Getting started/making first contact

[KK6FVT]

Hey all,

Name's Eli, 20 years old, new (freshly licensed) op in California.

I'm posting this because quite frankly, I don't know where to start. I've had my license since the early part of the summer, but haven't gotten on the air yet because of two reasons - one, the price of most transceivers deters 20-year-old college students, and two, not knowing what the first contact is like and how on-the-air is conducted worries me that I'll make a fool out of myself or violate some unspoken etiquette rule as soon as I key up.

I've read the ARRL guide on first contact, but I'd like to hear from people as to what their advice and/or experiences are with it (that being said, if you even remember it!) - is it understandable to feel nervous beforehand? What's it like, in a nutshell?

I finally broke down last night and got a UV5R. I've been doing some lurking on the community for a long time, and I figured if I was too cheap to wing the $40 I paid for it, it'd be surprising that a roof is above my head. I know cheap is as cheap sounds, but I need something that can get me exposure and on the air while I try to mount the $600+ for a full-fledged transceiver.

That is another thing - as far as "basic" or entry-level transceivers are concerned, what do you all recommend? I have my eye on the IC-718 - thoughts?

New person; many questions.

73,

Eli
KK6FVT

 

[2RT307]

Hi Eli! Congrats on the new ticket, and welcome to the forum. The Baofeng is a pretty cool little HT, and you'll have fun with it. As far as making contacts, load your UV-5R with all the local repeaters, and listen in for a while. The guys in my area were very welcoming once I finally keyed up and said my call sign. After a while the nervousness goes away, and it's just like having a regular conversation.

Tons of ways to go with a first rig. What are you wanting to do? VHF/UHF, HF, both? Mobile or base? You CAN use your UV-5R mobile to stay on the cheap. Get a good gain antenna and coax to adapt to your HT. To play as a base, J poles and Slim Jim antennas are cheap to buy, or also easy to make. HF rigs are out there for decent prices, and you won't have to spend 600 dollars to get one. I picked up a clean, working TS-520 for 125 bucks. I know that's an old tube rig, but it works great. A dipole is super easy to make for 10 meters, and will get you on the HF portion of your ticket.

I have an Icom IC-718 and it's a good rig. There are several others out there (new) that would be a good choice, but...

Let us know what you are wanting to do, and you will get LOTS of opinions.

73,
Brett

 

[M0GVZ]

I'm posting this because quite frankly, I don't know where to start. I've had my license since the early part of the summer, but haven't gotten on the air yet because of two reasons - one, the price of most transceivers deters 20-year-old college students, and two, not knowing what the first contact is like and how on-the-air is conducted worries me that I'll make a fool out of myself or violate some unspoken etiquette rule as soon as I key up.

I've read the ARRL guide on first contact, but I'd like to hear from people as to what their advice and/or experiences are with it (that being said, if you even remember it!) - is it understandable to feel nervous beforehand? What's it like, in a nutshell?

The easiest way to get some idea is to listen, listen, listen. Your local repeaters will have contacts initiated and conversations that are different to what you'll hear on HF. Until you get your HF rig you can use some of the SDR receivers at websdr.org

The first contact or two will be a bit nerve wracking and you'll probably sound a bit wobbly but explain its your first QSO and if you're lucky you'll get a ham who has been through it all before and get you into a conversation and from then it becomes easier.

No politics or religion.

 

[KK6FVT]

Hi Eli! Congrats on the new ticket, and welcome to the forum. The Baofeng is a pretty cool little HT, and you'll have fun with it. As far as making contacts, load your UV-5R with all the local repeaters, and listen in for a while. The guys in my area were very welcoming once I finally keyed up and said my call sign. After a while the nervousness goes away, and it's just like having a regular conversation.

Tons of ways to go with a first rig. What are you wanting to do? VHF/UHF, HF, both? Mobile or base? You CAN use your UV-5R mobile to stay on the cheap. Get a good gain antenna and coax to adapt to your HT. To play as a base, J poles and Slim Jim antennas are cheap to buy, or also easy to make. HF rigs are out there for decent prices, and you won't have to spend 600 dollars to get one. I picked up a clean, working TS-520 for 125 bucks. I know that's an old tube rig, but it works great. A dipole is super easy to make for 10 meters, and will get you on the HF portion of your ticket.

I have an Icom IC-718 and it's a good rig. There are several others out there (new) that would be a good choice, but...

Let us know what you are wanting to do, and you will get LOTS of opinions.

