Amatuer Radio, a fun hobby that stretches the globe and provides essental communications in times of disaster and emergency, is a wonderful hobby open and accepting to all.
Entry number four in our series, So you want to become a ham?, we’re talking about what to do after you’ve taken your test.
First, if you did not pass this time, don’t be too hard on yourself, it happens sometimes.
Thorough understanding of the information is important to the hobby as we are creating and manipulating RF (Radio Frequency) energy, which can be quite an issue if not controlled well.
For you, now is the time to study some more, ask questions, and spend some time with your local elmers or clubs to see, do, and learn some more!
If you did pass, congratulations on your new license! You’re now allowed to ‘hit the waves’ and go ‘surfing for contacts’. There’s a wealth if information out there, but here’s where I suggest you start:
- Get yourself an HT, as much as you’re comfortable spending for a first radio, and remember you don’t need to get every bell and whistle out there, you can start with something more basic (See my post on HT’s here).
- Get it programmed (See Frequency plans and Radio Programs in my Digital Toolbox) with a bunch of simplex frequencies, and your local repeater frequencies. See my progamming suggestions here.
- Use it! Get outside, go for a walk, and scan through your memory channels to see what you pick up. Take some time to figure out which repeaters you can get into and see if you can make some contacts there.
- From there, add a dual band mobile with cross band repeat function to your vehicle, and go full ham, drill the hole!
There’s a whole world of radio to explore, but don’t worry about missing out on anything, radio has been around a long time, and will continue to be waving around for a very long time to come!
So, what about Amateur Radio is interesting to you?
Drop a comment below to let me know what brought you here, what you’re looking for, or what you’d like to read more about!
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