Showing posts with label Ham Radio. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ham Radio. Show all posts

Thursday, June 27, 2024

No Nonsense Extra Class License Study Guide

 I'd really like to get back into ham radio... seeing the updated No Nonsense Extra Class License Study Guide by KB6NU makes me wonder if I could make time to get ready for an upgraded license.

(I've always thought the biggest benefit of winning the lottery would be the time you get by having all that money.)


Friday, July 17, 2020

Intellectual Discourse - Ham Radio Reddit

First - Baofeng Bucks:
"Chinese communist party takes your Baofeng bucks and puts them right in the 'turn America into one big concentration camp' fund. They don't want you dead, they want your whole life. Call me crazy, see what happens.

EDIT: Changed 'Baofeng dollars' to 'Baofeng bucks' because it's funnier."

"Japanese anime porn artists take your Yaesu Yen and put them right into the "get Americans addicted to tentacle hentai" fund. They don't want you dead, they want your whole life. Call me crazy, see what happens."

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

International Space Station

We watched the ISS go overhead last night. I was surprised by how bright it was.

You can track it here and find times when you might be able to see it.

"The crew can operate the 2-meter packet radio in unattended mode, and hams can make contacts with the ISS station when the crew members are working. Hams can also communicate with each other using the ISS packet (computer) radio mode, or receive slow scan television mode images. It all depends on what equipment is in service in space. 
A typical ground station for contacting the ISS station includes a 2-meter FM transceiver and 25-100 watts of output power. A circularly polarized crossed-Yagi antenna capable of being pointed in both azimuth (North-South-East-West) and elevation (degrees above the horizon) is desirable. But successful contacts have even been made with vertical and ground plane antennas."

Monday, July 13, 2020

Eclectic Tech Podcost

I'm gonna give the ARRL's Eclectic Tech Podcast a try. The episodes aren't very long and it comes out biweekly.

Ham Radio is Dead, Long Live Ham Radio

From the "News for Nerds, Stuff that Matters" set, a discussion on the future of ham radio.

Since I've been working form home, I've been at the desk with my radios. I've not been spinning the dials on any HF bands, but scanning the local repeaters on 2m has turned up very little rag chewing. I thought folks might be talking more if they are stuck at home.

Sunday, July 5, 2020

Another 10 Years

I had to renew my ham license. The online process was painless. I had my FCC Registration Number (FRN) documented with my usual reference materials, so it meant I didn't have to go digging for it and avoided that headache.

I'm good for another ten years. Maybe I should actually get on the air again.


Wednesday, October 23, 2019

ARRL and groups.io

I had read that the Yahoo Groups service was shutting down... they were a hotbed for ham radio groups. Some of those groups migrated to groups.io. The ARRL is also going to use groups.io for some of their communications.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Wouxun KG-UV9P: More Power

Monday, September 9, 2019

Ham Radio in Legos

Trying to connect with kids and show the many things you can do with ham radio...


Via KB6NU

Friday, May 10, 2019

IC-9700 SDR?

EME

Friday, February 22, 2019

Wouxun KG-UVD1P

An oldie, but a goodie...
"I have 6 (six) variants of this radio with the original UV-1D being my favorite! Back in 2011 when I first became a ham radio op, the Wouxun was the 'cheap' low-cost entry level rig (the world before baofeng). Coming in at nearly $80 less than the stellar FT-60 the UV-1D was right in my budget range. 8 (Eight) Years later, it's still my 'go-to' handi. While it's not my favorite HT (Kenwood TH-k20) it is the one I find myself using anytime I am forced to use a hand-held radio. Over the years I've added a pair of 2m/6m and 2m/220 versions as well as a few spare 2m/70cm rigs. When my eldest passed his tech test last year-he got a New Wouxun HT. As you can see I'm pretty heavily invested in Wouxun, and although I sometimes wonder if I'd been better off with an offering from the Big3 (unattainable in '11), when you add it all up ($) it seems like money well spent. K4CDN"

Monday, February 18, 2019

Bicycle Mobile

Not what I was expecting...

Friday, January 25, 2019

Upgrade!

Pimp my ride - ham radio style...

Wednesday, January 2, 2019

Ham Licenses

It's been a year since I posted an update on the Ham licenses chart.

Up: Extra, General, Tech, and Total
This is a high water mark for all three classes and overall licenses. Total was 748,136 at the end of 2017.

Down: Advanced and Novice
Advanced and Novice will only go down since no new licenses are being issued for these classes.

MonthExtraAdvancedGeneralTechnicianNoviceARS Total
Dec-18147,36939,607175,949384,1458,360755,430
Nov-18147,13139,718175,750383,6748,410754,681
Oct-18146,89239,828175,550383,2028,459753,931
Sep-18146,77740,001175,396382,8868,489753,549
Aug-18146,56740,155175,210382,5808,544753,054