bigcoupe.com

No, not the entertainer kind, the amateur radio operator kind.

I'm studying for my Ham "ticket" (license), something I should have done 50 years ago, but having to send and copy Morse code always got me. That requirement has been gone now for quite a while. 50 years ago I had the rules and electronics part down pat, but it's apparently all leaked out my ear holes since then. I'm having to relearn all of it. I'm going to try and take and pass both the Technician and General Class license test on the same day. My friend Eddie is going for his Amateur Extra Class license. He thinks I can pass all three tests on the same day, but I think my brain would explode, or I'd choke, or both.

So tell me, any Hams in the bigcoupe family?

I have been studying too, but keep getting distracted. I only want the tech., so I can broadcast. I don't plan to setup a repeater.

Jose

DL1HCG

Regards

Guenter

Not currently active but have been in the past.
Good luck with your tests.
KC6YZE.

KE0MYV here. I don't have a home setup since I only use it while off-roading and camping. In Colorado there are clubs that will review the material and administer the tests for free which really opened the hobby to more people. Good luck on the tests!

My wife has threatened to toss all my equipment if I don't get it out of the living room (I'd like to see her lift any of it! This stuff is HEAVY). I must admit, it's gotten a bit out of hand.... So I've decided to buy myself a "ham shack", a 10x18 prefab building. I'll finish the inside.

Holy cow!!! That will make for an AWESOME ham shack!

Jose

KM6GKU - our yacht club uses ham radio for regatta management. There's no particular hurry - I'd study and take one exam at a time. Most of the info you need to pass the tests isn't that useful, so learn what you need then put it out of your head afterwards.

Took the tests yesterday, the 4th of January. Passed the Technician test with 34 out of 35 correct. Took the General class test and got all 35 correct! Took the Extra class test just for fun. Did better than I expected for not having studied ANY of it, but didn't pass. I should get my call sign in a couple weeks. Studying for the Amateur Extra now. Will retake the test in March.

Yippie!

KO4AXN



Kilo Oscar 4 Alpha X-ray November

KO4AXN,
Congratulations on your new call sign!

Kilo Charlie 6 Yankee Zulu

Evidently I got a little impatient typing during my sign off on the last message (its been a few years).
I will try again.

Kilo Charlie 6 Yankee Zulu Echo
(KC6YZE)

Took the final step up Saturday and took the Amateur Extra class test. Much to my amazement I passed, 40 out of 50 correct, so I'm an Extra. I haven't used any of the Extra class frequencies yet. Hope to meet some of you on the air! Went from no license three months ago to Amateur Extra.
73 de KO4AXN/AE
Ken

Congrats, Ken!!!

Now to get mine.

Jose

Ken. Hey congrats on passing all you tests and getting your call sign. I always was interested in Ham radio when I was a kid. Somehow live Zoomed by and i've almost never thought about it till I saw this post. Have fun with that.


Now get that shit out of the living room!! Your poor wife!!

After all this time I finally got an antenna up and made my first contact. Talked to a guy in my birth state, Wisconsin. It was about 990 miles between us, a relatively short hop, but on a band that's been pretty much dead for a long time, 10 meters or 28MHz. I had been listening to the 10m band all afternoon while hunting for the microphone for the radio I was using.

Jose and you other guys that are thinking about becoming ham operators, DO IT! There are dozens of online study helps on YouTube and elsewhere. That's what I used for the Amateur Extra class study, but they have study courses for all three levels for free right there on YouTube.

The Technician test is easy! The General class test is only slightly harder, and I would strongly suggest that you study for both and take them both on the same day. That way you can start out with a lot bigger part of the allocated ham bands, because Technician privileges are really restricting. By the way, they are giving online "virtual tests" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Go to www.arrl.org for information.

73! KO4AXN

Hey Ken,

What did you use to study? Ya got links I can follow?

Jose

Technician study course, 37 lessons:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... C9D7BF7F48


General class study course, 38 lessons:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... YdNtCeYcRe

Amateur Extra class study course, 46 lessons:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... IA-H3e4ZNC

In addition to those videos I bought the ARRL study guide for each class and the question pool book for each class (the actual questions and the multiple choice answers for each). The study guide walks you through each segment of the test, and the question pool book is useful for memorizing the correct answers. I took the question pool books and highlighted the correct answer on each question. That way you read the question and ONLY the correct answer. If you read all the answers you may mentally associate one of the wrong answers with the question. To be honest, most hams learn (memorize) the answers and then forget 90% of the test material, especially the theory and higher mathematics problems.

If you buy the books make sure they are current. The test pools change every few years. The questions aren't changed much, but you want to maximize your chance of seeing and learning every question and answer. I scored really well on the Tech and General tests, but only made an 80 on the Amateur Extra test. 74 is passing. I'd like to have done better, but considering less than half the people who take the Amateur Extra test pass on their first try, I was happy with the 40 out of 50. I'm glad I don't have to take it again!

I took online practice tests here until I was passing every time:

eham.net/exams

Good luck!

I'm not a Ham operator or user, but I do something very related. I collect and restore pre 1955 televisions, and I collect and restore pre 1963 European table top radios. For the radios I tend to stick with Schaub-Lorenz, Nordmende, Leowe, Grundig, Telefunken, Blaupunkt, EMUD, SABA, and Phillips. For the televisions, I'm a HUGE fan of the DuMont line of sets, but also love to collect Zenith, RCA, and Farnsworth brand tv sets. I'll also save lesser brands if in good repairable shape. My next planned acquisition is to find and buy a Muntz. (research Muntz and you'll see why I'm fascinated haha). Below is a link to one of my first, and up and coming, youtube videos that shows my collection and their operation. And yes, I actually use my antique televisions! :)

https://youtu.be/vHVPVlgHLas