Category Archives: Amateur Radio

Amateur Radio, Amateur Radio Organizations, News, Repeaters, Skywarn

Oh, what a tangled mess nature weaves…

146.980 – 162.2 Mt Elden, Flagstaff W7ARA

800-980 Tower EldenJoe Hobart, W7LUX, sent out these photos of the 980 repeater on Mount Elden in Flagstaff at the end of December. Mount Elden is located in Flagstaff and the repeater frequency is 146.980. The 146.140 repeater is also located on Mount Elden and is connected to the RIMLINK network of Arizona Repeater Association repeaters. The 146.980 repeater is part of the SKYWARN system.

The image to the left shows how the tower should look. The lower image shows how the tower looked at the end of December.
800-980 Tower Elden-2The picture of the mangled tower was taken by Mike Moroney and the picture of the good tower is from Joe.

As you can see, nature can reek havoc with repeater towers. In the top photo, the antenna for 146.980 juts high in the sky. In the lower photo it dangles by a thread. Well, actually, by a cable. It was expected to be down for the winter.

I do not know if a New Year resolution was involved, but today at about 15:00 -7, the 980 repeater is back online thanks to a volunteer crew. It bears repeating that amateur radio is a hobby and these guys that climb the towers are not paid. I’d like to thank those who help us keep contact with the world.

Amateur Radio, License Examinations

How to get through the math on the examination cheap

sci-calculator_resizedThere are several ways to get through the math on the Amateur radio license exams. The first is to memorize every question and answer. Or hope that they ask you the questions you memorized.

If you cannot rely on your memory, the second most reliable way is to understand the math on the exam. For the technician exam, the math is not all that difficult and the way you calculate the answers is easily found on the Internet. There are a plethora of explanations and you are sure to find one you understand.

It should be legal to carry a copy of the various formulas that you use to find answers for various problems. So long as those formulas do not contain examples that just happen to be answers on the test. So you could, and should, write all of those formulas down.

So now you have the formulas or understand them. What can you use to calculate them? Your “smartphone?” Examiners will probably not allow them and will, in fact, probably insist that you turn them off. A scientific calculator? They are allowed only if the volunteer examiners can conclusively prove there is nothing stored in memory.

That can be difficult with the number of calculators in the field. Especially with the advance in computer science today. There is an answer, however.

For my exam I purchased a cheap calculator with no special functions for $1.00 at my local Dollar General. If you are just looking to get the Technician ticket, that is really all you will need. Recently I traveled to Phoenix where I visited the Dollar Tree store. I picked up the pictured calculator with all sorts of scientific functions for $1.00.

Still there is probably some way a smart person can add answers to the memories of these calculators. I would recommend that no matter what you use, you consult with the volunteer examiner BEFORE the exam starts. I also recommend that you take the instructions and show them to the VE so that they can ensure that your exam is completely above-board.

As far as I know, slide rules are still allowed.

Amateur Radio, News, Repeaters

The dang repeater is out again!

As a new amateur radio operator I learned quickly that repeaters are an important link in communications. Particularly if you have to operate, currently, on cheap equipment. When they go out, new operators tend to get mad.

For several reasons, people are flocking to the Baofeng hand-held radios. The main reason is the price. For under $100 you can get on the air (if you have the appropriate license). Hand-helds are dependent mainly on repeaters.

Repeaters dot the United States from one coast to the other. Some are connected together in links, such as the WIN system and RIMLINK. When new operators get used to talking through repeaters, they may get upset and wonder why the repeater stops working. Why does my local repeater not connect to RIMLINK? Why do I not get the ARRL news feed on my repeater?

Well, here is one reason.
800-151223-1
These pictures are from a recent storm on Bill Williams mountain. The antennas have been knocked around by high winds and ice. To protect the equipment, repeater operators necessarily have to shut down the repeaters. If you operate equipment without an antenna, you are asking for equipment failure altogether.

In fact, this is a good life lesson for new amateur operators who are not really electronically inclined. Antennas are the core of your equipment. A decent antenna will make your five-watt handheld travel farther.

I have received fair distance and reports with my Baofeng BF-F9 in my vehicle with a magnet mount antenna while travelling. The problem is the Baofeng microphone. The cheap mics you purchase through Amazon and other retailers are just that. Cheap mics. They work, but I have received reports of static. The earphone microphone I received with the Baofeng gave me a zap through the earpiece. Through the built-in mic I received pretty good reports.

If you are looking for a good microphone for the Baofeng, you might check out this web site. It is not cheap.

