Calling CQ DX

[on_one_wheel]

Calling CQ CQ DX, Hotel Zulu 253, 43 division calling

Is anyone here into amateur radio?

I've been tinkering on the 11 meter bands on an off over the last 25 years or so and am considering working my way up to an amateur licence.

It'll be interesting to see who's into their radios here or read about others experiences with it.

73's

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[deye243]

G'day I see you also like HZ 253 V8 I've been licensed since 2006 and boy oh boy you can spend tens of thousands of dollars on ham radio equipment or on the flip side you can do just as good a job with very little money .

[on_one_wheel]

G'day I see you also like HZ 253 V8 I've been licensed since 2006 and boy oh boy you can spend tens of thousands of dollars on ham radio equipment or on the flip side you can do just as good a job with very little money .

Your pushing some good numbers my way deye243, solid 5's there !! Well how about that

My handle was a reference to my first car 1980 HZ 253

I'm hoping to keep things relatively simple and old school but would like to work 27.555 and other popular 11m frequencies with a few extra watts.
I wouldn't mind having a play with CW as well.

Currently I'm running a Galaxy 959 with a ½ wave vertical but would like to get a Yaesu FT-101 (as pictured above) and a beam.
I've managed to make contacts on the East Coast, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane with my current rig when the skip is running and had a reply from Hawaii but got drowned out by the power stations... its just too crazy on 35... I need to QRO, 99% of the time I'm just listening, especially when the nonsense starts.

I'm in the process of studying for my certifications so I can eventually sit for my licence.

Do you spend much time on the 11m bands?

[deye243]

I used to do a bit of 11 metre band with a icom ic 756 Pro 3 but there is one problem when you have a licence for radio it's the same as firearms the ACMA is only there to give the licenced a hard time and couldn't care about chook band so I ended up pulling down my 5/8 ground plane and steering clear of the chooka because I've heard of few people getting busted and losing the lot.
If you are thinking of getting on 80m these days and live anywhere in or near an Urban area you will need a SDR type radio with an advanced DSP to cut through all the crap , all the LED TVs and power supplies these days will give you 20 to 30 DB over noise which makes it hopeless .
All the best with your study the f call is a walk in the park .

[on_one_wheel]

I used to do a bit of 11 metre band with a icon ic 756 Pro 3 but there is one problem when you have a licence for radio it's the same as firearms the ACMA is only there to give the licenced a hard time and couldn't care about chook band so I ended up pulling down my 5/8 ground plane and steering clear of the chooka because I've heard of few people getting busted and losing the lot.
If you are thinking of getting on 80m these days and live anywhere in or near an Urban area you will need a SDR type radio with an advanced DSP to cut through all the crap , all the LED TVs and power supplies these days will give you 20 to 30 DB over noise which makes it hopeless .
All the best with your study the f call is a walk in the park .

I can recall some carry on between some old amateur operators, one would put a foot out of place and the others would pounce, they'd report the operator straight to the ACMA. Often it was over a simple mistake that cost another operator a contact and a QSL card .... grumpy old men
I remember a friend of mine looking after an old fellas 1000w vacc tube linear amplifier, he had to stash all the equipment that he wasn't ment to have. We had a little fun with the amp until someone politely asked him to turn it down, probably after having the back blown out of his radio.

[Noisydad]

Now, I don’t want to appear judgmental BUT... like me, you blokes often went home from school with mega wedgies didn’t you?!

[Apollo]

Keep up the study and get your licence, then keep going with the study working to a Full Call. Well worth it.

I've been licenced for well over 40 years and operated most all bands from 160m through to 23cm at one time or another. I have Yagi's for all bands 40m and above.

I'm also one of the very few that have a high power 1kw licence on permitted HF Bands. I use an Emtron DX 1B Linear Amplifier which gives me legal power of 1kw SSB.

I also own and operate a 2m/70cm Repeater on my property.

It's not cheap owning all the gear required to maintain and test numerous bits of gear. Probably the most trying time was looking after a commercial radio broadcast station and getting calls at weird times when something fails and go fix it asap in the wee hours.

Very rewarding overall.

Lots of good times working the world on the lesser known frequencies like 17m.

[on_one_wheel]

Now, I don’t want to appear judgmental BUT... like me, you blokes often went home from school with mega wedgies didn’t you?!

wedgies... that's nothing, its the royal flushes that leave the emotional scars

[on_one_wheel]

Keep up the study and get your licence, then keep going with the study working to a Full Call. Well worth it.

I've been licenced for well over 40 years and operated most all bands from 160m through to 23cm at one time or another. I have Yagi's for all bands 40m and above.

I'm also one of the very few that have a high power 1kw licence on permitted HF Bands. I use an Emtron DX 1B Linear Amplifier which gives me legal power of 1kw SSB.

I also own and operate a 2m/70cm Repeater on my property.

It's not cheap owning all the gear required to maintain and test numerous bits of gear. Probably the most trying time was looking after a commercial radio broadcast station and getting calls at weird times when something fails and go fix it asap in the wee hours.

Very rewarding overall.

Lots of good times working the world on the lesser known frequencies like 17m.

