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Ham Radio:
Simplified
Kevin D. Cornwell, NeABW
 Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2010 with funding from
Amateur Radio Digital Communications, Grant 151

https://archive.org/details/namradiosimplifi00corn
Ham Radio:
Simplified

Kevin Cornwell
N6ABW

PhotograFix Publishing
Hilt, CA USA
&
FZGOCEAN
GLOBAL OCEANIC COMMUNICATION,
EDUCATION & ASSISTANCE NETWORK
 This book ts dedicatedto
Elmer.
74 hams ham who befriended
many of us years age aud let
tt.the wetothe,iteoffle

Elmer, 7 hope you find him ta

ISBN: 1-888740-00-0
LCCN: 98-91572
Ham Radio: Simplified
Copyright © 1998 by PhotograFix Publishing. Written by Kevin Cornwell,
N6ABW. Printed and bound in the United States of America. All rights re-
served. No part of this book may be reproduced, transferred, or transmitted in
any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information
storage and retrieval systems without permission in writing from the publisher.
Volume discounts available for educational or promotional uses. First printing
1998. Published by PhotograFix Publishing, 2139 Hilt Road, Hilt, CA 96044
-hitp-/Awawowphotografixnet—pfoub@photograficnet (530) 475-0916
 [j Preface
ytd, the General Standards of Part 97 of the
FCC rules governing Amateur Radio operations,
Standard A states “In all respects not specifically
covered by FCC Rules each amateur station must
be operated in accordance with good engineer-
ing and good amateur practice.”
The current, much simplified amateur testing
procedures have decidedly reduced the knowl-
edge necessary to achieve this standard. The
resulting skills deficiency inspired the Ham
Radio: Simplified guidebook.
In times past, to earn an Amateur Radio
license, you were tested to prove your knowl-
edge of operating procedures and to make
evident a level of practical skill necessary to
properly setup and maintain your station. Nowa-
days, however, often an Extra class licensee,
perhaps the most respected level of amateur
license in the world, much less a novice or a
general, hasn’t a clue how to cut a dipole! Or >A dipole is the most common
he’s confused where the red wire protruding type of Amateur Radio antenna.
from his transceiver goes. It becomes obvious It is also the simplest to con-
that the testing system has failed. We've lost the struct. A dipole is an antenna
that has two sides or halves.
knowledge that makes Amateur Radio and its The prefix Di- means 2 (two),
frequency allocations a vital asset to our country. so it literally means two-poles
Future guidebooks planned by PhotograFix or two-sides.
Publishing will include a book of emergency >The National Traffic System
operations and NTS traffic handling, and an is a standardized method for
encyclopedic dictionary of Amateur Radio terms hams to transfer messages (traf-
and definitions. fic). Messages can be from one
ham to another or from a non-
It is our intention to provide the springboard ham to a non-ham. For
from which hams will begin to regain at least the example, military personnel
basic elements of proper communication and often use this organized system
technical knowledge. We aim to provide to send messages home via
sourcebooks that will aid the Amateur Radio ham operators.
community in restoring a demonstrable, funda-
mental level of skill that should be requisite to
obtaining a license.
The information here is not meant to be all
inclusive. As a guide, it will build confidence for
your initial on-air forays. Once you're there,
you'll find other hams who'll eagerly share their
knowledge. This book is just building block #1.
Build a memorable ham shack!

Introduction
Voice modes are those
which transmit and receive the
human voice. Digital modes
use a series of tones which
must be decoded before being
intelligible. Morse code,
Packet, RTTY, SSTV, Fax,
PacTOR, AmTOR, and G-TOR
are all digital modes.
>This boldface word illus-
trates how boldface text and
their associated definitions will
appear.
~)
\
ES ew books are available to prospective
hams that detail what is expected of them when
they're ‘On-Air’. This book is a compendium of
generally accepted Amateur Radio operating
practices on the most popular digital and voice
modes. Many of these practices are not law but
ratHer have evolved over time as a result of
common courtesy and gentlemen’s agreement.
Today’s amateur wants to know ‘how’ rather
than ‘why’. The basic how’s and a few why’s are
explained here through diagrams and nontechni-
cal language. Technically proficient amateurs
may find some of the analogies, illustrations, and
explanations imprecise or lacking in detail.
Should you require detail, we refer you to the
ARRL Amateur Radio Handbook. Ham Radio:
Simplitied is designed to ground you in the
basics. With the basics in hand, you'll increase
your operating flexibility and acumen and gain
the confidence of a seasoned operator.
Each page of this booklet contains a text- and
a support-column. The text-column, where
you’re now reading, contains the formal discus-
sions. The support column includes examples,
diagrams, and any supporting information in-
cluding the definitions of boldface text.
While the author has presented each topic as
accurately as possible, you may hear protocol
used in your area that seems to contradict the
author. Consider yourself ahead of the game.
Local customs that aren’t illegal should always
take precedence and your quick recognition and
proper use of them will mark you as a good
operator. However, don’t assume your local
practices are the doctrine around the country. Be
prepared for something different when you
travel. And, throw it all away when you travel
outside the country. A courteous operator is well
received the world over, but specific laws and
customs will vary widely—listen carefully to
what others are doing.
The theory and operating conventions covered
here will not only make you a better operator,
but will maximize your enjoyment of Amateur
Radio, the greatest hobby on Earth!
Table of Contents
PAPEAMR NE WeeNEINGS —— VV Th3T, FOL! acs cnnca san dursasasoanpes sen vacyen bosainseceerneer een en ates
1 What Rig For Me?! — Gotta Have my Knobs! .......ccccccccscseeseseseseeteseseseeeeneneneneees 1
What to do with a Radio * New vs. Used Radios * Useful Features * What Bands Work Best * Setting Up A Radio

2'10+4 Good Buddy. — Don’t be.a bid). <200.1.08................060 eee 12

What to Say and When » Interrupting Politely * Laws of Privilege * Only Jerks go Jamming * Look & Sound Clean

3. Two,Meters — The Handi-Hamn’s, Band gasssjatscasscec 4..000000sco0dge tees annins Pena 17

Learning 2-Meters * How Repeaters Work * Operating Procedures * What to Say and Not ¢ Breaking In »
What’s a Frequency * Signal Reports

4-HIF Bands — When, High: js. LoWéasis..ciusasoscosenngsonet

ochdeosasncus.s site eee eoeemean aa: 24
How Waves Travel * Getting Ready * Signal Reports * What to Say * Emergencies * Keeping a Log * QSL’ing

5 Rabbit Ears — The Better To Hear You With ........ccccccccccscscssseesescsesssseecseseseeeees 30

How Antennas Work ¢ Types of Antennas * Putting One Up « Tuning It Up ¢ Testing It

6 CW & Net Operations — Pounding the Brass ........c.ccceeeseseeseteseeteteeeeeeteeee 34

Code Abbreviations *A Typical Code QSO *CW Nets *CW Net Rules

7 Digital Beginnings =—- SQUAMKIN' a) aSGueakiny’ 4 5..::..:8 eet eee ete 36

What is Digital *Hardware you Need * How to Get Set Up * How to Get Started

8 This IS Grandpa’s Mode — RTTY, What Gentleman Do .........::eceeeeeee 42

What is RTTY * How it Works * Your First RTTY QSO * How to Get Started * Where to Hang Out

S Packet — Where the: Fun, Begins ...-3s«-q0ss caeauessmcld...6-2.dn

ents ee 45
What is Packet * TNC Commands * How to Get Started * Where to Hang Out * BBS Commands *
Packet & the Law « A Packet Session

10 The Packet Children — Digital Evolution ........ccccccceececeeeeeeseeeeeseeeeeeeeees 54

PacTOR and AmTOR * Getting Ready * Sending CQ * Specific Protocols * Where to Hangout

11 Hey Ma, Look at Me! — Slow Scan Television ........c.cccecesessesesseseeseseeseseeees 57

History of SSTV * Where to See SSTV * Hardware * Software Options * Getting Set Up * Sending Pictures

12 Electricity — An Invisible Super Hero ...........ccccsceeseesesseseseseeseseseensneaeneaeenenenes 64

What is Electricity * How it Works * What it Does * Current & Volts * Resistance

13 Ohm’s Law — Obey It, or Face the Electric Chair .......eceeseeeeseeseseesesseeeneees 69

Applying Ohm’s Law * The Power Law

14 Using the Theory — Short Vertically Challenged Circuits ........:ccccseeeeees 70

Soldering Irons ¢ Testing Tools * How to Test * Discrete Components

Appendix A — Resistor & Capacitor Color Coding Chatt......:seseccseieereneeneees Th

Appendix B — International Phonetic Alphabet ..........:::ssesssesereeteetetetneeeneeeeeee 77
Appendix C
— Commercial Maritime Weather Fax (WeFAX) .....::sssseeeereeeeeees 78
Appendix D
— Common Amateur Radio Abbreviations .........::::eseceiereeeieeees 79
Appendne © == RST Report Systety oie crrngznarpansnfod =o 20 eesti Mgy ats ata lens Mena 80
PARR MIN eC ISLES cos so cnny snc sonst spmencacapsneboctnninrd
gee torec cen 81
Appendix G CW: Abbreviations f...e csc enetasbessconepeepspneegeeunr ensesnaeces eneseas83
Appendix H — QN Codes, Traffic Net Use Onlly «0.0... sseseseseseeseteseenstesseneneneens 84
Appendix | — Amateur Call Sign Areas in the United States «0.00.0... 85
Appendix J — Ham Radio Internet Web URL'S ......:.sessseceeeseeeeteeeeeeeeneneeneneenes 86
 ( ’
Amateur ALY, has been said (many times) that the
Radio decline in America’s electronics superiority was
preceded by the decline in amateur radio hobby-
ists. As avid experimenters, hams were constantly
What For? pressing the State-of-the-Art envelope. In fact,
many of the communications and electronics
($500
s
— _Iks. engineers during the technology revolution 40
| ae ase
years ago were hams.
. aN s

2 zest
Hams still provide message handling, radio
personnel, and field operators during emergen-
cies. But, there’s more. You have a license to
experiment and ‘try it’ a different way. Hams
have been at the leading edge of every techno-
logical advance, from space to the cellular
phone, because they possessed the skills and a
curious mind.
Few hams today embody these two qualities,
but ail of us love to communicate. And yet,
proper, clean, articulate communication is sorely
lacking in our society. Perhaps that will be the
contribution of today’s ham; a re-introduction to
the fine art of communication.
In 1928, Paul Segal, W9EEA, wrote a set of
standards. A credo that says hams should be:
Considerate to other’s operating enjoyment.
Loyal by offering encouragement to other
hams, by club participation, and by supporting
those representing amateurs’ legal interests.
Progressive by keeping his station state-of-the-
art, well maintained, and efficient. A ham’s
operating habits must be above reproach.
Friendly by offering advice and counsel to the
beginner. By providing assistance, cooperation
and consideration for the interests of others.
Balanced by remembering that radio is his
hobby; not allowing it to interfere with his duties
to home, job, school, or community.
Patriotic by offering his knowledge and his
station for the service of country and community.
These are the worldwide hallmarks of the spirit
of Amateur Radio operators.
‘t What Rig
w —erhaps the most difficult decision a ham
makes is which radio to buy. With the large
selection of foreign models touting an impressive
For Me?!
list of bells and whistles, to the high quality
American-made units, you often end up choosing Gotta Have my
what a salesman or fellow ham suggests, rather Knobs!
than the best fit for your needs.
Ignoring the used radios on the market, the
spectrum of new rigs runs from the Ten-Tec Scout
(at around $550 it’s undeniably the easiest, most
basic, turn-it-on-and-talk radio) to the Icom IC-
781 with its spectrum analyzer, CRT display,
onboard computer options and multi-thousand- / What's a Radio For?
dollar price tag. / New vs. Used Radios
Years ago Drake made the best rigs, everyone / Useful Features
bought Kenwoods, avoided the cheaply built / What Bands Work Best
Yeasu, and desired the superior Icoms. Today, J Setting Up A Radio
Drake is nearly nonexistent, Yeasu has the best
receivers, Icom holds its own, and Kenwood’s PR >A used radio can be the best
and repair service has lagged, while{Ten-Tec fias buy around — but buyer be
——

maintained a consistent benchmark ofquality. informed! You can buy a

There are many other brands and you
shouldn’t shy away from them if you like a
particular radio. In general, for the average once-
a-week user, radio performance will be the same
no matter what rig you buy. More money will
only equate to more buttons. If you're a serious,
up-every-night Ham, then performance will be a
big issue and only top quality radios will satiate
your vice.
The bottom line is, unless you have money to
blow, don’t buy more than you will forseeably
need. There will always be a better radio, if not
today then next week. With proper operating
techniques, a Ten-Tec Scout will sound the same
on the air, and will punch through DX pileups
just as easily as the Icom IC-781.
The first question you must ask yourself is,
“What do | want to do with my radio?” Granted,
if you’re a new licensee, you may not know the
answer to that yet, but you'll at least have an
idea. Here are some specifics you need to discuss
with yourself:
/Do you travel away from your home area?
/Do you want a radio that travels well?
$1100 (1985 vintage) solid
state Ten-Tec for $400 or less -
a super buy if you don’t need
broadband receive, all the
WARC bands (30, 17, and 12
meters), or memory channels.
Before you buy, learn about
the rig from other hams, call
the manufacturer, or ask the
seller for a copy of the specifi-
cations page from the manual.
In general, rigs from the mid-
80’s and forward will be
quality radios with no discern-
ible difference to the listener.
>CRT stands for cathode ray
tube. You probably have a
CRT or two laying around your
home; your TV, computer
monitor, even the control
panel of the F-15 fighter jet
sitting in your backyard uses a
CRT to display pictures or
information.

>An antenna tuner electri-
cally ‘tunes’ practically any
piece of wire or antenna to
fool your transmitter into think-
ing the antenna is matched to
the frequency you're using. A
correctly tuned antenna is
always best, but if you're trav-
eling or must install your
antenna in a restricted space
(or perhaps you're still using
your bedsprings as your an-
tenna) you must use a tuner or
else you will damage your
transmitter.
>A power supply converts
120volt AC power to 12volt
DC power. Using the wrong
type of power will instantly
and permanently fry your ra-
dio. A traditional power supply
uses a very heavy transformer
and it is not only bulky, but,
very heavy. A modern switch-
ing power supply will weigh
only a few pounds and fit com-
fortably under or beside your
radio. There is relatively little
cost difference.
>The knowledge required to
tune the final amplifier every
time you change frequency is
not insurmountable. However,
if not applied properly, you'll
melt the radio.
2
/How much space is available for the radio?
/Do you need the ability to operate off a battery?
/Do you like talking to strangers, or just friends?
/Are you computer oriented?
/Do you like to experiment?
/Can you afford to spend regularly on radios?
Let’s look at these one by one.
If you travel frequently and want to take your
radio with you, then it must be small, lightweight,
powered by 12vdc, and perhaps have a built-in
antenna tuner. Or, if your vehicle is small but
you want a permanent installation with all the
features, then a rig with a detachable front panel
might be your choice (and a nice one at that).
If you travel but don’t wish to use the rig in the
car, then you'll need an antenna tuner and a
matching power supply (or a portable car bat-
tery). And, if size is still a consideration, then you
may opt for a built-in antenna tuner, or an exter-
nal, pocket-sized, manual one.
Generally, a radio that travels well, is one that
is well made. A no-frills rig does not mean less
breakdowns, but it will be easier to repair. How-
ever, the more features you have built-in (like
antenna tuner, CW keyer), the more compact
your traveling ham shack will be.
Nearly all ham radios sold today operate on
12vdc — your car battery. In fact, if you want to
operate at home, you'll probably have to buy an
optional power supply! However, if the radio
comes with a power supply, but you'll only be
operating from your car or in the field, then you
should look for another radio — otherwise you're
wasting space, weight and money.
If you’re in the market for a used radio, AND
you want to operate from a 12vdc source, you
must consider the significant current drain im-
plied when using tube rigs. On top of that, tubes
are expensive and hard to find, a fact that makes
any tube rig obsolete today, and unrepairable in
the future. In addition, tube rigs require greater
knowledge not covered in today’s amateur exam
classes. Spend more and buy a solid-state rig that
will last your lifetime.
 If you like talking and making friends, you'll
enjoy ragchewing. You'll need a radio that can >Chewing the fat, shooting
accept an external speaker for the most comfort- the breeze, or ragchewing as
hams call it, is just plain old,
able and pleasant sound. Make sure the radio has down-home yakking.
either an optional desk or boom mic, or the
ability to attach one easily. You don’t need >Short-Wave Listener
hundred’s of memory channels (unless eee ; , >Sked, also spelled sched, is
options. short for schedule. You may set
up schedules with any number
of your ham friends where you
meet on a predetermined fre-
Most of the new radios are computer oriented. quency, day, and time. You
Often this makes them not user-friendly. You choose the details based on
may have to memorize numerous keystroke which band will best work at
combinations to use all their capabilities. If the chosen time.
you're not interested in learning all that, a used
solid-state rig like a Scout, or an Atlas, ora
>Flectronic tubes are not solid
newer, no-frills entry-level rig would be best.
state because the glass
If you want to easily modify or repair your rig, ‘bubble’ of the tube is filled
then your choices are pretty slim. An old tube rig with a gas — not very solid.
would do well. But a solid-state rig such as the Transistors use a solid crystal-
high quality Atlas and Ten-Tec radios rely mainly line structure and are thus
on discrete components rather than IC chips for called solid-state devices. In
fact, tubes are the only non-
their electronic circuits. While making them
solid state electronic devices.
simpler and less gadgety, this allows the user to
modify or repair them with readily available >Discrete components refers
parts. Again, stick with solid-state gear; you'll get to the singular or discrete func-
tion of a single transistor,
longevity for your money.
resistor, etc. Integrated Circuit
If money is no object and never will be, then chips (IC’s) house a few, or
don’t bother reading the rest of this chapter. millions of discrete compo-
Since you're still reading, don’t buy a radio that nents within their black plastic
uses proprietary plugs, power cords, supply cases making them an inte-
voltages, etc. If you do, and next year’s model grated (all-in-one) circuit.
doesn’t use it and your pet Gila monster has
eaten yours, what are you going to do except buy
a new radio (yes, it is a conspiracy). It doesn’t
matter how much you like a radio, if it has
something special that can only be purchased
from the manufacturer, RUN away from it. If
you’re not sure if something is special or not, ask
another ham.
A Plethora of Buttons
All hams love buttons and switches yet few
hams need or use all the features on their mod-
ern, computer-enhanced radios. Radio
manufacturers know this universal law about _
hams and design their radios to be as switch and

