WRQI583

When Hams "sell Ham Radio" to non Hams, they tend to do more talking about communicating around the world rather than what you can do locally. Out of the guys I have talked to, that is the only thing they were ever really told about Ham. I actually tried to change their mind and show them the benefits of the 2m/70cm bands, but they were against it. There is a lot you can do with the local bands. It's too bad they don't get used to their full potential. If I had endless amounts of money to blow, I would be setting up repeater systems, linked networks with all sorts of added goodies and I would utilize the bands up as high as I could go. Sadly, I don't have the money or even the time. When it comes to the test, that tech test is really easy. It almost seems easier than when I took it back in the 90's. If you encounter any math, it is really simple. Memorizing will help. I really had to do it when taking my general. I passed, but just like the tech, I didn't really learn a lot, until I started talking with other Hams, experimenting, and applying what I learned. I always believe that the true learning part comes after you pass the test and really get into Ham Radio and meet others and start experimenting. I am with you on hoping these interested ones reconsider. The ones I have met were very knowledgeable. They weren't the run of the mill CB'er that just sits and chats. These guys had the basic tech knowledge.

I had to laugh when I saw this. It is very true. I get it though. If you look at what Hams had to go through to just get to a General license back in the day, it wasn't easy like it is today. You had CW requirements etc. To get your General license now is actually simple. I have studied all three tests and the Tech is easy. The General takes the Tech and gets a little more in depth but is still pretty easy. The Extra is the one that is hard. I got to General and I am good for now. Eventually the older crowd will die off and the newer crowd will take full control. I think we have been seeing that already. They are making Ham more inviting and looking less like a brotherhood that you join. Ham is supposed to be fun. It isn't for everyone though, but for those who like it, it can be fun. You have people who just want to key a mic and talk to their friends, and then you have those that are electronics geeks and really get into the meat and potatoes of radio. Neither is bad, they just get into two different things.

I have heard the same. However, I don't make up what I have been told to my face or what I have heard come through my speakers. The way I see it, if these "Hams" don't like it being exposed like that, they should encourage those few Hams out there that have a hatred for other radio services to stop it. I have come across a handful of Hams who think getting people into GMRS is wonderful way to get into radio and then transition into Ham if they want. I know quite a few who have. However, Ham isn't for everyone and I respect that. It doesn't mean a person can't pass the test though. Out of the people I have talked to that are interested in radio but don't have their ham license, almost all of them don't want anything to do with Ham because of contesting/DXing and talking worldwide. That has been the main reason I have heard because these guys just want to talk local the way people do on CB. Other reasons are the "having to pass a test" just to do the act of talking on the radio to their buddy is dumb. I have only met a couple of people in my life that straight up told me they were not smart enough to pass the test. I know, "some people" will believe what they want, so to each their own. Whatever floats their boat.

There are a quite a few Hams in my area that do have GMRS licenses and are not afraid to talk on either or mention GMRS on Ham, but I dont live in the areas where they talk on radio. I actually live in a very quiet area when it comes to people talking on radio. It isn't an "in thing" to do.

All I had to do is make mention of having a GMRS license on 2 meters. The attitude that came off of the Hams just about dissolved my speaker. Needless to say, I quit talking on ham. I hop on Ham on a rare occasion to check into a net or something but my days of having conversations is probably over. I got this same attitude over making mention of an experience I had on CB radio. Just say the name of another radio service and the most vile hatred oozes out of some Hams.

Congrats!!! I have had mine for a year now. I don't really do HF due to all of the DX'ing/contesting but if it is your thing, you are in the right place. PLENTY of room to play night and day. I built a doublet antenna. 450 ohm feedline with two 60 some odd foot long 18ga wires for radials. Real simple to build and covers the HF bands. When you finally get on the radio, starting in the afternoon, they have something called the HF activity group. Check them out at HFQSO.com Real great bunch of guys and a lot of fun. They cover 4 bands (17,15,12,10).

Ah yes, those areas have a big GMRS presence on the radio. Sometimes I think it is more active than Ham.

I have had that happen several times and some times went as far as ripping everything apart and finally ending with the programming in the radio to find out it was a PL tone.

I keep mine going as long as I am in the shack, which is usually in the early morning and evening, There is some activity in the morning but come evening, it is dead. I swear, some evenings I could sit there screaming "emergency" and no one would answer. That is just the nature of the area I live though. I think people go to bed early.