Wow ... so as it turns out between yourself and 243 we've got a immense wealth of information here on the topic. That's awsome

Pretty cool having your own repeater

I've never operated outside of CB so I've got a tonn to learn about other frequencies. I will probably need to look at something else to get away from the chaos on 11m.

Those 1000w linear amplifiers are a crazy bit of gear to be running in suburban areas, especially without the knowledge or training to understand the hazards.
I remember my mate keying up at full noise while I was in his house, I could hear his muffled voice being transmitted through his stereo speakers while the stereo was turned off his neighbours reported the same thing, luckily he didn't have it for too long,

[Apollo]

Might be cool having a Repeater but it comes at a fair cost to upkeep. At the present it's off the air until I can do some repairs and afford to replace Solar Batteries. In times gone past there was a lot of interest from others and secondhand batteries weren't that hard to find. Those contacts have since moved on so the task is a lot more difficult to achieve.

I played CB for awhile back in the 60/70's, even with linears but I met quite a few Amateurs and they helped me move on to much better things.

There was a trial some time back with using above 400 Watts but most that were in the trial were in populated areas and upon investigation they failed to satisfy the emission standards so the privilege was withdrawn from them. I believe it's only a few like myself that live in rural non populated areas that met the standards and were issued a permanent high power licence. I doubt very much if anyone now would be granted one probably that it's just too much hassle to go through with the ACMA.

My 40m 2 Element Yagi is quite large and probably wouldn't fit in most house blocks yet alone getting permission to erect a 30m high tower for antennas then yet alone a few more towers for other antennas.

My greatest interest was working DX on the VHF/UHF Bands be it 6m, 2m or 70cm. Lots of listening, searching for tiny signals and establishing a contact. Again a Linear is handy but didn't mean the other end could match the power so it's building/playing with super sensitive pre-amplifiers on receivers.

I did have my fun with huge antenna arrays on UHF CB plus a little extra power until one time a quite friendly ACMA Inspector suggested I tone things down and get an Amateur Licence which I did... I think he is still around these days, used to run a Training School for would be Amateurs...Ron Bertram

There are quite a number of things that can cause transmissions to be heard through things like Stereo's and the like, mostly faults that can be found and fixed quite easily if one knows what they are looking for and doing. It can be a dirty signal and/or poor quality equipment on both sides. Not everyone has the quality test equipment to fault find yet alone test possible solutions. Don't have that problem out in the rural areas.

In decades gone past a lot of Amateurs used to do mods and tune ups for CB yet alone modify Amateur Equipment to transmit on CB Frequencies. Those days I think are well and truely over or they are very hard to find these days. I can remember buying a brand new Kenwood HF Radio that was tricked up to operate on CB....bit of fun at the time but even then, don't get caught with it.

[Apollo]

Oh...!!!! BTW

If you want to go far into Amateur Radio... You need to have a keen interest in Electronics.

To begin with basic electronics but then it gets tougher into electronic circuits and how they evolve into radio.

The basic Foundation Licence if you understand the basics is dead easy...BUT... it gets way tougher the higher class you want to go.
You need to be keen to learn and go way further than just picking up a microphone and saying... Hello..

It's a big world of learning and achievement into Amateur Radio.... but wow, we used to get to play with communications with the guys who were first in Space that were Amateur Radio Operators... Ham Radio if you want USA type talk....

Talk across Australia on CB is easy with all the crap that comes with it but what about talking with an operator that is circling the Earth yet alone around the Moon.

Then you also have for the Computer Nuts the Digital Mode Communication transmitting Data across many frequencies around the Earth...

To get to the top, it's not easy and needs a lot of study and understanding.... It makes CB very childish in comparison...

Please enjoy your journey...

[deye243]

Yes I have transmitted through the cross band repeater on the ISS

[on_one_wheel]

I must be over excited, my great big reply just vanished ... ill get on the laptop tomorrow night and type it out again. My thumbs hurt doing this on the phone

[deye243]

I must be over excited, my great big reply just vanished ... ill get on the laptop tomorrow night and type it out again. My thumbs hurt doing this on the phone

I don't type i'm too bloody slow I use the microphone thats is why there is no punctuation

[on_one_wheel]

No doubt I have a very steep learning curve ahead of me but fortunately I do have a little bit of a head start.
I definitely have a keen interest in electronics, My interest in radios and electronics was sparked at about 8 years of age when I receive Dick Smith's fun way into Electronics kit, that kit enabled me to learn about components and build a basic radio booster amplifier, radio receiver, CB radio receiver, transmitters and other cool projects.
I eventually began basic modification of CB rigs with frequency expansions, 10kc and steps power upgrades.
I'm still actively fault finding and repairing basic circuitry. I have some basic but quality equipment such as SWR meters, a frequency counter, dummy loads, and am looking to buy an oscilloscope when a good deal pops up locally.
I have built my own antennas and am planning to build a beam and rotator so I can better "ignore" the problem signals. I'm looking for an ARRL Antenna Book before I get started on the beam.

