[HCARC] What Radio To Recommend to a Newbie - Be An Elmer

[Gary and Arlene Johnson]

Good show Kerry.  If each of the members would make an email like this, they 
could be printed off and provided to Newbies as they finish Dale's class. 
It's far better than Eham-net because I trust you guys.

"I would hope that you could get on the air for perhaps $500 and you should 
have a good time. "  Ebay has killed many of the good deals that used to be 
out there for new Ham radio operators.  It comes down to the simple - why 
would I sell my used rig for $300 at a Hamfest, rather than putting it on 
Ebay for $450.00.  With the resurgence of the number of Hams over the last 
few years since the code requirement has been dropped and since 
"PREPAREDNESS" has become a buzzword for some and a full time second 
occupation for others, the competition for used radios is rather intense. 
Most any radio that is on Ebay for the range of a $300 starting price is one 
that is at least 20 and maybe 30 years old.  Notice I said "STARTING PRICE". 
To really find out what they are selling for do your search such as Icom 718 
and once the search is done go over to the left margin and click on the 
square that brings up COMPLETED Auctions.  This will tell you what they SOLD 
FOR.  Then check those auctions for the condition the radio was listed as. 
There will be a direct correlation in most cases between condition and 
price.

Gary J
N5"BAA"



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kerry Sandstrom" <kerryk5ks at hughes.net>
To: "Gary and Arlene Johnson" <qltfnish at omniglobal.net>; 
<HCARC at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Sunday, August 05, 2012 8:53 AM
Subject: Re: [HCARC] What Radio To Recommend to a Newbie - Be An Elmer


> Gary and other guys just starting out,
>
> This is personal opinion again and many would disagree, but if you really 
> want to get on a radio and talk to people, VHF/UHF is the wrong place to 
> start.  If it were me, I would look for a good used synthesized 2 meter FM 
> transceiver with tone capability and 25-50 W output .  That will allow you 
> to get on the club repeater, N5HR.  There really isn't much to work on 
> VHF/UHF except the club guys unless you put up a pretty big station.  I 
> don't think you will find anyone on 70 cm (or 440) that you don't find on 
> 2 meters.  As far as 6 and 10 meters go, for long periods of time there 
> are very few signals on those bands.  What do I use on 2 meters?  A Clegg 
> FM-DX from the mid-70's.  Its synthesized , 2 meters only, abou 30 W 
> output, and (unfortunately) no tones.  My antenna is a second hand 
> CushCraft 4 el yagi ($15 at a swapfest in NM) on a ten foot pole tied to 
> my fence.  That is all you need to work the club Monday night net and a 
> few of the guys on simplex. You should be able to get a good used 2 meter 
> mobile and a 12 VDC power supply and a small antenna for under a $100.
>
> Now if you really want to be able to "work the world", you need to be able 
> to get on 40 and 20 meters.  80/75 is good, but not much activity during 
> the daytime.  15 is at times no better than 10.  CW is not as popular as 
> SSB now, however, if you have a simple antenna and not much power, CW is 
> less crowded and you don't need as much power.
>
> Don't be tempted by QRP.  Working QRP is not that easy.  At times you end 
> up calling a lot of stations, but only working a couple of them.  CW is 
> much more practical for QRP than SSB.
>
> What would I be looking for in the way of an HF rig?  I don't have any 
> real experience with new rigs.  I currently use a Drake TR5 and a Ten Tec 
> OMNI-D. Both are from the early 1980's and are easy to use and work well. 
> I have no real experience with the Japanese manufacturers.  However, if I 
> was looking for a good starter HF rig, I would probably be looking at an 
> Icom IC718 or the Kenwood and Yaesu equivalents.  There seem to be a few 
> of these simpler rigs for sale used from time to time.  The IC706 is also 
> a very popular rig. Years ago QST periodically ran an article or two on 
> how to find a used rig. Suggestions I remember were to pick one whose 
> manufacturer was still in business.  Make sure it comes with whatever 
> accessories you need because they might be impossible to find later.  A 
> model that is still in production is also a good idea, but not essential. 
> Older rigs are fun, however, you have to be ready to repair them 
> yourselves, not usually something a beginner can do, especially when exact 
> replacement parts aren't available.  I would also suggest a good external 
> manual antenna tuner and a simple wire dipole for 40 and 20 meters.  I 
> would hope that you could get on the air for perhaps $500 and you should 
> have a good time.  As you gain experience you can try different antennas 
> and decide if you need a rig with more features.
>
> When I was a novice, I already had a shortwave receiver, a Lafayette 
> HE-30, a very basic receiver that cost $100 new.  I bought a used Johnson 
> Adventurer for $50.  My antenna was an 80/40 twin lead dipole fed with 
> RG58/U that probably had $15 worth of materials.  It was about 20 feet 
> above the ground at its highest point.  I had fun with it and that is 
> probably equivalent to a $500 station today.  The first 2 meter equipment 
> i had was a Heathkit Twoer borrowed from a local club.  Eventually I got a 
> Gonset Comm 2 for 2 meters.  It was fine for working the locals of which 
> there were a lot in Mass in those days.  You really should start off small 
> and see what part of ham radio you really like and get some experience 
> before you drop big money on a fancy rig.  You may find that for what you 
> want to do, you never need a big fancy rig.
>
> If you are really set on VHF/UHF, I think you should talk to several guys 
> to find out what is really on those bands and what kind of equipment is 
> really required to work them and how much activity is really there on a 
> typical weekday or week evening.
>
> Kerry
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