Like I said, in some areas of the country, it is busy, and other areas, it is not. I certainly am not desperate when it comes to wanting to talk to someone on the radio. I would like to have what I used to have with CB and Ham back in the day before cell phones where there were groups that were always known to be on a certain frequency or channel and you sat there and communicated and it was local. That was your means of communications, not cell phones. I think a lot of other people would like that and that is why many are drawn to linked repeater systems and internet linked Ham where everyone seems to be. Personally I dont get into it. I prefer plain radio. I prefer local and simplex or maybe a repeater if need be. I actually don't like the internet linked digital voice modes because it is linked on the internet. Where I live, Hams locally are on the radio at weird times and most of them are off the radio by 7 or 8 pm. Due to my schedule, I am not able to be on the radio at the same time that other Hams are and that applies to joining clubs. I have time most evenings but Ham is usually dead at those times in my area. I come from a time with Ham radio where local Hams were burning up the repeater late into the night just chatting. These days, there isn't much of that going on. Simplex is a no go with me and repeaters are not used often. I know everyone says that I need to sit there and keep putting out my call and say "listening" and keep persistent but I don't have the time. There are plenty of people who sit on the radio all day who can drum up business and they don't. No worries though. I just go in the other room and watch TV. Radio is a fun thing you do for about 10-15 minutes a day. Sadly that is what it has turned into and what it will be until the day modern comms fail. I know this is a wrong thinking but it is the reality of our world. I do not believe it or like it but it is what I have to accept.

What town is that? Maine may have activity, but it is not active like I am used to. I have 11 repeaters with simplex scanning in my radio and it has been since I sat down here at 630 this evening and not a peep has come out of that radio. There are many evenings that are like this. Go farther north and it is worse.

I dont know if that is how all Hams do it in Maine but that is unfortunately how I have to do it. When I am available to be on the radio, most Hams are not on the radio. Hams in Maine seem to go to bed real early from what I have observed. When I first got into Ham, Hams could be heard burning the repeaters up late into the night. Now, the repeaters are dead after 7 or 8 pm.

Oh and believe me, I cant wait until it fails. Maybe then, more people would be on the radio relying on it as a main means of communication rather than a hobby or a contest. Unfortunately, reality is what reality is.

The simple answer? Yes. It sounds stupid and believe me, I hate it more than you know. I didn't get into radio just to use cell phones to figure out where I am going to talk. This is why I always loved CB radio or simplex/repeater on Ham. Everyone gathered there and everyone knew how to reach each other. Today, those means are not active like they used to be. You have the HF bands which have turned into a dumpster fire when trying to find a band to talk on (although it has been getting a bit better as of lately) and when it comes to talking to those out of my area on simplex, thanks to contesting and bands being up and down, there is no set place to meet regularly and besides, no one owns the frequencies. This is the reality that I have tried to show to other Hams when they all wanted me to get on HF. Until Hams stop using cell phones and are forced to rely on radio, cell phones will always rank higher.

It has already been said in here............ It depends on the area. Go to California and I am sure there are busy repeaters. Go somewhere else and GMRS is dead. Just like the VHF/UHF bands on Ham Radio, most places are dead. No one wants to bother with local communication when they have a cell phone. My wife and I both have GMRS and Ham licenses and with the exception of when we go out shopping or a few other activities, we use cell phones to communicate, as long as they work. When they dont, the radios come out. But everyone, and I mean everyone has a cell phone with the ability to have similar apps such as Phone, Texting, Zello, Facebook, etc to name a few. It is organized and guaranteed you will be able to instantly communicate with anther person. Not everyone has GMRS or Ham and even if they do, GMRS is limited and Ham has so much, there is no telling where a person might be monitoring and what mode they are using, so cell phones are a lot easier. Another thing also is that if most people turn the radio on and no one is on, before that person even decides to throw their call sign out, they turn the radio off. I used to have a nice setup going at my home with three different directional antennas hooked to a GMRS radio. Because I live in a hole and there are limited repeaters and no activity near me even though there is a very active group of GMRS operators in my state, I took all the antennas and coax down and unhooked the radio and stuffed it all away in the barn in a box. It was taking up space and doing absolutely nothing. Most people I would need to contact, Hams and GMRS ops included, all have cell phones and before any of us start to communicate, we pick up our cell phones and contact each other and plan what frequency we are going to be on. Very rarely do I contact someone straight away on the radio. It is very sad that communication has come to this, and believe me, I dont like it either, but it is what it is. Until Cell phones are abolished, radio will always take a back seat. There are quite a few factors as to why people are not on the radio and these are reasons I have observed.