Ham Radio & Chasing

[KenMcWatters]

Of course you will then need to get a radio but you can usually find a radio for what you need at your local pawn shop or ebay pretty easy. If your jsut using it for chasing you dont need anything fancy. You will need a mobile and not a handheld tho. Handhelds dont reah repeaters as well and you are only using about 5 watts. Mobile can use about 50 watts max
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Just to clarify, although higher power mobiles are nice, a handheld still works well while chasing, as long as it's hooked up to an antenna on your vehicle. I use a $10 magmount antenna on the roof with my handheld and I reach repeaters 30+ miles away. And with that antenna I can receive even farther than I transmit.. 50+ miles is not uncommon. It's useful for hearing the nearest NOAA wx radio when you're in an isolated area, for example.

I agree with the comments that passing the ham exams is quite easy, especially for chasers who are mostly technically and scientifically inclined anyway. If there's any doubt, just try the online exams and you'll probably find you can just about pass it without studying.

Ken

 

[Tony Laubach]

And of course, its nice to have a radio not only for spotting purposes... but those long drives back home in the middle of the night where radio is great for chatting with someone who will help keep you awake!

 

[John Hudson]

It's so easy it's laughable. Approximately 60% of the multiple-choice questions have completely obvious answers if you just employ a small amount of common sense and know NOTHING about HAM radios, etiquette or technology. The other 30-40% can be memorized from a small amount of studying (this comes from someone with *no* memory).

K.
[/b]

I guess the Industry Canada exam is similar to the FCC exam then, because many questions on it have real simple answers. Example:

What identification, if any, is required when two amateur stations begin communication?
A. No identification is required.
B. Each station must transmit its own call sign.
C. Both stations must transmit both call signs.
D. One of the stations must give both stations' call signs.

I wrote my exam just recently, and scored high enough to get HF privileges without learning Morse Code. I've gone out and picked up a mobile Icom 2 meter, and have been having a blast with it. There's so much cool s**t you can do with them, it's amazing! With only 65 watts, I was talking to a guy in Salt Lake City last night, because I was using IRLP (Internet Radio Linking Project) that enables hams to use repeaters that are hooked up to VoIP networks.

Dude, get your license; it's so worth it! You'll be surprised at how easy it is, and even more surprised by the world of possibilities it will open up for you.

John
VE4 JTH

 

[Dustin Wilcox]

Just took the Test tonight and passed pretty easily!! Now I go shopping for a radio and sit and wait to recieve my "call sign"

 

[Bill Hamilton]

Just took the Test tonight and passed pretty easily!! Now I go shopping for a radio and sit and wait to recieve my "call sign"
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Congratulations Dustin! Let us know what your call sign is when you get it.