[Hallicrafters] AM calling freqs or whatever!

[Todd, KA1KAQ]

On Sun, Dec 21, 2008 at 5:35 PM, Peter Markavage <manualman at juno.com> wrote:
> Hanging out in an imaginary AM Window severely curtails the
> spread and fun of the AM mode to the rest of the amateur world. Fortunately,
> at one of my station setups, I always have a spectrum analyzer (panadapter)
> on the receiver, so I can find AM signals very quickly and be there in the
> click of a mouse. Personally, I dislike spending my amateur radio time in a
> "box".

Bravo, Pete. I agree with your approach completely, and saw no ill
intent in yours or Carl's post beyond stating the obvious. AM is just
one of *many* modes available to amateurs here in the US. To treat it
as though it needs to be segregated or should only be found in
specific areas puts you in a box. This box gets smaller and smaller as
more and more AMers try to join in. And you're stuck putting up with
whatever is going on in that box, or shutting off the radio.

There's another problem with listing frequencies for meeting up: not
everyone who subscribes to a list is there to be friendly and get
along with others. On more than one occasion, information listed by
AMers has later been heard being recited by some station on SSB when
they decide to jam their conversation (yes, it's true: some hams
intentionally jam, and it's not mode-specific). It's not a large
number, but it doesn't have to be when you're on HF using more than
100 watts. I've personally witnessed this with respect to the AMers
trying to work European AMers on 80m.

So rather than boxing yourself in or painting a target on your
callsign, try this: spin the VFO dial around as Pete suggests, and
look for a QSO to join. Better still, find a clear frequency within
your license class and call CQ! You'd be amazed how many people are
out there listening, too shy or timid to do the calling. This is
especially true above 40m with weak propagation. And look beyond the
usual haunts: there's an active AM community on 80m as well as 75. On
40m you can find activity below 7200, or create some. More than one
frequency on 160, etc. If your license class doesn't permit it, you
can upgrade.

It's not a matter of telling anyone where they can or can't operate.
But if you insist on using only a certain few frequencies for AM, you
can bet that's what others will come to expect. All one needs to do is
listen in the 75m 'AM ghetto' (credit to N3DRB for the tag) in the
evening to witness the results: 2-3 QSOs crammed into 10-15 kcs of the
band (do the math even at 6kcs wide), with SSB stations doing their
best to make life miserable. Like others, I prefer to keep my options
open, and create activity rather than waiting for it to happen for me.
There is SO much unused spectrum sitting out there.

And since it's still basically a free country (for now, at least),
everyone can choose the approach they prefer. No purchase required,
your mileage may vary, and so on. Just remember, it's supposed to be
fun.

de Todd/'Boomer'  KA1KAQ/4