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1.) DParker - 05/27/2013
Just got done reading a thread on another forum in which a member was trying to interest others in Ham radio by pointing out a fairly new (and very cheap by Ham gear standards) portable dual-band rig:

[URL="http://www.brickolore.com/2013/01/baofeng-uv-b5-best-kept-secret.html"]http://www.brickolore.com/2013/01/baofeng-uv-b5-best-kept-secret.html[/URL]



Available from multiple sources for under $45:

[URL="http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0&_nkw=baofeng+UV-B5&_sacat=0&_from=R40"]http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0&_nkw=baofeng+UV-B5&_sacat=0&_from=R40[/URL]

I'm not a Ham, but I know that in addition to being a fun hobby it has the potential to be extremely useful...life-saving even...in emergency situations. For instance, natural disasters or, more topically, hunting in the middle of nowhere with no cell service when you suffer an immobilizing injury. So I got to thinking that portable Ham radio gear might make a good topic for this section. Do we have any Hams here? (Crookedeye's grade school play in which he played the lead as farmer McDuff surrounded by talking vegetables and that one sheep that won't look him in the eye doesn't count.) If so, do you carry a handheld rig with you when you're out in the boonies?
2.) Hunter - 05/27/2013
I don't have a clue but would also like some insight into portable "hamming."
3.) Go Bucks - 05/27/2013
Interesting thought. May need to learn a little Morse to boot
4.) DParker - 05/28/2013
[QUOTE=Go Bucks;6243]Interesting thought. May need to learn a little Morse to boot[/QUOTE]

Fortunately, learning Morse Code is no longer a requirement for Ham licensing. I do recall that it was when I was a kid though, because my neighbor was restricted to using Morse since he wasn't old enough yet (or whatever the restriction was at the time) for his voice license (or whatever it was called then).

The more I think about this the more I like the idea. It's not only much more affordable now...though you can certainly spend a fair amount of cash on higher end equipment and accessories...but basic licensing is cheap ($15) and (I'm told) easy, and it's a reliable, robust communication method that isn't dependant on an infrastructure being up and running, save for other Hams with enough power to run a radio.
5.) Swamp Fox - 05/28/2013
[QUOTE=DParker;6241] (Crookedeye's grade school play in which he played the lead as farmer McDuff surrounded by talking vegetables and that one sheep that won't look him in the eye doesn't count.) If so, do you carry a handheld rig with you when you're out in the boonies?[/QUOTE]


LOL...


"Bacon soda?...That's a genius idea, Gus, but I'm not sure the world is ready for a pork-flavored beverage."

"I disagree, but that's not what I said..[I]Bay[/I]-king soda...bayking soda..."

:laugh:

A few years ago, I played around with the idea of radios for some hunts, not so much for myself but for the people I was coordinating. I got as far as doing a decent amount of research on the newest CB-type units, from the hand-held through the vehicle mounted to the base-camp models. From my experience running CBs back in the day, I never could convince myself even the best of those radios would be reliable enough to count on in the way-back. I had trouble with some that I actually got to test even in flat swamp country. I never even bothered to disappoint myself in mountains. Hell, I often have trouble getting a GPS signal some places.

Maybe the HAM radio units, if they are much different from what I've seen, would be more viable. But I think you still have to bounce a signal somewhere, right? That's where the problem would be. Hell, I have trouble picking up Shaw University radio's blues program on the weekends, and that's just 45 minutes up the road in Raleigh...the big city, where Barney goes to party.
6.) Swamp Fox - 05/28/2013
I guess to clarify, the radios I'm talking about were VHF models and if I recall, most if not all of them would pick up CB channels. You know this is all magic to me anyhow.

I mean, like, who really nos all this stuff anyway?
7.) Swamp Fox - 05/28/2013
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;6248]I guess to clarify, the radios I'm talking about were VHF models and if I recall, most if not all of them would pick up CB channels. [QUOTE]

Well, I just figured out that's a bunch of nonsense. Either my memory is going or I haven't had enough coffee. And then there is the fact that radio technology is over my head...literally, LOL.

