Going for the Ham License

[drcomm]

Here's another test prep site...

http://aa9pw.com/radio/

As for taking Tech through Extra in one sitting.......

I am part of a VE team and our procedure is if you pass you can take the next level exam, no additional fee.   As long as time permits, we allow it.  We have had a couple of folks go from nothing Extra though both were well educated folks.  One was a EE professor and the other was a physics major and meteorologist at our local National Weather Service office. 

I was first introduced to radio communications in CAP as a cadet.  Our squadron meeting place was home to the former Southwest Region Electronics Maintenance Facility.  Lots of electronics geeks and hams around there!  I got my start in ham radio with those folks.  My exams through Advanced were all given at the FCC office in the Houston, TX Federal Building.  Extra was via the VE program.  I've been a ham for almost 27 years and hold an Extra class license and a General Radiotelephone (Commercial) License.

[Major Lord]

I wonder how many of us in CAP have our GROL? Its almost exactly the same as the Extra class test (well, maybe a bit harder).

Maj Lord
KG6HXO

[drcomm]

I wonder how many of us in CAP have our GROL? Its almost exactly the same as the Extra class test (well, maybe a bit harder).

Maj Lord
KG6HXO

Actually quite a bit harder.  The extra has a lot of antenna theory (smith charts, etc.) and ham related stuff.  The GROL is chock full of deep transmitter/ receiver circuit theory questions and radio law relating to ship/aircraft radios and broadcast transmitters.  If you are really into electronics I'd say get a study guide and give the GROL a try.  It is also covered under the VE program.  Our VE team does ham exams every month and Commercial Exams (GROL, Radar Endorsement, etc.) every quarter.

[♠SARKID♠]

There are about 300 and some odd questions in the total pool, , and if you take the practice tests until you hit passing scores you will pass the real test easily. Remember that the practice test questions are the real, actual test questions, and not altered in any way other than having the answer sequences rearranged. Don't worry about what the questions mean! Just take the practice test as often as you can until you have the bulk of the questions commited to memory.

Now that I disagree with.  Are you really learning anything?  I don't know about you, but I'm in ham radio to further my education, not my memorization skills.

[Major Lord]

Having a firm grasp of the basic principals in the Tech book is a good start to understanding general operating principals of Ham radio, It is not a great way to get your license. My rule with ham radio is to get people their entry level license and lead them down the path to more advanced things later.

Major Lord

[Major Lord]

I wonder how many of us in CAP have our GROL? Its almost exactly the same as the Extra class test (well, maybe a bit harder).

Maj Lord
KG6HXO

Actually quite a bit harder.  The extra has a lot of antenna theory (smith charts, etc.) and ham related stuff.  The GROL is chock full of deep transmitter/ receiver circuit theory questions and radio law relating to ship/aircraft radios and broadcast transmitters.  If you are really into electronics I'd say get a study guide and give the GROL a try.  It is also covered under the VE program.  Our VE team does ham exams every month and Commercial Exams (GROL, Radar Endorsement, etc.) every quarter.

David,

I studied my book for about 3 months and took the practice tests from Gordon West ( May he live forever in the halls of Valhalla!) and passed the GROL with Radar, missing two questions in the process. I can strongly recommend the Gordon West books for all ham and commercial tests. Good stuff. I am not a wiz with the Calculus, but I found that there are patterns to the answers on a lot of the really hard questions.

Major Lord

[SarDragon]

There are about 300 and some odd questions in the total pool, , and if you take the practice tests until you hit passing scores you will pass the real test easily. Remember that the practice test questions are the real, actual test questions, and not altered in any way other than having the answer sequences rearranged. Don't worry about what the questions mean! Just take the practice test as often as you can until you have the bulk of the questions committed to memory.

Now that I disagree with.  Are you really learning anything?  I don't know about you, but I'm in ham radio to further my education, not my memorization skills.

Yea, I was wondering about that myself.

I was an avionics tech in the Navy, so have some substantial electronics knowledge, followed on by a degree in Electronics.

I sat here and took 11 of the Tech practice exams from here - http://www.qrz.com/testing.html - and passed them all with 85% or better. Does that make me a "proper" ham, just because I have great test taking skills? I could probably go take the Tech test and get my license tomorrow, but I don't feel that I have some of the other knowledge that would help me integrate into the ham ranks.

Thoughts? Comments? Advice?

[♠SARKID♠]

Exactly what I'm saying.  Just because you know the questions and answers, doesn't mean you know all the necessary questions and answers.  The test doesn't cover every bit of info you need to know, and hopping on the air prematurely could lead to some mistakes with unwanted consequences.

[wuzafuzz]

There are about 300 and some odd questions in the total pool, , and if you take the practice tests until you hit passing scores you will pass the real test easily. Remember that the practice test questions are the real, actual test questions, and not altered in any way other than having the answer sequences rearranged. Don't worry about what the questions mean! Just take the practice test as often as you can until you have the bulk of the questions commited to memory.

Now that I disagree with.  Are you really learning anything?  I don't know about you, but I'm in ham radio to further my education, not my memorization skills.

Who cares how someone passes the test?  People learn in a variety of ways.  Some will learn from the books, others will learn by doing.  As long as no rules are broken the method is acceptable.  Further, some hams do just fine as "appliance operators" and are content with that.  Some hams build their own gear from scratch.  Ham radio is many different hobbies within a hobby.  We should resist the all too common trap of insisting others practice "my hobby, my way."