73,
Brett

Brett,

Much to chew on - preferably, I'd like to go with routine HF on the first rig and work myself up from there - of course, after I achieve the next grade of license, as much of HF spectrum isn't Technician-friendly.

Does the standard HT rubber ducky give alright results (provided consideration such as being outside and in a decently clear area)?

Eventual things on the checklist are to get an HF rig and more band privileges; get a mobile rig (FT-817 or such) and setup for hiking and exploring and what-not.

I also (one of these days) plan on re-appropriating an old Sony Watchman to see if I can get onto the ATV frequencies that overlap into its tuner passband. Might be cool to check out.

Tube rigs are completely fine with me; in fact - the TS-520 and that era were ones I looked at initially, but steals like that one are more the exception than the rule. If you come across another one like that, for that price - definitely let me know. I'd like to have something that I know has had some miles on it but can last for many more.

Tubes are originally how I got into electronics the summer before senior year of high school. Granted, I completely ignored impedance matching (thought it was irrelevant) while trying to make a guitar preamp and the project was a bust; but I've always found tubes more interesting per se from transistors because, well, they glow. I had the thought long before I got my license that I wanted to build a 4-1000A linear. That hasn't materialized yet, but is on a long list of wants.

A few questions -

What's a contest rig? From my point of view, clearly expensive. But what differentiates them from a normal HF rig?

Also, are the Q-codes used in normal voice transmit (are they spoken aloud)?

Much, much to learn.

73,
Eli

 

[kk4obo]

Brett
Congrats on the new license, I waited for almost a year before I got started.
I run a G5RV 30 feet up orientated north south with an FT-897D, I have talked as far as Sau Paulo south america.
You will be a little nervous but just let them know it is your first/second contact, they really enjoyed that info.
get on some of the forums and check out the used gear, and go to some ham fest.
Keep us posted on your finds.
And as above, listen, listen, listen

Goodluck and 73's
Dennis

 

[6meter]

Welcome to the hobby!

If you are interested in talking beyond your local area then HF is really the direction you want to look at.

I've helped a couple of local young hams find their first HF rigs (used gear) at hamfests. The first got a very nice condition FT-450AT for $525 about 2 years ago. The second was a newer generation FT-450D for $600 last year.

The Ft-450 lets you get on 6 meters while the IC718 does not.

With your technician license you can have fun right now on both 6 and 10 meters. The advantage of those bands are antennas are much more reasonable in size which can be important at your point in life as a college student.

Start watching for a good power supply. For example an Astron 20 amp power supply will support any of the 100 watt HF rigs and you can also run a 2 meter mobile off of it as well.

You can easily make your first antennas by building a simple dipole. A dipole will be your best antenna as you can easily put it up and it will have a low visual impact.

When you get an HF rig you can start listening on the bands and pick up on the flow of contacts and the interaction. As in any hobby you will hear some idiots and jerks that you will learn to ignore.

A little time operating on 6 and 10 and listening on 20 will get you motivated and fired up to take the General exam. By the way that exam is not very difficult.

 

[211inthamag]

CONGRAT"S on getting your ticket!! First thing I want to tell you is everyone had to start from the beginning at one point, so don't worry about how you sound or making mistakes...find your local repeaters and start some conversations and LET them know you are a fresh ham, most will jump right out there and try helping you build your station (Elmers love fresh blood)!

As for your radio I think the one you picked out will work just fine, but do yourself a favor and get the programming cord and program it through chirp on your computer...it makes it much less painful!
The icom 718 is a GREAT starter rig and can be had for a cheap price compaired to most rigs!!! 73's and Good Hamming

 

[2RT307]

Hi again, Eli! I'll answer through your post.

73,
Brett

Brett,

Much to chew on - preferably, I'd like to go with routine HF on the first rig and work myself up from there - of course, after I achieve the next grade of license, as much of HF spectrum isn't Technician-friendly.

You can use much of the spectrum if you learn Morse code. That's not my cup of tea, and more incentive to get General! 10 meters has been fun, and you can easily hit Europe in the morning given the right conditions.

Does the standard HT rubber ducky give alright results (provided consideration such as being outside and in a decently clear area)?

Depends on your location. I am able to hit my local repeater easily with mine, but anything much further than a couple of miles is out of range. There are decent aftermarket antennas you can buy for around 12-15 bucks. I forget the model I bought, but it's a Nagoya and works pretty good. It's about 18" long or so.

Eventual things on the checklist are to get an HF rig and more band privileges; get a mobile rig (FT-817 or such) and setup for hiking and exploring and what-not.

That would be way cool. You could get a 857D and maybe kill two birds with one stone?

