Amateur (Ham) Radio BS and Callsign Thread!

KE6OBK here, got my tech license in 94, not very active anymore , but might start again.

 

thanks Jim

 

I just purchased a TYT TH 9800 ( Yaesu 8900 clone) as my permanent vehicle transceiver. I have a Prinsu roof rack that gets loaded with goodies from time to time, including a RTT. Not sure yet if I want to use the roof for my antenna placement. Bed rails are also out of the question since I have a tonneau and Bestop canvas cap.

Question is: Is an antenna mounted to a ditch bracket on the hood hinge a decent spot without losing too much gain?

 

I have my APRS/HT radio using an antenna mounted on a ditch mount bracket. With a good antenna, its a good spot.

 

Alright. good to know. So for a good antenna, how about a 5/8 Firestik?

 

I can't comment about Firestik for anything other than 11m. I own Comet and Diamond, I like the 77 and 777 diamond series. To get the most out of that radio, you will want a tri-band antenna, that will limit your options. I think all the big manufactures make one or two mobile trips-band antennas.

 

Alright guys, don't flog me for this rookie question. Instead of purchasing a quad band antenna, could I purchase a 2m 70cm antenna, and also a 10m antenna, and just screw in the one for the band I want to use at the time?

 

You'll forget to swap them. Sooner or later everyone does. Don't ask me how I know because it's embarassing.

 

The reason I asked is that I primarily use 2m and 70cm, but I fly drones commercially and I'm required to monitor AM air-band for the local class-D tower when I fly inside a 5 mile ring around that airport. Having the ability to switch the antenna would be ideal.

 

Did you let the magic smoke out? LOL

 

Hey all, W4SXN, I got my ticket a few months ago.

 

I will neither confirm nor deny that I used that event as an opportunity to upgrade.

 

Before you go spending money and finding out, the 9800 only does FM. You would need a different radio to monitor AM transmissions. If you only need 10m for that one thing, you might want to consider a cheaper option for the 2m and 440 radio and then get something specific for the aviation aspect.

If you did decide to get a single radio, you could just install an antenna selector switch.

 

Welcome, did you take the general at the same time as tech?

 

I've read multiple times that it receives am air-band with good reception. It says it does in the manual and many people in the reviews say it does. Does it not?

 

I've only read what's on Yaesu's site, and they only mention FM. You might be able to mod the receive to tune the wider bandwidth of AM, but I personally haven't read anything about it.

 

Gotcha. This is the yaesu knockoff that can receive air-band and 11m, but no transmit. Not ideal but it functions as the reviews state.

 

Hey guys I was hoping you could steer me in the right direction.

I got my ham radio technician license 5 years ago when a coworker was encouraging me to join search and rescue with him. The practice tests were free so I studied and bought a

$190 yaesu ft-60r dualband handheld 5W VHF/UHF amateur radio transceiver - dual band

yaesu ft-60r handheld. We talked to each other from across town and then the thing ended up in my bug out bag and hasn't been used since.

Now two of my camping buddies are studying to get their licenses. Our goal is to be able to camp and have and be able to find each other where there is no cell service. Sometimes you can't know exactly where you'll be. And it would be even better if say someone forgot something or we needed to resupply (beer and ice of course).

My question is where do I even start? I tried watching YouTube vids but a lot of what I saw is covering other stuff. There's a mountain here that we are on all the time and I know there are repeaters up there, so I'm assuming we could have set frequencies for use on those trips? How about when headed to a place we've never been?


Any help is greatly appreciated

 

Jumping in on this thread-

Took my tech test on Saturday and passed; just waiting for my call sign now.

I picked up a BaoFeng F9 V2+ with a Nagoya 717 antenna (8.5" whip) a few weeks back and have been monitoring it while driving and been pretty suprised what I have been able to pick up. I know this will probably not cut it for calling out from inside the truck, so I am planning on mounting an antenna on the outside of the truck and connecting it to the BaoFend via one of those adapter cables for the short term. Eventual plan is to get a proper mobile set up, and keep the BaoFeng for backpacking trips or trail excursions outside of the truck.

Plan is to use the BAMF tailgate bracket to mount the antenna back there. I know the roof is best... but I dont want the extra height and cant get myself to drill into the roof. Looking at the Comet SS-680SBNMO or SS-680SB not sure if I need or want the NMO mount on the BAMF bracket. Can anyone comment on whether 17' of coax will be long enough to reach from the back corner of the bed up to the passenger seat area on a DCLB? Just need to make it to under the seat since the future mobile set up will definitely have a remote face and I can run a 3' adapter cable in the short term.

Looking forward to learning more and maybe chatting with a few people out on the road if anyone is in the Bay Area.

 

A handy reference to find repeaters in an unfamiliar area is this.
http://www.arrl.org/shop/The-ARRL-Repeater-Directory-Pocket-size/