>AM was the original mode of
operation. Its signal consists of
three parts: the upper part,
lower part, and middle part.
The upper and lower parts are
your actual voice except they
are mirror images of each
other. The middle part is the
vehicle that carries your voice.
Pushing these three parts along
takes a lot of energy so hams
came up with ‘sideband’. They
built radios that transmitted
only one part, either the upper,
or lower part while the re-
ceiver faked the two missing
parts. By transmitting only one
part, they significantly reduced
the power needed to transmit
their signal. As a result we now
have UpperSideBand and
LowerSideBand as the primary
voice modes. CW is Continu-
ous Wave and is nothing more
then Morse Code.
>If the back-end of the re-
ceiver is the speaker, where
you finally hear the signal
come out, then the front-end is
where the signal first enters the
receiver. Hence, the first elec-
tronic stage to begin
processing a signal intercepted
by the antenna is considered
the front-end.
knob heavy as possible, even adding controls
with labels incomprehensible to the new user:
ATT Gain
Supercooling Heater Fan
20db AVC
While these buttons may actually have a
usable purpose, it is often the result of poor
translation from the builder’s native tongue
(usually Japanese) that results in such useless
labeling. Nevertheless, hams go in big for buttons
so here’s a basic list of buttons and what they do.
What Happens When | Push THIS One?
Volume, AF Gain, AF, or Audio are synonyms
and label the volume control. Unlike many AM/
FM radios, the on/off switch is rarely connected
to it. The on/off switch is usually labeled Power,
1/0, or on/off. The Band, or Frequency tuning
knob (or keypad) and switch (or buttons) allow
you to change from one set of frequencies to
another. The Mode switch changes between USB,
LSB, and CW. These are the absolute basics that a
radio must have to function on the amateur
bands. ALL other functions may be superfluous
for you.
RIT (Receiver Incremental Tuning), labeled
rarely as Delta, allows one to tune the radio’s
receiver slightly above or below the transmit
frequency. It is poor practice to alter your trans-
mit frequency once you’ve engaged in a
conversation (and it'll ruin digital mode QSO’s).
If you change frequency because the other guy
sounds off, then he’ll do the same because you
sound off and an endless cycle will begin as you
chase each other up and down the band. Leave
your frequency alone and use the RIT.
The RE Gain, RE, Sensitivity, RF Attenuation,
ATT, -10db, -20db or Input Gain is used to
protect the receiver's front-end by reducing the
level of extremely strong signals.
A NB, or Noise Blanker is used to decrease
static crashes (prevalent on 160 and 80 meters)
and pulse type (automobile) noise. A must if
you're in a city or mobile environment. But, if
you set the NB level too high, even radio signals
will be blanked in a stuttering fashion.
 To increase the level of extremely weak
signals a Preamp, RX Preamp, +10db or +20db
switch is used by the receiver’s front-end. A
preamp also amplifies noise so its usefulness is
dubious in many situations.
AGC (Automatic Gain Control) can be slow,
medium, fast, or off. It controls the speed at
which the receiver equalizes the loudness differ-
ences between weak and strong signals. AVC
(Automatic Volume Control) is rarely imple-
mented anymore but was used to accomplish the
same effect. A fast (or off) AGC setting is best
during digital communications while the slow
setting makes voice modes most pleasant.
Dual VFO’s (Split mode) allow you to receive Variable Frequency Oscilla-
on one frequency while transmitting on another, tors took the place of crystal
even a different band. This is absolutely neces- controlled oscillators. The
sary for the avid DX’er, and absolutely useless to difference is that with a VFO
the weekend ragchewer. you can receive all frequencies
simply by turning a knob while
Memory (Mem) channels allow you to quickly the crystal oscillator can re-
switch to your favorite frequencies — if you can ceive exactly one frequency
remember what you’ve programmed into them. A (unless you open the radio and
memory or frequency scan function is useful if replace the crystal with an-
you're a SWL’er or perhaps a DX’er waiting for a other one designed to work on
a different frequency).
rare one to show up.
A Compressor, Comp, or Mic Comp is valued
by DX’ers. It increases the effective output of
your transmitter by making soft sounds like “f”
just as loud as hard ones like “d”. In normal
conversation, it will distort your voice making
you less pleasant to your audience. This inherent
distortion can also ruin digital communication. A
bass and/or treble control allows you to tailor the
response of your microphone so you can transmit
the most pleasing sound possible.
Nearly all rigs have VOX (Voice Operated
Switch). When on, your radio will transmit
whenever you begin speaking — you don’t have >A Push-To-Talk button is
to push the PTT button; the ultimate in relaxed found on every transceiver. It’s
hamming. Of course, any extraneous noise like a the button you push to key-up
door slam, even a chair squeak, can trip the VOX the transmitter before you be-
as well. The VOX Gain, if set too high will cause gin talking.
unwanted key-ups, while the VOX Delay sets the
time the transmitter waits for your next word
before it un-keys. The Anti-VOX keeps the
received audio from keying up the transmitter. If
set too low, the speaker audio will key up the
>If a rainbow were cast on the
wall and you placed your hand
in the path of the blue light,
the blue portion would disap-
pear from the wall. The other
colors would be there, but
there would be a ‘notch’ in the
pattern where the blue used to
be (your hand’s shadow would
be in its place.) The notch
works just that way on the
received signal. It sounds to
our ears that the filter has
notched out a piece of the high
sounds, or the low, or any
piece in-between. But, just as
the beautiful rainbow is now
distorted by your hand’s
shadow, the sound of the re-
ceived signal will be somewhat
distorted as a result of the
‘notched-out’ portion.
>PBT and IF shift work in a
similar fashion except instead
of cutting out a piece, they
shift the entire thing! In our
rainbow, if you had the ability
to shift down the spectrum
received by your eyes, you’d
see ultraviolet but you’d lose
the upper colors like red. If you
shifted up, you'd see infrared
but lose the lower ones like
blue. In your receiver, turn the
PBT or IF shift one way and
you'll hear only the high
sounds, the other direction will
enhance the low sounds but
cut out the highs.
=A Terminal Node Controller
is a minicomputer that inter-
prets what your radio hears
into computer language. Your
computer then interprets the
data into human language. ALL
digital modes can and must be
used in conjunction with a
TNC of some sort (with the
exception of Morse code in
which case your brain is the
TNC interpreting the received
signal into human language).
transmitter. If too high, the transmitter will stutter
when you’re talking.
A notch filter will literally cut out a tiny por-
tion of the received frequency and eliminate
whistles or other interfering sounds. PBT (Pass
Band Tuning) and IF Shift (Intermediate Fre-
quency) control the bassness or trebleness of the
received sound. All three are priceless on a
crowded band or when using digital modes.
All radios have a meter to display output
power, received signal strength, ALC voltage,
SWR, and other displays. Set your Mic Gain, ALC
or Drive such that the meter reads in the ALC
range on voice peaks (refer to your manual for
more details.) Any more than this will NOT make
you louder, it WILL distort your signal and peg
you as a lid. Collector or emitter readings are of
no value to most hams. An SWR meter is, how-
ever, of great value. Otherwise, you'll have to
invest in an external meter, which, to the highly
mobile ham, is just more bulk.
The various mode switches, AM/ FM/ USB/
LSB/ DSB/ CW/ RTTY/ Digital, can be confusing.
You don’t need AM unless you’re either into
SWLing or AM. FM is used for FM repeaters on
10 meters. Of course, you need Lower and Upper
SideBand, but you really don’t need Double
SideBand unless you’re an experimenter. CW
mode is standard, but RTTY or Digital mode
options are of no real value since all TNC’s work
with the radio in the LSB mode. The Digital mode
switch may optimize your receiver for the digital
modes, but tweaking the notch, and PBT controls
can be just as effective.
Narrow receiver filters are like narrow gates;
only the slim get through. A serious CW operator
needs a 250 Hz (narrow!) filter. For AM, 2.5 kHz
is standard. A 1.5 kHz filter cuts interference but
will also degrade the audio. On SSB, 1.5 kHz is
standard and a narrow filter (750 Hz) is useful,
but PBT and notch are generally more effective.
QSK is an amateur Q-code meaning break-in.
It is in essence to CW what VOX is to voice.
What it does is allow you to listen to your fre-
quency between dots and dashes while you're
sending Morse code. That's full break-in. Semi-
break-in will allow you to listen only between
letters being sent. QSK is extremely useful to the
DX’er who needs to continuously hear (even
when he is transmitting) what the DX and other
stations are doing during a pileup. Some CW
ragchewers and traffic handlers also appreciate
the advantages of QSK. If you won’t be using CW
aggressively, you won’t have any use for QSK. HF stands for High Fre-
These are the standard HF radio features. You quency. Amateurs also call the
must decide what's necessary for you. bands encompassed by the HF
portion of the frequency spec-
trum (3-30 MHz), the
What | Need to be Happy lowbands. The amateur
If you're the avid DX’er/contester, then your lowbands cover from 160
radio will require demanding features. You'll meters (1.8 MHz) up to 10
need more than 10 memory channels to hold all meters (29 MHz).
your favorite DX net frequencies and ‘hot spots’
during the heat of the contesting battle. You
should be able to scan the memories as well to
search for a clear frequency. You'll want a beam
antenna on a tall tower with an amplifier to boot. An audio filter will sound
To really pull in the rare ones, you'll need a like the noise is gone, but it
receiver preamp, pass band tuning and a notch really isn’t, it’s still there. What
filter; the latter two must be IF not audio filters. you really want is to block
Dual, cross-band VFO’s and quick switchability your receiver from even hear-
ing the signal. An IF
between VFO and memory are a must. RIT, AGC (pronounced ‘eye-f’) filter will
and a headphone jack go without speaking. do this nicely for you.
On the transmit side, you'd probably insist on >All mode includes all the
all mode capability, a mic compressor, and XIT. sidebands, AM, FM, Digital,
Full 100-watt output on all bands (even 6-meters) and CW.
cannot be compromised. >XIT means Transmit Incre-
In short, if you’re a hard-core, stay-up- till- mental Tuning and does to the
3am-for-the-rare-one ham, then you need the transmit frequency as RIT does
to the receive.
wizardry of a computerized transceiver.
>More than 100 watt output
The first of the following two tables shows the is a sales gimmick. All linear
most common amateur bands and their strengths. amplifiers require 100 watts
The second lists common operating habits and input; more may burn out the
the appropriate radio to match. amplifier. If you never plan to
use an amplifier, then buy a
Two Meters and Up radio with more power. If
Fortunately, the decision of what radio to buy you'd like to use an amplifier,
a 100 watt radio is all you can
for the VHF bands is much simplified; based handle.
more on cost than features. Aside from the ‘does-
it-all’ radio that an avid contester would use,
most of the VHF rigs, used or new, will work and >The Very High Frequencies
sound the same. Perhaps more important then, is of the frequency spectrum
whether the radio is user-friendly. contain from 30 MHz to 300
MHz. This includes the ama-
The basics on a VHF rig, whether mobile or’ teur bands from 50 MHz (6
hand-held, are squelch, volume, tuning, mic meters) to 220 MHz.
jack, and external speaker jack.
 Characteristics of the Amateur Bands
160 mérs (one-sixty) 1.8- 2.0 MHz very poor for DX, very good for
6=25, D=200, N=2500 statewide ragchewing

80, 75 mtrs (eighty, seventyfive) 3.5 - 4.0 MHz poor DX, best for multistate chats,
6=20, D=250, N=2500 traffic & social nets

40 mtrs (forty) 7.0 - 7.3 MHz some late night DX, good multistate
G6=20, D=750, N=10,000 chats & nets

30 mtrs (thirty) 10.1 - 10.15 MHz CW and digital modes only

6=20, D=ww, N=ww

20 mtrs (twenty) 14 - 14.35 MHz reliable day and night DX, all nets &
6=20, D=ww, N=ww BBS, all digital modes, crowded

17 mtrs (seventeen) 18.068 - 18.168 good DX, little crowding

6=20, D=ww, N=wwS

15 mtrs (fifteen) 21- 21.45 MHz good DX & low noise when conditions
6=20, D=ww, N=wwS are good

10 mtrs (ten) 28 - 29.5 MHz — unreliable but excellent DX, multi-

6=20, D=wwS, N=wwS? state FM repeaters

6 mtrs (six-meters) 50 - 52 MHz rare DX, excellent local

6=75-100, D=2500S communications to 100 miles

2 mtrs (two-meters) 144-148 MHz no DX, mainly repeater usage, packet

Line of Sight 2-10 mile range without repeaters

1.25 mtrs (two-twenty) 220 - 222 MHz = Mainly repeater usage, packet
Line of Sight

70 cm (four-forty) 440 - 445 MHz Repeaters, satellites, repeater

Line of Sight links & control

Text in parenthesis is the common reference to that band. ‘Mtrs’= Meters and ‘cm’= centimeters. G=useable dis-
tance of aground wave in miles, D=day skip in miles, N=nighttime skip in miles, ww=useable world-wide with no
distance limitations, S=useable only during high sunspot activity, ?=rarely, BBS=bulletin board service for digital
modes
 The Kind of Ham | Am
Type of Ham The features | should have
Love to talk to the world 5-20 memories, external speaker and
mic, good antenna, amplifier, notch
filter, RIT control, RX attenuator

Love contesting or DX >10 memories, beam antenna, boom

mic, headset, amplifier, notch and PBT
controls, dual VFO's, compressor, RX
preamp, all mode, CW keyer

Love to talk on the road Noise blanker, boom mic/headset, all

mode, simple operation, 10 memories,
built-in antenna tuner, big readout,
built-in SWR meter

Love to tinker simple, discrete component construction,

inexpensive (in case you fry it)

Love to listen or SWL 100 or more memories, external speaker

headphones, all-mode, general coverage
receiver, PBT and notch controls, RX
preamp, scan function, auxiliary audio jacks
noise blanker, AGC

10 or so memories, PBT, notch, built-in

keyer, headphones, RIT, narrow CW filter

Love digital modes 20+ memories, auxiliary audio in- and out-put,
PBT, notch, RIT, AGC, RX preamp

>The DTMF tones you hear
on your telephone, and the
tones made by the keypad on
your HT are one and the same.
On your HT they are used to
access an autopatch and make
phone calls, turn repeaters on
or off, or page other hams
using an HT paging system.
>Some repeaters use a gate
that will only let in signals
which include a sub-audible
tone. This keeps out unwanted
noise, unwanted people, or
interference from other repeat-
ers.
HT stands tor Handi-Talkie.
wie’. a type of connector
commonly used for antennas.
Hams normally use the PL-256
family of connectors for non-
handheld radios while the
smaller BNC type is usually
used on HT’s.
For mobile operations, consider:
Range: If you live in a mountainous area, an
area with few repeaters, or travel frequently, buy
a rig with at least 40 watts output.
ou don’t need more than two-meters
unless you live in a crowded city, your area has
repeaters on other bands (like 220, 440 or even
1200), or you travel to areas that do.
Modes: FM is sufficient. Digital mode is gener-
ally a sales gimmick; your TNC will work fine
when connected to the mic jack in FM mode.
Features: 10 or more memories (helps keep
your eyes on the road), DTMF, sub-audible tones,
and a keypad on the mic.
Mounting and Removability: When you sell
the car, can you remove the rig without leaving
ugly holes? Is the rig too big? Do you need a
removable control head (the radio mounts under
your seat with a control panel mounting on your
dashboard, visor, overhead, or whatever), all
controls on the mic (the radio mounts under your
seat with only the mic visible), or even a remote
control mic (no cords anywhere)?
you plan extended operations
away from the charger, does the HT have the
opti larger pack or an alkaline pack.
qe conserve batteries, you need a low
(250 milliwatt or less) transmit option as well as 5
watts output when plugged into 12vdc. Many
mobile amplifiers use 5 watts as the input level.
Any more may burn an amp out. There’s no
noticeable difference between 5 and 7 watts.
ig hands have trouble with little buttons,
little hands have trouble holding big radios. Big
radios can be heavy and unsightly on your belt as
well. Small ones are to lose or
external power jack,
antenna. You may
need to use the radio in a hands-free manner.
Few people use the paging or tone-squelch
features. Memory is great, as is scanning.
“Band: The same reasoning as for mobile rigs.
 For base operations consider:
Band: The same reasoning as for mobile rigs.
Modes: You do not need multimode ability
unless you're into contesting, EME, or satellite
work. For these, the rig you buy will be the least
costly expense.
Power: Most base VHF rigs are designed for
serious use, so they'll come with up to 100 watts
output to drive B/G (high-powered) amplifiers.
Power Source: Buy a rig with a built-in power
supply otherwise you'll have to buy one or set up
a car battery with a charger inside your house—
never a pretty sight (or safe).
Features: Most base radios come stacked with
every conceivable feature and the most sophisti-
cated receiver/transmitter circuitry. Thus, they’re
more expensive so it’s often cheaper to buy a
mobile rig with a power supply. If you want a
base unit, get out your wallet and enjoy.
>Earth-Moon-Earth operations
involve one ham aiming his
antennas (big, very BIG) at the
moon and another ham hear-
ing them being bounced back.
There is a significant time lag
due to the distance and con-
versations are not possible. The
contact consists solely of one
ham hearing the other ham’s
signal and sending him.a re-
port of such. This mode of
operation has lots of ‘coolness’
factor, lots of radios, gadgets,
wires, buttons, big antennas,
and technical wizardry. Well,
don’t forget lots of patience
and money.

