/HAM/ - Amateur Radio General

[Anonymous No.1824857]

Mobile edition
Old >>1813941


>New to /ham/? Read this shit!
http://www.arrl.org/what-is-ham-radio
https://www.fcc.gov/wireless/bureau-divisions/mobility-division/amateur-radio-service
>Your search engine of choice works well too!

>Idiot's Guide to Coax Cable
https://www.pcs-electronics.com/guide_coax.php

>Looking for frequencies to monitor near you?
http://www.radioreference.com

>Basic Rx loop fundamentals
https://www.w8ji.com/magnetic_receiving_loops.htm

>DIY SWL Mag. Loop
http://www.kr1st.com/swlloop.htm

>Small Tx Loop
http://www.kk5jy.net/magloop/

>In Depth Loop articles
http://webclass.org/k5ijb/antennas/Small-magnetic-loops.htm

>Online Practice Tests:
http://aa9pw.com/
https://hamstudy.org/
https://hamexam.org/

> Real-Time Propagation Data
http://prop.kc2g.com/

>Space Weather
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/communities/radio-communications

>WSJT-X 2.1 User Guide
https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx-doc/wsjtx-main-2.1.2.html

>FT8 operating guide
https://www.g4ifb.com/FT8_Hinson_tips_for_HF_DXers.pdf

>APRS
http://www.aprs.org/

[Mrcrummy No.1824882]

You ever just sit in your truck
Also, first post

[Anonymous No.1824885]

>>1824882
I got my baofeng today
After fiddling with the software and scanning up and down I hit a paramedic frequency and I took the headphone out so my wife could hear too
>found a body. 72 year old woman. She's been there for a few days. Thermoneutral, vital signs unremarkable. Showing signs of decay. Over,

:O

Wow. Anyway, my wife and I are hooked

[Anonymous No.1824903]

>>1824885
Im interested in HAM and have only read about the subject little by little but I've already learned Yaesu are some of the best. Its a Japanese brand. I wouldnt mind having a Baofeng though, anything that works for now.

[Anonymous No.1824904]

>>1824857
And thanks for the materials anon. More good stuff to read up on.

[Anonymous No.1824917]

>>1824885
Enjoy it while the department has 30 yo radios.
>>1824903
Sounds like you got the gist of it. Ham is all about arguing which brand of radio is the best. After all how else are you supposed to advance the state of the radio art?
Just wait until you hear the debates on the air about how high somebody should set the mic gain knob, you'll love those!

[Anonymous No.1824945]

CB help dunno whats wrong

already tuned antenna 1.5 SWR on ch1 and ch40
attached power line to positive battery terminal
should the ground wire be on the negative terminal? that's where its at now
all i get is static until about half squelch
i can hear people SOMETIMES but not clearly
antenna is positioned high on roof of car (mag mount)
i can still hear engine noise/electrical noises through the cb (A/C blower motor for example)
the RX meter has like 1 bar sometimes too
TX shows full bars but i never get a response

I've tried everything except trashing everything and buying new shit. unless no one around me is talking? i feel like i should hear something?

[anon No.1824965]

>>1824903
baofeng are great value, yaesu are great radios. i have a pair of vx7r's and ft817nd for nearly 20 years and still good as the day i bought them. used daily. also i could probably sell them today and not lose a single penny from what i paid. you get cast magnesium case, multiple bands, add-ons, flexibility, cheap after market accessories because they are so established, listed mods and hacks. but its quite an investment up front.

[Anonymous No.1824979]

>>1824945
Do you live in a rural area? I do and don't hear any activity unless there's sporadic E.

[Anonymous No.1825035]

About 10UTC is South Pacific time for early birds on 40m. First ZL, then VK and sometimes JA.

[Anonymous No.1825260]

>>1824857
Why don't women date me?

[Anonymous No.1825261]

>>1824885
I've been decoding Flex-A alpha pages and am getting the names and other information for people infected with the 'rona at my local hospital.

[Anonymous No.1825263]

>>1824945
>CB help dunno whats wrong
it depends on where you are in my city CB is dead except for illegal transmitters somewhere else I hear nothing.

[Anonymous No.1825264]

>>1824945
>i feel like i should hear something?
tune in to channel 6 or 11 and just listen for a couple of days, turn the squelch so you don't hear hiss. Eventually you will hear the morons on high powered illegal transmitters babbling incoherently about the size of the di... I mean amps.

[MrCrummyPaws No.1825275]

>>1824945
channel 19 is constantly busy with people talking here, hang out on 19 for a while and listen, try early in the morning and around 5-8pm, boomers always play with the radio when they wake up and before bed.

Also, boutta pull the trigger on some amazon shit with that stimulus money, feelin it rn

[MrCrummyPaws No.1825278]

>>1825275
>>1824945
also, be aware that you likely wont be able to hear anyone or talk to anyone from your house with a barefoot (unamped) radio, you'll need to find a high and wide open location with a line of sight of your entire city, park the car and sit there and wait.
If you can see them, they can likely hear you, if you're surrounded by houses and can't see the horizon or city, they aren't gonna hear you and you aren't gonna hear them unless they are a base station with a big linear and big antenna.

Also, be aware that some areas have a shit ton of RF interference, gas stations, sitting at a red light, led lighting, high tension lines.
If there is excess static and you have the squelch adjusted, if there is a high noise floor, you'll never hear anyone, not even the big stations.

[Anonymous No.1825283]

is it bad to use baofengs as walkie talkies on 450mhz ?

[MrCrummyPaws No.1825288]

>>1825283
you're opening a can of worms by asking that, it's technically illegal to use a baofeng for anything but VHF and UHM amateur ham bands, but you can easily get away with using them as MURS/GMRS/FRS radios, and the chances of getting caught are infinitesimal.

[Anonymous No.1825307]

>>1824857
I'm interested in getting a 10M WAC from Missouri.
What's it going to take to pull that off?

[Anonymous No.1825330]

>>1825261

[Anonymous No.1825366]

How come if broadcasting is banned on ham radio, there are practice cw sessions where people just send random texts to no one in particular, and also the QST code exists, which is literally the code for "broadcast message"?

[Anonymous No.1825374]

>>1825366
And, how about those politicians? WHAT'S UP WITH THAT

[Anonymous No.1825416]

>>1825366
omg fool lrn2english. indiscriminate omnidirectional transmission "broadcasting" is allowed; the activity of "broadcasting" that is taxed by the government is not allowed.

[Anonymous No.1825450]

>>1825260
It might possibly be because he has been dead for a few years now.

[Anonymous No.1825541]

getting weird talk on FRS, 2 guys talking about "12 o'clock" type directional locations. weird

[Anonymous No.1825544]

>>1824885
how can you hear? i loaded all the local to me EMS/FIRE/PD/DPW frequencies on my UV5R using chirp and i get nothing i live a block from a hospital and a 24hr fire department and nothing.

[Anonymous No.1825554]

>>1825541
Probably airshitters

[Anonymous No.1825653]

Just saw the ISS go over. Satellites are so cool,

[Anonymous No.1825654]

Not ham related but how do I pick up better FM and AM reception in a basement?

[Anonymous No.1825655]

>>1825654
Put the antenna outside the basement

[Anonymous No.1825741]

>>1824917
Until the deviation equals 5KHz at peaks or a maximum of 15KHz bandwidth.

[Anonymous No.1825794]

>>1825653
Watch a newly launched Starlink group, it looks like beads on a string.
https://satmap.space/

[Anonymous No.1825804]

>>1825541
They may be boy scouts. In the UK it has been found that children can no longer read a clock, let alone use it as a compass.

[Anonymous No.1825887]

>>1825544
bump this

[Anonymous No.1825912]

>>1824857
Anyone know what the 'ST' field is for?

[Anonymous No.1825917]

>>1825912
Strength aka wattage?

[Anonymous No.1825925]

>>1825917
Nah, that's part of the XMTR field. My guess is Station Time.

