Fine Tune CB

[w9cll]

Maybe its the new way of doing biz but I am just to old school in that I don't trust anyone who promotes themselves like this on Youtube.

 

[rabbiporkchop]

Maybe its the new way of doing biz but I am just to old school in that I don't trust anyone who promotes themselves like this on Youtube.

I don't trust any technician who's been offered a challenge to prove their abilities on YouTube yet fails to do so

 

[rabbiporkchop]

Maybe I'm kind of old school but until another technician produces a single customer capable of talking a hundred and thirty-five miles 7 days a week 365 days a year regardless of how many curveballs Mother Nature throws at that person I would be hard-pressed to send that technician any of my business or refer any of my friends to that technician.

 

[w9cll]

Maybe I'm kind of old school but until another technician produces a single customer capable of talking a hundred and thirty-five miles 7 days a week 365 days a year regardless of how many curveballs Mother Nature throws at that person I would be hard-pressed to send that technician any of my business or refer any of my friends to that technician.

Ham radio on a daily basis with an unmodified radio, further than 135 miles on a daily basis.. I readily work into Europe and South America from the mobile. The US is "local" contacts. Try it you might actually like it.

 

[rabbiporkchop]

Ham radio on a daily basis with an unmodified radio, further than 135 miles on a daily basis.. I readily work into Europe and South America from the mobile. The US is "local" contacts. Try it you might actually like it.

If you can do that on 11 meters 7 days a week 365 days out of the year I'd be quite impressed. I talk all over the World also when mother nature allows but it's nothing to brag about if it can't be consistently replicated 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days out of the year at will.
That's precisely why I said I'm waiting for another technician to produce a single customer capable of talking 135 miles at will on the 11 meter band regardless of Mother Nature. It hasn't happened yet.
Comparing 11 meters to another band is like comparing apples to oranges. Different bands propagate differently as I'm sure you well know.

 

[LeapFrog]

Maybe its the new way of doing biz but I am just to old school in that I don't trust anyone who promotes themselves like this on Youtube.

Word of mouth is great for a local customer base, the internet on the other hand opens up entire other countries of possible customer base, so I see the trend growing Facebook is even being used to draw them in.
Seeing Blank-Radio-Customs b.s. (Not Fine Tune) mentioned on UK forums (Customer paid the shipping) made me throw up in my mouth a little bit, but different strokes for different folks.

If appearing like a genius to a radio enthusiast works for you, you had gosh darn better be doing a class-A job, I assume Mark is.
Some of his advertisements are a little too "know-it-all" for my tastes, but If the guy does quality work I can't bash him.

Less pompous (while still excellent) radio techs go seemingly unnoticed, it's a shark eat shark world. Signs of the times dictate technology must evolve, and advertising mediums are no exception, rather the rule.

I prefer to see a guy who has a motto of "Mean is Clean" become well known, as opposed to a hack-butcher-custom shop.

Just my two pennies worth -Sam

 

[rabbiporkchop]

Word of mouth is great for a local customer base, the internet on the other hand opens up entire other countries of possible customer base, so I see the trend growing Facebook is even being used to draw them in.
Seeing Blank-Radio-Customs b.s. (Not Fine Tune) mentioned on UK forums (Customer paid the shipping) made me throw up in my mouth a little bit, but different strokes for different folks.

If appearing like a genius to a radio enthusiast works for you, you had gosh darn better be doing a class-A job, I assume Mark is.
Some of his advertisements are a little too "know-it-all" for my tastes, but If the guy does quality work I can't bash him.

Less pompous (while still excellent) radio techs go seemingly unnoticed, it's a shark eat shark world. Signs of the times dictate technology must evolve, and advertising mediums are no exception, rather the rule.

I prefer to see a guy who has a motto of "Mean is Clean" become well known, as opposed to a hack-butcher-custom shop.

Just my two pennies worth -Sam

Nothing he does on YouTube matters to me since I've experienced his work first hand from coast to coast over the past 12 years.
The only thing that matters to me is that I know two people who can consistently talk 135 miles anytime they choose to regardless of what Mother Nature throws at them and Mark tuned both of their stations. With my personal vehicle I can talk 80 miles in all directions with 360 Watts consistently 7 days a week 365 days out of the year. Many people running thousands of watts are incapable of talking 80 miles from a mobile.
If another technician would step up to the plate and produce a single customer capable of doing what I do in my personal vehicle or what my friends do from their house I would be very impressed but I have yet to find another technician capable of producing a single customer that has those abilities. End of story regardless of what goes on in forums and YouTube.

 

[rabbiporkchop]

I truly hope someone else is capable of doing this type of work and if there really is such a person I'd like to see proof.
I'd be the first person To make recommendations for that person. I can think of several people that Mark refuses to do business with that would like a second choice but I have yet to find anyone that comes close.

 

[LeapFrog]

I don't trust any technician who's been offered a challenge to prove their abilities on YouTube yet fails to do so

Ok that is never going to happen unless a neutral go-between witness both techs sit down, each having two identical radios to tune,
(Four total, "pay attention now" haha that's his favourite line )
all tuning performed under a watchful eye.

