Learning Ham Radio; start with a Police Scanner?

While reading many sites on the internet about Ham Radio, I came across this bit of advice for Ham Newbies from Ron Hashiro in Hawaii:

Getting Started in Ham Radio

Your first ham radio station

So, you're studying for your first amateur radio license -- probably the Technician Class license -- and wondered what kind of equipment to get in the meantime. If I could do it again with modern equipment, here are some of my thoughts.

Enjoy, and feel free to drop me an e-mail if you have any questions.

First: The receiver

I feel the first thing to buy for ham radio is not the radio transmitter itself, but a decent receiver. If you pass your exam for the Technician Class license, you'll be able to talk on the VHF (50, 144 Mhz band) and UHF frequencies (440 Mhz band) as soon as your license is processed by the FCC. (By the way, these days, the VEC-FCC process takes as little as a week to complete, and you can transmit as soon as you can see your callsign on any of the various web callsign databases on the Internet. When I was first licensed, it took about 6-8 weeks, and you had to wait for the processed license paperwork to arrive in the mail.)

So, the initial temptation might be to get a transmitter or a combination transmitter-receiver called a transceiver. But, you might underbuy or overbuy on your equipment. So, it makes sense to try it out on a comparatively inexpensive solution. Get a "police" scanner first.

Scanners can go through a number of frequencies very quickly. You can monitor all the popular repeaters and simplex frequencies in a matter of about one or two seconds. I listen to the local frequencies with a scanner, and when I hear someone that I want to talk with, I turn on my radio (if it's not on) and make a contact.

For fun, you can also add the local aviation, weather and other frequencies to monitor -- and lock them out if you don't feel like listening to it at the moment. Best of all, they cost around $100 or so new. If you're fortunate to find a used model, your cost might be less.

Any old time ham will tell you that a good, solid and sensitive receiver is a must because there's an old adage "If you can't hear 'em, you can't work'em." -- meaning that if you can't hear the other station, you can't make a two-way contact with them. That makes sense. But, starting out, you probably don't need a top-of-the-line scanner. If you go to your nearest Radio Shack, you'll find a number of police radio scanners available. You can get started with one of these. See Radio Shack Scanners for starters. Look for one that you can attach an external antenna.

I would get a model that plugs into the AC wall outlet, so I wouldn't have to worry about charging or changing batteries. You can program a number of interesting ham frequencies: the nearest VHF and UHF repeaters on your island. Then, you can listen to the amount of conversation present, and get an idea of how strong the repeater signals are in your area. That'll determine how much radio and antenna to buy next. You'll also hear how conversations are made on the air, and that'll help you pass the Technician exam. [...]

Ron's page has lots of further useful advice for purchases later on as well. I'm just excerpting the first part because that's where I'm at right now; I have no equipment, and I'm facing my first purchase.

This sounds like good advice. I have no idea what kind of radio traffic I can receive where I live. A scanner will put me in touch with what is happening locally. I'm not sure at this point how much I'm going to get into Ham Radio, but I figure I can't go wrong starting with a scanner. If it helps me pass the Technician exam eventually, so much the better.

So the question is, what kind of scanner to buy? I have looked at Radio Shack on-line, and Amazon.com too. There are so many scanners to choose from. I thought these looked promising:

Uniden Bearcat BCT8 BearTracker Warning System with 800 MHz TrunkTracker III

Uniden BC898T 500 Channel Programmable Base Scanner with TrunkTracker III

UNIDEN BC-246T Compact Hand Held Scanner

Now these scanners are all in the $200 range, rather than the $100 range that Ron spoke of. As I read reviews posted from buyers, a lot of people complained about the cheaper scanners being older "outdated" models using inferior technology. These models were rated higher for satisfaction, but then more expensive stuff usually is. The TrunkTracker feature seems important, but how important is it? Would a cheaper scanner do? Or would I find myself saying "darn, if only I had been willing to spend a bit more..."? It would be nice to get a satisfactory purchase the first time.