It would take quite a bit of (probably) illegal tampering to get a VHF/CB radio combination, I've come to realize. I guess what I was looking for a few years ago was CB cabability along with handheld VHF. Maybe another reason the project never went anywhere, besides lack of confidence in it actually working and being useful, was the fact that two sets of radios would have been necessary to cover both bands.
8.) DParker - 05/28/2013
Yeah, apart from the basic underlying physics of electromagnetic radiation and all that, I'm fairly ignorant about the world of radio communications myself. I do know that CB is confined to 40 channels in the 11 meter band (in the U.S. at least), VHF includes the 10 M - 1 M bands....and ham (or more generally, "amateur radio") is inclusive of both and encompasses quite a bit more as well, including "chunks" of spectrum from 1 mm all the way to 2200 M. I need to pour over some of the ITU (the int'l standards body that governs this kind of stuff) docs to get a better feel for it all.

Oh, and....the world might not be ready for bacon soda, but I am.
9.) Swamp Fox - 05/28/2013
[QUOTE=DParker;6257]Yeah, apart from the basic underlying physics of electromagnetic radiation and all that...[/QUOTE]

See, I'm not even keeping up with you that far, LOL...
10.) Pa bowhunter - 05/29/2013
Actually 10 and 11 meter are in the HF bands, i have been an operator for years, actually just getting back into it and working on upgrading my license, you can find good deals on used Hf, VHF and UHF equipment, a little bit of studying and you can get a tech class license easy, a little more and you can have a General class wich will really open up the Hf bands for you.

[url]http://www.hamradiolicenseexam.com/prices.htm[/url] is a good site for testing questions and material, and if you want to talk to people and get more input you can go to [url]http://www.eham.net/[/url], if can answer any questions for you just let me know...
11.) DParker - 05/29/2013
[QUOTE=Pa bowhunter;6283]Actually 10 and 11 meter are in the HF bands[/quote]

Ah, OK. I knew 11m was HF, but I was looking at charts that list 10m as the dividing line between HF and VHF but include it in both, like so...

[indent]10m-100m = HF
1m-10m = VHF[/indent]

...and assumed (for some reason I can't think of right now) that meant once you hit 10m you were in VHF territory. So I've learned something today, which means I can go home now. Thanks. :tu:

[QUOTE=Pa bowhunter;6283], i have been an operator for years, actually just getting back into it and working on upgrading my license, you can find good deals on used Hf, VHF and UHF equipment, a little bit of studying and you can get a tech class license easy, a little more and you can have a General class wich will really open up the Hf bands for you.

[url]http://www.hamradiolicenseexam.com/prices.htm[/url] is a good site for testing questions and material, and if you want to talk to people and get more input you can go to [url]http://www.eham.net/[/url], if can answer any questions for you just let me know...[/QUOTE]

Thanks. I'm really only looking at Technician level for the foreseeable future...though one never knows, I suppose. I did take a brief look at eham.net and a couple of other sites that offer on-line practice tests with the actual questions taken from the test pool. I've definitely got some basic electronics refresher course work to do.
12.) Pa bowhunter - 05/29/2013
the Tech license will get you all of your VHF and UHF and a small portion of the 10 meter HF phone bands, but if you want to do morse code you can use more of the 10 meter band, but your tech license will definetely allow you to get your feet wet, good luck...
13.) Swamp Fox - 05/30/2013
I'm just going to continue talking into my wrist like I've always done. It might not work if I need river rescue or am turned around in the woods, but throw in a pair of dark sunglasses and the chicks at the beach seem to dig it...
14.) DParker - 06/01/2013
I've once again produced mathematically irrefutable proof that:

[FONT=Courier New][indent]A Wi-Fi Connected Laptop
+ A Reclining Chair
+ Nothing Good On T.V.
+ A Wallet Full Of Credit Cards
+ Bourbon At Hand
--------------------------------
= You're Gonna' Spend Some Money[/indent][/FONT]
Although the I-could-lose-or-destroy-it-without-being-too-upset price of the Baofeng model in my OP made it really attractive for a tromping-through-the-woods handheld, it turns out that it's still just too new to have any accessory support (car power adapters, etc.) or to be available via any vendors that I know and/or are subject to U.S. legal jurisdiction. So after reading reviews until my eyes bled I opted to go the next level up and ordered this last night:

[URL="http://www.wouxun.com/Two-Way-Radio/KG-UVD1P.htm"]Wouxun KG-UVD1P[/URL]



It's available in several combinations of frequency ranges in the 20m and 70cm bands. The one I got (for $95 from [URL="http://www.cheapham.com/"]CheapHam.com/[/URL]) is setup up for 136-174 & 420-520 MHz, because that's what the vendor had in stock, and from what I can tell of local ham use it was as good a choice as any other. I also picked up an extra 1700mAh Li-ion battery pack, a AA battery pack, a 12v battery eliminator for use in the car (cigarette lighter adapter), a USB cable for programming the radio via my PC and a SMA double-female (unfortunately not what you're thinking, Swampy) adapter so that I can use different standard antennae later if I want/need to.

I'm already routinely scoring 100% on the Technician practice exams I've been taking so if I don't have anything going on next weekend I think I'll hop over to where the local club is hosting FCC exams and get my license.

I guess developing software for a living and the ability to quote entire Monty Python skits from memory just wasn't making me feel geeky enough. :-)
15.) crookedeye - 06/01/2013
dparker.."can i get a radio check please!"

uknown person.." go ahead radio check"

dparker.. "10-4 thanks"

that would be a success for the day..
16.) DParker - 06/01/2013
I was thinking more along the lines of...

Me: [I]"Radio check"[/I]

Smart-ass operator: [I]"Yep, that's a radio you've got there"[/I]
17.) crookedeye - 06/01/2013
how far will one of those hand helds reach out?
18.) DParker - 06/01/2013
[QUOTE=crookedeye;6356]how far will one of those hand helds reach out?[/QUOTE]

Hopefully PA_bowhunter will come along and give a more well-informed answer and correct any mistakes I've made here, but from what I'm reading it can vary significantly depending on a great many factors like power output, type/quality of antenna, frequency(s) you're operating on, atmospheric conditions, line-of-sight obstructions, etc. I'm given to understand that under most conditions the maximum usable range can be anywhere from 5-50 (though ~20 is a more likely upper limit) miles if you're out in the open without any significant interference from nearby sources (like you'd have in a city). But under very special conditions you can hit someone hundreds of miles away...but I'm told this is quite unusual.

If you can get reach a repeater station station then your effective range is essentially limitless.
19.) crookedeye - 06/01/2013
...oops wrong thread..
20.) crookedeye - 06/01/2013
sorry posted in the wrong thread.. i guess it would be pretty neat, if youre into somthing like that..
21.) DParker - 06/01/2013
I'm not really really interested in it as a hobby (at least not at this point...who knows what I'll take an interest in once I start playing with it). I just want it as a reliable means of intermediate-range communications for when I'm somewhere with no cell service, and "just in case" I ever find myself in an emergency situation without access to conventional communications.

On the other hand, you can also talk to the International Space Station with a ham rig...which is pretty cool. That is, assuming they talk back. :wink
22.) bluecat - 06/03/2013
Ham stuff is pretty cool. I was intrigued as a kid and took the beginning license stuff which at that time required morse code.

I've always kicked myself for not getting into it more. I do have a radio that gets 2m Ham signals but of course that is just a receiver.
23.) DParker - 06/03/2013
As a married man I'm just hoping that the throngs of hot ham radio groupie chicks don't become too much of a problem.
24.) bluecat - 06/03/2013
[URL=http://s990.photobucket.com/user/mx482/media/Patty-KD4WUJ-4_zps0dc9d512.jpg.html][/URL]

I think you're good. I looked up Hot Ham Women but sadly not much comes up.