And send two parties out to communicate equal distances...
Same terrain inbetween, blah blah blah...
While "mother nature" treats everyone the same....... Never happen!
It's never going to happen and you know this, anecdotal evidence is worthless.
You cannot create a scientific test laboratory big enough, propagation is not consistent etc. etc...

You sound very happy, i'm glad you are.
My point is you cannot prove anything, neither can anyone else (too many variables)
Who would pay for all 4 radios? What about manufacturing tolerances and variation of materials in those "random" four radios, who is going to claim they got a dud?

 

[w9cll]

If you can do that on 11 meters 7 days a week 365 days out of the year I'd be quite impressed. I talk all over the World also when mother nature allows but it's nothing to brag about if it can't be consistently replicated 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days out of the year at will.
That's precisely why I said I'm waiting for another technician to produce a single customer capable of talking 135 miles at will on the 11 meter band regardless of Mother Nature. It hasn't happened yet.
Comparing 11 meters to another band is like comparing apples to oranges. Different bands propagate differently as I'm sure you well know.

Yes I am well aware I am comparing apples to oranges but radio is radio is it not? If you like radio why limit yourself to 11 meters? Why limit yourself to the crap conditions on 11 meters? Why limit yourself to crap equipment that you need to send to so so techs just to make it work right? You obviously like talking long distance and like to spend money on radio gear so why not take the plunge and move up to where you can talk just about anywhere you want? Hey I was a huge 11 meter guy in the 70's and 80's but I will never go back to 11 meters with anything other than a quick glance. Seriously think about getting your ticket, it will give you what you seek.

 

[w9cll]

The internet is fine but most (not all) of these videos are shot with a phone that is shaking around like a cork boat in a hurricane. Want to impress me, shoot a decent video. Spend some money on a good cam, tripod, production software and make something impressive.

 

[LeapFrog]

The internet is fine but most (not all) of these videos are shot with a phone that is shaking around like a cork boat in a hurricane. Want to impress me, shoot a decent video. Spend some money on a good cam, tripod, production software and make something impressive.

Agreed a tripod would be a great start.
I like Mark, (I am subscribed to his channel if that even means anything) if I met him one day I'd have to ask why he moved around so much.

To be honest I have a theory, he got chased away by all the local angry "good-buddy" "techs" who lost a lot of business once customers started asking real technologically challenging questions..
Ignorant people can't ask the real questions, I propose Mark started educating people.
Like who told that trucker what a spectrum analyzer is? Oh let me send Joe-Bob down to pay him a malicious visit!

See where i'm going with this, jealousy leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to let me pack up and go.. As in the haters made it hard for him to stay after they got jealous of the business he was doing.

I'm done with this thread, also I can't really afford to send my radios to people like Mark, so I'll fix what I can, with what I got. The internet is a screw-drivers paradise, someone told me if I let the 54 Mhz Genie out of the bottle I will about gain 25 RMS SWANG WATTS. rofl

I don't need an analyzer if my coils aren't mashed and I run a filter, oh well no swang watts for me I guess.

Mean Is Clean
73
-Sam

 

[543_Dallas]

How about the ability to Faithfully reproduce the hissing sound (5300 hertz) at the end of the letter s to distinguish it from the letter f?
I don't know anyone else capable of doing this type of work.

The radio will transmit 5k wide...not that big of a deal in 2016. People have been modifying radios for many years and the wideband thing has taken off on 11 meters now.

Watch closely around the 4 minute mark. See the negative peaks hitting baseline when he speaks into the mic? Doesn't look so clean to my eyes.

 

[kaos513]

The radio will transmit 5k wide...not that big of a deal in 2016. People have been modifying radios for many years and the wideband thing has taken off on 11 meters now.

Watch closely around the 4 minute mark. See the negative peaks hitting baseline when he speaks into the mic? Doesn't look so clean to my eyes.

I have talked to puertorico and Texas plenty of times on my 148 gtl so its really a no brainer lol

 

[fourstringburn]

Maybe I'm kind of old school but until another technician produces a single customer capable of talking a hundred and thirty-five miles 7 days a week 365 days a year regardless of how many curveballs Mother Nature throws at that person I would be hard-pressed to send that technician any of my business or refer any of my friends to that technician.

There is a lot of info missing here.

1. Whose radio are you talking to, Marks? He runs a 32 pill amp and a Maco 5/8 antenna last I seen.

2. Are you saying anyone with Marks tuned radios can talk to each other 135 miles without external power?

3. Is that 2 base stations or 2 mobiles or combination of can do that anytime of the day or year?

4. Are beam antennas or any other type of DB gain and/or directional antennas being used?

5. Groundwave or skywave?

With big power on groundwave, I have heard that (100+ mile stations) many times before even with big power mobiles even on channel 19.
However, when conditions are unfavorable which they have been on the upper bands lately with the exception of sporadic E layer propagation, that means ground wave will be easier to copy with less atmospheric noise and from other skip stations.

If it is very short skywave, then power is irrelevant and any radio new out of the box can do that.