[JoeTomasone]

^ x2

[ThorntonOL]

since it was mentioned I am going to ask what exactly is commercial radio license compared to ham?
I also saw a few commercial licenses named, (I probably should know what GROL stands for but currently I can't think of it) what are the names of the commercial licenses and could you give a description of them?
Going for ham right now but would like to see if there is anything worth going for after them.

[IceNine]

Commercial licenses like the General Radiotelephone Operators License are good for Commercial applications.  They don't carry much weight outside of that, and as mentioned they are significantly more in depth.

If you were interested in pursuing radio as a career it would be beneficial to have a GROL with one of the various endorsements

[davidsinn]

Which Ham license would I need to do Radio Control in the 50Mhz band? I'm looking at building an RC submarine and want a lower freq than the 75 Mhz allowed for none licensed people.

[IceNine]

Technician would work

http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/Hambands_color.pdf

[NHQ-OS-126 Frank]

Wouw, there are so many Ham's here on the site and in CAP.  Why should we not try to meet on the air and talk together.

When HF does not work we could try echolink. There are already  a lot of repeaters on echolink and it is a real cool way to communicate. (links, repeaters etc.)

We could open an own conference room on echolink.

Any thoughts ?   

Best 73's to you all and good luck for those who take the Ham exams soon.


LX1MG   Frank

[JoeTomasone]

We can use my conference - *AB2M*

[RADIOMAN015]

Am thinking about going for the ham license even if I can't use it in CAP I still find it would be useful outside of it, (a lot more useful than the CB's) just confused on the levels in the licensing.
What is the beginning level and the highest level?
Is Morse code still required for the last two? Or is it completely gone?

I think it is an excellent idea for ANYONE interested in CAP Emergency Services to get an amateur radio license, at least to the technician level which allows voice & data comms in the higher frequency ranges, and even cw code in the HF ranges (although code is no longer tested/required for any amateur radio class of license).

The proposed draft CAPR 100-1, makes provisions for CAP obtaining assistance from hams in radio relay of information.   Regardless of what the regulation says, in an emergency if you are a licensed amateur radio operator, whether in CAP uniform & on mission, you can still use your amateur radio.    There's very significantly  more amateur radio stations (including repeaters) throughout the country than CAP assets.  Amateur radio uses the slogan "when all else fails"!!!

Surely, If you are on a CAP/AF authorized mission you should use the CAP radio communications equipment provided to you, BUT just as you carry a cellphone with you, there's no harm in also carrying an amateur radio dual band WT (VHF/UHF) for "just in case" "when all else fails" scenario!!!
RM 

[drcomm]

since it was mentioned I am going to ask what exactly is commercial radio license compared to ham?
I also saw a few commercial licenses named, (I probably should know what GROL stands for but currently I can't think of it) what are the names of the commercial licenses and could you give a description of them?
Going for ham right now but would like to see if there is anything worth going for after them.

There are several different types and endorsements.

Licenses:
GROL General Radiotelephone Operator's License
GMDSS Global Maritime Distress Safety System Radio Operators License
GMDSS Radio Maintainer's Licence

Permits:
Restricted Radio Operator's Permit
Marine Radio Operator's Permit

Certificates:
Third Class Radiotelegraph Operator's Certificate
Second Class Radiotelegraph Operator's Certificate
First Class Radiotelegraph Operator's Certificate

Endorsements:
Ship Radar Endorsement
Six Month Service Endorsement

The GROL is required to maintain radio equipment used in several different radio services especially aviation and marine.  If you have a desire to work in these fields you should try to get this license.  The radiotelegraph licenses are for marine telegraph operators. 

Take a look at the National Radio Examiners website for more details on the requirements for each.

http://www.nationalradioexaminers.com

[Fireball]

CAP and HAM radio go hand in hand. Both activities seem to attract the same type of person. In fact a CAP HAM first introduced me to radio  back in my Cub Scout days 30+ years ago. Right now there are at least 6 HAMs in my squadron and many many more in our Wing. I only regret that there are not more HAM radios that are also NTIA compliant. Ahh the good ol days!

[Major Lord]

since it was mentioned I am going to ask what exactly is commercial radio license compared to ham?
I also saw a few commercial licenses named, (I probably should know what GROL stands for but currently I can't think of it) what are the names of the commercial licenses and could you give a description of them?
Going for ham right now but would like to see if there is anything worth going for after them.

Lt.,

In the old days, you needed a GROL to service two way radios, and it was also the license that broadcast engineers needed. This is mostly unnecessary these days. You do need a GROL with a Radar endorsement to service Maritime Radar (technically, even to change the fuse in a boat RADAR set) Other than a degree in electronics, the GROL is probably the most common bona fides presented by radio communications technicians to show they have a good grasp of theory and practice.

The GROL is also a requirement ( along with quite a few others) for people interested in serving in the Merchant Marine as a Radio Officer. I belive that it is still a requirement for servicing avionics electronics. I have mine because I manufacture ham radio products, and because of my past work in electronic countermeasures. It is a lifetime license, and a lot of guys out there earned the license when it was concerned with tubes and rubbing sticks together. The test is fairly advanced, but if you study, it is doable.

The ham "tech"  license is a walk in the park. After that, the General class license makes you rub a few brain cells together to earn. Good luck!

73,

Major Lord
KG6HXO

Major Lord