Setting It Up and Turning It On

This is really the easy part. Of course you
should read the manual first, cover to cover.
Then, unless your radio has a built-in power
supply, get a pair of fat (about the size of a
screwdriver shaft) wires and connect the red wire
from the positive (+) terminal on your battery
(preferably a car battery) to the positive connec-
tor on your radio. The black wire goes from the
negative negative (-) terminal of the battery to the
negative connector on your radio. Hook up your
antenna and turn it on. That's it. Really. If you
want to transmit, be sure your antenna is properly
tuned (chapter 5) and grounded, and your license
prominently displayed (you'll want to look at it
from time to time.)

Tuning Across the Ban

Turning your tuning knob up or down in
frequency is called ‘tuning across the band’. >A Megahertz, MHz, is one
Remember that 1 MHz = 1000 kHz so a reading million hertz or 1 million
of 14.275.0 MHz is the same as 14275.0 kHz. cycles-per-second. A Kilohertz,
Study your frequency charts (Icom makes one of kHz, is 1 thousand Hertz. The
the best charts around) and listen, listen, listen. human voice operates around
400 Hz while the 20meter
Then, have fun. band operates at around 14
megahertz. That’s a lotta hertz.

10-4 Good
Buddy
Don’t be a Lid
In This Chapter
/ What to Say and When
J
Interrupting Politely
/ Laws of Privilege
/ Only Jerks go Jamming
/ Look & Sound Clean
>A lid is an operator who
does not follow conventional
or courteous operating proto-
col. Jamming, whistling, using
excessive slang, or transmitting
with a poorly tuned or mis-
aligned signal, are all lid-type
practices.
>Saying “Break” either on the
lowbands or VHF is equivalent
to saying, “May | break into
your conversation please?”
>At the discretion of the
repeater’s owner, there may be
an autopatch installed. It auto-
matically patches you into the
local phone system. Most of
them have 911 capability as
well.
>A double-break has long
stood among hams to indicate
an emergency.
az)
Founding like a CB’er on the CB bands
may be cool and ingratiate you to other ‘experi-
enced’ CB’ers, but on the ham bands such poor
social skills will peg you as a lid before the end of
your first transmission. Here’s a list of some of the
worst operating practices:
JCB Lingo: goin’ that’a way... we (‘Il) be gone...
come back... ya got ur ears on... destinated
/ Profanity
/Speaking, but saying nothing
JInterfering by jamming, tuning up, whistling
/Poorly adjusted transmitters
In essence, Amateur Radio operators expect
you to talk to them just like you would if you
were face to face. In that situation, | doubt you’d
introduce yourself with “My handle is...,” or end
the conversation by saying “We be gone.” Don’t
do it on the amateur bands either. In addition,
untold numbers of hams and SWL’ers may be
listening. You'll sound a tad silly using cutesy
phrases such as “I be destinated,” instead of “I’m
home now.”
Interrupt Politely, Please
Using the word ‘Break’ is one of two accepted
ways to enter into a conversation already in
progress. On the 2-meter band, you do not have
to participate in the conversation, you may
simply need to make a call to another amateur or
access the autopatch. Breaking into a conversa-
tion is the same as interrupting, so use it with
discretion even though amateurs are usually
eager to acknowledge breaking stations.
The ‘Break-Break’ call is an emergency term
and should ONLY be used during a true emer-
gency such as an automobile accident, a life or
death situation, or any occurrence that requires
emergency services. It is not an emergency to use
the autopatch to call your spouse to see if she is
low on eggs or milk. Do not abuse this conven-
tion as amateurs on crowded repeaters may
become callous and not acknowledge a double-
break station with a real emergency.
 Another accepted way to interrupt politely is
to simply say your call sign. This method has
gained wide acceptance in the amateur commu-
nity but has been, unfortunately, construed as the
only legal manner to break.
While the FCC rules do state that one must >The FCC, Federal Communi-
identify their transmission sometime within the cations Commission, is a
first ten minutes of their initial transmission, the federal governing body in
rules do not state that your call sign (or any other charge of rulemaking and en-
verbiage) must be given as the initial transmis- forcing compliance with the
sion. It would be illegal for one to say “Break” laws regulating communica-
tions in the USA. Sometimes
and then not ID after ten minutes. However, this
referred to as Friendly Cousin
scenario is extremely rare. A break is usually Charlie.
given and the breaking station then ID’s himself.
Hence, it is perfectly legal to say “break” or >Refer to Part 97 specifically
Section 97.119 for the exact
anything else to indicate a desire to interrupt a wording of the station identifi-
QSO in progress—as long as you ID within the cation rules.
next ten minutes.
>A QSO is ham parlance for
Tradition created the ‘break’, ‘double-break’ ‘conversation’. You may have
system. It wasn’t until the relaxation of examina- a QSO (spoken as ‘Q-So’) with
tion practices and the resulting lack of anyone and for as long as you
‘Elmer-ism’ that this tradition began to break wish. However, the band may
down. With no seasoned hams to guide the suffer from severe QSB or per-
haps another station is causing
introduction of new hams, Citizen Band lingo QRM in which case you may
and practices infiltrated the ham bands. Because have to QRX until things im-
of the misuse of the ‘break’, ‘double-break’ prove, or even QRT. See the
system, the recommendation to use your call sign Appendix F for details.
came about while any form of ‘break’ was re-
served as an emergency call. As a result, two
systems have transpired with no formal agree-
ment as to which is ‘correct’.
While the traditional system is often used by
older hams, most newer hams tend toward the
new recommendation. And, while the ‘break’
system has many advantages, one being it’s
single-syllable brevity — the newer system has
the advantage of non-confusion. Neither has any
legal standing, so you should do whatever is
preferred by the locals.

10-4, It’s Not ‘Okay’

The so-called ’10-code’, used extensively and
effectively on the CB bands, has no place on any
of the amateur bands.
The 10-code was developed by police and
emergency personnel as a means of quickly
communicating predefined information —

Hams operating in a foreign
country are especially vulner-
able to this type of paranoia. In
many third-world countries,
having two-way radio commu-
nications equipment is seen as
being illegal. The equipment is
too expensive for the average
citizen, so you surely must be
a spy or in the employ of a
foreign government; which is
to say the same thing.
>You can find the complete
Part 97 rules on the internet at:
http://www.acs.ncsu.edu/
HamRadio/FCC. html
or at:
http://www.arrl.org/field/regula-
tions/news/part97/
Or, you can take a look at the
FCC’s own site related to Ama-
teur Radio rules at:
http://www.fcc.gov/wtb/amateur/
amrules.htm!|
Or, you can review the latest
rules as published on-line by
the GPO at:
http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/
cfr/cfr-table-search.htm|
You'll have to do a bit of
search work to reach the Part
97 section.
14
information relevant only to emergency personnel
and often tailored to local needs.
It is inconceivable that amateurs worldwide
will be familiar with a code system designed for
use in the United States by non-amateurs. In fact,
to use such a system would only be confusing.
What one code means to a U.S. amateur may
have an entirely different meaning in Botswana.
In addition, there are still countries where Ama-
teur Radio transmissions are closely monitored by
governments suspicious of espionage. An amateur
using any non-amateur code in such a country
could easily find himself in jail — or worse.
These facts may not be quite as valid on the
VHF bands, but there’s nothing wrong with plain
old English to get your ideas across.
With Privilege Comes Responsibility
It is the station operator’s responsibility to
operate in a manner that reflects his technical
skill and courteous manner. The main reason for
this is to eliminate interference to the millions of
radio users around the world. They have equal
right to use the limited amount of frequency
spectrum as you do, and you have no right to
limit their use of it (nor they you.)
It is therefore a privilege, not a right to operate
a radio transmitter (a pure ‘right’ is one that
everyone can have without hardship on another)
because not everyone can have or use the RF
spectrum at the same time. The laws, both inter-
national and federal, are designed to allow
everyone fair access. Read, and follow, the rules.
The Law, Briefly
Here are the basics of the law that you must
follow (every ham should have an updated copy
of the FCC rules Part 97 in his hamshack).
/You are responsible to insure the legality of ALL
transmissions from your station.
/You may not transmit without a license.
/You may not retransmit broadcasts heard on a
scanner or any commercial broadcast.
/You may not conduct business that monetarily
benefits you in any way.
/You may not transmit music; communications that
aid a criminal act; obscene language; or false
messages, signals, or call signs.
 /You cannot be paid for Amateur Radio services
or communications rendered.
/You must give priority on any frequency where
an emergency has been declared.
/You must keep accurate station records.
/You do not need to keep a transmission log un-
less you have been so directed.
/You must give your call sign in English every ten
minutes and at the end of a communication.

This paraphrased list does not reflect all the

rules relevant to amateur operations. Please read
and become familiar with Part 97.

While Hammin’, No Jammin’

Unfortunately, there will always be a few souls
who gain satisfaction from harming or harassing
the rest of us. It has been and will continue to be
a fact of ham life. Since their glee comes from
hearing your response (an acknowledgment of
their efforts) the simple answer and only correct
one is to completely ignore their misguided
attempts at getting attention.
It may take a herculean effort on your part, but
bite the bullet and refrain. If jamming occurs on a
regular basis during your normal sked, you >It may be your sked, but it
should set up a prearranged alternate frequency; isn’t your frequency (or anyone
else’s for that matter.) Whoever
and when the need arises say to your friend,
is on any given frequency first
“Let’s go to channel B.” has ‘squatter’s rights’ until they
If you can, arrange with some ham friends to finish their QSO. However, it
triangulate the jammer’s signal. Tape record a is courteous to move your
number of his jamming episodes, then contact QSO to another frequency if a
the FCC with your evidence. That is all you may net is starting. There are more
people to move in a net opera-
legally do to thwart intentional jamming.
tion and the logistics become
nearly impossible. It’s much
Do Unto Others... easier for two.
lf it irritates you when someone else tunes up
on the frequency while you’re talking, or starts
testing, or begins calling CQ, then make sure you >Triangulating a signal ac-
don’t repeat the same mistake. complished when at least two,
preferably three stations using
Listen, Listen, Listen. The most valuable piece beam antennas locate the di-
of ham equipment is your ears. No antenna, rection of the jamming station.
receiver, or preamp can take the place of careful When drawn on a map, the
listening. Make sure the frequency is truly clear jammer is at the spot where all
before you transmit. Otherwise, you can be cited the direction lines cross.
for illegal interference.
 Most Honorable Ham
You've worked hard to receive your license.
Be proud of your accomplishment and of the
contribution you can make to your community.
>Splatter occurs when your Take the time to learn about your radio. How
transmitter needs a tune-up. It’s to properly operate it without splatter or
either going bad (unlikely), or
(more likely) you’re talking too
overmodulation. Learn how to track down RFI
loud. Splatter is the transmitted should your neighbors complain and always be
distortion which interferes with ready to explain in plain language any questions
other hams operating near you. you may be asked.
To solve the problem, either
Participate with your local club and emer-
talk more softly, or turn down
the mic gain. gency groups. Keep your gear in good shape and
your spare batteries ready for use. Learn the
>Overmodulation is the usual
basics of antenna installation and tuning. You
cause of splatter. You're talking
too loud. Turn down the mic
won't be of much use in an emergency if you
gain, turn off your compressor, can’t get your radios to work.
don’t speak loudly. Take the time to keep up to date with what's
>RFI, Radio Frequency Inter- happening in the world of ham radio.
ference, occurs when your
transmission ‘bleeds’ into
someone else’s TV, AM/FM
radio, stereo, or even a pace-
maker. In short, RFI is not
good. It can be caused by
poorly maintained or poorly
operated radios, but more
often is caused by external
sources. The solutions and
diagnoses are complicated. It’s
much easier to operate your
station correctly, than it is to
track down RFI.
N... has the number of repeaters grown
Two Meters
so fast, nor been so crowded. The more effi-
ciently a repeater is used, the more effective it is. The Handi-
It’s not necessary to understand how repeaters Ham’s Band
work, or why, in order to call for help when your
tire goes flat. This knowledge can be useful
though when you’re asked to move to simplex on
the repeater output. Of course, it makes you look
a bit silly as well when you’re asked for a signal
report on the repeater and you respond that the /Learning 2-Meters
other station is ‘full scale’. /How Repeaters Work
Two-meters, so called because the physical / Procedures
length of the radio wave at that frequency (146 /What to Say and Not
MHz) is about two-meters long, is a local-only / Breaking In
band. At that frequency, radio waves just can’t /What’s a Frequency
climb mountains or reflect back to earth from the /Signal Reports
stratospheric mirror. To extend the 1-5 mile basic
range, you can climb a high mountain, put up a >Simplex is derived from the
higher antenna, use a high-power amplifier, or word simple because it is just
use the phone. Or, you can use a repeater which that — everyone’s on the same
is already high up on a mountain. frequency, no repeaters, bells,
It’s called a repeater because, like any good whistles, no fancy nothing.
parrot, it repeats verbatim everything it hears. +=When one speaks of the
And it does so, unlike a parrot, at exactly the repeater’s output, they're refer-
same moment it hears you. It even uses the same ring to the frequency where the
antenna to transmit your two cents worth to your repeater is transmitting.
friendly audience. >A signal strength meter is a
scale. When there’s no signal,
This nifty feat is accomplished using an elec-
the meter reads zero. When
tronic ‘gate’ called a duplexer. The duplexer is a the signal is full strength, the
sentry at the front of the repeater that only lets in meter shows its maximum
signals with the right calling card (ones that are value—the full scale.
on the correct frequency.)
>Duplex comes from the
word duple meaning two.
Danger: Alligator Crossing! Two frequencies are being
FCC rules require all remote transmitters used to sustain communication
(repeaters) to shut down the system or turn off — one to receive and another
power in the event the transmitter gets stuck and one to transmit.
transmits continuously. When the repeater begins =A diagram of how a duplxer
transmitting, a timer starts. If the timer reaches its works like a gate:
limit before the repeater stops transmitting, the
system times-out and shuts down.
Most repeaters have a ‘courtesy tone’ which
tells you when the timer has been reset. If you
talk too long, or don’t wait for the courtesy tone A .
before it’s your turn to talk, ‘the alligator will get 144.1 144.2 144.3
>When talking on a repeater,
you'll notice after you un-key
your mic a short pause fol-
lowed by a sharp hiss and a
click. The pause is the repeater
waiting for someone else to
begin talking. If no one does, it
un-keys itself (the hiss and
click). This pause is called the
squelch-tail.
>If the courtesy tone is short
(comes quickly after you un-
key), some hams wait for the
squelch-tail as well, which
gives added time in between
transmissions.
Waiting for the timer to
reset, and preferably for the
squelch-tail (unless it’s quite
long), is the proper interval you
should wait between transmis-
sions when using a repeater.
>The term Key-Up, meaning
to put your transmitter on the
air, comes from the days when
Morse code keys were the
primary method of controlling
a transmitter. Originally, the
condition of putting your key
down, meant to cause the key
to make contact and put the
transmitter on the air. Over
time the vernacular changed
key-down to key-up — the
transmitter was up and operat-
ing.
>CQ is short for, “| want to
talk to anyone who is listen-
ing.”
you’. You'll be cut off in mid-sentence when the
timer turns off the repeater.
In most cases the courtesy tone will be heard a
second or two after the transmitting station un-
keys his mic (stops transmitting.) It may be
another second or two before the end of the
squelch-tail can be heard. It is considered good
form, and courteous as well, to give a reasonable
length of time after each transmission to allow the
timer to reset and to allow for a ‘break’.
Since the repeater is courteous to all its users
by letting them know when its timer has reset so
they won't get caught by the ‘Alligator,’ you
should likewise be courteous to the listening
amateurs, as well as the person you’re conversing
with, by keeping your transmissions short so you
won't time-out the repeater. And, always wait for
the timer to reset (indicated by the courtesy tone)
before you begin talking.
Hello, It’s Just Me
Though there are many technical differences
between VHF and HF, the primary difference
from a practical use standpoint is distance. It is
unlikely that you'll fire up your HT one morning
and hear a CQ from Japan. Since VHF is a local
mode (generally much less than 100 miles), there
are significant differences in the way you talk —
you're talking to your neighbors. Here are a few
hints on what to do and say when you’re on VHF:
What to Say and Do
/ Speak just as you would on the telephone or
face to face — it’s not even necessary to use ‘Q’
codes, ham jargon or special phrases.
/Keep your transmission short (less than 30 sec)
/Allow 2-3 seconds between transmissions for
others to break in.
/Give your call at least every ten minutes — no
need to say “for ID,” we all know why.
/Speak with the mic about an inch from your
mouth and held slightly sideways so those
listening don’t have to hear you breathing.
Jlf you'd like to strike up a conversation with
anyone who cares to chat, say, “this is AGAA
monitoring (or listening).” If no one answers
within a minute, take a Certs and try again later.
/Make an effort to constructively help a ham who
is lost or needs directions — you'll want help
 one day, too. Also, if someone else is helping
adequately, don’t confuse the issue, keep quiet.
/QRT and QSY are probably the only ‘Q’ signals >QRT means ‘quit’ — Speciti-
that have any value on VHF. They are brief and cally that you’re turning your
convey the full meaning of your intention. You radio off. QSY means that
could say it in human language as well. you're changing frequencies.
/When calling another station, give his call sign See Appendix F for more.
first then yours: “A6AA, KD6AAA” — it’s that
simple. If he doesn’t answer within say 30
seconds, try again. If he still doesn’t answer,
then sign clear of the repeater: “KD6AAA
Clear.” This lets those who have waited politely
for you to finish know that the repeater is clear
to use without interrupting you. If you don’t
“clear”, waiting hams won’t be certain whether
or not you’re going to make another call or
what. Being courteous takes very little effort and
makes repeater use more efficient.
/lf you know the station you’re calling monitors
a scanner (or a ham radio in scan mode), it is
appropriate to say what repeater you’re on
when you call him. If you don’t, he won’t know
which of the 5 repeaters he’s scanning you're
on. If you're calling on the .85 repeater, you'd
call like this, “AA6A, KD6AAA on 85.”
/At the conclusion of a conversation, it’s also
courteous to say “clear on your final.” This let’s
everyone know that at the conclusion of your
friend’s transmission, the repeater will be clear.
If your transmission is the last one, then saying
your call sign and “clear” is appropriate as well.
/When another ham is making a call, wait until
he clears (and if he doesn’t clear, wait until it’s
obvious he is clear) before you make a call of >On 2-meters, we don’t use
your own (unless, of course, you’re calling him) CQ to indicate a desire to chat
/Instead of saying your call and “clear” at the with anyone who’s listening,
we say “This is A4ZZ monitor-
end of a conversation, you might say your call
ing.” Saying “monitoring” is
and “monitoring,” to let others know you'd like the VHF equivalent of HF’s
to chew on someone else’s ear for awhile. Ce:

What Not to Say or Do

/Except during emergencies or poor conditions
when you might be misunderstood, don’t use
phonetics or the word ‘over’.
/When your friend tells you he’s “clear on your
final,” don’t ask him another question! Just say
your final comment and good-bye and sign off
by giving your call sign.
/ There is no need to say, “no contact,” or some

>There are four, 1 MHz
pieces of the 2-meter band.
The 144 MHz piece starts at
144.00 MHz and ends at
144.99 MHz. The 145, 146,
and 147 MHz pieces work the
same, all four making up the
144-148 MHz 2-meter band.
In this text, the band is pre-
sented this way solely for
illustration purposes.
20
such phrase when the person you call doesn’t
answer — it’s obvious.
/No one has a handle, we all have names.
/Your transmissions are heard by other hams and
people with scanners or general coverage public
service band receivers. Don’t say things that
might come back as egg in your face.
/Don’t operate simplex on the repeater input,
everyone will hear you but you won’t hear them
— you may even interrupt a conversation in
progress and you won’t know it since you aren’t
listening to the repeater.
Go to 85 (it’s next to the 7-Eleven)
With all the numbers bantered about on 2-
meters, it’s no wonder new hams are cross-eyed.
Here are the traditional conventions. Remember,
local customs may vary.
When 2-meters started, all repeaters (there
weren't very many) were set up within the 146
MHz piece of the band using a minus offset.
Thus, it was of no value to say or write the num-
bers ‘1’, ‘4’, or ‘6’. The only numbers that
conveyed actual information were the last two
numbers; the ones after the decimal point (the
third number after the decimal was always a zero
so it didn’t count either.)
It was easy to simply say, “Go to 82”. Every-
one knew you meant the repeater with its output
on 146.820 MHz, minus 600KHz offset.
Then, as the 2-meter band became more
populated, the 147 and 145 MHz pieces began
to get used. So, it followed that any repeater
designated by just two digits followed the old
convention, while three digits like 716 or 535
(say each digit separately) designated a repeater
on (14)7.16 (+600KHz offset) or (14)5.35 (-
600KHz offset) respectively. No one ever said
what the offset was unless it was nonstandard.
Of course, nothing ever remains simple. Now
we have splinter frequencies. This is where a
repeater’s frequency is set up in between two
repeaters. You know this has occurred when the
repeater frequency uses a ‘5’ as the third digit, as
in 145.525 MHz.
There are exceptions to these rules of thumb
but the bottom line of what to call a repeater is:
 /145 and 146 MHz repeaters use minus offset
/145 MHz repeaters use plus offset
J The ‘1’, and ‘4’ (14x.xx MHz) need not be
spoken
/Say two digits (8-5) when in the 146 MHz piece
/ Say three digits (7.15) when it’s in either the
145 or 147 MHz piece of the band
/ Say four digits (6.325) when it’s a splinter
/Say “minus”, or “plus” only if it’s nonstandard
/The decimal is spoken as ‘dot’
Here is a list of the most common repeater
output frequencies across the country. No matter
where you go, you'll likely find a repeater on one
of these frequencies:
94 76 85 fe 88
82 67 a7 91 7 .OO-
The two most common simplex frequencies
are: 52 and 7.525
Offsets: The Ups and Downs of Hamdom
Offsets are pretty simple. Since it is obvious
that you can’t use the same antenna to simulta-
neously transmit and receive on exactly the same
frequency, we offset the transmit and receive
frequencies a bit.
An offset of 6(00KHz (.6 MHz). has become the
standard in the USA. This means that when a
repeater is transmitting your signal on, say,
146.60, it is simultaneously receiving your signal
.6 MHz lower on 146.00 MHz.
Offsets are based on the frequency on which
you hear the repeater (its transmit frequency). A
minus offset means the repeater will hear you
(where you'll transmit) 600 kHz below its trans-
mit (your receive) frequency.
Such
a Good Repeater: Quiet and Strong
Remember this: On a repeater, you are not
receiving your friend. You're receiving the
repeater. The repeater is receiving your friend.
New hams often get a bum rap on the ham
bands these days. They will often give out a
signal report based on signal strength while
talking on the repeater. But, since the exam
doesn’t require knowledge of basic repeater
operation, you can’t blame anyone for sounding
Using our conventions, ‘94’
means a repeater whose out-
put is on 146.940 MHz. and it
uses a minus offset; i.e. you
will listen on 149.94 and trans-
mit on 146.34. You may hear
the repeater referred to as '34/
94' (spoken as three-four-nine-
four) as well.
>The Standard Offsets have
always been and still are: re-
peaters with output in the 145
or 146 MHz pieces use a mi-
nus offset and those with
output in the 147 MHz piece
use a plus offset.
If you watch your frequency
readout on your radio, you'll
notice that when you transmit,
the readout changes to reflect
the offset.
>When one refers to the
“Output” they are speaking of
the repeater transmit fre-
quency—your receive
frequency. The “input” is the
repeater receive frequency—
your transmit frequency.
>If you're asked to change
frequency to simplex on the
output, it simply means to
transmit and receive on the
same frequency where you
hear the repeater. Usually, this
is done by changing your offset
to zero or none.
21

>Remember, AM is amplitude
modulation. SSB is simply a
portion of the AM signal. Am-
plitude means strength. The
manner in which the signal
carries your voice is such that
how loud you sound (your
amplitude or signal strength) is
directly related to how loud
you holler into the mic. If you
whisper, you signal will be
weak, if you yell, you signal
will be noticeably stronger. On
FM your signal strength never
varies based on how loud you
talk. Whether you whisper or
yell, your signal stays steady.
>Because of the way FM
works, a strong signal ‘cap-
tures’ the receiver's attention
and doesn’t allow any other
sounds to come through. A
weak signal hasn’t the strength
to fully ‘capture’ the receiver's
attention and other sounds in
the form of noise will be heard
alongside the desired signal.
How much of the receiver we
capture (in essence how strong
our signal is) is referred to as
how much our signal has qui-
eted down the receiver. In
other words, how much quiet-
ing effect our signal has. A
signal with 100% quieting has
fully captured the receiver, and
a signal of 50% quieting has
only half of the receiver's at-
tention. The other half is noise.
22.
so uninformed. It behooves every amateur hear-
ing a faux pas such as “Your signal is all four bars
on my rig,” to break in and gently, tactfully,
correct the misinformation. It is in our best
interest to help each other understand our hobby.
Let’s regress a moment and talk technical. In
the days of AM, and now on SSB, your signal
strength was directly related to how loud you
sounded. With FM, which is used on repeaters
from 10-meters on up through UHF frequencies,
how loud you sound has nothing to do with how
strong your signal is.
A ‘good’ sounding signal on FM is neither
strong nor weak, it is ‘quiet’. A noisy signal, or
one that sounds weak, can in fact have a very
strong signal but still be faint to hear.
It is incorrect (way-off, wrong, apples vs.
oranges) to refer to the quality of an FM signal as
having a strong signal strength reading.
It is correct (keen, informed, intelligent) to say
you're signal is 100% (full) quieting when it is
full-bodied, loud, and has no hint of hiss (white
noise.) If the received audio sounds like it is half
noise and half your friend’s voice, then it’s 50%
quieting — a rather poor signal even if it’s strong.
The hiss might be caused by a weak signal
(and most often is), but it may be caused by other
factors.
Deviation is the other half of a good sounding
FM signal. It’s unimportant that you understand
deviation; it is important that you know simply
this:
/Audio that sounds loud to you (and equal to the
loudness level of other hams on the repeater) is
deviating the proper amount.
/Audio that sounds overly loud (noticeably
louder than other hams on the repeater and
possibly even distorted, fuzzy, or drops out on
hard consonants) is deviating too much.
/Audio that sounds faint (softer than other hams
on the repeater) is not deviating enough.
A proper signal on the ham bands will be full
quieting and deviating properly. Generally, you
can improve your quieting by getting a better
antenna or using higher power. You can correct
your deviation by tweaking the deviation control
(inside the radio) while a friend listens to your
audio on another radio.
One last common ailment of FM signals is
called ‘picket-fencing’. This occurs when you're
driving between hills, buildings, etc. which act
like a picket fence to your signal and repeatedly >Picket-Fencing is to an FM
shield it, then let it through. The resulting sound signal what a strobe light is to
is a rapid flutter. The only cure is a better an- our eyes. A stuttering, on/off
tenna, more transmitter power, or leave the area. effect.
To summarize;
/You cannot give a signal report over the re-
peater because you're not actually receiving the
other ham’s signal, the repeater is. You're
receiving the repeater.
JA proper signal report on FM consists of a
quieting report and maybe a deviation report.
Handie-Talkie To Go
Though an HT has enormous convenience
benefits, it can be annoying to other hams listen-
ing on the repeater when your signal is constantly
noisy, hissy, or fades out. If you’re using your
hand held at home and your signal is marginal
into the repeater, get a base antenna, install it,
and use it. You can even make your own with a
few coat hangers and a coax connector!
There are also numerous HT antennas on the
market that will markedly improve your signal
over the standard rubber duckie. Don’t buy a rig >All HT’s come with a rubber
with 7 watts output, buy a better antenna. duckie. These short, rubber,
flexible antennas attach to the
There are several options for portable HT HT. They are convenient, but
antennas. The best compromise is a non-tele- extremely inefficient.
scoping 5/8th’s wave rubber duckie. A >A 5/8ths wave antenna is
telescoping 5/8th’s wave will give you tremen- 5/8ths the length of the wave
dous results, but they are breakable and will stick at that frequency. Since we’re
up three feet over your head. Over extended use, talking about two-meters, we
your hand may tire from holding the weight aloft. know the wave length is two-
If you expect to use your HT during emergen- meters or about 6 feet in
length. A 5/8ths wave antenna
cies, then have a couple of options available. A would be just over half that
telescoping 5/8ths gives the best performance; distance or about 3.5 feet in
hence, you don’t have to use as much power — length.
and your batteries will last longer. A rubber
duckie 5/8ths gives good performance, is more
portable, and not prone to breakage. The rubber
duckie that came with your HT gives poor perfor-
mance, but is the most compact.
:\s

23
 HF Bands:
When High is
In This Chapter
/How Waves Travel
/Getting Ready
/Signal Reports
/What to Say
/Emergencies
/Keeping a Log
/QSLing®
>Ragchewing is casual con-
versation. Contesting is when
you contact as many hams as
possible within a given time
interval. DXing is the search
for, and finally a contact with,
as many different countries or
‘rare’ stations as possible.
>The HF (High Frequency)
bands extend from 3 MHz up
to 30 MHz. Hams collectively
refer to the ham bands from
1.8 MHz to 29 MHz as the
lowbands, only because they
are the lowest in frequency of
all the ham bands.
>Not that it was stupid, but a
dummy load didn’t do any-
thing. It just sat there and
absorbed your signal so you
could run tests without causing
any interference.
24
r=
Ue Frequency (HF) is the meat and
potatoes of ham radio. Because it is literally a
world apart from VHF and higher frequencies,
few hams spend equal time on both. Those who
like to ragchew, contest or DX, don’t find the
limited distances and restrictive repeater timers of
VHF rewarding. VHF’ers generally would rather
not deal with the vagaries of propagation or
antenna sizes of HF; they’d rather talk with their
old friends than make new ones they'll never be
able to share coffee with.
But it’s just that diversity which makes Ama-
teur Radio so exciting and challenging. The
diverse nature of the lowbands necessitates a
different set of rules.
A Hop, Skip and a Jump
Atrnospheric propagation makes worldwide
communications possible on the HF bands (also
known as the lowbands to hams and the Short-
wave bands to casual listeners).
The concept is really quite simple. Certain
layers of the earth’s atmosphere act exactly like a
mirror to radio signals reflecting them back to
earth. It’s no more tricky than that.
The sun shines on these layers during the day
and turns them into mirrors. During the night,
these layers shift about with some layers losing
their mirror ability while others gain theirs. How
well they mirror radio signals depends on how
active the sunspots are. This sunspot activity
occurs in an 11-year cycle. At the peak of the
cycle, the atmospheric mirrors work extraordinar-
ily well. At the low point in the cycle, the mirror
effect may not work at all.
If you spend just a few days on the lowbands,
you'll begin to get a feel for what bands are
‘mirrored’ at certain times of the day. As a rule of
thumb, the lower the frequency, the better it is
during the night, while the higher frequencies are
better during the day. Refer to the chart on page
8 for details.
Tuning Up
In the days of tube rigs, hams had dummy
loads that were used to absorb the transmitted
signal while the transmitter’s circuits were tuned
up on a specific frequency. It wasn’t tricky once
you got the hang of it.
With a modern, all solid-state rig, there is no
such thing as tuning up, but you should still get in
the habit of tuning your station up.
Listen. Check the band and see where signals
are coming from that day. From the east or north?
Over the South Pole? Where in general! Listen
some more. Are the signals strong? Weak? Is the
band full of static? Listen. Find a clear frequency.
Listen again. Is it really clear?
Tuning up may not be technically involved,
but preparing your station to transmit is impor-
tant. If it’s not done correctly, you'll interfere with
stations around the world, not just your (hopefully
forgiving) friends.
>If your radio’s transmitting
circuits weren't properly tuned
up, you were very likely to
melt the tubes, not to mention
the significant interference
your poorly-tuned radio would
cause to others. It was like a
bad telephone circuit. If the
lines got crossed, you could
hear other conversations. A
phone line that was in proper
shape allowed you to hear just
your friend.

Hams Secret Code

There are hams from every country on earth
speaking every language on earth. It would be
impossible to communicate with them without
some predefined phrases.
The ‘Q’ codes have been approved by the
FCC and accepted by amateurs worldwide. These
codes were designed for use on CW to improve
the clarity and brevity of transmissions. They
aren't nearly as necessary on voice. Don’t feel
you have to use them.
With the ‘Q’ codes, you can communicate
effectively with hams in Japan, Germany, Ethio-
pia, anywhere. Granted, you'll not be able to
discuss detailed topics such as global warming,
but you will be able to say “Hello.”
And, using them with wild abandon won't
make you a better ham either. Most folks prefer
plain English. If you listen to other hams on the
air you'll get an idea of their proper use.
Refer to Appendix F for a complete list of ‘Q’
codes and their meanings.

A
Ham’s Spelling Bravo Echo Echo
You must learn the international phonetic
alphabet and be able to use it fluently. Refer to
Appendix B for the recognized list.