[Anonymous No.1825948]

>>1824857
preface: i know nothing about radios
i have this old tube 60s shortwave kit radio. Is it even possible these days to pick up the kinds of signals you used to back in the 60s? After fidlding with it for a while I could get maybe 2-3 am stations on band A

[Anonymous No.1825952]

>>1825948
Knight Span Master? Yeah you should be able to pick up AM stations alright with that, maybe you'll need to connect an external antenna somehow. Your bands are 1.7 MHz to 4.5 MHz, 4.8 MHz to 14 MHz and 13.5 MHz to 30 MHz.

[Anonymous No.1825955]

>>1825952
Thanks. Aside from AM, assuming I got an atenna, could I actually listen to anything useful? I can get AM on any other radio in my house

[Anonymous No.1825958]

>>1825955
>Thanks. Aside from AM, assuming I got an atenna, could I actually listen to anything useful? I can get AM on any other radio in my house
Well, no, it's a kit AM receiver and that's all it does. I guess you could build a beat frequency oscillator for SSB and listen to ham chat on 80M and 40M if you really wanted a project. Otherwise, no, it's an AM receiver, that's all it does and can do.

[Anonymous No.1825961]

>>1825958
Okay that makes sense now. I got it for free from an old relative and I was curious about it. Probably wont hold onto it for too long then. Thanks

[Anonymous No.1826103]

>>1825961
It's not just AM. Regenerative receivers let you listen to cw (morse) and ssb. Modern radios with the ability to do that are 100 dollars and up.

[Anonymous No.1826108]

>>1826103
Does this information still hold true or are the airwaves clogged now with other stuff? I live in Chicago if that makes a difference

[Anonymous No.1826115]

>>1826108
The amateur bands yeah, the broadcast bands may have changed a bit and also kind of depend on the country. The rest is ok except obviously the part about the police using it etc. Just throw a wire antenna up a tree, play with the controls and see what you can get.

[Anonymous No.1826118]

You can also log into a kiwisdr near you (there's a map) and compare the signals on a modern receiver with what you can get on your radio.

[Anonymous No.1826405]

>>1824857
Almost 1k a year for a license, no thanks. Make it poorfags friendly and id take it up, i got a baofeng I use to monitor the few ham frequencies i stumble upon. papa14 is my goto (Califag)

[Anonymous No.1826408]

>>1824945
I burnt out my cb and damaged a capacitor (two capacitors) trying to fix it. No schematics for it either, i was going in blind with a circuit tester.

Burnt cb, and a lot of stress.

[Anonymous No.1826418]

>>1826405
Wtf you talking about it only cost me 15 for my license.

[Anonymous No.1826542]

>>1825330
006877183 10:23:53 16-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6400 5N03: [name redacted by anon]: Critical lab: Pt's bronchial wash positive for COVID 19. Thks. Evan #69053 [32]

006798286 18:07:14 15-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6400 STATUS CHANGE: BED: EAST 2B 215-A BED ID: 221501 STATUS: Dirty STATUS TIME: 05/15/2020 18:06 PRECAUTIONS: COVID-19 Non-Airborne [14]

007227675 18:43:32 15-05-20 FLEX-A ALPHA 6400 From [name redacted by anon]: PCU HLOC 8C 878 to 1D 182; [name redacted by anon]; MRN 2144884; Dr Naqvi; Bilat PNA, COVID r/o; SWAT avail? [74]

007940704 18:46:49 15-05-20 FLEX-A ALPHA 6400 Coum CALL bpK PT DX cOVID pna TELE REQUEST AT mETHOSdist hospital [name redacted by anon] MRN: 000009719771, , 77 year old, PCP: [name redacted by anon] from bedcontrol 6662 sarah [73]

[Anonymous No.1826544]

>>1825330
non covid stuff:

007750989 18:52:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6400 MSN 078 hello Message from NOC PCB. [redacted by anon] [90]

007767023 18:53:47 15-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6401 [redacted by anon]health.com Subject: Niagara Alarm From BBWMC_ACM100:AHU_SA Heating - Source: BBWMC_ACM100:AHU_SA Heating Timestamp: 15-May-20 6:44:33 PM MST State: Normal / Unacked P

007767023 18:53:49 15-05-20 FLEX-A ALPHA 6402 riority: 11 Alarm Class: AHUs Text: Supply Temperature Alarm has Cleared (Normal)

006287744 18:59:30 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [63]
006751352 18:59:30 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [01]
007275304 18:59:30 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [58]
006438662 18:59:30 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [41]
006930821 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [26]
007122489 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [49]
007929166 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 65069 [58]
007966026 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [92]
006388366 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [15]
007160789 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [79]
006949733 18:59:43 15-05-20 FLEX-C StNUM 6400 9578 [75]

[Anonymous No.1826545]

>>1825330
encrypted messages

003291502 19:00:19 15-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6401 (J @(" @9enfngoblaibjckdlLP " @(J P(" @ielfngmdlcmdmdndoL0 # BDJ @$" 0TeoepfqdnblbmcnepM ! @(J @(" @?ehej`j_h`ibjfkenJ '*BP! 0$" 0>gjflbmakblclenfoJ0 J*BP! 0$" 0J [21]


003291502 19:00:20 15-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6400 !T * -R[/0%!"I~A \fmflblajajbkdmdnL J*BH! @$" 0:[g[j\j\iXgWeXhZhJ0 ! 0$Q,0$! 0BirjsjthtfqfpgrksQ0 ! 0$! 0$! 02eqfrftgtdrdpdqgrP@ ! 0$! 0$! 0&cldndnbk`iblcnfnMP ! @(" @$" 0^clclbg`f`hakbmamM@ " P<& @(" 0]dmdodnaiaibkcmfnN ! @($ @$" 00 [22]


003318428 19:00:30 15-05-20 FLEX-C ALPHA 6400 ~A!>)@!>@$!gB` [61]

[Anonymous No.1826554]

>>1824945
well you don't provide a model number so that's not helpful.

however I had a similar issue and found a cracked solder joint on the board. My unit was transmitting but just getting low volume hissing. fixed the joint and the hissing went up in volume and I could receive. however it was all long distance illegal stuff as no one in my city uses CB's anymore. It's dead here is a city of over 2 million I have driven around and heard nothing (except illegal high powers).

[Anonymous No.1826561]

>>1825925
Makes sense!

[Anonymous No.1826562]

>>1826545
>>1826544
>>1826542
My money is on it being a beeper.

[Anonymous No.1826563]

>>1826562
That's what I said original an Alpha pager. Beeper was just a device that when it beeped you called a certain number.

[Anonymous No.1826566]

>>1826405
You're on crack
https://www.southpasradio.org/resources-links/get-licensed/

[Anonymous No.1826567]

>>1826563
Gotcha. I scanned that and thought Flex was your transmitter. Find a way to decrypt! I'll have to check my airwaves

[LilLeto No.1826568]

>>1826405
Please explain this... As others have pointed out, they're paying $15 for licensing. And the license it good for 10 years.

[Anonymous No.1826571]

>>1826568
He's a retarded larper who's trolling. Stop replying to the idiot.

[Anonymous No.1826645]

>>1826542
So much for HIPPA

[Anonymous No.1826652]

>>1826645
It's HIPAA. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act .
I used to be in the medical field and would, with a straight face, tell people I've never heard of HIPPA. After they had a meltdown, I asked if they meant HIPAA.

[Anonymous No.1826993]

USPS - any straight answer as to what it costs to mail "QSL" postcards across the world?

[Anonymous No.1826997]

>>1826993
Should be the cost of a stamp no?

[Anonymous No.1826999]

>>1826997
Forever stamp is 50-something cents.
A domestic postcard stamp is 32 cents.
From what I can find, international rates can range from 50 cents to 4 dollars or more.

[Anonymous No.1827097]

>>1825544
If you’re in the USA, many organizations like that have moved from analog FM to an 800 MHz trunked digital system. My state is entirely on such a system.

[Anonymous No.1827115]

>>1827097
More and more use some form of encryption. People who seek entertainment can try the public web links. Example California: The number of current listeners hints at activity.
https://www.broadcastify.com/listen/stid/6/publicsafety

[Anonymous No.1827161]

>>1825948
Super regenerative recievers are somewhat more fiddly than the average radio. Watch a few vids of people explaining how to use them.

[Anonymous No.1827206]

>>1827161
>Watch a few vids
Some people are still able to read.

