Guess I've been a general class ham for a bit over a month now. As soon as I got my license I came here and asked for advice on a starter radio. Someone suggested an ICOM dual band 2820 mobile which I used as a base radio for a few weeks. I love the 2m band and it really spiked my interest in ham radio. The 2m band is very active in my area and there are many repeaters I can easily reach.
A couple of weeks after purchasing this first radio I decided I wanted to try HF bands. Again I asked around and it was suggested to start out with a Yaesu 897d. I went to the Shelby hamfest in search of one but could not locate one at the hamfest. I did find a ICOM IC-7000 with an LDG tuner made for the radio with the separation kit and a G5RV dipole as a bundle. I jumped on it and haven't looked back since. The 2820 was moved to my truck and matched with an OPEK dual band antenna which works well. Im loving the 2m in my vehicle as it greatly expands my talk time.
Ive used the IC-7000 for a few weeks now and I must say it is a lot of radio in a very small package. I don't think I could ask for anything more at my current level of expertise in this hobby. Im not a big fan of the G5RV dipole antenna though. It receives well but dosent seem to get out as well as I would like. It is set up roughly 30 ft. in the air with the leads in an inverted V pattern.
I have ordered a Zero-Five 36' vertical antenna and received tracking info today telling me it will be delivered tomorrow (Friday) just in time for the weekend. I have already dug the mounting pipe hole, poured the concrete, and driven the grounding rod in to the ground. Im hoping the antenna will perform better than the G5RV that I am using now. Tom the ownder of Zero-Five antennas has been a joy to deal with and helped greatly with questions and concerns . If his antenna performs half as well as his customer support I'll be in ham hog heaven by this weekend.
So far my ham experience has been superb. I am really enjoying the hobby. I feel like I have some really nice equipment and am learning more and more about the hobby every day. I don't know why it took me so long to make the switch from CB to ham. No real point to this thread except to share my recent experiences. I am excited about getting this new antenna as EVERY review over at Eham.net has been a 5 out of 5 on this antenna. Does anyone here have any experience with the Zero-Five 36' Stealth HOA non radial antenna??? If so Id love to hear any complaints, praises, or just plain advice.
Im wondering what type of contacts I can expect from the 7000 (100w max output) and the new vertical antenna. I know range is affected by many variables such as weather, solar activity, band/frequency, line of sight, etc. Should I expect to be able to contact other countries? Other States? I just don't have enough experience to really know what to expect. What type of power is required to work the world? Full legal limit?
A couple of weeks after purchasing this first radio I decided I wanted to try HF bands. Again I asked around and it was suggested to start out with a Yaesu 897d. I went to the Shelby hamfest in search of one but could not locate one at the hamfest. I did find a ICOM IC-7000 with an LDG tuner made for the radio with the separation kit and a G5RV dipole as a bundle. I jumped on it and haven't looked back since. The 2820 was moved to my truck and matched with an OPEK dual band antenna which works well. Im loving the 2m in my vehicle as it greatly expands my talk time.
Ive used the IC-7000 for a few weeks now and I must say it is a lot of radio in a very small package. I don't think I could ask for anything more at my current level of expertise in this hobby. Im not a big fan of the G5RV dipole antenna though. It receives well but dosent seem to get out as well as I would like. It is set up roughly 30 ft. in the air with the leads in an inverted V pattern.
I have ordered a Zero-Five 36' vertical antenna and received tracking info today telling me it will be delivered tomorrow (Friday) just in time for the weekend. I have already dug the mounting pipe hole, poured the concrete, and driven the grounding rod in to the ground. Im hoping the antenna will perform better than the G5RV that I am using now. Tom the ownder of Zero-Five antennas has been a joy to deal with and helped greatly with questions and concerns . If his antenna performs half as well as his customer support I'll be in ham hog heaven by this weekend.
So far my ham experience has been superb. I am really enjoying the hobby. I feel like I have some really nice equipment and am learning more and more about the hobby every day. I don't know why it took me so long to make the switch from CB to ham. No real point to this thread except to share my recent experiences. I am excited about getting this new antenna as EVERY review over at Eham.net has been a 5 out of 5 on this antenna. Does anyone here have any experience with the Zero-Five 36' Stealth HOA non radial antenna??? If so Id love to hear any complaints, praises, or just plain advice.
Im wondering what type of contacts I can expect from the 7000 (100w max output) and the new vertical antenna. I know range is affected by many variables such as weather, solar activity, band/frequency, line of sight, etc. Should I expect to be able to contact other countries? Other States? I just don't have enough experience to really know what to expect. What type of power is required to work the world? Full legal limit?