25

Each number in an RST
(Readability, Signal, Tone)
report is read individually. A
599 report is said as five-nine-
nine, not five hundred ninety
nine.
>An s-unit is a sort-of stan-
dardized unit for shortwave
receivers that gives a compara-
tive indication of the strength
of the received signal. It’s only
sort-of standardized because
some radio manufacturers
calibrate each s-unit to indi-
cate 4 decibels, and others
calibrate each s-unit to indi-
cate 5 decibels. In any case,
it’s a very inexact measure-
ment but is still useful for
comparison purposes. Some-
times you'll even hear other
hams give out 59 reports when
you know the signal strength
isn’t nine s-units. Again, it’s a
comparative number, and
often a 59 report simply means
that the received station’s
transmission is perfect to un-
derstand (even though it may
be weak.)
»>Most hams tune around
more than actually talk. We
listen first at one end, then the
other. Then we tune up and
down, listening to see if there’s
anything interesting going on.
26
Not everyone speaks English with your accent.
With all the static and hiss usually found on the
lowbands, it is often necessary to phonetically
spell your call sign, name, location and any
unusual words. It may be the only way to get the
information across to Pedro in Brazil or Ivan in
Russia.
Your Signal is Super Duper Today
Signal reports on the lowbands are a bit more
involved than on VHF. The concept is simple
though, and with practice you'll be giving accu-
rate reports in no time. Refer to Appendix E for
the specifics.
Basically, a proper RST report lets one know
how well his audio sounds as well as how strong
his signal is. The Readability number refers to
how easy it is to understand him. This applies to
CW as well as voice.
The Signal number tells him how strong his
CW or voice signal is in s-units which you'll read
from your signal meter.
The third number applies to CW only and
refers to how pure the Tone of his signal is. A
proper, steady tone is a 9. A warbling, fuzzy tone
would be poor and a 3.
If you can easily understand every word (dit or
dah) then the R is a 5. If you understand half of
what he’s saying, his R would be a 3.
The S number is read directly off your signal
meter. On CW, if it reads over 9, you still report a
9. On voice you might say, “You're 10 over 9”,
which means he’s ten decibels over a signal
strength of 9 s-units.
On voice, a ‘59’ (five-nine), is a perfect signal.
In quiet conditions, a ‘54’ (five-four) can be
perfect as well. On CW, a ‘599’ (five-nine-nine
and often transmitted as 5NN) is perfect.
Hello, Can Anybody Hear Me?
Just like on VHF, there is a special way to let
those listening know you'd like to chat. Calling
CQ is straightforward; but considering there are
no channels on the lowbands, you have to be
more persistent. You want to attract the attention
of other hams just tuning around.
 A proper CQ should not last more than about
20-30 seconds. Then listen carefully for slightly
less time using your RIT to tune to either side of
your frequency in case someone’s answering who
didn’t quite zero beat you.
Simply say ‘CQ’ repeatedly while interjecting
your Call now and then. End by saying that you're
listening for any response. Like this:
“CQ CQ CQ CQ CQ .... from WB1HAM,
WB1HAM, Whiskey Bravo One Hotel Alpha
Mike, CQ CQ CQ CQ CQ..... This is WB1HAM
listening for any call.”
You'll hear variations of this on the air. You
might give your name or location during the CQ.
Experiment and find what works for you.
If you don’t get a response by the third or
fourth try, find a new frequency and try again.
HELP! Somebody Answered Me!
Don’t be too surprised when it happens; you
asked for it. Just give his call, then your call, and
start talking. Tell him your name, where you're
located, then turn it back over to him by saying
“Over.” Always make your first exchange short to
make sure you've got reasonable propagation to
sustain a conversation.
If he comes back to you and reports that your
coming through fine, then give more details about
yourself on the next go-around. Tell him your
age, what you do, what the weather is like and
ask him the same. Take the time and you'll find
fascinating folks on the lowbands.
Act natural. Forget “Roger-dodger, over’n out.”
Quick, What’s His Name
It is not required by law to keep a record of
every transmission you make. But there are good
reasons why you might want to.
If someone alleges that you repeatedly inter-
fered with their favorite soap opera, you can’t
prove you weren’t even on the air unless you
regularly keep a log. As a friendly ham, even if it
isn’t you, it’s a wonderful gesture on your part to
use your technical skills to help them track down
the culprit and help them find solutions to the
problem. If it is you, you are required to fix it or
find another hobby.
>Receiver Incremental Tun-
ing. You don’t want to change
your transmitter frequency
because if someone does an-
swer and you've changed your
transmit frequency to try and
match his, he may not be able
to hear or understand you
when you answer back. Re-
member, radios are sometimes
inaccurate in precisely match-
ing their receiver frequency to
their transmitter frequency.
Even more common is the
variation in people’s ears.
What may be tuned in to you
may be off to the next guy..
>Zero Beating is nothing
more than tuning your radio to
exactly the same frequency as
the other guy. You do this by
ear and only experience can
teach you how. But the general
idea is to tune the station in so
the operator’s voice sounds
perfectly natural. The term
zero-beat comes from the fact
that when two frequencies are
aligned, there are no (zero)
beat frequencies. A musician
can show you this as he tunes
two strings closer and closer
together — you'll hear the
notes beating against each
other until they are the same
pitch at which point there will
be zero beats.
>It used to be law to keep a
log book with entries for every
time you transmitted. Even if
you called a buddy on 2-
meters and he didn’t answer!
Few people keep a log on
VHF, but most do on HF. It’s
like a scrapbook of all the cool
contacts you’ve made. A chat
with Antarctica, an exchange
with a Sherpa in Nepal, per-
haps you talked with a famous
personality like the King of
Jordan. It’s nice to have a
record of such memorable
contacts.
27
>A QSL card is a postcard that
confirms that you in fact made
contact with a particular sta-
tion. It includes specifics such
as time, frequency, date,
mode, and any other informa-
tion you want. Some will even
hand write notes on the cards.
There are numerous QSL card
manufacturing companies
listed in the ham magazines.
You can use a photo of your-
self, your shack or any graphic
you desire. It’s your card.
>All contests require that you
keep an accurate record of
your contacts. You must weed
out duplicates from the entries
as well as note other informa-
tion specific to the contest
rules. The ARRL as well as
other publishers produce ex-
cellent standardized logs.
There are numerous computer
programs that serve the func-
tion equally as well.
>QSL Bureaus are usually
volunteer operations that act
like a clearinghouse for QSL
cards. Rather than send a card
to each ham in California, you
can send all the California QSL
cards to one place and they'll
distribute them to the indi-
vidual hams. Truly a labor of
love. Support your bureau.
>IRC, International Reply
Coupons, are used to prepay
mailing stamps in foreign
countries. You certainly can’t
buy a Chinese stamp, but you
can buy IRC’s from your post
office and send them to the
Chinese ham who will in turn
take them to his local post
office and exchange them for a
stamp to mail his QSL card
back to you. Consider that
some foreign hams send thou-
sands of QSL’s a year. IRC’s
eliminate the financial burden
ofall that postage.
28
If you want to exchange QSL cards, register for
awards or certificates, participate in contests, or
just have a record of your favorite contacts, you'll
need to keep a log book. These can be purchased
from any ham store, or make your own up.
Typically, you'll have entries for call sign, time of
contact, date, frequency, mode (voice, CW,
Packet, etc.) duration of contact, and notes.
Wallpaper
The walls of some ham shacks are covered
with row upon row of QSL Cards. Each of these
cards proves a particular contact took place and,
in defined groups, can be used to earn an award.
WAS and DXCC are only two of hundreds of
awards exhibiting your operating prowess.
Worked All States is probably the first award
hams earn. Simply make contact with and re-
ceive a QSL card from at least one ham in each
of the 50 states. Send all 50 cards to the ARRL
and you'll get back a handsome certificate. DX
Century Club is often the next award and is a tad
tougher. You'll need to talk to hams from 100
different countries and receive their a QSL cards.
There are myriads of awards and if you love
wallpaper, contact the ARRL for more informa-
tion and start collecting your cards today.
Receiving the QSL cards can be tough. Some
hams wait years after making a rare contact
before they receive the QSL card. There are no
tricks here to improve your success rate, but
there are some rules of thumb you should follow.
JALWAYS stock your QSL bureau with enve-
lopes (contact ARRL for information).
/ALWAYS double check QSL information.
/Send your QSL in a timely fashion.
/Send IRC’s, or stamps, and a SASE with your
QSL.
Find someone else who has requested a QSL
from the same station and check with them to see
if they've received theirs. If they have and you
haven't, see if you used the same address. If you
have, wait a few months, then try again. Pa-
tience. Patience. Patience.
Don’t Forget
Periodically review the list of countries with
third-party agreements. It is a serious offense if
you are caught violating it. While this may seem
a bit harsh, remember that many foreign countries
still view Amateur Radio as espionage. It isn’t,
and the third-party agreements are in place to
help insure foreign governments that ham radio is
really just a hobby, not a job.

Hams on the Go
If you travel to another country, make sure you
contact the ARRL for reciprocal agreements at
least three months ahead of time. Some countries
don’t require anything, and others require paper-
work to be exchanged before you even depart. If
you don’t have the paperwork in hand as you
enter customs, you very well may have your
radios confiscated.
There are new laws and agreements being
made every year so always check before you
travel abroad.

29
 Rabbit Ears
The Better To
Hear You With
In This Chapter
/How Antennas Work
/ Types of Antennas
/ Putting One Up
/ Tuning It Up
J Testing It
>An antenna tuner fakes your
transmitter into thinking that
the antenna has been trimmed
(cut to the proper length) for
the frequency being used.
Since it’s all a fake, there is
signal loss. Sometimes the loss
is quite small, and sometimes
it’s enormous. With a tuner,
your antenna may be radiating
only 50 watts when your trans-
mitter is putting out 100 watts.
The lost wattage is either con-
verted to heat in the tuner, or
bled off to ground. You MUST
properly ground a tuner or else
you may get a mighty shock
when you transmit. RF burns
are painful. Don’t chance it.
>SWR, Standing Wave Ratio,
measures the difference be-
tween the voltage and the
current distribution along the
antenna. A ratio of 1:1 is per-
fect and unattainable. A good
ratio is between 1.1:1 and
about 1.4:1. Over 2:1 means
something is wrong. The an-
tenna may be too close to the
ground, improperly tuned, or a
nearby piece of metal or wire
(house wiring, telephone wir-
ing, awning gutters, etc.) may
be interacting with it.
30
Ga)
us good antenna is the real measure of a
well-built Amateur Radio station. It makes little
difference how much you spend on your radio,
what features it boasts, or how big your amplifier
is — if your antenna doesn’t work. In fact, a
correctly installed antenna will go farther than
any other piece of gear toward improving the
performance of your station.
An Antenna Must...
An antenna, in order to radiate your signal,
must be the proper size. You can’t pour a gallon
of water in a cup and not expect to lose any. If
your antenna is shorter than your signal, then part
of the signal will have nowhere to go and will be
reflected back. If your antenna is too long, your
signal won’t know what to do with the extra
space, but it'll try to use it up. Once again, the
extra will get reflected back.
Like the glass of water, you'll lose some of
your signal, except, unlike the water where the
extra just spills on the floor, the lost signal has
nowhere to go but backwards into your radio.
Your transmitter isn’t designed to absorb this
reflected signal. If the reflection is strong enough,
it will burn out (melt) your transmitter.
So, you must have a properly fitting antenna
(or be able to fake it with a tuner) before you can
transmit. You fit the antenna first by calculating
the proper size, then by trimming it down until
the SWR is as low as possible.
It’s a Yagi, It’s a Quad, No... It’s a Dipole!
We should first differentiate between direc-
tional non-directional antennas. A directional
antenna will focus your signal and beam it
primarily in one direction. A non-directional
antenna will just radiate your signal all over.
Obviously, you're only going to be talking to one
person at a time; so if you could focus your
signal toward him, you would gain quite an
improvement in performance.
Directional antennas are rated in just that —
gain. A station with an antenna that has a gain of
3db will show up exactly 3db stronger on your
s-meter than a station with an antenna with no
gain (non-directional). Now that’s not as big a
deal as it may sound since one s-unit on your
Types of Beams
meter is generally 5db (so 3db of gain is less than
1 s-unit), but any gain is better than none.
Yagi
Directional antennas are generally referred to
as beams. And, there are different types of beams
based on how they’re constructed (just as there
are ladies’ bicycles and men’s bicycles, they top view
operate the same but are constructed differently.)
Generally, a Yagi is what everyone has because it
takes up the least amount of space and is the Quad
simplest to construct. It doesn’t have the highest
gain possible, but that’s the compromise.
If you can find a used beam that’s not all bent
up, get it. Antennas generally don’t deteriorate
with age. The big downside of a beam is that it
requires a tall mast or tower to mount it on and a
rotor with which to turn it. A beam must be
mounted at least a half wavelength above the end view (
ground or else its gain will degrade significantly.
If you want a beam and have the space for a
tower, you should contact your local hams for
suggestions and assistance. Be sure to check your >A db (decibel) is a logarith-
local town, county, and homeowners association mic measurement of relative
regarding any restrictions on erecting towers. loudness or strength. A signal
that is 3db stronger is in fact
Most hams get by with a non-directional twice as strong. It’s a log func-
antenna, specifically a dipole. A dipole should be tion so son’t try to make sense
put as high as possible as well, but it’s perfor- out of it.
mance will not suffer near as much if it’s not. »>Remember, every frequency
has a physical length called the
Let’s Put Up a Dipole! wavelength. If you're operating
Any antenna can operate it’s best on only one at 20 meters (14 MHz) then the
frequency. There are tricks to get around that but wavelength is also 20 meters
that’s a different book (like the ARRL Antenna and so a half wavelength
would be 10 meters or ap-
Book). proximately 30 feet.
Let’s do something simple. You want to oper-
ate your radio on 20 meters in the voice portion
of the band, say around 14.310 MHz.
The formula generally used for a half wave >A half wave is just that. Half
dipole is: the total physical length of the
Total length in feet = 468/frequency in MHz wave at that particular fre-
quency and is the same as the
So, we divide 468 by 14.310 and get: half wavelength as defined
above.
468 _ 39.73 feet
14.310

a

Simple Dipole Antenna Center Support
tachment Hole
Braided Wire
>Coax is short for coaxial.
There are several types of an-
tenna feedline (the line that
carries the power from the
transmitter to the antenna.)
Coax is round with a center
conductor and an outer shield.
It is the most common type of
feedline used by ham radio
operators and must be of the
50 ohm type.
32
Rule number one: You Can Take It Off, But
You Can’t Put It Back!
So, cut 35 feet (we’ll trim the extra off later) of
strong copper wire. Remember, this is a di-pole
(two poles). Two sides of exactly the same
length. So, cut it exactly in half. You’ve now got
your two halves.
You're going to have to do some engineering
on your own here. Find a piece of nonconduct-
ing material, plastic or glass (a piece of PVC
pipe will do fine) and attach your coax, and the
two halves as per the diagram. Be sure you
firmly attach the coax and antenna wires to the
triangle, you don’t want it to pull apart.
The braid of the coax connects to one half of
the antenna and the center wire to the other half.
Solder the connections and hang the affair as
high as you can. A common attachment point is
the peak of your roof. When space is at a pre-
mium, some hams even put their antennas in
their attic! Slope the ends of the antenna down
at a pleasant angle (yes there’s a specific angle,
120°, but few people have the ability to measure
it while properly supporting the center and
ends). Pull the ends somewhat taut. If you pull
the antenna taut, then when the temperature
changes and the wire contracts, the antenna will
break.
Attach the ends of the antenna to insulators,
then use twine to secure the ends to a pole,
fence, or whatever is handy. DO NOT allow the
antenna to hang so low that people or animals
might touch it. If you’re transmitting and some-
one touches the antenna, they'll get an RF burn
— the same as getting cooked by a microwave.
Now, tune the antenna. Set your radio to
14.310 and transmit either a CW or an FM signal
just long enough to check and write down the
SWR (read your manual on how to do this). If
the SWR is 1.4:1 or less then you’re done. If not,
then repeat the test on 14.345 and 14.275 MHz.
If the SWR tends to drop as you move lower
in frequency (from 14.345 down to 14.275 for
example), then the antenna is too long. Go out
and cut about 1" from both sides of the antenna.
Do the test again. You shouldn’t have to do this
more than 3 or 4 times. You should see a mini-
mum SWR on or near the desired frequency with
the SWR increasing as you transmit either above
or below it.
If the SWR tends to increase as you move
down in frequency, then the antenna is either too
short (you're in trouble) or, more likely, there’s a
wire or other metal object interfering with your
transmitted RF field. You can try to cut a new,
longer antenna; solder a foot of wire to each end
of the antenna; or, better yet, relocate the an-
tenna and put it higher.
It’s that easy! Yes, it will take some time on
your first try, but being able to cut and tune an
antenna is a vital part of being a capable ham.
Sometimes, due to height or space restrictions,
you may not be able to get your SWR much
below 2:1. Well, do what you can. Your signal
won't be as strong as it could be, but you'll get
out and still have fun.