I generally prefer radios with dials and knobs, rather than buttons. But it seems like everything has buttons nowadays. One reviewer warned against analog radios, saying they cannot pick up digital transmissions. Reading the customer reviews can make your head spin, especially when you don't understand all the jargon yet. I did find this one review for the Uniden Bearcat BCT8 amusing:

By Hilow "SurfDog" (San Francisco, CA USA)

This scanner has no problem keeping track of ALL radio traffic. I live in densely populated San Francisco near the entrance to the bay and right under the GG bridge. This little scanner gets it all. CHP, Bridge Patrol, Bridge Electricians, Bridge Shuttle bus. SFPD, SFFD, EMS. Yellow Cab, DPT, Harbor Pilots, Tugs, laundry delivery trucks, totally (too much information)TMI! In search mode I get signal from as far north as San Rafael (Marin County) as far east as Oakland as far south as Burlingame with the supplied telescopic antenna! For mobile applications ditch the supplied little wire antenna'n get a magnetic roof mount.

Bear Tracker works. Had it on the road 2day and it picks off Mobile Extenders left and right.

Programing is as easy as spending a few hours in search mode and entering the stations as you get them. The Trunk tracking feature rocks. In time you will be able to tell who is who. Dont want that Freq? Delete it easily.

A well designed and easy to use product. Crystal clear reception, intelligent layout and the pre-programmed freqs. are amazing.

Pricy perhapes, but worth it. I feel like I have been scanning for years and this is only my 4th day.

5 stars for delivering the goods, in spades. I am very happy.

TMI! LOL! Having lived in San Francisco for 23 years, it brought back memories. The atmosphere there always seemed so "busy". Is it any wonder, with all that radio traffic going through your brain, 24/7, in addition to all the commercial TV and radio stations as well?

When I visited South African in 1983 with Pat, there was a quietness there that seemed remarkable. At that time the South African government controlled commercial TV and radio stations, and there weren't many of them. In fact, the TV stations then only broadcast in the evening. I attributed much of the quietness to the dearth of broadcast frequencies in the air.

Many years later, when we moved here to rural Oregon, I experienced a very similar quietness like I had in South Africa.

We have one broadcast TV station within range of our house. The station is in the nearest big town. You need a special antenna to receive it, but it still comes in badly so we never watch it. In theory we have 18 commercial radio stations within range of our house, according to the internet. But in fact, we can receive only a handful of them. That may be good reason to spend a bit more to get a quality scanner, to make sure I can get the best reception. I may have to look into getting a decent antenna too.

I'm not sure how much radio traffic I can pick up here. We are close to the Oregon coast, and we often see Coast Guard helicopters flying by. There is a sizable airport in town too, so I'm sure there is Air and Marine radio traffic. And since there is an active Ham Radio club in town too, there has got to be a considerable amount of local activity for a scanner to pick up, I would think.

I've ordered a book, "Two-Way Radios & Scanners For Dummies", to see if I can get up to speed on what the different scanner features mean, and help me understand what I should look for in a scanner for my particular situation. I don't know if it's silly to buy a scanner for $200, when I could buy a transceiver for that or even less (and one with knobs too!). Perhaps it's a silly comparison to make; there are lots of variables to consider that I don't fully understand yet.

In the meantime, if anyone has some advice or would like to post about their own scanner purchasing experiences, please feel free to do so here.
     

Radio Communications in a Changing World

In the late 1970's, for my 18th Birthday, my parents really surprised me with a unique gift: a Transistorized Multiband Portable Radio. It was similar to the photo below, but the photo is of an older model:




The one my parents bought for me was I think the 1977 or 78 version of the Realistic Model# 12-750, or DX-60 or Patrolman series. The radio that looks the most like it is this vintage Patrolman CB-6 on Youtube.

