Marine Cpl
.577 Tyrannosaur.
Yes. You’ll have to program the MURS frequencies into your Baofeng. Not 100 percent legal but not monitored.
what BaoFeng should i be looking for now ??
- Thread starter Acer-m14
- Start date
whauburger
6.5 Creedmoor
Interesting. I was debating on getting 2 of the other ones figuring if I needed to have 2 vehicles traveling we'd be able to communicate.
whauburger
6.5 Creedmoor
I saw that. I'm figuring should I need them it would most likely be 2 vehicles traveling and cell service not good.
BDinPutnam
.475 A&M Magnum
I know this has been done to death but what kind of range are we talking about for handhelds? If say I'm walking home 4-5 miles and I dont want to use my cell or the cell system is overwhelmed?
Toecutter
.308 Win
Out of curiosity are there radios not made in China anymore?
fnfalguy
.308 Win
@BDinPutnam I tried some local testing with the handy talkies and range, it was lucky to do a mile or so in the terrain and obstructions where I live. If I remember from the ham exam, Due to the curvature of the earth, best case line of sight is about 7 miles assuming two people standing at the same elevation. Thats running it on a simplex channel. Running off a repeater is a different story. This of course is assuming you have a ham license, etc..
i can easily ping a repeater 20 or so miles from the house due to its location on a mountain top.
on a side note, you can program MURS channels on the uv5r, etc
i can easily ping a repeater 20 or so miles from the house due to its location on a mountain top.
on a side note, you can program MURS channels on the uv5r, etc
BDinPutnam
.475 A&M Magnum
whauburger
6.5 Creedmoor
@fnfalguy where abouts do they offer the exam? Assuming all this ends relatively soon probably isn't a bad idea to do it
fnfalguy
.308 Win
You can search for exam locations at arrl.org and I saw one in wallkill in may. You can also scan Exam Schedule – Orange County Amateur Radio Club for some other local stuff.
for studying, I used YouTube for my technician and general licenses. I haven’t yet decided if I want to go further. The channel we used was W4EEY. I found his stuff the least painful to watch.
for studying, I used YouTube for my technician and general licenses. I haven’t yet decided if I want to go further. The channel we used was W4EEY. I found his stuff the least painful to watch.
BDinPutnam
.475 A&M Magnum
Busted this out, now to actually read it.
fnfalguy
.308 Win
Psst. you may want to get the one with the current questions.
BDinPutnam
.475 A&M Magnum
E the massive
.308 Win
www.hamstudy.org
^^^ Has practice exams pulled from the current question pool.
^^^ Has practice exams pulled from the current question pool.
whauburger
6.5 Creedmoor
What are the differences in the different licenses?
fnfalguy
.308 Win
descriptions below, but general gets you into HF so longer range stuff. You have limited HF access with the technician license. I was interested in being able to talk world wide so I went with testing for general. All of this crap is yet another rabbit hole to go down.
The Technician class license is the entry-level license of choice for most new ham radio operators. To earn the Technician license requires passing one examination totaling 35 questions on radio theory, regulations and operating practices. The license gives access to all Amateur Radio frequencies above 30 megahertz, allowing these licensees the ability to communicate locally and most often within North America. It also allows for some limited privileges on the HF (also called "short wave") bands used for international communications
The General class license grants some operating privileges on all Amateur Radio bands and all operating modes. This license opens the door to world-wide communications. Earning the General class license requires passing a 35 question examination. General class licensees must also have passed the Technician written examination.
The Amateur Extra class license conveys all available U.S. Amateur Radio operating privileges on all bands and all modes. Earning the license is more difficult; it requires passing a thorough 50 question examination. Extra class licensees must also have passed all previous license class written examinations
The Technician class license is the entry-level license of choice for most new ham radio operators. To earn the Technician license requires passing one examination totaling 35 questions on radio theory, regulations and operating practices. The license gives access to all Amateur Radio frequencies above 30 megahertz, allowing these licensees the ability to communicate locally and most often within North America. It also allows for some limited privileges on the HF (also called "short wave") bands used for international communications
The General class license grants some operating privileges on all Amateur Radio bands and all operating modes. This license opens the door to world-wide communications. Earning the General class license requires passing a 35 question examination. General class licensees must also have passed the Technician written examination.
