote mount for the head also.


If you don’t mind cutting the back of the center pocket you could put it there in one piece probably. Unless the airbag box thing is back there. I don’t remember from the last time I had the dash apart.

 

Thanks guys! Gives me a few ideas to work with.

 

with the Lido Mount you can rig it and add a second radio head on there too. It’s a great option without having to drill or cut anything.

 

In fact I need to go out there and change mine around to face the opposite way. I keep hitting bumps and it slides back and falls off. Need it to be locked in the rearward position.

Also going to build some antenna’s today and get this 991a on the air.