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TOP 1000 FREQUENCIES, BY MONITORING TIMES.

YOU ARE A BRAND NEW HAM!

Most likely you have started as a Technician Class licensee.  If not, we'll address the General and Extra in a different chapter.  This one is for the "I ain't never done nuttin' like this before" beginner!

As a Technician, you are limited in what you can do, and where you can do it.  Visit ARRL.ORG for a chart of the frequencies on which you can operate, and the modes you can use.  We'll sort of summarize them here.

Most likely you have started with a handheld radio, sometimes called a walkie-talkie, or an HT (which stands for Handie-Talkie, a Motorola Corp tradename.)  You may have a mobile radio. The principle is the same, except the mobile is probably far more powerful than the handheld.   In addition, the mobile uses an external antenna, mounted somewhere on your vehicle, and though the handheld CAN be connected to such an antenna, for improved performance, most beginners wind up with just the "rubber ducky" kind of antenna, mounted directly on the handheld. 

The handheld (we will use the general term) is usually limited to a few watts of RF (Radio Frequency power) ouput, and may even be less than one watt.  Those with less than four or five watts output are pretty much useless in rural areas, but can be useful in metropolitan areas where there are lots of repeaters.  Repeaters extend the range of VHF and UHF radios, and we'll discuss that, too, in this series. 

There are two basic kinds of operation with a handheld or a mobile VHF (Very High Frequency) or UHF (Ultra High Frequency) radio.  One is SIMPLEX, and the other is REPEATER.

SIMPLEX is when you and the person you are talking to, are on the same channel.  It's kind of like CB radio.  You both talk and listen on Channel 13, for example.  So only one of you can talk at a time.  Then he must release his Push To Talk button (PTT) so he can listen, and now it is your turn to talk.   It works the same way on simplex operation with VHF or UHF radios. 

Because, though, you are not using a repeater, the range is very limited.  On VHF, with a handheld, you may find it difficult to talk a half mile, and with just the rubber ducky antenna, even a quarter mile may not be easy.   On UHF the range is similar but may max out at a third of a mile.  Both of these are line of sight transmissions.  If you can see the other guy, you may be able to talk to him.

Mobile radios, being more powerful, and with better antennas, can do quite a bit better.  Typical ranges are 4 to 8 miles car to car, and up to 12 miles car to base.  Depends upon terrain, and the antennas at each end, as well as the power.   Again, it is simplex. 

But suppose you had a more powerful transmitter and receiver that could relay your signal?  Well, in many cases you do!

REPEATERS

In a nutshell, repeaters, whether VHF or UHF, are a remote "station."  Complete with power and antenna.  They may be quite powerful, running an RF ouput of 40 to even 100 watts, though most amateur repeaters typically run 20 to 60 watts.   They are usually located on high points around, such as tall buildings, mountain tops, tall commercial towers, and the like.  Because the repeater transmitter is so high up, it can transmit quite long distances.  Many Rocky Mountain mountaintop repeaters can transmit 80 to 130 miles easily.   And they receive just about as well! 

So what if you were standing up there on that mountain, with your handheld radio.  Would your range be improved?  Absolutely!  And that is what the repeater does. 

So how does a repeater work?  Again, going back to our nutshell, you transmit TO the repeater on a certain frequency.  It receives what you are transmitting, by listening on that frequency. But at the same time, it sends out what you are transmitting on a different frequency or channel.   And it sends it out with higher power, a higher antenna, and better coverage.  And it does it at the same time you are transmitting.

Someone listening to the repeater will hear the repeater's transmitter, but it is saying what YOU are transmitting TO the repeater.  Just now on a different frequency, with that more power, bigger antenna stuff.

So they hear your voice a LOT further than they would if you were on simplex.  Even your little quarter mile handheld may be heard 50 miles away.  Only it isn't YOUR radio that is being heard - it is the repeater, relaying what you are saying.

So if someone wants to call you, when you stop talking, they transmit TO the repeater.  Now you hear the repeater relaying their transmission.  

Simple, no?  It just retransmits your signal (or someone's) using a much better antenna, more power, and a lot more height.  That's all it does! 

Some repeaters, though, are linked to other repeaters in other areas.  That means if you transmit into the repeater near you, not only that repeater is relaying your voice, but a dozen or more may be doing the same thing.  Here in New Mexico there is the Megalink, which is a linked system of over 40 repeaters.  Using it, and your handheld radio, you can talk to just about anywhere in the state, as long as someone is there to talk back to you.  

Some systems can even be linked to other systems outside the state.  In Arizona there used to be a link called the Zia link, which could permit a person with a handheld radio in Albuquerque, to talk to Yuma, Arizona!  And if the rest of the link was activated, he may could talk all the way to San Diego, using nothing but a hand held "walkie talkie!"   The ZIA link has been gone for years, but there are other linked systems.