The point is that you can see why repeaters go down. Repeater operators cannot control the weather. Until you can afford better equipment and a decent antenna, you have to cowboy-up.

Personally I would like to help keep repeaters going. As an old Navy tweeker, I find that would help increase my knowledge of the Ham radio art. At the same time I understand that repeater operators have to carefully select who they receive help from. This equipment is not cheap.

Since I received my first license in October, I have been able to listen—but not always participate in—nets on the repeaters. I appreciate the efforts of the people who maintain the repeaters. These images even woke me up to the reality of keeping repeaters going.

Amateur Radio, Rules and Laws

We pause for this Station Identification requirements for Amateur Radio

I recently obtained my Amateur Radio operator license and am learning much. One of the things I have learned about is nets. Nets, or networks, are times dedicated on some repeaters for specific functions such as testing equipment and reporting practices, education and entertainment.

I am able to listen to some nets, but cannot reach to participate because of limitations in my equipment. On one such net I heard an argument over the station identification requirements of the FCC. Because it was a hot topic, I decided to investigate.

Interestingly even during the nets, they try to remember to pause every ten-minutes to identify with their call sign and at the end of the net as the FCC requires.

THE PROBLEM

Some people seem to key the microphone on the radio briefly to see if their radio is transmitting. Repeaters are the obvious target because they usually give some sort of digital response. This annoys some amateur radio operators and usually repeater operators.

The argument in this case was that a station calling is supposed to identify themselves at the beginning of a contact, every ten minutes and at the end. Someone responded with the fact that the test questions on the examination indicated that the FCC requires that identification be used only every ten minutes and at the end of the transmission.

Another person noted that you could just download Part 97 of 47 CFR which covers Amateur radio operations. The argument came back that it was big and thick, took a long time to download and a ream of paper to print (or words to that effect). In the links below you can see that is just not so. You can download the PDF which prints on 36 pages. You can also go to the Government Printing Office web site and simply read it online.

Since I am interested in helping people obtain a Ham license, I added the questions from each examination that I could find concerning this topic. Hopefully this will help you understand those questions so you can breeze through them and concentrate on the tougher technical questions. I added the questions that I found in the Technician, General and Amateur Extra class license pools. Of course there is the more selfish reason that research, such as this, helps me learn and remember the rules so I can keep out of trouble as much as possible.

HOW IMPORTANT IS IT?

While researching I happened across the FCC Amateur Radio Service Enforcement Actions page on their web site.

In July, David Tolassi (W4BHV) in Georgia was fined $1000 for failing to identify. Daniel R. Hicks (KB8UYZ) in Cincinnati, Ohio was fined $8000 in August for failure to identify and causing interference. Thomas J. Warren agreed to pay a $3500 fine for failure to identify this month. William F. Crowell (W6WBJ) of Diamond Springs, California was fined $25,000 for failing to identify and deliberately causing interference by broadcasting music, noise and voices to interfere with others just a few days ago.

(Here is a bonus answer to the Technician Exam, question T1D04. It is illegal to transmit any music except When incidental to an authorized re-transmission of manned spacecraft communications .)

So how important is station identification? How important is your hard-earned cash.

The FCC does have a soft-spot. This link also shows more letters of warning than fines. They are out to promote the fair use of the amateur radio bands for everyone. Everyone makes a mistake from time-to-time.

So let’s look at the regulations.
Continue reading We pause for this Station Identification requirements for Amateur Radio →

Amateur Radio, News, Review

Baofeng BF-F9 +V2 Update

3-hamsLast review I gave a poor rating for the Baofeng BF-F9 +V2. Today I can give it a better review.

First I dealt with FOSCAM, a camera company, in obtaining the initial radio through Amazon. This is a good company with great customer service. They answered my email questions through the whole process.

The problem (I thought) was that they sent me the same model. They even sprang for the shipping. Was I to have the same difficulty?

I was extra gentle with the belt clip, this time. After carefully removing the screws from the radio, I put them through the holes in the belt clip first. Then screwed them into the case and they went in fine. In fact it was perfect. The screws are tight and the belt clip works like any my UV-82 (Which is not very good).

Now would the battery seat properly. Sadly, it did not. At least not initially. I went ahead and loaded up my frequency file through the CHIRP program. I began to test it having to make sure I held the battery in. It worked good except for the battery. I was not about to send it back, however, and was thinking about other means of making it useful. A battery eliminator, perhaps? That route would only make it useful in the car. I was even thinking about filing away some of the battery case, but I saw that could not be done.

In frustration I reverted to an old technician trick. I slammed the bottom of the battery and it seated into place. It has been fine ever since. At least since the 19th.