. . . - - - . . .
25.) bluecat - 06/03/2013
[QUOTE=bluecat;6384]Ham stuff is pretty cool. I was intrigued as a kid and took the beginning license stuff which at that time required morse code.

I've always kicked myself for not getting into it more. I do have a radio that gets 2m Ham signals but of course that is just a receiver.[/QUOTE]

I've always kicked myself for not getting into martial arts too...
26.) DParker - 06/03/2013
[QUOTE=bluecat;6386][URL=http://s990.photobucket.com/user/mx482/media/Patty-KD4WUJ-4_zps0dc9d512.jpg.html][/URL]

I think you're good. I looked up Hot Ham Women but sadly not much comes up.

. . . - - - . . .[/QUOTE]

Well, I think you made up for a lack of quantity there with quality. But maybe next time try "hot ham and cheese women".

[QUOTE=bluecat;6387]I've always kicked myself for not getting into martial arts too...[/QUOTE]

Yeah, add nunchuck skills to your bowhunting skills and you'd be in like Flint. You know how chicks like guys with skills.
27.) Swamp Fox - 06/03/2013
Hot ham and cheese women....mmmmm....
28.) luv2bowhunt - 06/04/2013
I like ham and green beans......................just sayin'.


Seriously though, I hunt in a State Forest with no cell service. If I was in trouble, heart attack say, how long do you think it would take someone on a ham radio to get help to me? That could take a bit of time I would think.

Of course, it would be quicker than my wife realizing it was dark and I'm not home yet.............
29.) DParker - 06/04/2013
When it comes to cardiac stuff minutes count, so honestly...I don't think any realistic response time is going to be adequate if you vapor lock in the middle of the woods. But I'd think that if you break a leg or sustain some other injury that makes it impossible...or at least extremely difficult...to make it out under your own steam and get help, a decent radio (that you know how to use) + GPS could make all the difference.
30.) Swamp Fox - 06/04/2013
So what you're saying is that my customary plan for emergencies, which involves dragging myself to a road and/or starting a signal fire, would not be your personal choice?
31.) Swamp Fox - 06/04/2013
I'm imagining the guys at the International Space Station tuning in every morning to listen to DParker recite the day's Monty Python skit...You'd think sooner or later they have to radio back and say something about it...
32.) luv2bowhunt - 06/04/2013
That's funny. But I honestly never even think about emergency situations. I still act like I'm 24, which is probably stupid, but I just always do the same things.

At least I now mark my location on a topo map. Last year I marked one and put an arrow to my stand sites with a caption "possible corpse location".

Wife didn't think it was funny though.:wink
33.) bluecat - 06/04/2013
[URL=http://s990.photobucket.com/user/mx482/media/professor_zps516ef37a.jpg.html][/URL]


You can always build a radio out of a conch shell.
34.) bluecat - 06/04/2013
memo to self: Get in, get out, no one gets hurt.

[URL=http://s990.photobucket.com/user/mx482/media/tinaLouise_zpsaa6cc3c7.jpg.html][/URL]
35.) DParker - 06/04/2013
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;6395]I'm imagining the guys at the International Space Station tuning in every morning to listen to DParker recite the day's Monty Python skit...You'd think sooner or later they have to radio back and say something about it...[/QUOTE]

I'd like to have an argument with them. The full course.

[QUOTE=luv2bowhunt;6396]That's funny. But I honestly never even think about emergency situations. I still act like I'm 24, which is probably stupid, but I just always do the same things.

At least I now mark my location on a topo map. Last year I marked one and put an arrow to my stand sites with a caption "possible corpse location".

Wife didn't think it was funny though.:wink[/QUOTE]

That's just a hint that your life insurance policy isn't big enough.

[QUOTE=bluecat;6398]memo to self: Get in, get out, no one gets hurt.

[URL=http://s990.photobucket.com/user/mx482/media/tinaLouise_zpsaa6cc3c7.jpg.html][/URL][/QUOTE]

That's why the correct answer was always "Mary Ann".
36.) DParker - 06/04/2013
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;6247]"Bacon soda?...That's a genius idea, Gus, but I'm not sure the world is ready for a pork-flavored beverage."[/QUOTE]

Bet [I]me[/I], Buckwheat!

