INGO HAM Radio Club

[Cameramonkey]

I thought about trying to get my HAM license and was worried about taking the test. I’m an electrician by trade and thought it would be a snap. After reading that I’m pretty sure I’m out of my league. I think I’ll buy some Baofengs and put them in the faraday cage when things go bad and don’t have to worry about the FCC. As a side note, I was a underground utility locator for 13 years and remember talking to a homeowner that had this huge antenna array and I commented that he probably gets the best free t.v from everywhere, that’s when he told me that it was for a ham radio and I've been interested every since.

Nonsense. It’s not hard.

Technician license is almost all FCC refs regs and common sense safety. It’s a snap to pass.

General isn’t hard and the theories to pass the test are easy to memorize.


It’s the Extra exam that is hard. That starts talking about crazy RF and electrical theories. But all that gets you is the ability to use amps up to 1500 watts and extra parts of the frequencies nobody else can use. You can do plenty with only 100 watts and 3/4 of the band’s frequencies.

Lots of free websites to study the questions and learn the “why” of each question. I really like
“The Fast Track to Your Technician Class Ham “ by Michael Burnette. He lists All of the questions, shows you the answer, then explains why it is correct and why the others are wrong.

She studying to get your license won’t teach you everything. But it gets you started on your journey, and there are LOTS of Elmers to mentor you for free.

And it’s something you can do before you are licensed. You can transmit under direct supervision of a ham.
They do group outings called POTAs (parks on the air) where they get together and play on the bands at parks where they are out away from RF pollution. . There is one coming up on the 30th at Deer Creek FWA in Putnamville. All are welcome to attend and they are VERY welcoming.

 

[Cynical]

Nonsense. It’s not hard.

Technician license is almost all FCC refs and common sense safety. It’s a snap to pass.

General isn’t hard and the theories to pass the test are easy to memorize.


It’s the Extra exam that is hard. That starts talking about crazy RF and electrical theories. But all that gets you is the ability to use amps up to 1500 watts and extra parts of the frequencies nobody else can use. You can do plenty with only 100 watts and 3/4 of the band’s frequencies.

Lots of free websites to study the questions and learn the “why” of each question. I really like
“The Fast Track to Your Technician Class Ham “ by Michael Burnette. He lists All of the questions, shows you the answer, then explains why it is correct and why the others are wrong.

She studying to get your license won’t teach you everything. But it gets you started on your journey, and there are LOTS of Elmers to mentor you for free.

And it’s something you can do before you are licensed. You can transmit under direct supervision of a ham.
They do group outings called POTAs (parks on the air) where they get together and play on the bands at parks where they are out away from RF pollution. . There is one coming up on the 30th at Deer Creek FWA in Putnamville. All are welcome to attend and they are VERY welcoming.

Thanks for the info. I think maybe I’ll give it a shot. Not sure of the lingo, what does Elmer’s mean? Vets..?

 

[Cameramonkey]

Thanks for the info. I think maybe I’ll give it a shot. Not sure of the lingo, what does Elmer’s mean? Vets..?

Elmer=mentor. Very experienced guys who are a trove of info and can help you along the way. There is no school you can go to to learn this. Its all passed down via youtube, Elmers, books, etc.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Now that I am back at my PC, this is the book. Beware if you try to buy used. The pool questions change every 4 years. So check what date range it is for.

Amazon product ASIN B09YMD2LDV

 

[Cynical]

Elmer=mentor. Very experienced guys who are a trove of info and can help you along the way. There is no school you can go to to learn this. Its all passed down via youtube, Elmers, books, etc.

Thanks much!

 

[Cameramonkey]

And if you are on FB, seek out and join up with local ham group pages. They'll have lots of info. Including their own POTA events.

 

[Cynical]

Now that I am back at my PC, this is the book. Beware if you try to buy used. The pool questions change every 4 years. So check what date range it is for.

Amazon product ASIN B09YMD2LDV

What date range should I look for? Trying not to be stupid. I’m ok buying new. Are there any trick questions that I should be aware of?

 

[Cynical]

And if you are on FB, seek out and join up with local ham group pages. They'll have lots of info. Including their own POTA events.