33

CW & Net
Operations
Pounding the
Brass
In This Chapter
/Code Abbreviations
JA Typical Code QSO
/CW Nets
/CW Net Rules
Words Per Minute, WPM, is
defined as how many five-
character words are sent
during one minute.
>Prosign characters sound as
if they were one big character.
For example, you send the HH
prosign when you make a
mistake and it sounds like 8
dits, not two sets of 4 dits (two
H’s). The line over the top
indicates that the combination
is a prosign.
34
d
Gas
sing Morse code on the lowbands differs
from voice only in its speed. While conversing in
code at 30 wpm may seem awfully fast, it is in
fact a very slow method of transferring informa-
tion. Given this, all CW is accomplished using
codes and abbreviations. Here are a few:
es - and
hi - I’m laughing
abt - about
b4 - before
hr - here
ur - your
wx - weather
tnks - thanks
fer - for
gud - good
hw - how
Refer to Appendix G for more.
Using these codes a typical CW QSO might go
like this:
Hi nam hr is Kim. QTH Los Angeles. Rig IC735. Wx rainy.
Ur RST is SNN S5NN. Gud sig. I hve lovely wife es 2 kids.
Age 18. How abt u? KN
The KNat the end is one of the CW prosigns
used by brass pounders. Here are a few of them:
K — Invitation for anyone to respond
KN— Invitation for only the specified station to respond
SK— Signing off, no reply expected
SK QRZ — Signing off and listening on this frequency for
any other calls. The idea is to indicate which station is
remaining on the frequency.
SK KN — Signing off but listening for one last transmission
from the other station
HH — Error. Start the word over.
IMI — Repeat
AR — Over
A Dying Breed
CW is a learned skill and many hams take
pride in being able to operate CW efficiently. A
large percentage of the CW activity nowadays
occurs on CW traffic nets. These nets operate for
the sole purpose of passing traffic (messages).
One source of the traffic is military personnel.
Soldiers may send messages home for free via
Amateur Radio.
The motivation to operate these traffic nets is
based on one of the founding purposes of Ama-
teur Radio: To provide a communication medium
during emergencies. Morse code, being the most
basic form of transmission, can get through even
the most severe conditions when a voice or
digital transmission would fail.
Hams are rightly proud of their CW skills and
it will be a very sad day indeed when this skill is
deemed unnecessary by regulatory bodies.
Rules
of the CW Traffic Road
After polishing your CW skills through numer-
ous contacts, you may wish to join a net to
further develop your CW acumen. After you’ve
listened to net operations for a week or two,
remember these tidbits as you prepare to check in
for the first time:
J Zero beat the NCS
J Don't be late
J Speak only when spoken to
J Speak only to NCS
J Stay until you are excused
J Be brief
J Know how the net runs
You would be well advised to memorize the
full list of Q codes and the special QN codes (see
Appendix H) as well as the standard CW abbre-
viations. Familiarize yourself with the standard
ARRL traffic form, with how it’s filled out and
read, and with the standard abbreviations it uses.
Well armed with these operating standards and
protocol, you will present a mature and conscien-
tious presence on the CW bands.
>Zero beating is easiest to do
by making sure your radio’s
display is accurate so you'll
know you're on the correct
frequency when you tune into
the net. You also need to know
how your radio works on CW.
Many radios automatically
offset the transmit frequency by
Ikhz (if it didn’t you wouldn’t
hear a tone.) If your radio
works like this (consult your
manual), then you need to tune
your receiver such that you
slide down the NCS’s signal
until his tone drops down in
pitch to nothing. Note the
frequency, then tune back up
Ikhz.
>You can verify your
receiver’s accuracy by zero
beating WWYV. Tune your
radio to 5 MHz, 10 MHz, or
15 MHz. Then listen to both
USB and LSB. The audible tone
should be the same pitch. If it’s
not, then your display isn’t
perfectly accurate.
>The NCS, Net Control Sta-
tion, is the operator who has
been designated to make sure
the net runs smoothly. Every
net has a purpose which can-
not be served if everyone is
talking at once otherwise
chaos would be the order of
business.
35
 Digital
Beginnings
Squawkin’ an’ a
Squeakin’
In This Chapter
/What is Digital
/Hardware you Need
JVHow to Get Set Up
/ How to Get Started
>The digital modes include
RTTY, AmTOR, PacTOR,
Packet, Fax, SSTV and, techni-
cally, CW. When we refer to
digital modes, we won't in-
clude CW since it’s so different
from the others which require
a computer.
>A Terminal Node Controller,
TNC, converts what your re-
ceiver hears into computer
data.
>RTTY, Radio TeleTYpe (pro-
nounced ‘ritty’)
>The linked modes are
AmTOR, PacTOR, and G-TOR.
In these modes the computers
of the conversing stations are
electronically connected to-
gether via the airwaves, their
radios, and their TNC’s. If one
of the stations goes away, the
link is lost and the connection
broken. RTTY, CW, and Packet
are unlinked in that if one
station disappears, the other
station’s computer doesn’t
have a clue.
>Lower SideBand
36
iM C
ost people are intimidated by the digital
modes. We often visualize them as the domain of
computer-nerd hams tapping cryptic commands
on their computer keyboards. Nothing could be
further from the truth.
The digital modes are extremely simple to
operate. The biggest difference between digital
and voice is that the digital modes require a
computer to interpret the data for you to read.
Don’t let that scare you off though! You already
have a radio and probably a computer as well. In
addition, you need a TNC which can be pur-
chased for as little as $50 (but you’re more likely
to spend from $150 — $300).
A Common Beginning
RTTY is the oldest of the digital text modes. It
has no method of error correction so even the
slightest noise, or propagation variances will
introduce errors in the received signal. And, of
course it is unlinked. The newer modes have
evolved from a desire to improve upon these
shortcomings of RTTY.
Naturally, without any extra features, RTTY is a
simple mode that requires the least amount of
computer sophistication. For this reason, and
because people like it (there are lots of hams who
love Morse code, too!), RTTY has stayed around
even though there are far more reliable means of
digital communication.
As the grand-daddy of digital, much of its
protocol has carried over to the newer modes. As
a result, they all have much in common. The
foremost is that they all operate on LSB, regard-
less of what HF band you're on.
When you've tuned in a digital signal, you'll
hear tones. Each tone represents a different level,
and it’s the TNC’s job to interpret the various
combinations of tones to represent letters or
pictures. If the tones are sent at a fast rate, all
you'll hear is a ‘brap’ sound. Each digital mode
has a distinctive sound, and after awhile you'll be
able to immediately identify which mode you're
hearing just by the sound.
Video Modes
SSTV and Fax are identical to the previously
discussed digital modes, except they require
special software to compose the received data
into a picture. Depending on the software, this
may also require a specific type of computer. If
you have a computer and want to explore video,
be sure to research available software to make
sure it’s compatible with your computer.
Going Digital
You can operate digitally with ANY computer
as long as it has the ability to communicate (in
computerese of course) via a RS-232 serial port. If
you find a RS-232 serial port on your computer
then you're all set.
As for communicating, that requires software.
And, don’t let anyone fool you into thinking it
has to be one particular program either. Any
terminal software will do the job flawlessly. With
MS-Windows™, you have a fully capable pro-
gram called TERMINAL or HYPER-TERMINAL.
Now, for the TNC. Personal opinion is keen
regarding which TNC is best. However, you
should buy one based on what will best serve
your needs. Here are some considerations.
If you’re only interested in VHF operation,
you'll pretty much be limited to packet. In that
case, your TNC will not need baud rates less than
1200 or a tuning bar. Baud rates above 1200 are
a bit of a sales gimmick as very few BBS’s or
other hams use the higher baud rates, and their
use is still in the experimental stages. But, if you
have the extra cash, get a high speed TNC. The
higher speeds will come into common use and
you'll be ready.
If you want to operate portable, then make
sure the TNC can operate on 12vdc. You don’t
need a mailbox feature unless you're going to
dedicate a radio and antenna to packet and leave
the entire setup turned on ‘round the clock’. If
you plan on eventually running your own BBS, or
want to operate HF packet remotely (like from
your HT on the way home) then you'll need dual
active ports (and 9600 baud). Some TNC’s have
dual ports, but only one port can be active. Dual
>Fax on ham radio is just like
SSTV except it uses different
protocol to transfer the picture.
>The TNC has a special soft-
ware program built-in. Called
firmware, it allows the TNC to
interpret the ‘chirps’ from your
receiver into a data stream
your computer will under-
stand.
Slow Scan TeleVision, SSTV,
differs from regular TV in that it
is like a slide show rather than
moving pictures. It can take a
couple of minutes to display
one color picture.
>The RS-232 serial port is a
jack on the back of nearly all
computers (often labeled
‘COM1’ or ‘COM2’) that al-
lows data to be transferred in a
standardized fashion. This
standardization allows any
computer to communicate
with any other computer.
Computer programs (soft-
ware) tell your computer what
to do and how to talk with
your TNC. Terminal programs
allow your computer to speak
to other computers via a mo-
dem (via the telephone) or
directly via a cable connected
to each ones serial port.
>A BBS (Bulletin Board Sys-
tem) provides a repository for
mail messages, computer files,
general messages, callsign
database, whatever. Connect
to it like you would any other
station.
>1200 baud, as referred to
here, is the speed at which
your data is sent out over the
radio, not the rate at which the
computer talks to the TNC. The
latter speed is set by your
computer's terminal software.
ag

Antenna HF or VHF Radio
>For years the control-c key
combination has been used as
a sort of master switch that will
stop or escape from whatever
is currently happening. It’s
usage is becoming less com-
mon.
>A default on a computer
refers to the ‘normal’ or aver-
age values used by the
majority of computers. These
standard settings usually work
on all computers. You can alter
the defaults but, unless you
know what you're doing, your
computer may not work as it’s
supposed to until the standard
settings have been restored.
38
active ports can simultaneously control two
radios (from just one computer).
Or, you may choose an all-in-one, multimode
unit like the MFJ-1278B or the AEA PK-900 which
operate all digital modes, including color SSTV
and Fax on HF and VHF. As with most gear, an
all-in-one unit may ultimately be less sophisti-
cated and more problematic than a less
diversified unit.
Regardless of what you buy, it would be wise
to purchase a TNC that can be upgraded to reflect
changes in technology. If you think there’s even a
remote chance you'll want to dabble in digital
modes other than packet, then spend a bit extra
and get a multimode unit.
Getting It All Together
You've got to hook your TNC, computer, and
radio together. If you’re not comfortable making
the cables, then be sure your TNC’s manufacturer
sells cables that match your radio and computer.
If they don’t, you'll have to enlist the aid of a
soldering-iron-toting ham.
Plug the computer cable (Cable B) between the
TNC and the RS-232 (serial) port on your com-
puter. Plug the radio cable (Cable A) between the
TNC and your rig’s mic jack, the mic and speaker
jacks, or the accessory jack on the rear of your
radio. Which jack exactly depends on your radio.
Your TNC manual should provide you with the
instructions.
Get Ready...
First you need to set a few parameters. Prima-
rily, make sure neither Windows™ nor the
computer are using the control commands. If
you’re using Windows™ TERMINAL, choose the
Settings menu and open the Terminal Preferences
dialog box. Ensure the box next to ‘Use Function,
Arrow, ...’ is not checked. If it is, then you won't
be able to issue the all important CONTROL-C
command to the TNC.
The default (standard) ‘Communication’ or
‘Terminal’ settings are 8 bits, no parity, and 1
stop bit. These three settings are the default
values so you probably don’t need to worry about
them, but it doesn’t hurt to verify they’re set
correctly. You do need to set the baud rate to
1200 baud. You also must make sure the terminal
program knows what port your TNC-computer
cable (Cable B) is plugged into. Generally, if
you've plugged the cable into a port labelled
Serial 1 or Com 1, then make sure the terminal
program uses Com]. If you’re plugged into port
2, the program must use Com2, etc.
Now, your computer's ready.
/Turn on the TNC and you should immediately see
the signon information — refer to the TNC manual
for specifics. If you don’t, press the ENTER key on
your computer keyboard 3 to 8 times rapidly. If
the signon screen still doesn’t show up, turn the
TNC off and back on again and repeat this step.
Jlf you get nothing, then start from scratch. Turn
everything off. Unplug cables A & B and make
sure you bought the right cables or built them
correctly. Plug them back in.
/Turn on the computer. Load the terminal program
and verify the baud rate and previously discussed
parameters are correct, as well as the com port
assignment. Repeat the first step.
JIf you still get nothing, then try a different com
assignment. Your computer may not be standard.
You may have to experiment to find the correct
port to plug into, and what port to assign the ter-
minal program. They may not be the same. You
may have to plug into Serial 2 and assign Com1
for example.

If you still cannot get the TNC and the com-

puter to talk together, then you'll have to find a
computer-ham guru who can help you. Buying
something else will not help at this stage.

Get Set...
Finally, you’ve got it working. The signon A Gincwigak inte abe ike
screen is legible and you’ve got a command 13) or pn 7 enna
prompt from the TNC. preceeded by a letter. It means
Let’s clarify before we get any further — you that the computer is waiting for
.
have two computers going, your computer an d you to tell it what to do. It’s
sds cece ee ea
the- TNC’s computer. You can
b
issue commands
them both and
to | ja 00 2 Comma! being
ecause you are
Pomp
either of them, or you can bypass 1 bo prompted by the computer to
send text directly to your radio where it will be give it commands.
39

>In our discussion, it’s as-
sumed you've read the manual
for your TNC and radio. Not
all units use the same com-
mand structure to accomplish
the same task. You must have a
working knowledge of your
computer, know what a
prompt is (command prompt
for the TNC), how to execute a
CONTROL-key sequence, and
what <cr> means.
>Before issuing a command to
the TNC, most TNCs will re-
quire you to issue a “C
(control-c) to get to the TNC,
then you'll issue the command,
and finally type a K<cr> or
CONV<cr> to exit the com-
mand mode and get back to
the radio (conversation mode).
>There are hundreds of TNC
commands but you'll basically
use only a few. To invoke one
of these commands, you may
type either the full or the ab-
breviated form. We'll cover
basic commands in the follow-
ing chapters.
>Defaults are simply common
settings. 95% of the time, the
common settings or defaults,
will work for everybody. To
make life easier, the software
programmer ‘pre-sets’ or
‘loads’ these defaults so you
don’t have to worry about it.
40
transmitted to the world. Keep these three con-
cepts straight.
/You can type commands to your computer
/You can type commands to your TNC — Com-
mand mode
/You can type text that will be transmitted — Con-
versation mode
Unless you access any of your terminal
program’s menu commands (to change the screen
color, for example), you generally won’t be
issuing Commands to your computer.
The command prompt you see on the screen is
the TNC telling you it’s ready to obey your every
wish. Anything you enter at the prompt will be
interpreted by the TNC — it will not be transmit-
ted over the air.
The Prime Directive, Do This First!
Before you do anything, you need to tell the
TNC who it is. This is the same as your call sign
and is entered using MYCall command.
MYC W1AW<cr>
If it’s the first time, the TNC may respond with:
MYCall was NOCALL
Do it now, so you won't forget. Check it
periodically to make sure it hasn’t been glitched
and reset back to the default. It happens! To see
what’s saved in MYC, simply enter the command
at the prompt by itself:
MYC<cr>
The TNC will respond with something like:
MYCall is W1AW
...Go Digital!
On HF, unless you have perfect musical pitch,
you must have a tuning bar or meter on your
TNC. To then tune in a digital signal, put your
TNC in the desired mode, and begin tuning
slowly across a digital signal. The tuning bar
should remain to one side and as you get close to
the correct tuning, it will slide over to the middle
(check your manual for exact operation). When
correctly tuned, the bar or meter will indicate a
fairly steady reading.
 To get you started, we'll list the 20-meter
frequencies. You'll find a little of everything,
anyday, anytime.
These are not rules, just a starting point.
/AmTOR at about 14.070
/PacTOR at about 14.080
JRTTY at about 14.090
/Packet at about 14.105

The video modes use more bandwidth than

other digital modes; hence, they stay on the
following frequencies by gentlemen’s agreement,
so they won’t unduly interfere with other hams.
/SSTV at 14.230 & 14.233
/Fax at 14.245

Common Digital Lingo

It’s not required to use abbreviations on the
digital modes. However, their use does provide
for smoother and speedier communication. You
should at least be comfortable with them, so
here’s a short list of the most common:
BTU - Back To You
CL or CLEAR - going off the air
de - from
K - Anybody respond please
KN - Only the station I am talking to respond
SK - signing off now
SK KN - I'll sign off after your last transmission
SK QRZ - Signing off now. Who else is calling?
SK SZ - Signing off but listening for any calls

41
 This IS
Grandpa’s
Mode
Rey = What
Gentlemen Do
rYi= = ss
teas 7, “Sis
Bm es
In This Chapter
/What is RTTY
/ How It Works
J Your First RTTY QSO
/ How to Get Started
/Where to Hang Out
>RTTY, like all other modes,
has certain characteristics that
tradition has developed. We
say ‘print’ rather than receive
because the old (antique) ma-
chines that used to receive
RTTY would simply print out
the text on a piece of paper
rather than use a screen or
monitor. And, to keep things
simple, RTTY only has one
character set — uppercase.
Unlike other modes where
upper case is considered
shouting, it’s all you can use
on RTTY. It doesn’t make any
difference what you type on
your screen, it'll print upper-
case on the other end.
42
R
BS adio Teletype (RTTY) is the standard
method the world over for transmitting data.
Telemetry signals sent from satellites or the space
shuttle are a form of radio teletype.
RTTY is the easiest digital mode to start with
and it has a standard speed of 45 baud. You can
use another speed (like 75 baud) if your signal is
strong enough AND the other guy knows what
you’re doing.
Receiving RTTY
/Set your radio to LSB
/Put your TNC in the RTTY mode, 45 baud
/(You may need to issue a receive command)
/Locate a RTTY signal
/Tune in the signal
/You’ll immediately begin to see text appear
If the print is not readable, either:
/The ham is speaking German
/You’re receiving satellite telemetry signals
/The RXINVERT is on (turn it off)
/You’re on the wrong sideband - should be LSB
J The signal isn’t from earth
If all else fails, find another signal. Really,
that’s all there is to receiving RTTY.
Transmitting a CQ and Having aQSO
If you print a CQ and wish to respond, simply
enter the transmit mode (typically a CONTROL-T
from the command prompt.) The transmitter will
key-up and stay that way until you issue a receive
command (typically CONTROL-R). Few hams
can type faster than the TNC sends out data so
there probably won’t be a pause after you issue
the receive command before the transmitter un-
keys. If there’s a pause, then you're typing faster
than it’s sending. Don’t worry, nothing will get
lost. Be sure, as well, that you turn down the
power output of your radio. Not every radio can
sustain full output nonstop. Check your manual. If
the transmitter can handle 100% duty-cycle, then
you're okay. If not, then turn it down to 60 watts
or so by reducing the rf ouput.
 Here’s a summary on how to transmit:
/Issue the transmit command
/Always begin a transmission with a <cr>
/ Type text just as you would speak
/Always end your transmission with two <cr>’s
/ Don't forget to ID properly
/lssue the receive command

Here’s what a typical transmission looks like:

<cr>
HELLO DON, YOUR TRANSMISSION WAS A
PERFECT PRINT. IT’S GREAT TO CHAT WITH YOU.
PROPAGATION IS GREAT. THE CAT’S FINE. HIS
TAIL’S GROWING BACK BUT HE’S STILL MAD AT
YOU. HOW ARE YOU?
W6WWYV DE N6AA KN
<cr><cir>

The <cr>’s put space on the computer screen

between what each party has said.