[URL="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=t0wPU4DK6Zg"]Bacon Flavored Soda[/URL]

[video=youtube;P4uhk8hIjMo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4uhk8hIjMo&feature=player_embedded[/video]

Bacon coffee, bacon tea, bacon beer, bacon hot chocolate.....

[URL="http://www.baconfreak.com/bacon-beverages.html"]Bacon Beverages[/URL]

I actually have a bottle of the bacon syrup.
37.) Swamp Fox - 06/04/2013
:grin::-):grin:
38.) Hunter - 06/04/2013
[QUOTE=DParker;6426]Bet [I]me[/I], Buckwheat!

[URL="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=t0wPU4DK6Zg"]Bacon Flavored Soda[/URL]

[video=youtube;P4uhk8hIjMo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4uhk8hIjMo&feature=player_embedded[/video]

Bacon coffee, bacon tea, bacon beer, bacon hot chocolate.....

[URL="http://www.baconfreak.com/bacon-beverages.html"]Bacon Beverages[/URL]

I actually have a bottle of the bacon syrup.[/QUOTE]


Bacon syrup does not qualify as a bacon beverage unless you gulp in down in one sitting! :-)
39.) DParker - 06/06/2013
Mr. FedEx man just dropped off my KG-UVD1P along with all of the accessories I ordered for it. I haven't had a chance to read the manual at all yet, but I've got it sitting in the charger right now on my desk tuned to the Dallas PD Central Patrol Dispatch frequency. The reception is as clear as a bell (I'm inside, but on the 9th floor...so I'm sure that helps). Apparently there's some trouble at a 7-11 on Commerce St. downtown with some long-haired creep harrassing customers.

I just need to be sure to keep my mitts of the thing so I don't accidentally key the mic while it's on this channel. :-)

Update: Now there's some poor lass being harrassed "on the phone and in person" by an ex-boyfriend. What an action-packed city.
40.) DParker - 06/08/2013
LOL! Just heard the dispatcher put out the word for a unit to respond to a "Woman unable to free herself from handcuffs" call.

I'm betting every patrol car in NE Dallas responds.

Swampy, I'll keep listening in case they issue a name and address...in anticipation of your Halloween visit. :laugh:
41.) DParker - 06/28/2013
Well, I passed my Technician exam this evening. So after about a week of bureaucratic paper processing I should be assigned a call sign and will finally be able to key the mike without worrying about the Men in Black showing up at my front door.

Now all I need is the desire to talk to some random stranger over the radio for no particular reason.
42.) Swamp Fox - 06/28/2013
You don't have "patriot" or "Eff Obama" anywhere on your application, do you?
43.) Swamp Fox - 06/28/2013
'Cause I'm thinking if you do it might take a little longer...:wink
44.) DParker - 06/28/2013
No. But when they gave me my paperwork I held my radio in one hand high above my head and shouted, "Wolverines!!!"...and then ran out the door.
45.) Swamp Fox - 06/28/2013
LOL...

That deserves a :laugh:
46.) luv2bowhunt - 06/28/2013
What's your 'call sign'?

Do you get to nickname yourself or is that imposed by others?
47.) DParker - 06/28/2013
[QUOTE=luv2bowhunt;7332]What's your 'call sign'?

Do you get to nickname yourself or is that imposed by others?[/QUOTE]

You [I]can[/I] apply for a "vanity" sign (just like vanity tags for your car) but I'm not quite that geeky, so Uncle Sam will be assigning me one when he processes my paperwork.
48.) Swamp Fox - 06/28/2013
You should call yourself "The Chattering Chimp" or something like that..

Over.
49.) bluecat - 06/28/2013
50.) DParker - 06/28/2013
[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;7338]You should call yourself "The Chattering Chimp" or something like that..