OK, now you have a radio, you know where a repeater is, and you are ready to talk. What now?

HOW DO YOU DO IT?

How do you call someone? 

You have been issued a call sign, from the Federal Communications Commission.  That is YOUR call sign, and yours alone.  It is printed on your license as your "Legal ID." 

You know about commercial broadcast radio stations.  Like KKOB in Albuquerque.  Well, KKOB is their call sign, and it is used, as required by law, to identify their station.  As a broadcast station they are REQUIRED to identify their station on top of the hour ( 6, 7, 8 AM, etc) every hour, using that Legal ID coupled with their legal market of license.  For KKOB, that is Albuquerque.  They are REQUIRED, on top of the hour, or as close as they can get to it, to identify as follows:

KKOB, ALBUQUERQUE.  That's it.  That is the law.  They can't insert "in" between the call sign and the city.  Just exactly what you see there (except they don't prounounce the comma!)

The rest of the hour, they can use "logos" or "slogan."  Like "Talk Radio, KOB."  Now why do they say KOB instead of KKOB?  The station used to be licenses under that grand old call sign of three letters, not four.  But during an ownership change, they could not renew the three-letter call sign.  So they got a four letter one.  And it was, at their request, KKOB.  That is their Legal ID.  The rest of the hour, though, they can use "KOB" as their 'logo."  They can also use other logos, such as "Albuquerque Talk Radio" or "News Radio, KOB." 

You have a call sign.  So do I.  Mine is W5HTW.  That is my LEGAL ID.   It is printed on my license. 

Let's say your call sign is W3GAB (this was a call sign I held years ago.)  You want to call me.  You have heard me on the repeater and I sound like a truly interesting, delightful, highly educated, knowledgeable, good looking, graceful, friendly, rich, more good looking, sort of guy and you want to talk to me.  How do you call me?

The proper procedure is to use MY callsign first, then announce who YOU are.  Thus:  W5HTW THIS IS W3GAB

I will respond to you ( If I find you equally appealing!) this way:

W3GAB THIS IS W5HTW GO AHEAD

Or something similar.  In other words now I put your call sign first, and mine last. 

OVER?

Most of the time we do not have to play Buck Rogers and say "over."  When we release the PTT button (remember what that is?) we aren't heard anymore.  So the other guy knows we aren't talking anymore and it is his/her turn.   So "over" is just about never needed.  We do, though, out of habit, tend to say "go ahead" as I just did above, or "yeah, what the heck do you want?" 

OK maybe not that.  And "over" is not wrong.  It just isn't necessary MOST of the time.   That is especially true on repeaters!  When you release your microphone (PTT) button, the repeater may stay keyed up for a few seconds.  That is called the "repeater tail."   Then it will likely (not all do) transmit a single tone, called a 'courtesy beep."  Oh, please, please, please do not confuse this with a CB Roger Beep!  Roger Beeps are a NO-NO on ham radio and will quickly get you lots of disdain.

So the repeater transmits a courtesy beep. What IS that and why is it done?

Because, under FCC law, a repeater MUST shut itself down if it gets stuck in transmit for any reason.  So here you are riding along in your Jeep, and you are sitting on the microphone.  So you are constantly sending a signal, without voice, into the repeater.  You are keeping it in "relay" mode.  It is transmitting.

It MUST shut down after three minutes.  It has a timer.  So you can't accidently (or intentionally) keep it keyed up for hours.

The courtesy beep tells those using the repeater that that three minute timer has reset to zero and is ready for another three minutes.  That is why it is there.  It is NOT a "roger beep." 

If I am talking to you, and I stop transmitting, and you immediately start transmitting, BEFORE that courtesy beep, we have not allowed the repeater to reset its timer.  And then, I come back to you again, and again, without waiting for the reset . You and I will soon "time out" the repeater after we have done this for a total of three minutes.  And then neither of us will be talking to anyone. 

After a few minutes the repeater will reset itself anyway, and try again.  But I may have thought I was talking to you all the time, and I wasn't - the repeater was off!  So you didn't hear me.

So when using a repeater, unless you are making very short transmissions, it is best to wait for the "reset" or courtesy beep, before YOU start talking.  And don't talk more than 2-1/2 minutes!   You can talk longer, but you need to release your PTT button for a second and then press it again, so you have reset the repeater timer.  OK?

CONVERSATION

Once you and I have established contact, we don't have to toss our call signs around all the time. 

I may say:  Are you coming to the club meeting tonight? (and I release the PTT button.)

You hear the beep, and you respond, YES I'LL BE THERE ABOUT SEVEN (and you release your PTT button.

See, no call signs.  But we ARE required to ID at least every ten minutes.  It is not against the rules to ID more frequently. 

