Advice on buying a new radio

[Wingfoot]

Alloneword

No problem, I hope I did not come across as one of the condescending types you mention, I am totally new to ham radio, I got my first Baofeng back in May of this year, I used a CB back in the early 80's on AM but never bothered with it once it moved to FM, I listened on the Baofeng through the summer & finally decided to do the foundation in September of this year & took the exam on October 14th.

If we ever find ourselves in a real SHTF/WROL situation I won't be bothered if the people I'm talking to are licensed are not, that was not what I am implying when I say do the foundation course, in our society we have to abide by the law & so in order to learn more about radio right now the foundation seemed the obvious way to go.

The club I joined does the course over six weeks, just a couple of hours, one evening a week, but many offer it in a single weekend intensive course, cost was £27 for the exam & if you pass, the licence is free from Ofcom.

The exam consists of 26 questions & is multiple choice, each question has four possible answers A,B,C,or D you simply shade in the box relating to your chosen answer, so even if you don't know the answer you still have a 25% chance of getting it right.

You need to get 19/26 to get a pass, in the group I took it with, we all passed, some only just got through, & some got them all, the scores are unimportant a pass is a pass

If you want a better idea of the syllabus get a copy of the foundation now book, its less than £5 & covers everything that you will be tested on in the exam, read it & remember it & you should get through the test no problem.

The practical parts of the course are easy, the club walks you through the various exercises, nobody fails those bits, the morse code part is just a simple appreciation of what it is, you don't have to learn it anymore.

With my cheap radio I can open repeaters that are over 40 miles away but I do live in a rural setting & I do have height above sea level in my favour.

Hope that helps answer some of your questions.

Wf

[Alloneword]

I hope I did not come across as one of the condescending types you mention, I am totally new to ham radio, I got my first Baofeng back in May of this year, I used a CB back in the early 80's on AM but never bothered with it once it moved to FM,

No you did not come across like some others i know so no worries on that score buddy.

OK the info you have given me is great, i will look at the foundation course and see what is local to me, just done that and local one is by Tower bridge which is only a mle or two away from me, found out you can do the course online but still have to go somewhere to do the hands on stuff, i'll get the RSGB book first from ebay or amazon.

All1

[Wingfoot]

OK the info you have given me is great, i will look at the foundation course and see what is local to me, just done that and local one is by Tower bridge which is only a mle or two away from me, found out you can do the course online but still have to go somewhere to do the hands on stuff, i'll get the RSGB book first from ebay or amazon.

All1

Yes I meant to mention the essex ham online course, Pete, the guy who runs it, is a very helpful chap, both filsgreen & I on here, did it as preperation prior to attending our local clubs, its certainly worth doing & I found that the club I did my course with used the essex ham presentations, so it was all very familiar.

There are a load of posts on the other threads within the comms section of this forum which have many useful links &, there are also a number of experianced radio operators & I found them all to be most helpful & gave sound advice.

Good luck

Wf

[TheOldHObbit]

I too am new to this prepping lark, mainly because my good lady has shown an interest in "Domestic Prepping" just in case we need to be self sustainable for a short period of time. One of the things that I looked at was comms and for the moment have decided to go 11 meter CB. I admire those who have taken the step up to HAM operators but my belief is that should the SHTF the vast majority of people will more than likely use something that is commonplace rather than confusing HAM set ups and that will probably be CB or PMR, having said that I would like to take the foundation course one day!! The Authorities will likely use UHF gear and I only say this because I have just had an IP Digital UHF system put in at work for our Emergency Plan which will be able to link into Surrey Fire & Rescue. With a further 2 repeater going in to extend coverage for the whole of our Borough it is a very expensive investment, however it relies on IP connection to ensure it works. If we loose the internet at any of the repeaters then our comms falls over and I will have to fall back on my trusty old VHF system.