Over.[/QUOTE]

That's a CB-style handle, and we hams are far too snobbish a lot for that sort of folderol (back in '78/'79 mine was "The Renegade", because my favorite song around that time was Styx's [I]Renegade[/I]...and I was living in TN at the time, and that's just a cool southern redneck kinda' name). For us it's the more dignified "W7ABC" type of identifier.

[QUOTE=bluecat;7340]http://i990.photobucket.com/albums/af27/mx482/chimp_zps3379e15f.jpg[/QUOTE]

Oh, right...like I'm gonna' bother wearing pants.
51.) bluecat - 06/28/2013
Roger Delta Paul, no pants.
52.) luv2bowhunt - 07/11/2013
OK DP, the suspense is killing me.

How is the hamming going? Any contact with Amelia Earhart yet?
53.) DParker - 07/13/2013
[QUOTE=luv2bowhunt;7873]OK DP, the suspense is killing me.

How is the hamming going? Any contact with Amelia Earhart yet?[/QUOTE]

Well, I passed what I refer to as the "damn ham exam" a couple of weeks ago and my license showed up in the FCC database this past Wednesday, with my paper license arriving in the mail yesterday. You may now refer to me as "Kilo-Foxtrot-Five-Whiskey-Hotel-Quebec". Ironically, now that I can legally key the mike and talk to someone I don't have even the slightest urge to do so. But I'll eventually need to get in some sort of practice time with it just so I'm familiar with it's capabilities and limitations in the event I ever need to use for the purpose for which I bought it.

Amelia's not returning my calls though.
54.) bluecat - 07/15/2013
"Come in Tokyo"
55.) Swamp Fox - 07/15/2013
[QUOTE=DParker;7989]Ironically, now that I can legally key the mike and talk to someone I don't have even the slightest urge to do so. But I'll eventually need to get in some sort of practice time with it just so I'm familiar with it's capabilities ...[/QUOTE]

You should start your own daily broadcast...Call it "'A Voice in the Wilderness" or something like that...You could rant about one or two newsworthy topics per day ...Maybe respond to Obama when he can't resist the urge to weigh in on something that's not his job because he can't do his job.

It could be kinda like a fireside chat with real carbon-emitting fuel, or maybe even some evil fossil fuel, natural gas or propane...Propane!...Depending on what you like to use at home or in the office...In contrast to when Obama chats where it's all powered by the wind and sun, as in a lot of hot air and sunshine up your skirt.
56.) bluecat - 07/15/2013
Swampy, if I had a son he would look like you. :wink
57.) Swamp Fox - 07/15/2013
Well, thank God!...It would be easier on him in school, and life in general...I've seen a couple of pics...:wink:fire:
58.) bluecat - 07/15/2013
good point
59.) Swamp Fox - 07/15/2013
No it isn't...
60.) DParker - 07/15/2013
[QUOTE=bluecat;8011]"Come in Tokyo"[/QUOTE]

Herro?

[QUOTE=Swamp Fox;8016]You should start your own daily broadcast...Call it "'A Voice in the Wilderness" or something like that...You could rant about one or two newsworthy topics per day ...Maybe respond to Obama when he can't resist the urge to weigh in on something that's not his job because he can't do his job.

It could be kinda like a fireside chat with real carbon-emitting fuel, or maybe even some evil fossil fuel, natural gas or propane...Propane!...Depending on what you like to use at home or in the office...In contrast to when Obama chats where it's all powered by the wind and sun, as in a lot of hot air and sunshine up your skirt.[/QUOTE]

I was thinking more along the lines of a bio-fuel commonly found on the ground in cow pastures.
61.) bluecat - 07/15/2013
Sorry, I'm not allowed to argue unless you've paid.
62.) Swamp Fox - 07/15/2013
You seemed too conciliatory...
63.) bluecat - 07/15/2013
thank you
64.) Swamp Fox - 07/15/2013
Well...
65.) bluecat - 07/15/2013
thank you
66.) Swamp Fox - 07/15/2013
Not at all!







(Stupid git...)