[Anonymous No.1827232]

Recommendations for budget friendly VHF SSB radios? Wanna expand my FT8 paper chasing

[Mrcrummy No.1827335]

Uhh, nanovna is fucking based holy shit, I should have got one of these long ago

[Anonymous No.1827341]

>>1827335
I know, truly amazing for $50. There's free software if you don't want to play with the nano screen and knob

[Anonymous No.1827513]

>>1827232
>VHF SSB
>FT8
6m, or what? You're not going to find shit on anything above.

[Anonymous No.1827611]

>>1827513
I was thinking 2M and setting up a yagi, but yea. Given how terrible 6M is, what's the point?
I was going to do it this morning for fun with my mobile rig only to realize 2M FT8 is SSB and not FM.
Bigger fish to fry as they say.

[Anonymous No.1827648]

>>1826999
Nice trips, sorry I can't help you there fåm. Stamps.com sometimes helps.

[Anonymous No.1828025]

Anyone have a working api call for lotw? This one from their documentation brings me to a login screen (in before did you replace w/ your call and pass)
>https://lotw.arrl.org/lotwuser/lotwreport.adi?login=ke3z&password=notmypass&qso_query=1

[Anonymous No.1828035]

what % of this hobby is about building something? would be awesome to build and learn the theory but the equipment is so dirt cheap as it is not 1970's anymore. what is the "modern ham" hobby really about?

[Anonymous No.1828037]

>>1828035
>what % of this hobby is about building something?
As much as you want it to be.
>would be awesome to build and learn the theory but the equipment is so dirt cheap as it is not 1970's anymore.
Get into QRP operating, portable rigs are still several hundred dollars for anything decent that does SSB, whereas you can build a portable, multiband superhet transceiver for under a hundo if you know what you're doing.

[Anonymous No.1828038]

>>1828025
found it - switch login to username. My DX is in 90's, so building a little dashboard to watch it.

[Anonymous No.1828042]

>>1828035
There isn't one answer, which is why the ham community and future is in disarray.
There are too many sub-hobbies to list, partial blame I cast on ARRL for not addressing technological changes for the past 20 years, which created a schism between old, traditionalists, and everyone else, but also obscuring how amazing and inclusive the hobby is.
Unfortunately the equipment prices haven't followed with the trend of cheapening electronics, but you can build whatever you want. Radio, antenna, amplifier ... plenty of documentation on the internet (as long as you stay away from the ARRL website)

[Anonymous No.1828303]

>>1827648
Thanks, I figured it out.
$0.32 domestic and $1.20 internationally (flat rate)

[Anonymous No.1828433]

>>1828303
Sweet, good to know.

[Anonymous No.1828518]

>>1824857
What should I say when someone responds to my monitoring call on a repeater?

[Anonymous No.1828532]

>>1824945
run your power directly to the battery instead of the circuitboard

[Anonymous No.1828537]

>>1825654
>>1825655
MY SIDES ARE IN ORBIT

[Anonymous No.1828539]

>>1825955
coast to coast am with george noori

[Anonymous No.1828545]

>>1828518
Cease all transmissions immediately.

[Anonymous No.1828547]

>>1828545
Why?

[Anonymous No.1828550]

>>1828547
Priority traffic

[Anonymous No.1828553]

>>1828550
I'm a new ham. Isn't it pretty normal for people to shoot the shit on repeaters?

[Anonymous No.1828556]

>>1828553

[Anonymous No.1828557]

>>1828556
What?

[Anonymous No.1828572]

What are the best amateur satellites to use? I know of AO92, and SO50 but I can't find a good source of activity used amsats.

[Anonymous No.1828594]

>>1828539
i miss art bell

[Anonymous No.1828597]

>>1828594
only discovered the show earlier this year seemed like a real interesting dude

[Anonymous No.1828770]

>>1828518

[Anonymous No.1828782]

>>1828572
Here's a summary with more links
https://www.amsat.org/fm-satellite-frequency-summary/
Image: Popular sat antenna in South Africa

[Anonymous No.1828797]

>>1824857
You're doing the God's work OP

[Anonymous No.1828928]

I just bought a 1950s Zenith Trans-Oceanic, I like restoring old junk, parts are easy to find and info is abundant. Anyone here have or restore old radios as well?

[Anonymous No.1829019]

Why do Vibrokeyers command such a high price? Seems like something that could be a diy kit.

[Anonymous No.1829024]

>>1829019
boomer enthusiasts are willing to pay

[Anonymous No.1829037]

>>1829019
when you reach max level you stop levelling.

[Anonymous No.1829077]

>>1828928
>Anyone here have or restore old radios as well?
yes

good luck finding a 1L6 tube for that.

[Anonymous No.1829109]

>>1829077
Not a big deal, pricey but still abundant all over ebay but I plan on making the sand replacement, still have locals I can ask as well. Can't wait to get it, what do you have?

[Anonymous No.1829301]

>>1829109

[Anonymous No.1829405]

Reminds me of my grandfather who had a bunch of b-24 stuff and radios.

[Anonymous No.1829408]

>>1829301
fug forgot to quote.

[Anonymous No.1829586]

Has anyone built a stable 9:1 unan random wire(s) antenna?
I built one and attached a 124.5', 65', and 23' and was able to work 6, 10, 15, 17, 20, 30, 40, 60, 80, and 160 with the internal tuner (only missing 12).
Then a storm came along and I can't get back to my former glory as the lower bands come and go.
Any tips or suggestions? I was so frustrated last night - the thought of working 60M was the only thing that got me through the day.

[Anonymous No.1829593]

>>1829586
>Then a storm came along
Water ingress to connections or coax?

[Anonymous No.1829597]

>>1829593
That crossed my mind, but the coax and box have been out there for half a year already.
The 124' wire is wrapped around 2 small trees, so I'm coming to the conclusion it was stretched or shifted.
The antenna does work and I've been picking up countries I'd never before had been able to reach, but it's a tossup which of the lower band will be tunable with the combination of wires.
I did a little reading this morning and may replace the 65' and 32' random wires. Those are quarter wave vertical wires for 80 and 30, something I had laying around. Apparently quarter wave length should be avoided.
The 124' works/worked on 10-30M with just the internal tuner.
>The magic lengths to use with the end fed long wire are 29, 35.5, 41, 58, 71, and 84 feet.

[Anonymous No.1829606]

>>1829593
Oops

[Anonymous No.1829612]

>>1829606
And I'm back. 10, 15, 17, 20, 30, 40, 60, 80.

[Anonymous No.1829625]

the local club 2m repeater has never been this busy before, all the boomer guys are in their sheds 24/7

[Anonymous No.1829632]

>>1829625
>in their sheds 24/7
House arrest?

[Anonymous No.1829637]

>>1829301
Beautiful, thanks for sharing, my friend has an S-38 as well. I had a look through my tubes and of course I have every one but the silly 1L6. Could've sworn I had a couple.

[Anonymous No.1829640]

>>1829637
I spy a tuning eye

[Anonymous No.1829705]

>>1829640
Yep, 6X6, Canadian only tube as far as I was told. This was built by Canadian Marconi around WW2, more likely mid 30's, found it abandoned in an alley. Recieves broadcast and a bit of shortwave. No longer have it, gave it away, the old wood radios just take up too much room.

[Anonymous No.1829714]

>>1829632
they are all afraid of corona

[Anonymous No.1829716]

There seem to be a few history buffs on right now - my grandpa was a WW2 US Army Radar Mechanic.
To the question - would his training have included morse code? I'm trying to put to rest the idea he was ever a ham. He loved listening to German radiowaves and had ham receivers, but his spelling was atrocious and I can't picture him sitting down and learning morse code in order to get a license. If the Army didn't reach him morse, I can accept he wouldn't have been a ham. I did spend an afternoon in archives of ham callsign magazines and never found him.

[Anonymous No.1829759]

>>1829714
but the flu season is over

[Anonymous No.1829835]

>Max 30 watts digital
Anyone know if that's true? I like to push digital modes up around 50-60 watts.

[Anonymous No.1829836]

>>1829716
He probably didn't. My grandfather was a radio operator on a B-24 bomber and he never got his license. He was really into CB radio in the 70s and 80s though.