Not affiliated with any social media. Tried reaching out via e-mail to local ham group and got no response. So just a little hesitant and guarded I guess...

 

[Cameramonkey]

What date range should I look for? Trying not to be stupid. I’m ok buying new. Are there any trick questions that I should be aware of?

2022-2026. That link is the current book.

looking at the ARRL Gas City is the closest testing. Reaching out to them on FB since their webpage has been hijacked. I'll let you know. They test toward the end of the month, once a month. Next reasonable test for you would be Oct 24.

 

[Cynical]

2022-2026. That link is the current book.

looking at the ARRL Gas City is the closest testing. Reaching out to them on FB since their webpage has been hijacked. I'll let you know. They test toward the end of the month, once a month. Next reasonable test for you would be Oct 24.

Thanks for your help!!

 

[Cameramonkey]

Thanks for your help!!

Happy to do what I can. I'm still learning, but I can Elmer and help/encourage at the level I'm at. LOL
And as to the trick questions, there really arent any. Michael does point out the gotchas they do use, but there arent many that I recall.

And there are multiple tests you can take so that its not possible to memorize the test. The random tests are 40 questions as I recall. and its either 5 questions from each of 8 subject pools, or 8 questions from 5 subject pools. If you fail your test and its close, in most cases they will let you try several more times (on different versions) to pass until you do.

I failed my General exam 3x the first sitting. I was using Hamstudy.org flashcards and found a hole. It didnt feed me ANY of the vacuum tube questions. EVER. But all 3 exams I took had enough vac questions that given the other questions I missed I barely failed. So I went home and crammed and memorized the vac questions and passed easily the next weekend.

Oh, and their FB page is active. So I should get answers.

 

[Cameramonkey]

That was fast. This is the info you need and appears to be the closest club to Peru:
(you can find this on the ARRL website: https://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-exam-session

Gas City IN 46933-1155​

EXAM SESSION
10/24/2023
Sponsor: GCARC
Date: Oct 24 2023
Time: 5:00 PM (No Walk-ins / Register or Call ahead)
Contact: Mitchell D. Miller
(765) 661-5893
Email: mitchmiller55@gmail.com
VEC: ARRL/VEC
Location: EMA Building
3921 S Garthwaite Rd
Pre-register only, contact ahead
Gas City IN 46933-1155
Website: http://www.grantarc.net/
(Current ARRL listing shows a .org which is hacked and not their current website)

 

[Cynical]

That was fast. This is the info you need and appears to be the closest club to Peru:
(you can find this on the ARRL website: https://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-exam-session

Gas City IN 46933-1155​

EXAM SESSION
10/24/2023
Sponsor: GCARC
Date: Oct 24 2023
Time: 5:00 PM (No Walk-ins / Register or Call ahead)
Contact: Mitchell D. Miller
(765) 661-5893
Email: mitchmiller55@gmail.com
VEC: ARRL/VEC
Location: EMA Building
3921 S Garthwaite Rd
Pre-register only, contact ahead
Gas City IN 46933-1155
Website: http://www.grantarc.net/
(Current ARRL listing shows a .org which is hacked and not their current website)

Awesome man, thanks for that. I had the Mrs. download the Amazon link. Not sure I will pass muster but will give it a stab. Thanks to all for the help. INGO doesn’t dissapoint!

 

[Cameramonkey]

Awesome man, thanks for that. I had the Mrs. download the Amazon link. Not sure I will pass muster but will give it a stab. Thanks to all for the help. INGO doesn’t dissapoint!

Take your time.
Read and absorb.
Read and absorb.
Take free practice tests online. (hamstudy.org) When you can pass the test reliably at 95%* sit for the test and you'll pass. And I forget how many you can miss and pass (the book will tell you) but its a LOT.

And if it takes you until January to get there? Who cares! Follow your own schedule.

*There are shortcomings that means at a reliable 95% you may only get an 85%(but still pass).

