Worldwide DX Amateur Radio Forums - Ham - CB - HF - VHF - UHF

now im a newb and im not trying to stir the pot, or start an argument but i have a question.
i have seen this countless times on numerous forums, this one included.

here it is:
someone who isnt a HAM asks a question, and the answer ends up to the effect of "dont use HAM frequencies because the legal operators of that freq WILL FIND YOU and turn you in ..... yada yada" im sure you know what im getting at.

Anyways.. What im getting at is just how do they do this? how often do hams really go out of their way to do this? is it just a scare tactic that the hams like to say, or are some hams really that anal about it?

im not looking for a lecture of the legalities of it. i know its a law, and i do follow it. im not debating that, just looking for a real answer, not an argument.

Some hams are really that anal about it. You already knew that.

edit to add:

I have a license and I don't give a damn what you do, just use a condom.

I can tell you that the Hams in/around the South Bay Area/Santa Clara Valley CA go out of their way to find anyone messing with the 2 meter repeater. One math prof and an electrical engineer have put together a phased/delay antenna system on a vehicle to be able to locate any illegal interloper. It works - too.

__________________
What gear do I use?
BASE: Icom IC-718 & GAP Titan DX, Yaesu FT-8800R & Diamond X50A, Magnum OmegaForce S45 & IMAX 2000 w/Astatic D104/TUP9.
MOBILE: Galaxy DX99V & Wilson 1000 w/Astatic D104-M2, Yaesu FT-8800R & Diamond NR-770.
"...The 444 in San Jose CA; the Central Gold Coast..."

If you do it on a regular basis you will most definitely be caught. If it is done occasionally, on different frequencies, it would be difficult to be caught.

However as easy as it is to get even the Extra Class license now days there really is no reason to risk being caught. Then when you factor in the availability of the CB type services why even bother....

Are there really hams who are that 'anal' to find someone who interferes? I'm sure there are. I'm also sure that the majority may 'talk' about it but have never done so, and probably couldn't if they wanted to, just don't have the ability. I know that there have been times when I would have loved to have been able to do so. That isn't just CB'ers who might be on the bands, but other hams. I'm sure almost everyone has felt that way at one time or another.
The ability to do that sort of 'tracking down' is much easier on VHF/UHF bands than on HF bands. The ranges involved are much shorter and the required antenna systems are much smaller.
Does it actually happen very often? No, it doesn't, no matter what band or who'z doing it. Can it be done by hams? Sometimes, but rarely. Can the FCC do it? Of course they can, they have hugely more resources for it. Do they do it? Not very often, those resources aren't at their beck'n'call all of the time. You can take it for granted that when they are motivated to use those resources, they do, and someone will hear about it.
So, most of the "track'em down'n hang'em" is scare talk. The key word in that is 'most', which doesn't mean all. If you hear someone talking about it, it probably isn't to likely. If you don't hear people talking about it, you might give it another thought or two. And if it ever gets really quiet... the interferer better shut up too. But don't tell'em that!
- 'Doc

Yes some hams are that anal. Probably the same ones that troll ebay and police the 4 sale section.

You know that thread that was posted earlier about the company that got fined in SoCal for using a ham 2m frequency on their construction site? That was right down the street from me. I know the guy that found them. He was nice at first and informed them that they were using frequencies on their radio that they weren't supposed to. After they blew him off, he just called the local FCC enforcement office and a fine was handed down.

In this case, it wasn't just that he went "out of his way" to find them...they were actually interfering with the legitimate use of that frequency. It's not all that difficult to find someone, especially if they're using vhf/uhf local frequencies. There are guys that make a sport/competition out of finding the location of a hidden transmitter - it's called fox hunting.

it just makes me laugh because the guys who the hams are informing/scaring (whatever you wanna call it) are usually mobile, and using 10 meter export radios. id assume that they would be sticking to 11 meters anyway. who knows, maybe they venture off into the freq's they are not supposed to, but even then, my point is that they are mobile, does this not make "fox hunting" a little more difficult?

There is a 'no-man's land' above a CB's ch 40 and the 10 meter band. Also below ch 1. Sometimes referred to as 'the freebands' - but in truth - they aren't. But even those freq's are dotted with areas set aside for the US Gov't - an any interloper takes a chance that they don't come down on them.

Hams do practice 'fox hunts' for this very purpose. Some local groups practice it often to keep sharp at it and to train new Hams in order to maintain watchfulness...

I use a 2 meter and a 10 meter radio and operate them legally on those bands. But if someone knowingly uses Ham freq's in a mobile; they run the risk of eventually being caught. There are LOTS of Hams out there; more than CB'ers - by far. So, they are VERY protective of their rights -collectively- and are the first step for band regulation. Hams self-police the band usage. When someone has been warned and continues to violate; they then turn them over to the FCC and the Hams give the FCC all the info they have - this establishes a case. The FCC has state-of-the-art equipment that can locate the perpetrator EASILY. If mobile; they follow until they can verify. Then, they send the registered owner of that vehicle a letter with a large fine against them.

Is it worth it - to use Ham freq's illegally?
It isn't; that is the whole point...

__________________
What gear do I use?
BASE: Icom IC-718 & GAP Titan DX, Yaesu FT-8800R & Diamond X50A, Magnum OmegaForce S45 & IMAX 2000 w/Astatic D104/TUP9.
MOBILE: Galaxy DX99V & Wilson 1000 w/Astatic D104-M2, Yaesu FT-8800R & Diamond NR-770.
"...The 444 in San Jose CA; the Central Gold Coast..."

im not saying its not possible. im saying i dont believe its probable.

i just dont see hams dropping everything they are doing the second the hear someone who isnt supposed to be on a particular freq. and gathering with some other hams and go out on a foxhunt to find the bandit. if he is mobile, he could be in the next town by the time one phone call is made.