[Anonymous No.1829871]

>>1829835
30W to 60W is +3dB, one half of an S unit.

[Anonymous No.1829878]

>>1829871
I use my beam and a linear for all my digital needs.

[Anonymous No.1829880]

>>1829871
True. I'll spend tonight on 30 watts and see if I notice anything. The LDG AT-200 seems to be rated for 75w on digital.

[Anonymous No.1829915]

>>1829716
wireless telegraphy operator would've included morse as a requirement, radar mechanic wouldn't. they'd give him a cheat sheet and he either learned it or didn't.

[Anonymous No.1829921]

>>1829836
>>1829915
That makes sense - he'd had been better off learning about electricity and meters. I think I'm going to put the idea to bed that he was ever a ham. Guess I'm the first in the family thanks to his inspiration.

[Anonymous No.1829926]

>>1829759
And yet most places are still on lock down. Hell the major country ties in Oregon won't be open again u til like mid June early July if kunt brown gets her way.

[Anonymous No.1830047]

For HAM noobs like me interested or just getting started, this site has a good run down of basics. Informative comments too. These are the kinds of pages I turn into pdfs. Web2pdfconvert.com is good for this but there is a daily limit in case anyone wants to use it for several different web pages.
https://theprepared.com/survival-skills/guides/beginners-guide-amateur-ham-radio-preppers/

[Anonymous No.1830066]

>>1830047
>preppers
>theprepared.com
>survival-skills

[Anonymous No.1830159]

>>1829926
>still on lock down
the goal is control.

[Anonymous No.1830183]

>>1830159
>the goal is control.
True
If you dont control the spread of the virus, its going to be an even bigger bloodbath than it already is.

[Anonymous No.1830186]

this is pretty neat

[Anonymous No.1830194]

>>1830183
>control the spread
Good luck then.

[Anonymous No.1830217]

>>1830183
Meh, fuck control. Socially interactive people that don't respect 1,5 meter to stranger rule must die.

[Anonymous No.1830243]

Hook me up, PROPEGATION gods

[Anonymous No.1830288]

>>1830243
how come i can speak to hams 200+ miles away easy but 5 miles impossible?

[Anonymous No.1830291]

>>1830288
On what bands and with what antenna?

[Anonymous No.1830292]

>>1830291
10m home made dip

[Anonymous No.1830293]

>>1830288
skip zone between 5 and 200 miles?

[Anonymous No.1830299]

>>1830288
>>1830293
Comes from the properties of the plasma in the ionosphere and how that affects the refractive index at your broadcast wavelength.

[Anonymous No.1830311]

>>1830292
orient dipole vertical for local contacts.

[Anonymous No.1830749]

>>1830066
What the hell is your problem asswipe? You're the only idiot around if you have a problem with survival skills. Honestly I hope someone kills you and your family you worthless pos.

[Anonymous No.1830809]

>>1830749
>duuurrrrrrrr
>I survive apocalypse
>Me smart

[Anonymous No.1830850]

>>1830809
Seriously kill yourself faggot. You're the kind of no life jackass shitting up decent threads with nonsense and must have some anal retentive problems to enjoy being a difficult faggy little cunt. You're a wsste of life. Just end it already and do your dumb ass family a favor. I don't even care if you're underage, because it would mostly be some dumbshit teen that would equate anything survival to apocalypse larping or pretending someone better than them must be extremely obese. Seriously kill yourself. Inb4 more "muh" and needing to post a picture every reply like a cringe net boyfag stereotype.

[Anonymous No.1830884]

>>1830850

[Anonymous No.1830965]

>>1830884
Called it and you still do it. You're too faggot for this universe, time to go. Wtf is that pic? Your admission you're a dickfaced nerd? Lmao. If you could see me and were confident you wouldn't need to use desperate lies like a fag. Yet here you are in all your immense raped faggotry...

[Anonymous No.1830970]

>>1830965

[Anonymous No.1830994]

>>1830970
Don't care what you're on about. I can imagine you being some kind of scared coward that tries to misdirect when you know a reckoning is coming and your ass is grass. You being the disgrace waste of life youe are, I've already won. Stay scared pussy.

[Anonymous No.1830996]

>>1830970
Don't care what you're on about. I can imagine you being some kind of scared coward that tries to misdirect when you know a reckoning is coming and your ass is grass. You being the disgrace waste of life you are, I've already won. Stay scared pussy.

[Anonymous No.1831029]

>>1829606
get the fuck out you un-virgin

[Anonymous No.1831030]

>>1830996
you're gay

[Anonymous No.1831034]

>>1831030
Obvious no u lol

[Anonymous No.1831069]

>>1830965
>>1830996
>t.

[Anonymous No.1831182]

>>1831069
Honestly you might as well live at gay pride parades being such cuntish weird faggot.
>Hey internet want to see an annoying mouthy weird gay little bitch the world agrees should die?
>Why is it being such an annoying little faggot unprovoked?
>I think you answered your own question

Are you one of those nerd mexicans that talk the way that nerd guy looks? I've known of nerds like that like one named Juan aka Jay. He got his while family killed being a pestering little pos faggot like you. Keep showing everybody you're a faggot that deserves to die retard. I'm positive you're gonna get what's coming too.

[Anonymous No.1831183]

>>1831069
Honestly you might as well live at gay pride parades being such cuntish weird faggot.
>Hey internet want to see an annoying mouthy weird gay little bitch the world agrees should die?
>Why is it being such an annoying little faggot unprovoked?
>I think you answered your own question

Are you one of those nerd mexicans that talk the way that nerd guy looks? I've known of nerds like that like one named Juan aka Jay. He got his whole family killed being a pestering little pos faggot like you. Keep showing everybody you're a faggot that deserves to die retard. I'm positive you're gonna get what's coming too

[Anonymous No.1831192]

Chasing SO-50 is pretty fun, now if ISS could swing by when it's not like 0400UTC that'd be great!

[Anonymous No.1831223]

So i got a UV-5R and all my friends followed suit, now i want to learn more and i'm interested in digital radios, what's the best way to get into DMR?

[Anonymous No.1831428]

>>1831183

[Anonymous No.1831446]

>>1831223
GD-77

[Anonymous No.1831514]

>>1831223
DSTAR

[Anonymous No.1831628]

hourly reminder to reject homosexuals and their womanly whining.

[Anonymous No.1832013]

Can someone point me in the right direction for a field expedient radio for the Army

[Anonymous No.1832027]

>>1832013
Could you be a lot more specific? What do you want HF, VHF/UHF, digital, analog, etc. Are you actually in the Army and just want something to play with in the field, or a larper?

[Anonymous No.1832031]

>>1832013
knock yourself out my dude

[Anonymous No.1832032]

>>1831628
If they're womanly how is it gay?

[Anonymous No.1832119]

CW is so popular that it dwarfs the whining bot chorus on 7077

[Anonymous No.1832288]

>>1832013
Harris seems to own the market these days. There is also https://qrper.com/2020/05/the-yaesu-ft-70g-where-the-ft-line-met-milcom/

[Anonymous No.1832298]

On a scale of 1 to 10, how shitty is my antenna?

[Anonymous No.1832309]

>>1832298
what is it ?

[Anonymous No.1832312]

>>1832298
That's about a 10 on the shitty scale as is, are you running a tuner with it?

[Anonymous No.1832315]

>>1832298
> VSWR > 3
That is bad. Did you forget to connect the antenna?

[Anonymous No.1832325]

>>1832309
>>1832312
>>1832315
Ouch. Maybe that's why I can't get my DXCC. Here's a new scan, I've been experimenting with a random wire vertical attached to a 9:1 unun. It's showing 3-50MHz.
-90db of gain seems notable.

[Anonymous No.1832331]

>>1832325
it's ok for receiving but your antenna must be tuned for emitting "random wire" doesn't sound like tuned. You can try different lengths, I use an about 16m long wire, it's decent.As you can see here :
https://www.hspshop.it/epages/167668.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/167668/Products/LW20
about 20m seems to work also with a 9:1 unun, here is a more detailed article :
https://vk6ysf.com/longwire_antenna.htm

[Anonymous No.1832334]

>>1832325
That's a little better. You want VSWR under 2, the lower the better.