I also (one of these days) plan on re-appropriating an old Sony Watchman to see if I can get onto the ATV frequencies that overlap into its tuner passband. Might be cool to check out.

Don't know much about that, but it sounds fun!

Tube rigs are completely fine with me; in fact - the TS-520 and that era were ones I looked at initially, but steals like that one are more the exception than the rule. If you come across another one like that, for that price - definitely let me know. I'd like to have something that I know has had some miles on it but can last for many more.

I will let you know if I do. Fort Worth has a Hamfest this weekend, so ya never know what might turn up. I found mine on my local club's web site. Nice rig,and you can see pics of it here: http://www.worldwidedx.com/tuners-m...ries/162858-digital-display-older-rigs-3.html

Tubes are originally how I got into electronics the summer before senior year of high school. Granted, I completely ignored impedance matching (thought it was irrelevant) while trying to make a guitar preamp and the project was a bust; but I've always found tubes more interesting per se from transistors because, well, they glow. I had the thought long before I got my license that I wanted to build a 4-1000A linear. That hasn't materialized yet, but is on a long list of wants.

50 YO here, but was licensed as a novice when I was about 14. I really like the tube rigs that I longed for in the QST magazine ads back in the day.

A few questions -

What's a contest rig? From my point of view, clearly expensive. But what differentiates them from a normal HF rig?

Contest rigs typically have two receivers built in. They have tons of filtering, and are able to really narrow down a single signal to block out the pileup. Made to listen to for hours, or so I am told. I don't have anything near a contest rig in my shack.

Also, are the Q-codes used in normal voice transmit (are they spoken aloud)?

I have found that nobody in my area uses Q codes on 2 meters and 440. I *sometimes* hear them on the HF bands, but not very often. I think that is more of a CB thing, for some reason. Maybe because it's just as easy to say "where do you live" instead of "what's your QTH"?

Much, much to learn.

Same for me, but that's what keeps it interesting and fun!

And the last thing...check the forum for a bunch of new user "which radio should I buy" threads. Only you can pick the one that suits you best. And as mentioned... listen to the local ops, and get on the air. As I said before, all of the local ops in my area have been very welcoming, and excited to have a new person on the air. One day I had like 5 guys asking to talk to me, congratulating me on my new license, and urging me to get my General!

73,
Eli[/QUOTE

 

[KK6FVT]

Well, prepare yourselves for some laughs because we now have tales from the newbie in order.

Got the UV5R and have struggled with it. Not in that it wasn't working right, in that I didn't understand the menus.

@Brett: Maybe an old tube rig would be a good start for me.

Finally, I kicked it into VFO mode, and found something going on on 156.000 - absolute static. The HT recognized reception and I got excited - over nothing but static white noise. I can hear the laughs now.

I've looked up a list of the repeaters in the area and I plan on giving those a try when I figure out how to better use the thing. The two-frequency display baffled me at first; I thought one was transmit and one was receive, and it took me awhile to realize that it was just a dual-frequency display.

Well, I'll let you guys know if I get anything that amounts to more than static - and I just found more of it on 159.350.

73,

Eli

 

[SpaceMann]

Hey all,

Name's Eli, 20 years old, new (freshly licensed) op in California.

I'm posting this because quite frankly, I don't know where to start. I've had my license since the early part of the summer, but haven't gotten on the air yet because of two reasons - one, the price of most transceivers deters 20-year-old college students, and two, not knowing what the first contact is like and how on-the-air is conducted worries me that I'll make a fool out of myself or violate some unspoken etiquette rule as soon as I key up.

I've read the ARRL guide on first contact, but I'd like to hear from people as to what their advice and/or experiences are with it (that being said, if you even remember it!) - is it understandable to feel nervous beforehand? What's it like, in a nutshell?

I finally broke down last night and got a UV5R. I've been doing some lurking on the community for a long time, and I figured if I was too cheap to wing the $40 I paid for it, it'd be surprising that a roof is above my head. I know cheap is as cheap sounds, but I need something that can get me exposure and on the air while I try to mount the $600+ for a full-fledged transceiver.

That is another thing - as far as "basic" or entry-level transceivers are concerned, what do you all recommend? I have my eye on the IC-718 - thoughts?

New person; many questions.

73,

Eli
KK6FVT

First, congrats! You can make contacts with that Baofeng if you can reach a repeater. You may want to try building a ground plane antenna and putting it on the roof, which would extend your range quite a bit. The first time I tried to make a contact, I went to a few repeaters, gave my call sign and and said "listening", but no one wanted to respond! Finally in frustration and as a joke, I blurted out "Breaker breaker, any good buddies on this repeater gotta copy on me"? To my amazement, about four Hams came right out of the woodwork to scold me!!