Sending your own CQ is just as simple:

/Find a clear RTTY frequency
/Issue a transmit command to your TNC
/Type 4-10 CQ‘s followed by your call 2-4 times
/ Issue the receive command and listen for a
response. Do not alter your tuning knob; use the
RIT control to tune in any response. He’s
already tuned you in, so changing your tuning
knob will mess up his ability to receive you.

A typical CQ would look like this:

<cr>
CQCQ CQ CQ CQ CQ CQ DE WB2BBB WB2BBB CQ
CQCOCOCQK
<cr><ci>

To answer a CQ:
/Tune in the station and lock your tuning knob
/lssue the transmit command
/Type one <cr>, then his call followed by your
call no more than 5 times
/lssue the receive command

A typical CQ response would look like this:

<cr>
WB2BBB DE KD6PPP KD6PPP KD6PPP KN
<cr><cI>
43

>You may want to test your
setup to be sure it’s putting out
a signal. Or perhaps you want
to see how long your transmit-
ter can hold up before
meltdown at 100watts continu-
ous output — talk about living
dangerously! Or possibly you
are testing with a buddy who is
thousands of miles away to see
how well he can hear you. Or
maybe you just like testing...
Testing
The standard procedure for testing your RTTY
signal (you rarely hear any testing these days) is
to issue a test string of RY’s. No spaces in be-
tween, just RYRYRYRY... followed by your call.
The RY test string has a distinctive sound so any
RTTYer will know what you’re doing just from the
sound. A test signal looks like this:
RYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRYRY DE XEIMEX
Common RTTY Hangouts
Again, these are not laws, but traditional
starting places to look for and hold RTTY QSO’s.

3.610-3.630 MHz 3.950 MHz for DX

7.080-7.100 MHz 7.040 MHz for DX
10.140-10.150 MHz 14.075-14.100 MHz
18.100-18.110 MHz 21.090-21.100 MHz
24.920-24.930 MHz 28.090-28.100 MHz

44
NT
\\
|S Whe most popular by far of the digital
Packet
modes is ‘packet’. So called because the data is
sent from one station to another, one packet at a Where the Fun
time. Packet burgeoned on 2-meters which Begins
remains the primary band for packet and the
PBBS network. Experimentation continues with
data speeds faster than the standards of 1200
baud on VHF and 300 baud on HF.

The Most Useful TNC Commands

Here’s a list of the most used TNC commands
and what they do. Remember, your TNC might
use a slightly different word or spelling for a In This Chapter
particular command, but it should be close. /What is Packet
These commands must be entered at the com- J TNC Commands
mand prompt. / How to Get Started
MYCall — Sets the legal ID of the TNC yi oi fel: Out
; : ommandas
wt - a list ef your spaele ALL TNC /Packect A eel ae
commands and how they are currently set. js Packet Seactan
Connect — When issued by itself, the Connect
command will tell you if it’s connected to some-
one or not. When issued with a call sign, it will >The PBBS (Packet Bulletin
begin transmitting your request to connect to the Board System, sometimes re-
desired station over the air. ferred to as Private Bulletin
Board System) is a privately
DISconnect — When issued once, your TNC owned and operated computer
will politely request the station it’s connected to, to which packet operators can
to let it go. If issued a second time, the connect to retrieve files, packet
DISconnect command will disconnect your TNC mail, check Callbook entries,
immediately without asking permission. This is etc. Anyone can set up their
poor operating practice and a bit messy as the own PBBS. The PBBS network
other station will think you’re still there. is responsible for distributing
, all the packet bulletins and
K or CONV - K is the short form of fai oe aaa
CONVersation mode. When issued at the com-
mand prompt, you'll immediately be placed into
conversation mode and anything you type will be
transmitted whether you’re connected or not.
CONTROL-C - This is the opposite of the K
command and, when issued in the conversation
mode, will force the TNC to immediately present
you with a command prompt. Anything you then
type will be interpreted as a TNC command and
will not be transmitted.
MCOM - Stands for Monitor COMmunica-
tions, and when set to ON will display the TNC

45

>A stream is simply a thread
of related transmissions. You
may be holding a conversation
with Sue on one channel
(stream) and Jane on another.
Each conversation is a separate
stream.
46
communications data. If a TNC doesn’t receive a
packet of data correctly, it has to ask for a repeat.
This is what MCOM shows; the TNCs’ cryptic
communications between each other.
MCON —- When Monitor CONVversations is set
to ON, you can monitor other conversations even
when you’re connected. With the MONItor
command OFF, you monitor all conversations
until you get connected. With it on, it can be
confusing as other packets will be constantly
interrupting what your friend is saying.
USERS — If you have the concentration, you
can talk to 10 or more people at a time! Most
people set USERS to 1 (one), but if your friend
tries to connect to you while you’re connected
to, say, the BBS, he won't be able to. He'll
receive the busy signal.
FEPW LAW Busy?"
Set USERS to 2 or 3 and you'll be able to
answer his call while you’re simultaneously
connected to the BBS. In reality, it’s hard to do.
Be sure you're familiar with how to switch from
one stream to another before you try this.
Mode — Check your manual for the modes
your TNC is capable of and how to access them.
MHeard — Displays a list of the most recently
heard packet call signs. This list will show you
who is active along with their call sign is.
DAy or TIMe — Sets the time and date of the
TNC’s clock. When set and turned on, this allows
MHeard to show the time it heard a call.
MYMailbox — Sets the call sign of your mail-
box. Most people use their call with a dash-one
(W1AW-1) extension. Sometimes, the local hams
will mutually agree on what extension all their
local packet mailboxes will use. Assk around to
see if there is such a convention in your area.
MAIL — Turns on the mailbox feature.
CText — Sets the text that will be sent to some-
one who has connected to your station (the call
you set in MYCall). You might set your CText to
transmit “Hello, I’m Bob. We're connected.” If
you have a mailbox, then you may want to set
the CT to something like, “To leave a message,
please connect to my mailbox KD5ZAP-1.” Or
say whatever you want.

Your First Packet Command

Remember, your TNC will be linking itself
through your radio to another TNC. It must
therefore have some way of legally identifying
itself on the air. Naturally, it will use your station
call sign (your call.) You tell the TNC who it is
with the MYCall command. Type the command
followed by your call sign. Like this:
>You type in the MYC W1AW
MYC W1AW<cr> at the prompt. Then the TNC
The TNC will tell you what the command was responds with the second line.
(and possibly what it now is). Your screen will The ene te
again as the TNC waits for
look something like this:
further instructions.
cmd: MYC W1AW
MYCall used to be NOCALL
cmd:
You can verify who the TNC thinks it is by
typing MYC<cr> at the command prompt. In fact
you can check to see what the status is of any
command by issuing just the command itself at
the command prompt.

Things To Do On Packet
Connecting to a PBBS (BBS) is the most popu-
lar activity on the packet system. You can send
messages to your friends, or read messages
posted by other hams. There are often controver-
sial debates taking place, ham-related items for
sale, radio modification and technical info,
satellite operating info, pen-pals, weather discus-
sions, even pictures. In short, whatever you hear
on the voice portions of the HF bands, you'll also
find on the packet network.
You can also chat with other hams by directly
(or via a digipeater) connecting to them. Talking >A digipeater (digital re-
in this fashion is called keyboarding. You may peater) works in principle
prefer this type of packet to BBS’s or even to exactly like a voice repeater. It
repeats your digital packets
using your voice.
over a wider area than you
Senitii M could achieve on your own.
en Ing essages ; : Unlike voice repeaters, it re-
Sending messages is what the PBBS network is peats your transmission on the
all about. It constitutes the bulk of all packet same frequency, but not at the
activity, especially on VHF. There are three types | same time.
of messages sent out over the packet network: SP,
SB, ST. The S stands for Send. The second letter

47
 stands respectively for: Personal, Bulletin, and
Traffic.
A ST message is one that is formatted espe-
>The NTS, National Traffic cially for the NTS. Don’t use it unless you know
System, uses certain protocol. what you’re doing.
You must understand and use
the protocol correctly or the
A SP message is one that is sent directly to the
message may become garbled person (call@address) you specify. No one else
along the way. (except sysops) can read the message or even
know it exists.
A SB message is one that floods the area you
>Before you can begin send-
ing messages or mail, you must
specify in the address. A bulletin addressed to
have a home BBS. This is the INFO@ALLUS would flood every BBS in the USA.
BBS where all your mail will The ‘to’ field contains the keyword ‘INFO’. This
be routed. For instance, if you allows someone else to search his local BBS for
didn’t have a local post office, all bulletins that are INFOrmative, or whatever
where would people send your topic he’s interested in.
real mail? So, ask around and
find a BBS you can reliably
It’s not a good idea to make up an unusual
connect to (usually the one topic. No one else will know what it is, so they
that is physically closest to wouldn’t be able to search for it. Here’s a sample
you.) Then register with that of some of the conventions used. Most are self-
BBS letting it know that you explanatory, and as you browse your local BBS
wish for it to be your home you'll learn many more.
BBS. Many BBS’s will auto-
INFO DEBATE
matically begin the registration
SALE HELP
process the first time you con- WANT ICOM
nect. Only register with one MOD SYSOP
BBS so your mail doesn’t get SSTV RECIPE
routed to the wrong place or NASA HUMOR
even lost.
Packet Frequencies to Monitor
Once again, these frequencies are the most
common, hence, they’re a good place to start
listening and enjoying packet.
3.607 MHz 3.630 MHz
7.087 MHz 7.097 MHz
10.147 MHz
14.103 MHz 14.105 MHz
14.107 MHz 14.100 MHz
145.01 MHz 145.03 MHz
145.05 MHz 145.07 MHz
145.09 MHz 145.11 MHz

If you’re new to an area and have a scanner,

it’s relatively simple to find a local VHF packet
frequency. You can ask on the local repeater, or,

48
scan the VHF (145 MHz) frequencies in the
above list and jot down the ones with any activ-
ity. Then, tune your packet setup to an active
frequency and let it monitor for a few hours. Issue
a MHeard command at the command prompt and
you'll get a list of all the stations that were active
during that time. An asterisk beside a listed
station means that the station was digipeated, so
you may not be able to connect directly to it.
Issue a Connect command to each call, one at
a time, just as they’re listed and eventually you'll
come across a node or a BBS. If you get a mail-
box, ask that person about the local BBS’s. Don’t
forget to check back for his response, and be sure
to kill the message after you've read it.

On-Air Packet Commands

Here’s a list of the most common commands
you would issue to a BBS, a mailbox, or a node to
which you are connected.
BBS or Mailbox Commands
SP - Send Personal message to the station
SB - Send Bulletin message to selected stations
SR - Send Reply to message number
R - Read message number
RM - Read Mine (read all messages sent to me)
LM - List Mine (list all message sent to me)
L - List all messages
LL # - List Last (number) messages
KM - Kill Mine (delete all messages sent to me)
? or H- Help (displays a list of commands)
I - Information about this station
Node Commands
N - Nodes (list all nodes heard by station)
R - Routes (list all routes heard by station)
? or H - as above
I - Information about this station
>A BBS is a station that stores
files, mail, and other relevant
data. A mailbox is just that.
You may leave mail for the
mailbox owner, or pickup mail
he’s left there for you. You do
not pick up your mail from
other hams at someone’s pri-
vate mailbox. You do pick up
your mail from your local BBS.
>A node is generally used as a
digipeater. It’s just a TNC/
radio/computer that is left on
all the time and is available for
general or emergency use as a
digipeater. A node does not
have BBS capabilities (mail,
file server, etc.)

Packet Protocol
/Don’t type in uppercase - it’s shouting.
/Always end messages with your packet address.
How else will the reader know where to reply?
/Always press ENTER or RETURN at the end of
each message line (a line should not contain
more than 70 characters). The packet system
does not wrap words so if you don’t indicate
where the end of the line is, your words are
likely to get chopped in half.
/Always kill a message to you after you've read it

49

>Sysop is short for System
Operator. This is usually the
owner of the BBS or another
ham designated by the owner.
It is the sysop’s responsibility
to insure that the operation of
the BBS station is legal and
appropriate.
>A flame can be thought of as
hate mail. It is generally rude,
angry in character, and impo-
lite. You wouldn't do it in
person and shouldn’t do it on
the air.
50
/When keyboarding, indicate you've finished
your thought by typing 3 greater-thans (>>>).
The other station will know he may then talk
without interrupting you.
/When keyboarding, try not to interrupt the other
station by typing before you see their >>>.
/Don’t send bulletins to ALLUS unless it is really,
truly relevant to the entire United States.
VALL the FCC amateur rules apply: Don’t try to
sell non-ham items, don’t use profanity, etc.
/Unless absolutely necessary, don’t use a BBS as
a digipeater as this clutters it up making it
harder for others to use the BBS.
PBBS’s and the Law
It may be unclear whether the P in PBBS stands
for Private or Packet. There is no doubt, however,
that it does not stand for Public. Each amateur
packet BBS is owned and operated by an indi-
vidual or club who has no obligation to you or
the public whatsoever. None. Zip. Zero.
If you send illegal messages through his system
for which he could be held responsible, and he
cancels the message and bans you from his
system, IT’S YOUR FAULT. And, it’s your place to
apologize for your illegal conduct.
There is no law in the world that prevents or
discourages the sysop from operating his personal
property the way he wants. The US Constitution
may guarantee freedom of speech, but it does not
provide for that at the expense of another’s
personal property or ethics. Don’t be a lid and
flame a sysop or fault him for keeping his system
clean and legal.
It is not only polite, but socially responsible, to
only post legal messages to a BBS and to periodi-
cally thank the sysop for spending the time and
money to freely provide his BBS for the local ham
community’s use. Your use of his PBBS system is
a privilege, not a right.
An On-The-Air Sample
Here’s a sample of a packet session beginning
with turning on the TNC, then listing, reading,
and replying to a personal message, killing the
message, sending a bulletin, and disconnecting
from the BBS. Remember, a BBS is a private
system. The sysop has set it up the way he likes,
so it may vary from the example.
/Text in bold is typed in by the user.
/Plain text is what the TNC displays.
/Plain italicized text is received from the BBS.
/<cr> means the user pressed the ENTER key

IA «the TNC is turned on - Sign

MFJ ENTERPRISES INC MODEL NO. MFJ-1278B on message from the TNC
MULTIMODE DATA CONTROLLER-Enhanced BBS telling program version, date,
AX.25 Level 2 Version 2.0 + Host Mode Release 4.1 09/ amount of memory.
17/93 - 32+32K RAM Multilevel «If the checksum changes, the
Checksum $66 TNC may need factory service.
cmd:MODE VP<cr> «mode is set to VHF Packet
Radio: | Terminal: 1200 Mode: Packet,1200 (VHF) cmd: «TNC displays status
«Connect to station HAMBBS
C HAMBBS<cr>
«the TNC automatically goes
cmd:*** CONNECTED to HAMBBS/N6BBS
into conversation mode - the
[MSYSB-1.17-BFHI$] command prompt disappears
Hello Klaus, Welcome to HAMBBS in Dallas, TX *«HAMBBS acknowledges
Enter command:
A,B,C,D,G,H,1,J,K,L,M,N,P.R,S,T, U,V,W,X,Y,?,* > «BBS options by letter
LM<cr> «List Mine request
msg# TR SIZE TO ___FROM_@BBS_ DATE _ TITLE «BBS lists one message for user
951 B#2837 WIAW K2DX N6BBS 941110 APRS/KC News 09NOV94