I ordered the Nagoya UT-71 for another reason, so I hooked it up and began to use it. I do not transmit much, but I did conduct several range tests. Unfortunately no matter what location I tried, I could not connect with the repeater I need to connect to.

I should note that I found out through research that the BF-F9 is NOT an updated model.

The features. The F9 comes with a 3800mAH battery. The transmit powers are 1, 4 and 8-watts in theory. I have not tested this and some tell me the Baofeng does not always perform as advertised in this area.

The antenna seems to be the biggest disappointment by other reviewers. They say it is pretty much a UV-5R antenna. Some have said that they purchased the better rubber duck antenna available for around $15 on Amazon and it seemed to work for them.

The CHIRP program does not specifically support this model. You can program it, however, through the BF-F8 model. The BF-F8 is the latest high power model from Baofeng that I know of.

The chargers seem to be the weak point of the Baofeng. They work, but last night I set up the F9 to charge and the light did not turn green. I lifted off it off the charger and set it back on and the green light came on. I still have to play with the charger for the UV-82 a bit, but they do work.

The earpiece microphone that came with this model is not a dual PTT. I do not monitor dual channels on the F9 as I do on the UV-82. I found on the UV-82 that with an external microphone, no matter what I do I can only transmit on Channel B. I had to use the dual PTT ear/mic that came with it to transmit on the correct channel.

Personally I like the feel of the radio in my hand. I do not like the camouflage pattern. The UV-82 camo that I purchased is a much better pattern. So far the radio has performed as well as the UV-82 I purchased. I have not seen much performance increase from the UV-82.

My opinion is that you should probably check out the UV-82HP which touts a maximum 7-watts out over this radio for about the same $68 price. That is, if you are interest in the lower priced Baofeng. The UV-5R still seems to be the most popular of the Baofeng line. They are a max output of 4-watts and the price is about half. At least for a new Ham.

If you are not on a budget as I am, you should probably explore the ICom and higher-end radios.

Some other thoughts:
BaoFeng BF-F9 V2+ Impressions

BaoFeng BF-F8HP first glance review at a CERT Training event.

Amateur Radio, News, Rules and Laws

Volunteer Examination Coordinator program

UPDATED: 12/12/15 11:34 a.m.

by Glen Davis KG7YDJ

Too much life story. Had to re-edit this part. This article explains a  little about the Volunteer Examination Coordinator program. Why am I interested in writing an article on this topic? Since I obtained my Amateur Extra license, I found that I could actually get accredited as a volunteer examiner.

This is not a mentor program. There are other volunteer programs for that purpose. Perhaps when I get some real world experience, I can help in that area. This is a good old Navy-type paperwork drill that anyone can learn to do. That is not to say that you cannot console and comfort a candidate who fails the exam. You can encourage them to try again. Even suggest sites with practice exams or exams apps for the cell phones. Your job as a volunteer examiner, however, is simply to administer the examination with integrity.

There are questions about the VEC program in the General Exam and the Amateur Extra exam. The most recent—as of this writing— are included at the end of this article. Yet they do not give you an understanding of the VEC program, as I learned. This article is an overall view of that program. It will not accredit you as an examiner; you will have to study more if you are interested.

At most you will see two in either examination. Maybe three on the Amateur Extra. If you have an overall understanding of the program, it will help you better understand the questions and you can breeze through those and concentrate on the tougher questions. Actually many are common sense. For example an examiner must be eighteen-years of age or older even though anyone who can pass the test can get up to an Amateur Extra license. The reason is pretty clear. You are signing what amounts to government documents so you must be of age to do so.

I am no expert and am even studying this area while I write the article. I am reasonably sure the information is accurate and include links to certain documents and web sites for further study. If I encourage you to become an accredited VE, great. But this article won’t do it for you.
Continue reading Volunteer Examination Coordinator program →

Amateur Radio, Rules and Laws

Are you ready to get an amateur radio license?

RadioCourse-1You might have been thinking about getting an amateur radio license. If you are like me, the dread of Morse code might have been holding you back. Good news. That requirement has been gone since 1987.

When you are ready for the test, you might want to consider a few things. First is to know the answers to the answer pool you want to be testing for. You can download the pool with the answers at the National Volunteer Examiner Coordinator web site. Some are in PDF format and others are in Word. This will give you the pool from which the questions for the examination are drawn and the answers. It will not explain what the answers mean, however. I clue you in on how to do that in another article.

After your study, you will be ready to find an examination site. There are 14 Volunteer Examination Coordinator organizations which give the exam. They coordinate with local Ham clubs, usually, or other groups who have created a number of volunteers to administer the exam.