Luckily I have plenty of room to run good height and area, my current mast is a 3 piece telescopic with guide wires capable of hoisting to a max height of 14 metres, however it spends most of it's time at 5.5m with the ½wave vertical attached.

I reckon I'll be too late to use the ISS repeater, It'll probably be decommissioned before I get anywhere near being able to use it

Thanks lads I've definitely got some questions coming your way

The first one is... what's the best and most active forum I could join if you know of one?

[deye243]

Never had a need for a radio forum when your licenced you get to use frequencies where you discuss your radio problems faults get help from more advanced members that's the whole idea of amateur radio and in that way it is great always other members very willing to help especially in Eastern Victoria some exceptionally smart people

[on_one_wheel]

I really can't find any Information on study material for licensing on the acma or The Australian Maritime College websites, im guessing that its all covered in the qualifications?

Is my understanding correct that I need to achieve my qualifications then start off with a Foundation Non-assigned licence which allows me to use : 3.5, 7, 21, 28, 144 and 430 MHz. ?

[deye243]

You can do that or if you have the knowledge you can just go straight to your standard licence depends on your knowledge and skill set.
You can get a foundation book from any of the radio clubs most of the radio clubs actually do have websites and we'll very happily send you the book after your pay for it of course

[on_one_wheel]

Thanks deye243, I've just ordered a copy from the WIA, they also have a test exam on their site, I've passed on all 3 separate test exams so I reckon I'm off to a good start. I made a couple of silly mistakes by misreading 2 questions
https://www.wia.org.au/licenses/foundat ... ionmanual/

[Sarco]

Unfortunately, with the proposed change to class licensing by ACMA, there is a real possibility that the amateur bands will go the same way as the 11M band (27mHz) and the UHF CB bands in metro areas.

If the proposal gets legs, with the current price of relatively high powered cheap as chips VHF and UHF amateur band radios (including full digital) coming out of China, available on eBay, (sub $100-200) no questions asked, amateur radio will be killed off in at least the VHF and UHF bands, but probably right across the spectrum.

[deye243]

It should be illegal to possess amateur radio equipment without a licence illegal to purchase they could easily fix this problem but they wont we used to have dri's years ago

[Larry]

My understanding and it seems to fit well with my logic is that the internet is the real downfall of Ham radio. International communication is now so common and easy via the home computer and for the electronic minded the computer provides plenty of opportunity for customization. In fact the web provides places such as this where special interest groups can gather and discuss.

[on_one_wheel]

I found this extremely interesting
https://www.hamradiosecrets.com/listen- ... nline.html
NA5B in American broadcasts lots of bands including public radio stations,

This website is about to consume most of my data, its awesome.

[deye243]

Good you bring this thread up as I have had no transceiver gear up since late 2021 as I had to move house 2 times now I'm in a stable place I am thinking of getting back to it but it's a new area so I'm thinking I'm going to get a LOT of cranky f wit Neighbours complaining about antennas when I do problem is I no longer have the room for 80m antennas so it will just be 70cm 2m and maybe 10m vertical .
So did you get ya ticket

[on_one_wheel]

I didn't give ahead with the licencing, iv been way to busy to get I done but I've been having some great success on some on 11m either side of 27.355 where the idiots stay clear of.
Mexico and Italy just the other night on the vertical, every corner of Australia with ease.
There's been some great conditions even after sundown.
You'll have fun with the WebDSR, I'm going to see If I can see my own signal abroad shortly on a quiet frequency.

[Sarco]

19 Feb 24, Amateur radio licencing moved to a class licence.
That being said amateur radio still requires the accreditation and training and the allocation of a callsign before "legally" being allowed to use a radio on the amateur bands. There is an ACMA site where the available call signs are listed. eg. VK3xxx, indicates a Victorian based callsign 7=Tas, 6=WA, 5=SA etc. the successful operator, having completed the training can select their preferred 3 letters represent by the xxx

Details at:
https://www.acma.gov.au/amateur-radio.

As I stated earlier VHF/UHF amateur band radios are available relatively cheaply. acceptable quality HF radios out of China, are sub $1K.

[on_one_wheel]

I was also disappointed in how restrictive the conditions are under a licence, very low power levels and limited frequency range, I was keen to use the triple nickel on 11m but unfortunately it's off limits, you wouldn't know it listening though, there's plenty of Australian operators keying up on there.
Given I'm not keen on spending money on new equipment to run different bands, I've got little to gain getting licenced.

[Sarco]

11M Band (40 channels - 26.965MHz to 27.405MHz) is and has been a class licence as "Citizen Band" for many years. As has been the UHF CB (40 or 80 channels 476.425MHz to 477.4125MHz) and both have been max "legal power" power of 5 Watts since forever.

Amateur licence, even the most basic licence level legally may transmit at considerable higher power levels and across a far wider range of frequency bands. The basic licence 'Foundation" is not overly onerous (virtually no electronics); Standard licence does require a basic understanding of electronics and radio theory and Advance more complex electronics and radio theory.

Courses are conducted by most local amateur radio clubs regularly and are generally free.

[deye243]

Cb ssb is 11 watts AM is just 4 watts and a foundation ham is 10watts across all bands that apply unless they changed it .