[Anonymous No.1832335]

>>1832325
Get a tuner.

[Anonymous No.1832339]

>>1832331
Yea, I'm just using 'random' as that seems to be the common phrase.
I found these lengths (in feet) somewhere online talking about the 9:1. The three circled are what's up now. I've tried them alone and in conjunction, and this is about the best I've seen so far. My goal is to hit as many bands without an external tuner as possible. If I can't get that, I'll go with a DIY DX Commander

[Anonymous No.1832341]

>>1832339
Oh I see, good luck finding what's the best for you, it largely depends of where the wire is and its surroundings, a pain in the ass but you can get nice results in the end.

[Anonymous No.1832346]

>>1832341
I appreciate it, that's the road I've started on. Really wanted to pop in and ask if it was damned from the start (high gain, return loss, etc.)
Getting closer - just don't get 6, 40, or 80.

[Anonymous No.1832351]

>>1832334
Across the entire spectrum of HF or just where I want to transmit?
Here's the 9:1 enclosure with radials spread all throughout the yard fwiw. Some of you all may remember it from last Fall when I put it together.

[Anonymous No.1832352]

>>1832339
You need a tuner when running a random wire. You're killing your finals transmitting into that.
>>1832346
This is still terrible. It will only be a matter of time until you smoke your radio.

[Anonymous No.1832353]

>>1832351

[Anonymous No.1832354]

>>1832351
Are you the guy with the FT-101 who got a 7300 later on?
>Across the entire spectrum of HF or just where I want to transmit?
On the bands you want to transmit on.

[Anonymous No.1832357]

>>1832352
Is the internal tuner not substantial enough? On the SWR meter, I rarely see anything except a perfect match.

[Anonymous No.1832381]

>>1832357
>Is the internal tuner not substantial enough?
Does it match? You make it sound like you're running barefoot into an unmatched wire.

[Anonymous No.1832386]

>>1832352
>My 10M antenna isn't a perfect match on 160M, so my finals are gonna blow

[Anonymous No.1832390]

>>1832386
Enjoy your baomeme and webSDR, frog.

[Anonymous No.1832420]

>>1832354
Impressive memory
>>1832381
If the internal tuner matches the freq., I'll transmit. I'm not a monster keying down on 4:1. My goal is to get the tuner to be able to match every band, but I'll settle for most bands

[Anonymous No.1832430]

>>1832346
You really need to tel us more about the antenna, how it is placed, how it is connected to coax cable etc. I too have tuned long wires before and never had problems tuning in to it.

[Anonymous No.1832443]

>>1832430
Pic related plus this is what I'm running
>>1832353
>>1832351
Right now I'm taking 14 THHN AWG wires at various lengths, running them up the mast with a pulley, then tying to trees, and then looking at it from a nanovna in the basement. How well have you gotten yours dialed in to?

[Anonymous No.1832476]

>>1832353
I don't understand what a 9:1 transformer would be good for in this case. The art of the 'random' wire antenna is to find out which lengths to _avoid_ because they are mutiples of lambda/2 and therefore hi-Z.

http://udel.edu/~mm/ham/randomWire/

"The graph below shows lengths to avoid for different collections of bands.
Use only the white gaps for your antenna lengths.."

The shortest length for group c is about 35ft, for group d it is ~70ft and the shortest length for group e is ~135ft. Group f cannot be realised with a single wire.

The bevaviour of a group of parallel wires cannot be predicted that way because they are coupled and interact. Fiddle and error is all that remains. Good luck.

[Anonymous No.1832505]

Zenith tard here, I'm thinking about the antenna for the radio. I'm also thinking about the fact I live in a densely populated city and additionally SMPS are an annoying problem along all the other RFI as well as having a window facing the equivalent of a giant faraday cage. Looked at making an Armstrong antenna using 70ft of wire, couldn't sleep so I threw it together with no positive result on my SW regen. I'm gonna have to take the boat anchor on a camping trip somewhere rural, aren't I? Not that I mind, camping and dx'ing with a few buddies with beer and BBQ is great. Pic unrelated.

[Anonymous No.1832519]

>>1832476
I swapped the 9:1 for a 1:1 choke and don't see that the unun was doing much.
I was trying to recreate the Hawaii EARC project:
http://www.earchi.org/92011endfedfiles/Endfed6_40.pdf

[Anonymous No.1832539]

>>1832519
Your coax run is becoming part of the antenna if you're tuning it from your shack.

[Anonymous No.1832561]

any way to get a base station up for less than $200 inc antennas (or plain copper)?

[Anonymous No.1832563]

>>1832561
For what bands?

[Anonymous No.1832623]

>>1832539
A 'hot' shack is the normal curse. The longer the coax the better the SWR.

[Anonymous No.1832643]

>>1832443
>Pic related plus this is what I'm running
That 80' run, is that coax?

[Anonymous No.1832668]

>>1832119
The WPX Contest is based on an award offered by CQ Magazine for working all prefixes. Held on the last weekend of March (SSB) and May (CW), the contest draws thousands of entries from around the world.

[Anonymous No.1832728]

>>1832563
6m and/or 2m

[Anonymous No.1832792]

>>1832623
You may as well run a doublet then.

[Anonymous No.1832990]

>>1832643
It os
>>1832539
Which is where I should be measuring it, right?

[Anonymous No.1832995]

>>1832990
>right?
Yes, if it helps keeping the transmitter stable you may have to tolerate a slightly radiating feed line.

[Anonymous No.1833019]

>>1832519
Well, I played around with the 1:1 choke and couldn't tune anything last night with the given lengths.
I guess I either I recut everything or tune the 9:1.
I assume I'm trying to tackle a lofty project with not enough patience. I want to work 6 through 17 if open, while also paper chasing 40-160, including 60.
Basically having my cake and eatting it too

[Anonymous No.1833063]

>>1833019
buy an auto tuner ur time is worth it

[Anonymous No.1833138]

>>1833063
Will an auto tuner TX as well as a better tuned antenna?
I agree my time is worth something, but I don't want to buy an auto tuner just for my signal to go nowhere.

[Anonymous No.1833148]

>>1833138
depends on your antenna, tuning for 10m on a 2m antenna will be shit no matter what

[Anonymous No.1833157]

>>1824857
Can anyone rec me a decent waterproof radio? I'm going to be in South Georgia with a friend hunting hogs with little to no cell service at the plantation.

[Anonymous No.1833167]

>>1824885
How comes burgerland is still using analog. Everything went to digital in my slav shithole decade and a half ago. All bands are completely empty. I tried decoding tetra but it's encrypted here.
Chinks don't even use dedicated 2way networks anymore but cellular LTE/5G infrastructure.

[Anonymous No.1833180]

>>1833167
most of european emergency services (except some fire) have been on encrypted digital for 10+ yrs now

[Anonymous No.1833187]

>>1833138
Even expensive auto-tuners can fail.

[Anonymous No.1833191]

>>1833167
It's engrained in the culture to be able to hear these things.
News agencies rely/relied on it for breaking news. Volunteer firefighters, curious civilians ... There are encoded channels for private conversations (swat, etc), but all in all, there's no reason to not let us hear.

[Anonymous No.1833194]

>>1833187
oh no.wav

[Anonymous No.1833200]

>>1833167
>All bands are completely empty.
Isn't that great? Room for all the fengs! Analog FM is the new encryption no bot can decode.

[Anonymous No.1833206]

>>1833138
No, it just makes tuning easier and faster than a manual tuner. If you have a tuner built-in to your radio, this won't improve anything.

[Anonymous No.1833214]

Reccomend me a radio, Wi-Fi, and cell jammer plz

[Anonymous No.1833231]

Anybody knows some frequencies for traffic info or genrell info in europa?
136–174MHz and
400–520MHz

[Anonymous No.1833260]

>>1833231
it would be country-specific I'm afraid. Maybe the `smaller' state groupa like the baltics or benelux have common bands

[Anonymous No.1833329]

>>1832990
>It os
The next question is, how is the antenna attached to the coax? Is there a balun?

[Anonymous No.1833469]

>>1833231
>>1833260
are there specific frequencies for germany/austria/swiss or german language?