Mine had little icons next to the bands, an airplane for Aviation, a boat for Marine... if I remember correctly it could receive broadcasts in AM, FM, Shortwave, Mediumwave, Longwave, Weather band, Marine band, Aviation band. I had endless hours of fun with it. I discovered the Atomic Clock in Fort Collins, Co. and it's sister station in Hawaii. Morse code transmissions. Satellite/Aviation beacons, a wide assortment of foreign stations overseas, many broadcasting in languages I didn't know, but many in English too. A whole new big wide world was literally opened up to me.

I took that radio to college with me. When I dropped out and eventually moved to California, it went with me. For a time in San Francisco, I lived in some cockroach infested places. When I was eventually able to move out, the roaches were in my belongings, and I had to spray everything. Unfortunately in the process, some got in the radio, and ruined it.

A few years later, a made an impulse buy at radio shack and got another shortwave radio, a Realistic DX-100:




But I was too impulsive; it wasn't as comprehensive has my old radio, it only did 4 major shortwave bands and AM. It also required a long copper wire outdoor antennae to work well, and that was not easy or convenient to do living in the city. So the radio stayed boxed up for years, all but forgotten.

Almost 30 years later, I find myself living in the Oregon countryside. I realize I still have the SW radio sitting in the bottom of my closet. I unpack it and set it up, and ... nothing. I can't pull in anything, not even the Atomic Time Clock. Very disappointing.

But I had not set up an external antenna. I had a kit to do it, that I had never used. But now I had plenty of space for it, so I set up the long copper wire outside, running from the window to a tree.




This time, the results were much better. I was able to find both Atomic clocks. Several Asian stations, in Chinese and Japanese. Australia and New Zealand Broadcasts. Radio Havana, with their horrible commie news in English. Numerous Spanish speaking stations, and Radio Netherlands, in Dutch and in English. And of course, a bunch of religious broadcasts.

It's been great fun rediscovering some of these things. But something is different. There just seems to be a lot LESS out there on the airwaves. Less morse code. Less shortwave programs. Just... less.

Now it's true, this shortwave radio I have now doesn't have all the bands that my first radio had. So I'm not getting the Marine, Aviation and Weather bands, and not as many shortwave one's either. I'm sure that explains some of it. I've also read that shortwave reception on the West coast isn't as good as elsewhere in the USA.

But what about the BBC? That used to be the easiest to get. Maybe I just haven't tuned in at the right time yet. But now you can get BBC re-broadcasts on regular radio, so do they still do SW for the US?

I've recently been looking at the new radios for sale on Amazon.com and Radio Shack. I've been looking for a multiband radio like the one my parents had bought for me so many years ago. I can't find one like it. But while reading the comments posted by people about the various new radios, I have learned a few things about radio communications in our changing world.

It seems that many countries who used to direct their SW broadcasts to America simply don't bother to do it anymore. The purpose of SW broadcasts, was to get news and information about your country to other countries. But in America, so many people are on the internet, they can get that information without even turning on a radio. In fact, nowadays most Americans are more likely to turn on a computer than a SW radio, so why bother?

Even on the SW stations I have gotten, they often broadcast their website address when they do their station identification. The Web has changed things considerably, making the NEED for shortwave redundant.

HAM radio (Amateur radio) has also been affected by the internet. HAM radio operators used to pass along personal messages and information to members of the armed forces, who were often otherwise inaccessible. Yet in todays world, soldiers often have access to email and telephones for keeping in touch with their families. Ham radio is used less for that purpose than it used to be.

In my search for a multiband radio, I have found that the CB, weather, Marine and Aviation bands are nowadays most often put on devices called Scanners. A scanner can cost as much as a shortwave radio. But if you want all the bands, it seems you have to buy more than one device. I think there may simply be MORE bands now too.