The FCC maintains a list of the Volunteer Exam Coordinators and the regions they cover here. You can contact one of them for an examination cycle in your area .

On examination day you must remember to bring a few things. This information is for the person seeking the Technician class license. If you have already taken the test, you know this already.

1. Two forms of identification; at least one must be a picture identification
2. Your Social Security number. If you are like me, you probably do not like to hand out your SSN to just anyone; particularly one you do not know. I have not heard of any incident of identity theft or the like. In lieu of a SSN you can get an FCC Registration Number (FRN). You are going to be issued one anyway, so you might as well get one before you go. You have to have an FRN to do business on the FCC web site. For this you will have to go to the FCC Universal licensing system here. I previously applied for a GMRS license so I had an FRN. Your SSN will not appear on your license. Only the FRN. This is convenient when you go to upgrade from the Technician class.
3. A calculator. The testing volunteer examiners can refuse certain types of calculators. The mathematics for the Technician examination is fairly simple, so you will not need anything really fancy. As long as it is not the programmable computer type, it will probably get through. I used one of those cheap, three dollar solar powered types that you get at the dollar stores. In fact I used the same one to pass the General and Amateur Extra examinations.
4. Two (I would recommend four) sharpened pencils. Make sure that you completely fill in the answer circle on the answer sheet. No dimpled chads please.

Of course there is the customary advise to get a good night sleep the night before the test—like that’s going to happen. I managed a couple of hours sleep before each test cycle I took. I did, however, steer away from cramming.

Later on I will try to give you some study techniques that I learned along the way that helped me actually learn some of the stuff along the way.

Amateur Radio, Rules and Laws

Radio operators exempt from Communication Devices ordinance

In April of last year, Coconino County Supervisors passed Ordinance No 2014-03 regulating the use of communications equipment while driving.

The ordinance was aimed mainly at drivers being distracted by texting on a cellphone while driving. Mainly teens. Some of the cities and towns in Coconino County have decided to write their own ordinances or skip enforcement of the ordinance altogether in their jurisdiction.

There was some question about how this applied to amateur radio operators. The ordinance, however, specifically exempts:

A person who holds a valid amateur radio operator license issued by or any license issued by the Federal Communications Commission or the driver uses a two-way radio, such as a CB radio.

Of course some confusion could arise from this. I use Echolink on my cellphone and can contact people throughout the world. The answer is, of course, no. You cannot use a cellphone because it is technically not a radio. You still must manipulate the device in order to make contact and each time you want to talk. It still diverts your eyes from the road.

With a microphone, such as with a citizen’s band or amateur radio, you can still keep your eyes on the road.

Amateur Radio, Amateur Radio Organizations, Amateur Radio Relay League, Contest

ARRL sponsors December CW Rookie Roundup

ARRL-Flag-waving-Large_54The American Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) is sponsoring a six-hour CW (Morse code) contest on December 20 for specifically aimed at those who have had a license less than three years. (So you were proud of yourself for getting your Amateur Extra only to learn you are a rookie for three years.)

ARRL sponsors Rookie contests three times a year in April, August and December. In these contests rookies can contact anyone, but old-timers can only contact rookies. Various contests are held by ARRL and other organizations throughout the year. These for rookies are particularly useful to learn how to use the frequencies for the new licence levels they attain. It is a great opportunity to test new equipment. Additionally they can obtain awards and certificates for all of these contests.

ARRL also sponsors specific events in addition to contesting where amateur operators can collect special cards, called QSL cards. QSL cards confirm a contact between specific stations or stations to events. ARRL, for example, is sponsoring a year-long event called National Parks on the Air where Ham operators can contact operators stationed at various national parks throughout the country.

For the upcoming CW rookie contest, the ARRL web site states:

Mission: To encourage newly-licensed operators (“Rookies”) in North America (including territories and possessions) to operate on the HF bands and experience competitive Amateur Radio operating. Experienced operators (“Non-Rookies”) are strongly encouraged to participate and help new operators – either on the air or in person.

Objective: Rookies exchange information with as many other stations as possible on the 80, 40, 20, 15, and 10 meter HF bands. Rookie entrants are encouraged to read “HF Contesting – Good Practices, Interpretations and Suggestions.” (Also available as PDF)

Electronic certificates will be emailed to the top five scoring Rookies in each US call area, Canadian province, Mexican call area and DX. No national winners will be recognized. A commemorative participation certificate will be available for download to every Rookie operator submitting a score.

For more information and to sign up , visit the ARRL web site .