[Anonymous No.1833477]

>>1833469
>specific frequencies
No need. You use your Navi, your RDS radio or you read stau.info.

[Anonymous No.1833531]

>>1833329
9:1 unun
>>1833206
I have a poor internal tuner 2.5-ish:1. Adding an external tuner should get me on all the bands ... but is it worth spending time TX-ing on a band that has an inherent 6:1 SWR that needs matching?

Maybe I need to step back and ask 'what's a decent 160-6 antenna that can sit in a suburban backyard?

[Anonymous No.1833536]

>>1833531
... for DX
I know there will need to be compromises. I hit a DXCC last night, so I don't feel I'm completely wet behind the ears or doing everything wrong, I'd just like to invest in a solid setup.

[Anonymous No.1833556]

>>1833531
Being able to match a non-resonant antenna won't make it perform better.

[Anonymous No.1833660]

>>1833556
>won't make it perform better
Of course it will.

[Anonymous No.1833930]

>>1831628
Take your own advice

[Anonymous No.1833964]

You think if I applied for the call name N1GGR they'd allow it?

K1TTY and W3EED are already taken

[Anonymous No.1833994]

>>1833964
No, vanity callsign.

[Anonymous No.1834150]

>>1833930
I reject you.

[Anonymous No.1834611]

The FAQ is now back:
https://wiki.cybsec.io/index.php/HamFAQ

[Anonymous No.1834635]

>>1834611
TNX, that's noice.
Saved it, just in case..

[Anonymous No.1834654]

>>1834635
That FAQ has a fair bit of coverage of the Pixie, anyone else think we should add a better example? If so, what QRP radio would you suggest? I think it should be a simple transceiver, not as complex as QCX.

[Anonymous No.1834697]

>>1834654
If you don't want to do the QCX then the only real options are the 49er and Rockmite

[Anonymous No.1834700]

I have a few HAM books I cant find referenced online, whats a good way of scanning them to pdf (with ocr)?

[Anonymous No.1834806]

>>1834697
Both seem to come in several variants, and 49er has been requested to be terminated. Is there one in particular you fecommend?
To avoid carrier leaking in reception mode I guess you cannot avoid the use of a proper mixer, so I guess we are looking for something with a NE602 or NE612.

[Anonymous No.1834811]

>>1834654
>a simple transceiver
The Frog has already been mentioned in the FAQ. It solves the spurious harmonics problem but not the LO leak that is typical for simple DC transceivers. The next step could be the Rockmite (https://www.n1fd.org/?s=rockmite).).

Practically all of these pixie derivatives are not usable for serious CW operation because they are neither tunable (single frequency) nor selective enough. I'm not aware of any really good single band CW TRX other than the QCX.

Image credit: https://www.dl2sba.com/index.php/funk/qrp/242-the-frog-has-arrived

[Anonymous No.1834996]

what could be causing this noise? it runs from about 20 MHz to 37 MHz

[Anonymous No.1835024]

>>1834996
There's hundreds of possibilities for that.

[Anonymous No.1835096]

n00b antenna question: how can pic related be working if the antenna is a long wire connected to only the center conductor of the radio's connector? don't you need a closed circuit for the AC current to flow?

[Anonymous No.1835123]

>>1835096
Read a book.

[Anonymous No.1835174]

>>1835096
radio waves are a collapsing cycle of magnetic to electric back to magnetic fields that propagate like ripples in a pond at high frequency
coaxial lines contain that ripple via inductance in the main single wire in the center while the side walls act as a capacitor (L/C aka inductance capacitance resonators is the heart of all radio tech) until it is free to propagate at the antenna into the surrounding space
there is no "ground/neutral/negative" because of amplification on the receiving end
but an amplificationless (if that is a word) radio (such as crystal sets) relies on a good ground (large reservoir of conductivity) for excess excited electrons from the picked up radio waves (which are just collapsing fields of electric to magnetic to electric ad infinitium till inverse square law renders the energy undetectable) to flow into, completing the circuit
I am drunk at the moment so I disclaim anything I said with that :)

[Anonymous No.1835188]

Where can I find/buy military radios?

[Anonymous No.1835193]

>>1835174

i don't get this part

> there is no "ground/neutral/negative" because of amplification on the receiving end

[Anonymous No.1835197]

>>1835096
Like pic related, but air is the second part of the dipole.
You need to read about electromagnetism, maybe some courses for the HAM license have that ?

[Anonymous No.1835208]

So probably not entirely a /ham/ question, but say I want to keep a radio on hand while going out innawoods or hiking, going out into the wilderness and shit
Firstly, what would be a good radio for an /out/fag like me? I know Baofengs are a popular choice amongst anyone old or new to the hobby, but I'm more interested in being able to listen in without worrying about extremely delicate hardware potentially getting roughed up during a backpacking out innawoods or exploring some abandoned shit.
Secondly, despite possibly being out from civilization, what would be the best way to maximize your range if you got, say, two or three people on the same frequency as you? Given that it's generally a shit idea to ever go backpacking alone unless you have the experience and resources to reliably do so, what are things to look out for when setting up your radio and frequency with a few friends?
Thirdly, and finally, given that I am just getting into the idea of searching frequencies to listen in on, be they wild random frequencies out of nowhere or strange number stations or civilian/police/military transmissions and anything in between, what can be said about being able to listen in on frequencies while out in the wilderness?

[Anonymous No.1835213]

>>1835096
>don't you need a closed circuit
Yes, you do. There is no one-terminal light bulb and there is no one-terminal antenna. If you only connect a wire to the center of the connector, the rest of the radio (including anything else connected to it) forms the second terminal.

[Anonymous No.1835238]

>>1834700
a glass plate and a camera, then arrange those pictures into pdf

[Anonymous No.1835341]

>>1835208
Fuck off and die.

[Anonymous No.1835346]

>>1835208
1. What do you want to listen and say?
2. Depends on first question
3. Zero percent

[Anonymous No.1835348]

SWL edition

[Anonymous No.1835363]

>>1835208
Use a baofeng. If they break they are literally $30 max

You don't maximize your range in the forest. Trees and such harm signal propagation. The effective range will decrease with the amount of obstacles in your way. If you're out in a wide open mountain area, you'll have miles of range.

You prob the boy won't be able to hear anything crazy in the forest. See above. The military and police use predetermined channels so if you're just browsing through frequencies it's unlikely you'll find anything of note. My recommendation? Keep NOAA and a nearby police frequency programmed into your radio.

[Anonymous No.1835367]

>>1835208
do you have a loicense m8?
if not kill yourself or use UTF walkie talkies
CB if you like stranger danger
also realize that handheld innawood is going to have shit all reception, no matter what
ranger stations have basestation setups with an elevated antenna
you will not be able to pickup anything/listen in that you are not specced/programmed for

[Anonymous No.1835386]

>>1835208
you need no radio

[Anonymous No.1835392]

>>1835208
If you don't mind dropping $$$ get a yaesu VX-6R and an SU-1 module. Will give you a water resistant, extremely durable radio that can monitor pretty much everything you'd need.

Additional if you're not squeamish about losing the warranty you can do what's called a MARS mod, which will let you transmit outside of ham bands.

[Anonymous No.1836231]

I am a radio brainlet here but i was playing with a shortwave radio and I heard a transmission on 3 times the frequency it was supposed to be on. Basically, there was a program on 1080 kHz which was still going on, but then i heard the exact same transmission at the same time on 3240 kHz which is 3 times the frequency. Can someone explain this to me? Also this is a local radio station. and 1080 is the only freq which has this program playing

[Anonymous No.1836264]

>>1836231
Front-end overload, it's just a mirror image created by the strong local signal overloading your receiver.

[Anonymous No.1836275]

>>1836231
Did you also hear it on 2160 kHz?

[Anonymous No.1836285]

>>1836264
ok, thanks

>>1836275
I also hear it on 3500 kHz and 2160 kHz too

[Anonymous No.1836287]

>>1833531
>antenna that can sit in a suburban backyard?
Traveling wave antenna, non-resonant, as long as you can make it. 6 m band deserves its own antenna, like a 20 ft telescoping flag pole mast with a vertical GP on top.