THEN WHAT?

What can we talk about?  Well darned near anything but with some restrictions.  Here are a few of the "don't do" things.

1.  Profanity. Much of it is illegal.  If you use profanity over a repeater, the owner of the repeater will likely shut it down and warn you, and may ban you from using the repeater again.  Beyond that, you may get fined from the FCC.

2.  Obscene stuff.  Well, obscenity is in the eye of the beholder, they say.  It is recommended, though, that you don't use ANYTHING that you would not want your 8 year old daughter hearing and saying "Daddy, what the #*%$#+ does that mean?"  Really, be decent, OK?  And for some obscenity you can get barred, banned and fined.  Please RESPECT HAM RADIO!

3.  Business.  You can't call up your housecleaning lady and tell her to report early and you'll pay her doubletime.  If the contact you are contemplating earns ANYONE money, it is probably illegal.  There are a very few exceptions.  You can't use amateur radio to dispatch your computer repairing husband to a job.  You can't use it to direct aircraft.  You can't use it to dispatch taxis. 

In recent years the FCC has said that it IS OK to call up the pizza place and ask for a delivery.  Personally, I think that is best handled on a telephone, but I and the FCC do not always have the same view of amateur radio.  I am "old school."  They are "no school."

4.  Music. No music.  Period.  Under the rules, short single tones may be transmitted for test purposes only. No music.

5.  Broadcasting. With almost no exceptions, you can't get on your radio and say "Hello Grandma" just because you know she has a scanner and is monitoring you.  That is one way transmission and it is broadcasting.  We have broadcasting stations for that purpose.  Don't worry about the few exceptions.  You do NOT qualify, and you will learn about them as you gain experience in amateur radio.

6. False Emergency Signals.  Don't get on there and pretend you (or anyone else) has an emergency, when it isn't so.  That gets you BIG fines.  And can get you prison time.  And yeah, they can find you.

7.  Rebroadcasting.  This would be taping (or directly broadcasting) signals you are receiving from some other radio service.  You can't rebroadcast the local evening television news audio, for example.  You can't retransmit communications you are hearing on a police scanner, or a taxi radio, or trucking dispatch radio.  You CAN record and retransmit another ham's transmission back to him, provided you are in two way contact with him, but you can NOT just transmit it to "anyone who is out there."   You cannot retransmit CB or scanner audio, for example. 

But you have read - and you have a copy of - the FCC rules, yes?  So understand them!  They are your friend. And they will make you welcome on the ham bands!

WHAT ABOUT HF?

HF, or High Frequency, is the range of radio frequencies between 3 mhz and 30 mhz.  Some hams like to call six meters (50 mhz band) HF as well, but it isn't.  It is VHF (Very High Frequency.)

As a new (or old) Technician, you are allowed only limited privileges in amateur radio.  You have access to ALl amateur privileges above 50 mhz, like six meters, two meters (the 144-148 mhz band) 70 centimeters, and upward from there. 

You also have some very limited voice (SSB only, no AM, no FM) privileges on ten meters. 

And you have CW-only (Morse code) privileges on three additional HF bands, in the same range where Generals can operate.  You, though, are limited to 200 watts RF output.  Those bands are 80 meters, 40 meters and 15 meters.  CW ONLY.  No voice!!  No data.  CW ONLY.

Seems kinda strange, huh?  You waited for the Morse testing to be removed, and it finally was, and now you have to use Morse to work three of the four HF bands you can access!  But that is how it is. 

Know your frequency and mode allocations.  If you don't, you will get into trouble, not only with those who will remind you "You can't do that," but with the FCC.  Since Morse code testing is no longer a part of the General or Extra examinations either, you can upgrade by simply advancing your theory more.  It isn't that hard to do.  A week or two of studying an hour at night, will get you all the way to the top!  So don't put it off.  Yes, one day, the FCC might make the written test easier.  I suppose you can wait for that to happen.  But what if it takes ten years?  Some waited for fifteen years or longer for the Morse testing to go away.  So you could wait for written testing to relax or go away.

In the meantime, though, you could be on the air!  Your choice. 

You may not want to learn Morse code.  If you don't, you are limited to that small segment on ten meters.  But if you upgrade to General, without the Morse code, you get much more HF privileges!  So I suggest you crack the book again and upgrade. 

WHAT ABOUT DATA MODES?

We hear the clamor that "I want to get on data."  As a new Technician, you can't do that, except on six meters and higher in frequency.  It has been the general experience that those who wanted the HF access so they could get on data, once they got HF privileges, they simply went on SSB and data was no longer a concern of theirs.

But some do like the soundcard modes, and they can be very enjoyable.  Again, in order to use them on HF, you gotta get that General!  So again, I urge you to study a bit more, and go for it!