11 meter I know is seen as the "Naughty channels" but trust me, there are loads of people out there on USB & LSB. I know that distance work is reliant on the conditions, but if something happens locally then for me CB is the most likely system people will go for. I am a complete novice to all these frequencies, FM, AM, SSB, very confusing but I'm slowly learning, so much so that I am now putting a second system into my car and a handset is on the cards also.

Whatever you decide to do I would wish you will with it and do let us know what you have decided on.

Cheers

[Alloneword]

Well i bought the book but it's more like a pamphlet, so everything i need to pass is in there yes?


All1

[Wingfoot]

Well i bought the book but it's more like a pamphlet, so everything i need to pass is in there yes?


All1

Yes, I'm fairly sure you will only get questions based on the information in the book.

You will need to find a club so that they can sign you off with regard to the practical assessments , they are also quite easy, you need to check & adjust the SWR on a dipole antenna, connect up the various components of a station & also make contact with another station, there is also a morse code appreciation session.

Be sure to study the licence conditions as their written, they counted for several marks on the exam I sat.

The book may seem a bit thin but you would be surprised by just how much their is to remember.

Good luck with it.

Wf

[Alloneword]

Yes, I'm fairly sure you will only get questions based on the information in the book.

You will need to find a club so that they can sign you off with regard to the practical assessments , they are also quite easy, you need to check & adjust the SWR on a dipole antenna, connect up the various components of a station & also make contact with another station, there is also a morse code appreciation session.

Be sure to study the licence conditions as their written, they counted for several marks on the exam I sat.

The book may seem a bit thin but you would be surprised by just how much their is to remember.

Good luck with it.

Wf

Club is no problem only 10 min drive away at Tower Bridge, and yes i have already come across some bits that seem to be in a foreign but it does not seem too bad, so i may well sit it, if i do i'll post back just for the hell of it thanks for your help and feedback on stuff.

All1

[Hamradioop]

The book is all you need to pass, it is thin true but the course is not the then end product for a full tickect, the books get progressively thicker.

[Wingfoot]

The book is all you need to pass, it is thin true but the course is not the then end product for a full tickect, the books get progressively thicker.

Yes it does

I'm reading through the Intermediate licence book at the moment & its at least twice as thick as the foundation book when compared side by side, Iv'e not looked at the Full Licence book yet but I guess I eventually will & I'm expecting it to be thicker again.

Wf

[TheOldHObbit]

I too am new to this prepping lark, mainly because my good lady has shown an interest in "Domestic Prepping" just in case we need to be self sustainable for a short period of time. One of the things that I looked at was comms and for the moment have decided to go 11 meter CB. I admire those who have taken the step up to HAM operators but my belief is that should the SHTF the vast majority of people will more than likely use something that is commonplace rather than confusing HAM set ups and that will probably be CB or PMR, having said that I would like to take the foundation course one day!! The Authorities will likely use UHF gear and I only say this because I have just had an IP Digital UHF system put in at work for our Emergency Plan which will be able to link into Surrey Fire & Rescue. With a further 2 repeater going in to extend coverage for the whole of our Borough it is a very expensive investment, however it relies on IP connection to ensure it works. If we loose the internet at any of the repeaters then our comms falls over and I will have to fall back on my trusty old VHF system.

11 meter I know is seen as the "Naughty channels" but trust me, there are loads of people out there on USB & LSB. I know that distance work is reliant on the conditions, but if something happens locally then for me CB is the most likely system people will go for. I am a complete novice to all these frequencies, FM, AM, SSB, very confusing but I'm slowly learning, so much so that I am now putting a second system into my car and a handset is on the cards also.

Whatever you decide to do I would wish you will with it and do let us know what you have decided on.

Cheers

Having said all above, I have contacted my local club (Farnborough) and agreed a date to go down and meet them in the new year. I have been persuaded to look at my foundation and expand my knowledge of radio's so I have placed these on my xmas list to start me off: x2 BAOFENG UV-5R5's. I have also ordered the third party magmount for the car and a couple of better, longer aerials as well. Just out of interest..... I know they only push 1W and 4W but is there an outdoor antenna that can be attached and used to increase the possible range of these hand sets?