 

[KK6FVT]

First, congrats! You can make contacts with that Baofeng if you can reach a repeater. You may want to try building a ground plane antenna and putting it on the roof, which would extend your range quite a bit. The first time I tried to make a contact, I went to a few repeaters, gave my call sign and and said "listening", but no one wanted to respond! Finally in frustration and as a joke, I blurted out "Breaker breaker, any good buddies on this repeater gotta copy on me"? To my amazement, about four Hams came right out of the woodwork to scold me!!

I'm in the process of looking up a few repeaters in my area that I can check with this thing. I might go buy an SMA to BNC adapter tomorrow so it gives me better antenna choices to work with.

What would you say the range with the standard rubber ducky as opposed to a ground plane would be on 2m? I have no idea whether that static is coming from an actual radio source and just can't be interpreted or whether it's just caused by an errant TV haha.

 

[kd-5-bgt]

the interference on 156.000 could be almost anything,I know cable TV can cause issues on 2 meters and just above that band,very well could be a leaky cable tv line close to you.

A rubber duck antenna is not a very good antenna at all.Their range is very limited on avarage,if you get on a hill or a tall building they will work pretty well,but in a house or car,they are spotty at best.

I have seen mobile antennas set up with a ground plane kit on a short pole that works great !! Larsen antennas has such a set up...Or you could make your own antenna ,a home brewed j-pole made from rigid copper water pipe or tv antenna flat wire works and is alot cheaper than buying an antenna

For finding what repeaters are in your area give Radio Reference web site a try,it will have all frequencies you are after,and are pretty accurate for PL tones

For a first HF radio I would have to say,keep it simple.There are alot of good radios out there that will do you a great job for you to make contacts...and when you get a chance take your general class test,you will be glad you did!!The general class ticket will open up a large part of all the HF bands for voice.You will be finding yourself scanning the HF bands for hours for contacts to make

and grats on getting your ticket !!

 

[KK6FVT]

the interference on 156.000 could be almost anything,I know cable TV can cause issues on 2 meters and just above that band,very well could be a leaky cable tv line close to you.

A rubber duck antenna is not a very good antenna at all.Their range is very limited on avarage,if you get on a hill or a tall building they will work pretty well,but in a house or car,they are spotty at best.

I have seen mobile antennas set up with a ground plane kit on a short pole that works great !! Larsen antennas has such a set up...Or you could make your own antenna ,a home brewed j-pole made from rigid copper water pipe or tv antenna flat wire works and is alot cheaper than buying an antenna

For finding what repeaters are in your area give Radio Reference web site a try,it will have all frequencies you are after,and are pretty accurate for PL tones

For a first HF radio I would have to say,keep it simple.There are alot of good radios out there that will do you a great job for you to make contacts...and when you get a chance take your general class test,you will be glad you did!!The general class ticket will open up a large part of all the HF bands for voice.You will be finding yourself scanning the HF bands for hours for contacts to make

and grats on getting your ticket !!

You must be psychic...I've just started working on a 2m J-pole using 1/2" copper pipe. I figure for $20 or so I can finish it off and I'll be well on my way to my first antenna!

One of the questions I've had is, is it possible (and by that I mean advised) to learn CW/Morse with something that isn't a straight-key such as an iambic paddle set? I have a practice key but to say it is 'stiff' is an understatement - the proper fist for this thing involves a hammer.

...or is it better to learn on a 'legacy' straight-key?

 

[SpaceMann]

I'm in the process of looking up a few repeaters in my area that I can check with this thing. I might go buy an SMA to BNC adapter tomorrow so it gives me better antenna choices to work with.

What would you say the range with the standard rubber ducky as opposed to a ground plane would be on 2m? I have no idea whether that static is coming from an actual radio source and just can't be interpreted or whether it's just caused by an errant TV haha.

A ground plane on the roof will do way better than just a rubber ducky on your HT! When I had my HT hooked up to a ground plane, I was hitting repeaters over 30 miles away!

 

[KK6FVT]

Well, I've officially completed a rite of passage and constructed my first antenna - a 2m J-pole. Photos tomorrow when I can get a picture of it.

What do you guys recommend for a new key? I have a learner's one but it is bare as bare bones gets and a 2x4 would be less stiff. Just like with the rigs, I'm willing to eventually put a good amount behind it if I can find something that will last me.