[Anonymous No.1837588]

** All visitors are logged.**
Discussion about anything happening on 7200 will result in an IP ban.
(Chat box warnings from a popular WebRX)
Image: A minimal 40 m band receiver based on a 'Colpitts detector'.

[Anonymous No.1837629]

>>1837588
Do you have any information on where that circuit came from? I'd like to look in to it some more.

[Anonymous No.1837636]

>>1837629
http://b-kainka.de/bastel117.htm

[Anonymous No.1837663]

Ok, so I got a baofeng. Now what?

What should I do besides access local repeater freqs?

[Anonymous No.1837669]

>>1837663
It keeps happening.
Don't buy a baofeng.

Anyways, it's too late.
What do you want to do?

Satellite communications,
communications
mote control,
alarm system for your pot plants god damn fucking squirrels keep getting in my pot plants But you'll need to hire someone smart book thinking like to do it. I only have my grade ten, I never got no real book learning.

[Anonymous No.1837671]

I just got a baofeng uv-5r. How do I find out what frequency my local police are on and program it to listen to their radio as a police scanner?

[Anonymous No.1837676]

>>1830850
>someone on 4chan called me stupid booo hooo

take a deep breath, mongo. go for a walk. you should not be getting this angry.

[Anonymous No.1837677]

>>1837671
What country?
Well, take a look at the antenna on the roof, how long is it? 1/4 wavelength? or 5/8ths, then you know what frequency about they are on.

Also baofengs are not scanners.

If you want a scanner, get a scanner. Scan around, find it. It will take time.

Check online, google it.

Then you can check local radio databases. It will be the gap in frequencies not listed :)

[Anonymous No.1837692]

>>1837671
Should have bought a $20 SDR instead

[Anonymous No.1837749]

>>1837671
shoving it up your ass and waiting for them to arrive

[Anonymous No.1837901]

>>1837669
Freek off, Ricky!

[Anonymous No.1838093]

>>1837663
>I got a baofeng. Now what?
Don't buy shit if you don't have a purpose for it.

[Anonymous No.1838094]

>>1837671
>How do I find out what frequency my local police are on
Call 911 and ask.

[Anonymous No.1838222]

>>1838093
My purpose was to have a ham lying around in case of emergency, but I would like to use it for more than just accessing local frequencies and listening to boomers talk about the weather.

If anyone has recommendations for basic stuff to do with a ham, that's all I'm asking.

[Anonymous No.1838224]

>>1838222
>My purpose was to have a ham lying around in case of emergency
It only covers VHF and UHF, absolutely useless.

[Anonymous No.1838227]

>>1838222
>I would like to use it for more than just accessing local frequencies and listening to boomers talk about the weather
That's pretty much all amateur radio is. You could build a Yagi and do satellite passes with it but that's just an expanded range of boomers. Dunno what else you were expecting.

[Anonymous No.1838232]

>>1838222
>If anyone has recommendations for basic stuff to do with a ham, that's all I'm asking.
I like to ask them how they got started in the hobby.

[Anonymous No.1838259]

Is there a better product or source for balun and misc project boxes?

[Anonymous No.1838321]

Dear god help me I feel retarded.
I'm very new to amateur radio. I decided to make my own antenna as my first antenna. I made a 10 meter dipole. My issue is my SWR seems quite high. I focused on trying to solder bits together instead of just contact them in order to get a better connection. However, the line connected to the coax center feed is plugged in via a steel wire I soldered to the copper. Would this be a potential cause of the SWR?
Additionally, my coax is just some random crap I had around the house. Is the difference between low quality TV coax and a higher quality radio coax enough that I would have difficulties hearing anything on 10 meters?
I was able to pick up short wave stations though. I had some fun with that last night. Mostly church short waves out of Tennessee and Georgia.

[Anonymous No.1838325]

>>1838321
So I just checked and my SWR around 28mHz is just under 2. Is that acceptable generally?

[Anonymous No.1838331]

>>1838321
TV coax is 75ohms. You need to use 50ohm cable like RG58

[Anonymous No.1838344]

>>1838325
Under 2 usually won't cause damage, but you'll be getting a good amount of loss.
1:1 is overrated, and you're actually better off around 1.1 or 1.2 usually anyways.

Tune to the upper end of the band and the lower end of the band and check SWRs (with legal modes).

If it's worse at the higher end then the antenna is too long. If it's worse at the lower end it is too short.

TV coax is 75 ohm instead of 50 so you'll have a harder time nailing down an SWR, but it is do-able and 75ohm with a tuner is actually often preferred on dipoles. If you're doing RX only the coax even less of an issue.

Your connections are less of a problem than resonance of the antenna itself.

10m is pretty dead where I am most of the time unless conditions are really good or there's an event going on locally, and I have a 100ft tower with good omni and a high gain beam on 10m.

[Anonymous No.1838348]

>>1838344
>10m is pretty dead where I am most of the time unless conditions are really good or there's an event going on locally, and I have a 100ft tower with good omni and a high gain beam on 10m.
Damn. I'm just stringing the thing up in my room using nails on the wall.
I might say fuck it and just do a random wire antenna plugged right into the back of my radio. I'm RX only right now so I don't care about TX abilities.

[Anonymous No.1838450]

>>1838348
Okay so I fucked with it a bit more, cut some of the more dumb connections (I was using a screw between two wires, I decided I couldn't trust if the screw was properly conductive so I just wired the two legs of the dipole straight to the coax shield and center). Then once I adjusted the length of the legs I get like 1.1 or 1.2 SWR at 28.3 MHz when using LSB.
I still get tons of noise though. That's to be expected when my lines are in my room. Also I'm using that shitty tv random coax. I ordered some proper 50 ohm coax.
I will saying building this has been fun. Its just a constant iterative development as I find what needs fixing and tackle that. Even though I haven't heard anything on my target band, its still been fun listening to those crazy fucking Christian stations that I can find. I also found InfoWars. Kek.

[Anonymous No.1838641]

>>1838450
I mostly use 75Ω TV cable. It is cheaper, has lower loss and is better shielded than RG58. If you connect a 75Ω load to a 50Ω source you can expect a VSWR of 75/50 or 3/2 = 1.5, a loss of 4 % or about 1/30 of an S unit.
>1.2 SWR at 28.3 MHz when using LSB
Why LSB? Everybody else uses USB on the 10 m band. For historical reasons the rule is to use LSB below 9 MHz and USB above 9 MHz.
>tons of noise though
The usual indoor digital fog. What about a closed loop antenna that has no open hi-Z ends like a dipole?

[Anonymous No.1838649]

>>1837588
>A minimal 40 m band receiver based on a 'Colpitts detector'.
Why do nearly all single frequency QRP transceiver use low pass filters rather then a band pass filter as in that diagram?

[Anonymous No.1838656]

>>1824857
did the guy who faked a french accent stop doing racist jokes and come back or is he just gone because he feared he would be found and doxxed?

[Anonymous No.1838670]

>>1838649
That's because it is a receiver that needs to be tuned. Most single frequency transceivers are not tunable and are fixed to a crystal frequency. Here's a super simple f the FCC version that has not even an output filter so you can (weakly) hear it on 7120 too.

[Anonymous No.1838688]

>>1838670
>That's because it is a receiver that needs to be tuned.
I don't understand this. transceivers such as the Pixie, using a crystal determined single frequency, receive and transmit on the same frequency. What need is there to tune? The RIT function is already maintained through the changing oscillator frequency, and attenuating that emission during reception is just a bonus.
>Most single frequency transceivers are not tunable and are fixed to a crystal frequency.
That is indeed the use case I have in mind.
>Here's a super simple f the FCC version that has not even an output filter so you can (weakly) hear it on 7120 too.
Is something missing from that sentence?

[Anonymous No.1838722]

>>1838688
>I don't understand this.
The minimal 7 MHz receiver covers more than the entire 40 m band and you have to select the station you want to listen to. This process is called tuning. It is done by changing the resonant frequency of the LC circuit at the input. This is a receiver (RX), not a transceiver (TRX).

[Anonymous No.1838730]

>>1838722
If you have a single frequency transceiver, why would you be interested in other frequencies on the same band? For some reason most use a 7023 kHz crystal, so receiving 7MHz would be of less interest as you could not respond to traffic there.