What I've read about CBs (Citizens' band radio) is interesting. In the 70's and 80's Citizen Band radios were all the rage. Available CB bands in the US were expanded from 27 to 40. Yet nowadays, there is much less traffic on the CB bands. That's great for the people who still use them, but why? There are several reasons.

FRS (Family Radio Service) and GMRS (General Mobile Radio Service) frequencies have become very popular along with the new walkie-talkie type devices that use them. They are inexpensive, easy to use and widely available. They also don't have some of the interference problems that CB's can have.

The other thing that has cut into the CB market is cell phones. They are so prevalent today, that they make CB's redundant in many cases. Some CB enthusiasts argue that CB is cheaper because there are no subscription fees involved. But CB broadcasts are not private, and the equipment is bulkier and thus less convenient. And you can't call someone on their phone with your CB. Thus many people consider the CB to be "outdated technology", though it's still useful for situations where a cellphone isn't viable. It's still widely used by truckers in the US, and people who travel the roads a lot say it's a great way to monitor traffic conditions ahead.

While reading about all this, I came across this interesting and detailed site by amateur radio enthusiast Max Summerville. He has noted many of the changes in the world of radio over the years:

BROADCAST, SHORTWAVE & HAM RADIO
RECEPTION MEMORIES & EQUIPMENT PICTOGRAPHY

[...] I occasionally turn on a Panasonic RF-2200 to listen to shortwave, and sometimes the Sony ICF-2010, but what with the veritable plethora of propagandists, preachers and conspiracy theorists, I can't find much that interests me. I just wish all the old signals were still there.

I am now almost 50 and still an avid enthusiast of the "unusual" on the radio. I am saddened by each disappearance from the radio bands of faithful, comforting sounds never to be heard again. LORAN, marine band ship to shore, the voice-format utility stations, CW pileups, full-quieting AM reception, the woodpecker (don't really miss that one), the BBC, Happy Station, HCJB, and in general... english language SW broadcasts of any entertainment value. I have not heard Radio Tirana, Radio Moscow, Radio South Africa or Deutsche Welle for years, now that I think of it. The internet has killed a lot of the magic of radio. Thank goodness for AM on 75. [...]

So it's not just me, things really have changed, a lot of things aren't on the airwaves anymore. I enjoyed Max's site, he's done a lot of things with radio that I would have liked to have done, but never got around to. I never got past just passive listening.

There is an active Amateur Radio Club in a town near where I live. I thought about joining, but I'm not sure I'd have the time to get into it, not to mention the cost of the equipment. I find the idea appealing, but I'm just not sure what amateur radio is for anymore.

All things considered, it's a different world. Even if I somehow still had my wonderful gift radio of yester-year, I would be tunning in a different world with different needs because of newer technologies. There is that old saying, "You can't go back". I guess this is one of those instances.

But if you can't go back you can still go forward, so maybe I need a radio upgrade! What does newer technology offer for shortwave receivers? I recently got a sample.

I've wanted to buy an emergency hand-crank radio, that didn't rely completely on batteries. So I bought one for under $50.00, that had limited shortwave capabilities My choice was the Kaito KA009R that I posted about recently.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that my new cheap little KA009R was able to receive shortwave stations better than my old Realistic DX-100... even without the benefit of the long copper wire antenna! The emergency radio lacks fine-tuning controls, but it still gets less squelching and interference than the DX-100. It makes me wonder what a newer, more expensive shortwave radio would be like.

This one looks like one I would like to have:


Eton S350DL AM/FM Shortwave Deluxe Radio Receiver (Black)

The S350DL has external antenna jacks, fine tuning knobs, etc. These are all the things I think a good SW radio would need. But then, look at this radio, and the many good reviews it's gotten:



Sony ICF-SW7600GR AM/FM Shortwave World Band Receiver with Single Side Band Reception

It doesn't have all the tuning knobs, but buttons... I don't yet understand all the technology and terminology. All these high tech toys, and too many decisions. So much to learn, so little time. Aren't hobbies fun?