The Amateur Extra class license conveys all available U.S. Amateur Radio operating privileges on all bands and all modes. Earning the license is more difficult; it requires passing a thorough 50 question examination. Extra class licensees must also have passed all previous license class written examinations
Check out/call Orange County Amateur Radio Club Exams – Orange County Amateur Radio Club I think they still meet and hold exams in Cornwall.
Bragging rights
Pretty sure that's the site I used when I took the exams.
Exams pull the exact same questions from a published pool of questions and answers. Best way to prep, IMO, is just take the practice exams on sites such as this (there are others) until you are consistently scoring 80+. They are all the same questions, so it is basically an exercise in memorization. The books are great to learn / brush up on theory but as a practical matter do the exams on line and take the test while it's still fresh. JMO...
Note while you have to pass the previous level exam to proceed to next, there is no time limitations, so you can actually take Tech and General (or all three) during same sitting. I passed Tech and General at same time and took Extra the following month. It's definitely doable not pie in the sky kind of obstacle... The Tech and General Q&A are very similar and cover pretty much the same things, so it's relatively easy to study for both and get them out of the way during same sitting.
whauburger
6.5 Creedmoor
Seems like a great time to do them lol
Maybe, maybe not... the hobby definitely leans toward's older generations. With "Social Distancing" being the current rage, not sure if exams will be postponed or not... Good luck!
whauburger
6.5 Creedmoor
That's what I'm meaning, gonna be stuck around the house for a while so doing the practice tests wont be a bad idea to keep busy
Yeah, agree good time to study just not sure if you'll find an exam anytime soon...
BDinPutnam
.475 A&M Magnum
I'm going to be doing a bit of this for a work related certification, too.
Jsmegs77
.308 Win
Highly recommend Hamstudy app. Very helpful, lets you see where you need work.
As far as radios not made in China, sure there are but the price differential is significant. Also, they're likely to be high end amateur rigs, or commercial radios with all the limitations that attend (single band, computer software required to program, etc)
As far as radios not made in China, sure there are but the price differential is significant. Also, they're likely to be high end amateur rigs, or commercial radios with all the limitations that attend (single band, computer software required to program, etc)
masterswimmer
.450/400 Nitro Ex
I'm looking to pick up a handheld. I don't have a license, yet. I'd like to get the best one I can get for about $100.
Presently I'll just use it for monitoring until I take the test. I believe in buying once. If the $25 Baofeng is the best one for under $100 so be it. But don't let the price dictate the recommendation. Is Yaesu a better handheld?
Please help me with brand and model.
Thanks y'all
Presently I'll just use it for monitoring until I take the test. I believe in buying once. If the $25 Baofeng is the best one for under $100 so be it. But don't let the price dictate the recommendation. Is Yaesu a better handheld?
Please help me with brand and model.
Thanks y'all
Bob
6.5 Creedmoor
See my recommendation above.
I currently have a mix of Motorola, Kenwood, Yaesu, and Baofeng radios in my fleet.
Yaesu (formerly Yaesu/Vertex) has been in the radio business for a LONG time. Yaesu is the ham radio arm, while Vertex was the Commercial and Public Safety arm. Vertex was sold off to Motorola several years ago.
Would you be happy with a $25 Baofeng? Probably.
But for $50 more, you can get a Yaesu that is far superior.
fnfalguy
.308 Win
@masterswimmer below $100, I would go with this. You are being redirected...
if you can find it on sale, I would go with the FT-60 it might be around $125ish. You are being redirected...
if you can find it on sale, I would go with the FT-60 it might be around $125ish. You are being redirected...
I have a Baofeng a lot of radio for little money no doubt. Main issue that I had with it is being unable to transmit to local repeater. Not sure if that has more to do with low power (5W) or mountains in my (and yours) area. Was generally able to monitor local club's weekly nets without issue. Replaced antenna with Nagoya antenna (one of the better ones) with no improvement. They do make external amps that would increase power and presumably effective operating range but have no experience with this. Believe Baofeng also makes an 8w model. Not sure if Yaesu or Kenwood (and others) are any better as they all seem to be about same wattage. They may have "cleaner" signals (esp on TX) which would help other Hams more than you, if they happen to be transmitting on nearby frequencies at same time as you. No direct experience with this just basing it off what I've read. I'm currently looking into a mobile set up in the 100w range. Maybe should start another thread on this as there seems to be renewed interest given current state of affairs...
masterswimmer
.450/400 Nitro Ex
Are there any required accessories I'd need with the FT-60? Everyone mentions the Baofeng requires original cables and software. Does the Yaesu require anything more?