[Anonymous No.1838761]

Here's a good place to ask. Sorry, it's not about /ham/

The vid on the internet of the old guy getting shoved in buffalo. Trump claims he could be skimming the police radio. Isn't skimming just for RFID? Can you skim TX/RX?

[Anonymous No.1838766]

>>1838761
>skimming
The term is a bit wider, see for instance http://www.dxatlas.com/cwskimmer/

[Anonymous No.1838771]

>>1838766
Thanks! Interesting read

[Anonymous No.1838810]

>>1838450
That's not, how, you open a can.... of pickles.

[Anonymous No.1838971]

>>1824857
Bought myself a Tecsun R-9012 for listening recently cause I wanted another shortwave radio and I thought the analog could be charming.
I'm liking it so far and it's pretty good despite it's size and the fact that I paid 20 bucks for it.
Been having lots of fun, I gotta listen to shortwave more often, I've been mostly listening to faraway folks on AM.
My favourite on AM is probably CFZM up in Toronto, theyre 900 miles from me.

Wondering, is it normal on old analog radios for the tuning needle to sometimes jiggle up and down towards the glass? Pardon if that's a silly question I'm just a little nervous when I get new stuff because I don't want it to get damaged somehow.
It just kind of slightly raises when going one way sometimes, and gets lower the other way, while jiggling a bit in certain areas.
With that, what happens if I accidentally turn the tuning knob too far? I'm not gonna fuck up something inside right?

[Anonymous No.1838979]

Why do people turn into drooling retards at the mention of Tetra? Every tool or decoder always seems to have a hundred mongoloids who immediately go "DECRYPT KEYS PLZ" "HOW I LISTEN PLZ" "HOW I CRACK TETRA"

[Anonymous No.1838983]

>>1838971
>Wondering, is it normal on old analog radios for the tuning needle to sometimes jiggle up and down towards the glass
Yes, it's attached to string, which is looped around the tuning cap.

[Anonymous No.1838986]

>>1838979
thugs who want to listen to popo

[Anonymous No.1838988]

>>1838983
Perfect, thank you anon! I'm very finnicky with my things and have a problem worrying about damage despite just getting it.
Anything I should be worried about if I kept turning the knob once I was at the end of a band?

[Anonymous No.1838995]

>>1838988
Just don't keep cranking on it after it stops.

[Anonymous No.1839002]

So I'm looking at various biquad antenna designs (not really for amateur radioing but for WiFi) and I can't wrap my head around the fact that this particular design shorts the feedline and the shield of the coax through the active element. But then I look at other types of antennas (cantenna for example) and usually those are not short circuited. Why is this? I know next to nothing about antennas.

[Anonymous No.1839005]

>>1838995
Alright thanks anon, I did a bit when I first got it which is why I asked cause I didn't wanna fuck up the string inside.
I appreciate the answers!

[Anonymous No.1839007]

>>1839002
at the frequency of use it is not a short circuit.

[Anonymous No.1839009]

Tecsun R-9012 anon here,
interesting hits I've got on shortwave last week:
Radio Thailand,
Chinese singing from somewhere?
Radio Romania,
NHK World Japan and Radio Nikkei (Guesses, both were in Japanese and I heard mention of tokyo, but they were airing different things)
Some jazz from Cuba,
British men airing something about the end times,
and British women talking about nothing in particular, who weren't with the BBC.
It's likely not as interesting as some of what the rest of you were talking about but I like to just listen to whatever I can find really.
It's a nice peek into what another country or group is talking about.

I live in Northern Wisconsin and I was using my Tecsun R-9012 in an ice fishing shack out back, with a 3 meter long wire antenna I had up in a tree above the trailer, this was all between 8pm and midnight.
This week I want to scout out some AM calling frequencies to listen in on, and pick up some shortwave radiograms, I miss getting them.

[Anonymous No.1839017]

>>1839007
But why even bother soldering it then?

[Anonymous No.1839023]

>>1838971
>My favourite on AM is probably CFZM up in Toronto, theyre 900 miles from me.
Gonna have a listen to tomorrow morning en route to work anon, thx

[Anonymous No.1839024]

Guiz, what if I use my Baofeng to talk to US cops from Canada?

[Anonymous No.1839025]

>>1839023
No problem at all, I'm glad you're interested.
They're mostly oldies, their signal is on AM 740 and you can hear them at night in 25 states.
Their transmitter is 50,000 watts so they blare in better than some local stuff near me.
I enjoy hearing them when I'm driving real late at night, it adds to the atmosphere.
If you'd like another BLASTER like them, there's another powerful station in Nashville Tennessee on AM 650 I can get 700 miles away but its easiest outside of my house. WSM airs classic country, americana, and westerns.

[Anonymous No.1839071]

>>1824857
5 left

[Anonymous No.1839075]

Just ordered a basic SDR receiver from banggood. What else should a noobie get or am I good?

[Anonymous No.1839098]

>>1839017
Because glue doesn't conduct

WLAN: f=2.44GHz
l=123mm wavelength
a=135mm reflector
b=68mm -plate
L=31mm quarterwave
H=15mm distance to reflector
Gain 9,7dBi

[Anonymous No.1839153]

>>1838641
Can I make something like a quarter wave closed loop? I want to fit it inside my room comfortably.

[Anonymous No.1839239]

>>1839153
Maybe try hanging a ham stick out your window.

[Anonymous No.1839252]

>>1839153
>quarter wave closed loop?
No, that would short it. You need a full-wave loop.
https://on6wg.pagesperso-orange.fr/Loop%20Antennas%20and%20Calculator.htm

[Anonymous No.1839316]

>>1839075
Get or make an antenna.

[Anonymous No.1839417]

>>1839098
I know *how* to build one but I have no idea why the active element and the reflector is shorted. Or it just doesn't matter and it's just practical to do so? Would it still work the same if there is no electrical connection between them?

[Anonymous No.1839446]

>>1839417
I don't think the reflector plate needs to be grounded for electrical reasons. It's just a convenient way to fix its position, especially the distance to the active element.

[Anonymous No.1839682]

>>1839075
Bunch of misc adaptors and accessories so you can connect stuff and make antennas

[Anonymous No.1839688]

>>1839153
Check out magnetic loop antennas.

[Anonymous No.1839759]

>>1839688
Good idea, a 10 m magloop is much smaller than a fullwave loop and it picks up less local noise. You always have to tune it though..

[Anonymous No.1839816]

If you were to short the active element on a helical antenna to the reflector, would it still function the same? Antennas are so fucking weird.

[Anonymous No.1840199]

>>1839816
Think of it as someone making (standing) waves on a string tied to a wall. The wall is connected to the ground and via the feet also the person making the waves. All those parts can be considered ground, yet the string shows waves.

[Anonymous No.1840250]

>>1839417
It might be a DC short, but remember that RF is a wave form. Even if the two "sides" are at a DC-short, if the design resonates at the intended frequency of RF, then it works as an antenna.

A lot of antennas are DC-shorted between the center and shield of the coax, such as a full-wave loop.

[Anonymous No.1840254]

>>1839816
>If you were to short the active element on a helical antenna to the reflector, would it still function the same?

No, because it would change the length of the radiator and it's physical location in relation to other parts of the antenna, changing it's resonance.

[Anonymous No.1840296]

Someone wants Eur 2200 for a Barrett 2050/2040. Good deal or not?

[Anonymous No.1840366]

>>1837671
https://www.radioreference.com/

[Anonymous No.1840592]

>>1839816
>would it still function the same?
No, it is no longer a helical antenna.

[Anonymous No.1840789]

We reached 324 posts and are on page 9, time for new thread soon. Remember to add a reference to the Wiki: >>1834611

[Anonymous No.1840802]

>>1840789
How about you do it, faglord.

[New Bread No.1840825]

>>1840823
>>1840823
>>1840823

[Anonymous No.1840828]

>>1840802
I expected we would be around another 5 hours, at which I might not be here.

[Anonymous No.1841113]

>>1825264
This... Channel 6 on a Sunday morning
http://www.wiki.robotz.com/index.php/C.B._Channel_6-_The_Super_Bowl