 

[hoglegs]

I thought about trying to get my HAM license and was worried about taking the test. I’m an electrician by trade and thought it would be a snap. After reading that I’m pretty sure I’m out of my league. I think I’ll buy some Baofengs and put them in the faraday cage when things go bad and don’t have to worry about the FCC. As a side note, I was a underground utility locator for 13 years and remember talking to a homeowner that had this huge antenna array and I commented that he probably gets the best free t.v from everywhere, that’s when he told me that it was for a ham radio and I've been interested every since.

Don't let the math & eng part dissuade you from getting your ticket, thats why there are diff classes of license! If you have a decent memory you could literally memorize the tech question pool & pass. I'm a broadcast engineer by trade & extra class so I can geek out on the science, but that's not necessary to get on the air. When you get your feet wet you can delve further into the experimental stuff if you want. Hell I made one of my coolest contacts (Japanese research base on Antarctica) on a random length of aluminum pipe stuck in the ground! I had just moved & wanted a temp antenna just to "listen in" on HF. Well 17M was open that day & I heard Antarctica blasting in so I figured wth I'll try it. With the radios ALC screaming at me with a 6:1 swr I put out my call & got a 5-9 sig report. Go figure... Sometimes they say if the bands open you can make a contact with a wet noodle, maybe there is some truth to this lol. Just start with the tech, you can do it

 

[Cameramonkey]

Don't let the math & eng part dissuade you from getting your ticket, thats why there are diff classes of license! If you have a decent memory you could literally memorize the tech question pool & pass. I'm a broadcast engineer by trade & extra class so I can geek out on the science, but that's not necessary to get on the air. When you get your feet wet you can delve further into the experimental stuff if you want. Hell I made one of my coolest contacts (Japanese research base on Antarctica) on a random length of aluminum pipe stuck in the ground! I had just moved & wanted a temp antenna just to "listen in" on HF. Well 17M was open that day & I heard Antarctica blasting in so I figured wth I'll try it. With the radios ALC screaming at me with a 6:1 swr I put out my call & got a 5-9 sig report. Go figure... Sometimes they say if the bands open you can make a contact with a wet noodle, maybe there is some truth to this lol. Just start with the tech, you can do it

THIS. I'm quite handy with spatial concepts like 3D visualization (looking at a complex shape and able to rotate it in my mind), Geometry, etc. But I have been known to need to do basic math on my fingers.But I still managed to pass the General. (not about to try the Extra)

 

[Cameramonkey]

Ever have a "well that was a waste" moment? Got my antenna analyzer. Wanted to make sure I had this end fed tuned properly.

Hooked it up to do a before reading and I apparently nailed the length for 40m. Below 1.5 swr across the entire usable band. Sonofa.... I really didnt need it. I was already tuned.

Though it did let me know which other bands I need to avoid unless I buy another antenna. So its not a total loss. Just a momentary feeling that I wasted my money because I didnt have a problem to solve NOW. I'm sure I'll need it eventually and will be thankful then.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Got my first HF contact tonight. A group out of Cleveland was running a net.

A couple years ago, I splurged on a NICE new rig, but cheaped out on a used tuner. (my entire setup this time cost less than just that radio) I suspect that was my downfall. I couldnt make a contact to save my life. So I gave up.

This time I used the wisdom I learned over the past couple years and bought all new, but chose a more modest system. Once I strung everything up and tested, My first checkin on a net was returned verifying I did it right this time.

 

[laf]

Congratulations on the first contact and setting everything up right! There's a "good" design from Par EndFedz with little stubby legs hanging off the wire to act as tuning for different bands. Friend has it and with the analyzer it wasn't tough to tune. Perhaps there is a description on where in the wire to put the taps if you don't have enough bands. They were just basic automotive vampire taps with spade ends and some 18ga wire dangling straight down. Trim to length. Make sure you got a good counterpoise going too regardless of what the manufacturer claims is needed.

 

[Cameramonkey]

I was looking at the Pars on DX Engineering in case the questionable $40 64:1 wouldnt cut it. Looks like its good enough after all.

It just doesnt work well on 80 or 10, so I'm looking at hamsticks if I want to go that direction. I just dont have the real estate for long wire or dipoles. This current end fed is run as a sloper from the back deck up to a mast on top of my minibarn. And I only have about 2' or less to go before I run out of room.