I'll admit, it was something of a panic/impulse buy. From what I've seen so far, the setup and use of them seems either complicated or now well documented. Is there a "BaoFeng for Dummies" out there? And what is the deal with needing a HAM license?
Thanks.
From Older Offspring after a discussion of coffee:
"If it doesn't come from the Kaffa province of Ethiopia, it's just hot roasted-bean juice."
You need a Ham license. The Technician level license isn't that much work to study for, and you get lifetime "membership" to a really awesome "club". I don't spend much time talking on amateur radio, but almost everyone I've interacted with has been helpful and nice. Get a study guide on Amazon, and a study app for your phone.Originally Posted by Guerrero
I found this, but haven't watched it:
https://www.hamradiotv.com/2018/01/3...adio-tutorial/
“There is no growth in the comfort zone.”--Jocko Willink
"You can never have too many knives." --Joe Ambercrombie
I've heard of this "technician" license of which you speak. I have an electrical engineering background, so I don't think it would be too much of a challenge.
I'm looking to get my new handhelds (the BF-F8HP) to be a backup for/when/if cell service would go down, so I'm interested in this whole "repeater" thing I hear about. I'm also interested in using them for weather radio, can I do this? Also also, can I use them as a scanner? Also, also, also, after reading THIS article, I might want to listen in on the transmissions of "protesters."
From Older Offspring after a discussion of coffee:
"If it doesn't come from the Kaffa province of Ethiopia, it's just hot roasted-bean juice."
This guy has some good info on Ham radio.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChA...KlfFxSbL9ytosQ
I thought about getting a portable ham radio but haven't gotten around to it yet. It's only useful it everyone in your group has one and knows how to use them.
We could isolate Russia totally from the world and maybe they could apply for membership after 2000 years.
Check this out:
https://www.bugoutbagbuilder.com/lea...cy-frequencies
Interesting idea about riot comms. I’ll look into that.
“There is no growth in the comfort zone.”--Jocko Willink
"You can never have too many knives." --Joe Ambercrombie
I too am an Electrical Engineer, and I got my Technician license last year. For an Electrical Engineer its a pretty easy test as long as you study the ins and outs of the FCC regs. A good study guide is here https://www.walcottradio.com/bget-yo...SABEgL7SfD_BwE
I have a UV-5RE. You can certainly use it as a scanner. You are allowed to listen to most anything as long as you do not transmit.
Programming it is not too difficult if you have the programming cable and the Baofeng software. https://baofengtech.com/download
Its a lot of fun and I have yet to meet a HAM'er that I didn't like.
Jesus paid a debt he did not owe,
Because I owed a debt I could not pay.
Yes, physics/engineering training makes the exam a lot simpler. I studied for a few hours for the Tech and only missed 1 answer, and passed the General exam as well. The Extra exam... is harder. Solid fail on that exam without studying.
“There is no growth in the comfort zone.”--Jocko Willink
"You can never have too many knives." --Joe Ambercrombie
As CF said, you need an FCC-provided Amateur Radio license to transmit on various frequency bands. The Baofengs will primarily be for the 144mhz and 430mhz bands (VHF and UHF). A Technician license will cover those, no need to go further unless you want to (Next step is General, then Amateur Extra, both of which grant access to the HF and lower bands). Tech and General aren't too challenging, but Extra is a bit harder IMO. I've only progressed as far as General because it allows me to do the things I want and I don't have time to put in the effort to get my Extra license.
As for the Baofeng, they're not great radios and if you connect them to a better antenna the front end will overload and it will probably go deaf.
Not lifetime, but 10yr. But, renewals are just a paperwork exercise, you don't have to retest.
BTW, tests can be taken online in this day of the 'rona.
Check out www.hamstudy.org.
Repeaters: Extends the range of an HT. May require access permissions (not generally, but those do exist). If you're caught using a repeater without being a licensed ham, you will piss off a bunch of people and they may make it their hobby to track you down. No joke. Transmitter hunting is a thing.
Scanner: Most HTs can scan frequencies, but the question is does the HT you have cover the frequencies and modes you want? Maybe, maybe not.
Weather Radio: Most HTs cover the Weather Radio frequencies. Both my HTs do, though with one I have to manually enter the frequencies because it lacks a handy "WX" button.
He's good. Can be a bit silly at times, but if you're just starting out, he's probably the most accessible.
All of my ops are portable. I don't have a fixed station at home. Check out the "The world around you thread" for some pics of one of my recent Summits On The Air (SOTA) activation.
Chris/KI4POT
Bear in mind that you can listen to anything you want without your technician license (like weather), you just can’t transmit.
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Baofengs are better than shouting, but once you break them let me know and I’ll see if I can help you find a couple of inexpensive used commercial quality Motorolas.
Ken
BBI: ...”you better not forget the safe word because shit's about to get weird”...
revchuck38: ...”mo' ammo is mo' betta' unless you're swimming or on fire.”
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