Enter command:
AEC, oR, LM,N,P, KS, 2,0, WA, 12,7 > «BBS command options
RM<cr> «Read Mine request
msg# TR_ SIZE TO FROM @BBS_ DATE TITLE
951 B# 2837 WIAW K2DX N6BBS 941110 APRS/KC News 09NOV94 «BBS shows how the message
Forwarding path: N6BBS KEOI WOXK KUOG got here (header and routing
From: K2DX@KU0G.ANWMO.MO.USA.NOAM To: APRS@MIDUSA
information) and then displays
Message via KUOG MULTI-server (v1.04) :
the message

Hi Klaus,
I am turning my attentions toward editing a nationwide
APRS Electronic Newsletter which will be issued about
twice monthly (depending on receipt of news items).
73, Bob K2DX @ KUOG «The BBS sends a command
Enter command: prompt and the options after
A,B,C,D,G,H,1,J,K,L,M,N,PR,S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,?,* > displaying the message
SR<cr> «Send Reply
Enter Title for the message (max 30 charaters)> «BBS prompt for title
I received your Message, Thanks<cr> user types in the title for reply
«BBS prompts for actual mes-
Enter message. Type /EX on a separate line to end>
sage. Notice the /EX to indicate
Thanks for the update. I’m looking forward to the<cr>
to the BBS that you're finished
typing. It won’t know other-
wise.
51
 newsletter as soon as it comes out. Are you going <cr>
to be writing it all yourself? Let me know.<cr>
«User includes his address 73, Klaus W1AW @ N6BBS<cr>
«The end of the body of the /EX<cr>
message is indicated with the
Message # 952 has been held for review by the sysop
code /EX
Enter command:
«BBS accepts the message for
delivery and prompts for fur- A\B;C,D:GALSKILMN.E.R.S, EU, V.WX.Y, 2:* >
ther options KM<cr>
«Kill Message command Message # 951 Deleted, Thank You
Enter command:
A,B,C,D,G,H,,J,K,L,M,N,PR,S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,?,* >
eList Last 5 bulletins LL 5<cr>
msg# tr size to FROM @BBS DATE _ TITLE
951 B#2837 WIAW K2DX N6BBS 941110 APRS/KC News 09NOV94
949 B$1325 WANT KC4IJE ALLUS 941110 Tower Needed
948 B$1423 WANT NSZPJ ALLUS 941110 Specs 4 RCA institute scope
947 B$6149 QUAKE W7IV ALLUS 941110 quakes for week of11-5-94
946 B$973 SALE KA3BIPUSA 941110 440 Mhz HT antennas
Enter command:
A,B,C, D,G,H,1,J,K,L,M,N,PR,S,T, U, V,W,X,¥, ?,* >
«Send Bulletin with topic SALE
SB SALE @ ALLUS<cr>
to the entire US (ALLUS)
«BBS prompt for message title Enter Title for the message (max 30 charaters)>
«User enters title of reply Kenwood TS-520S, $450, mint cond<cr>
«BBS prompts for message Enter message. Type /EX on a separate line to end>
«User enters body of message Mint condition with original box and manual. New<cr>
pressing the ENTER key at the tubes, recently factory tuned. $450 firm includes<cr>
end of each line. Finish with shipping all USA. Desk and hand mics included.<cr>
packet address and then the Call Klaus at (818) 555-1212 or reply on packet.<cr>
code /EX on its own line.
73, Klaus W1AW @ N6BBS<cr>
/EX<cr>
Message # 953 has been held for review by the sysop
«BBS accepts the message for Enter command:
delivery and prompts for fur- A,B,C,D,G,H,1,),K,L,M,N,P,R,S,T,U,V,WX,Y¥,?,* >
ther options B<cr>
«User enters B for ‘bye’
Good Bye Klaus, you have been connected 19m37s
«BBS disconnects from user
cmd:*** DISCONNECTED
«The TNC returns a command cmd:
prompt

All That Gobble-Di-Gook

If you have MCOM on, you'll see the commu-
nications between the TNC’s. It’s all greek to
human’s without computer chips for brains so
don’t worry about it. Okay, if you must know. RE)
stands for a rejected packet. RR means the receiv-
ing TNC is ready to receive another packet. There
are a number of others but, really, it’s useless and
boring. Sort of like watching grass sleep.

52
A Summary of the Basics
To begin, press CONTROL-C to get a com-
mand prompt (if you don’t have one already).
Then set the following:
/MYCall e.g. MYC WB1SAP<cr>
JIf you don’t see a thing when you type, then
enter ECHO ON <CR>
Jlf you see two characters for every one you
type, then enter ECHO OFF <CR>
/MONItor to on e.g. MONI ON<cr>
/Now, call the station you wish using the
connect command e.g. C KNSNAP
/If a connection is made, you'll see the ‘Con-
nected’ prompt. Start typing and press return
after each line. Enjoy.
/To disconnect, press CONTROL-C to get a
prompt, then press D. You should see a ‘Dis-
connected’ message.

If you connect to a station but there’s no

response, it may be a node or the station operator
is away at the moment. Disconnect and try again
later, or try another station.
If you want to call CQ, then enter
CONVersation mode (type CONV<cr>) and type
in your CQ. Don’t forget your callsign and <cr>
to send the text. Press CONTROL-C to get back
to the command prompt if you wish to do some-
thing else.

To use a digipeater (or any combination of

digipeaters), enter the callsign of the station you
wish to call followed by the digipeater path, e.g.,
C KD6EPD v K7ARM. This will try to connect to
KD6EPD via K7ARM, just like a voice repeater.

53
 The Packet
Children
Digital Evolution
=FI
cs
ia
In This Chapter
/PacTOR and AmTOR
/Getting Ready
/Sending CQ
J/Specific Protocols
/Where to Hangout
>PacTOR’s life as king of the
hill may be short lived with G-
TOR. Developed primarily by
one of the major TNC manu-
facturers, it has not been
accepted by other brands thus
limiting its widespread use.
Until it is adopted by both the
manufacturers and hams
equally, it will remain an ex-
perimental and relatively
unused mode. G-TOR is really
nothing more than another
variation on the AmTOR
theme. It builds on PacTOR by
using even longer packets of
data, by using a more powerful
data compression scheme and
by increasing the data speed.
This should equate to faster,
more reliable links.
54
‘i of their similarities, both AmTOR
and PacTOR will be covered in this chapter.
AmTOR stands for Amateur Teleprinting Over
Radio while PacTOR combines Packet and
AmTOR.
PacTOR utilizes a faster speed and longer
packets while maintaining the linked connection
and error-free characteristics of AMTOR.
PacTOR is a stronger, more reliable mode
since it does not just throw away flawed packets
of data, but retains them for comparison to other
flawed packets containing the same data. In this
manner, the PacTOR protocol constructs a good
packet from a number of flawed ones. On top of
that, PacTOR compresses the text such that two
to four times the amount of data will fit in one
packet versus a similar Packet packet. And, to
round things out, the PacTOR designers made it
smart. It will automatically slow down if there’s a
lot of noise on the band and speed up again
should things improve.
Getting Ready
Before you transmit on either AmMTOR or
PacTOR, you must set up your TNC with a few
tidbits of information. First, make sure your TNC
has your callsign straight. In PacTOR, your call
will be entered just as it actually is. In AMTOR,
however, you will use an abbreviated version
referred to as your selcall. It consists of four
letters of your call. If your call only has three
letters, then double one of them. If you find your
selcall is already in use by somebody else
(N5AAA is the same as N1AAA; NAAA), then
drop one letter and double another (instead of
NAAA, drop an A and double the N; NNAA).
Here are a few examples of a correctly chosen
selcall:
WD6ABC = WABC or WDAB
N3XYZ = NXYZ
A6YZ = AYZZ or AAYZ
AA6Z = AAZZ
Once you've chosen your selcall, let the TNC
know what it is by entering it at the command
prompt. If your call was N9UKE, then enter:
 SEL NUKE
You may have to be in AmMTOR mode to do
this. Refer to your manual for specifics.

Monitoring Other Transmissions

An AmTOR signal sounds like two birds
cheerfully chirping back-and-forth about one
second each. A PacTOR signal sounds similar to
an AmTOR chirp except there will be one side of
the link that is undoubtedly longer than the other.
For your first monitoring session, you will have
much better success if you tune in a strong signal
which is not being affected by noise or other
nearby stations.
JIssue the appropriate PacTOR or AmTOR mode
change command
/lssue a Receive or Listen command
/Properly tune in the signal
/Within 10 seconds, you should see text

Remember, you’re not linked, so errors are

inevitable. Your manual will tell you what will be
displayed when a flawed data packet is received.
AmTOR/PacTOR is quite sophisticated, though,
so you'll receive some text as long as the station
is tuned in.

Somebody, Please...
A CQ is sent unlinked and will sound to you
like RTTY. Be sure you’re in the desired mode
and you'll have no trouble receiving it. It’ll look
like this:

(PacTOR)CQ CQ CQ CQ de HBIQK HBIQK KN

(AmTOR)CQ CQ CQ de HBQK HBQK HB1QK KN

Copy down the station’s call sign. Notice that

in AmMTOR, both the selcall and the legal call
were given. When his transmission ends, issue
the connect command from the TNC command
prompt. Like this:

(PacTOR)C HB1QK<cr>
(AmTOR)C HBQK<cr>

Notice, in AmTOR you issue a connect to the

four letter selcall, NOT the full call. The TNC will
use the abbreviated version, YOU will use the

55
 full legal version during the actual conversation
as depicted below.
Once you've issued a connect command, your
TNC will begin keying up your transmitter in a
consistent stuttering fashion, and soon you'll see
CONNECTED displayed on your screen. Since
you issued the connect command, you will be in
control and the first to talk. After you see the
connected alert, simply begin typing like this:

(AmTOR)Hello, my name is Kevin. I’m in Miami Florida

and am 92 years old. BTU <cr>
HB1QK de AASZ KN +? <cr>

In AmTOR, the +2 at the end of your transmis-

sion is intercepted by your TNC and tells it that
you're done. The TNC then hands over control of
the link to the other station so he can talk.
Be sure to finish your turn by issuing the +?
command! Memorize this change-over command
before you get connected otherwise the poor ham
will just sit there waiting for you to dig through
your manual looking for it. Actually, either of you
can force a change-over of control by issuing a
force change-over command. Memorize that one
as well.
At the conclusion of the conversation, you
must arbitrarily decide who will drop the link.
Usually this is the one signing off last. Make sure
you've sent your callsign, then simply issue the
disconnect command. Here’s how:

Okay Giovanni. Good signals today and I really enjoyed our

chat. See you at the Opera.<cr>
73, TKI de N6bABW SK<cr>

/Issue a CONTROL-C to get the TNC prompt

/\Issue the disconnect command (see your manual)
/Wait until the DISCONNECTED alert is displayed

The transmitter will stop and the link will end.

Where to Hangout
Generally, AMTOR and PacTOR are used in
the same area of a band. Here are a couple of the
busiest spots to get you started.
3.6375 MHz 14.075 MHz
56
qa) Hey Ma,
Amateur Slow Scan Television (SSTV) has
come a long way from its days of black & white.
To receive a picture, you'd turned off the lights
Look at Me!
and huddle over a green CRT screen to watch
each picture appear over a period of 8.5 seconds Slow Scan
then slowly fade away. If the signal was strong, Television
you might even record the incoming picture on a
tape recorder then play it back later over the air.
Just writing about it sounds comical, but it was
still loads of fun.
Amateur Facsimile (Fax) is essentially the same
as SSTV, the only real difference is the higher
resolution of the picture and the significantly
greater length of time it takes to receive a picture.
Because it takes so long, it has not become very J History of SSTV
popular. We’ll refer to SSTV here, but the proce- / Where to See SSTV
dures can also be applied to Fax. / Hardware
/ Software Options
SSTV Theater Locations / Getting Set Up
When SSTV was first implemented, the FCC / Sending Pictures
suggested that SSTVers use the following frequen-
cies as gentlemen’s agreement. This agreement
still stands today. Please follow it.
Since SSTV signals take so long to transmit,
and can be annoying to other hams on nearby
frequencies (kind of like a Chihuahua barking),
SSTV is conducted on these frequencies which
non-SSTVers try to avoid by a polite 3KHz.

3.845 MHz 3. 857 MHz

7.171 MHz
14.230 MHz 14.233 MHz
21.340 MHz = 28.680 MHz
SSTV Net meets on 14.230 MHz every Saturday at 1500 &
1800 UTC.
A closed-circuit quality SSTV picture requires
a strong signal and no interference (QRM). On
20-meters the latter condition is rare. Some days
are good, and some are bad. There tends to be
more SSTV activity most evenings, and on Satur-
day and Sunday morning, so tune in and let’s see
how you look. In addition, there are SSTV con-
tests, both formal and informal. And, while the
>The quality of aSlow-Scan
picture is stated as being rela-
tive to a picture you’d see ona
closed-circuit security monitor.
If there’s no noise or other
interference (QRM) and the
signal is s7 (a reading of7 on
the S-meter) or better, then
you'll probably receive a per-
fect, or closed-circuit, picture.
If the picture isn’t perfect, it
may have some noise lines in it
caused by static crashes or
fading of the signal (QSB).
57

>Sked, hamese for schedule,
will simply make an appoint-
ment with another ham at a
predetermined time and fre-
quency. If you make a sked, do
your best to keep it. If you
can’t, either send him a mes-
sage via packet, or try to get
another ham to come up on
frequency and let the other
ham know you won't be there.
=If you own a Pentium 90 or
faster computer, then you
would do well to consider
some of the entirely software
driven options. You will need a
good quality sound and video
card in your computer as well.
ChromaPix is perhaps the most
sophisticated software SSTV
program. And, it’s inexpensive.
You simply plug your com-
puter sound card into your
radio and that’s it. The picture
quality is breathtaking and the
software allows you to grab
pictures (TWAIN support) and
add text and other special
effects. You can try out the
software for free as well. See
Appendix J for the URL.
58
SSTV aficionados are comparatively few, they are
a fun bunch ready for a good laugh.
FAX Frequencies
Amateur Fax is seldom encountered. As well
as regularly monitoring the following frequencies,
it may be more productive to put a message on
the packet BBS system asking others interested in
Fax to set up a sked with you.
7.245 MHz ~—«:14.245 MHz
21.345 MHz =.28.945 MHz
Fax Net on 21.345 MHz, Sundays at 1600 UTC
Equipment on the Wish List
With SSTV, as with most digital modes, there is
a great deal of experimentation taking place. As a
result there are a number of different systems
available. You can spend as little as $20 and
upwards to around $1200 depending on Mrs.
Santa’s disposition that year. Fortunately, picture
quality is not a product of price.
Though hotly debated, which SSTV system will
work best for you often boils down to opinion
and personal bias rather than a quantifiable,
measurable difference. Generally, all the systems
available provide adequate to excellent picture
quality, on both transmit and receive. Then, what
may be of greater concern then is:
/ Price
/Computer or other hardware already on hand
/ Portability
/Resale value
/ Upgradeability
If you already own a 80386 or better computer
(desktop or laptop), and have a cash limitation,
you should consider a software-based approach.
This approach will cost you anywhere from $20
to around $300 and will provide good to excel-
lent quality. You'll lose some of the more esoteric
bells and whistles, but by using other graphics
programs (like Graphics Workshop) you'll be able
to duplicate most of the features found on a top
end SSTV system.
The software based systems include Vester,
JVFAX, and Pasokon (which requires the use of a
user-installed computer expansion card which
negates its use on laptops.) The Vester, EZSSTV,
and JVFAX systems require the user to build a
simple circuit. These systems, while being inex-
pensive, are not very user friendly and have little
resale value, but are portable and upgradeable.
If you love the digital modes but are cash ‘lite’,
you may consider the MFJ-1278. Often thought of
as the dog of SSTV because it is software based
and the results are very poor quality.
The MFJ-1278(B) system is based on a multi-
mode TNC which demodulates all digital modes
including color SSTV and Fax. Unfortunately, the
supporting software sold by MF) results in barely
adequate picture quality, especially those con-
verted from a graphics program to the proprietary
SSTV format. It is quite user-friendly though and
plugs into the serial port of your computer.
For a person on a tight budget (keeping in
mind the resale value is about half the original
cost of $300) who requires a high degree of
portability and ALL mode capability, it is an
excellent choice. One can only hope that some-
where, software is being written that will take
advantage of the MFJ’s full 4096 color SSTV
potential.
The Robot 1200 system ,is considered the
pinnacle of SSTV hardware. Its capabilities are
unsurpassed as is the picture quality achieved. It
sells for over $1000 and is not particularly por-
table. It interfaces easily and well with a
computer, is relatively user friendly, has a good
resale value and is upgradeable with EPROMs.
You'll need to either purchase extra chips or
make sure the unit you purchase has the added
Scotty and Martin EPROM chips. Scotty1 is the Erasable, Programmable,
primary mode used on SSTV today. Read Only Memory, EPROM,
is a type of computer chip that
can be programmed using
Auxiliary Hardware special equipment. The advan-
But wait - That’s not all! You want to send tage is that you can quite easily
pictures as well don’t you?! No piece of hardware upgrade the capabilities of an
will allow you to transmit a picture of yourself, or expensive piece of hardware
your house or your dog. You must have a camera by simply adding or replacing
for that. Without one, you can transmit clipart, or a single chip. The Scotty and
other forms of pictures already on your computer Robot modes can be added to
(like CD-ROM or Kodak CD pictures). Or, you the Robot 1200 by adding an
EPROM.
could even forego a camera and buy a scanner,
take regular photos, develop them and then scan
them in. But you'll lose the ‘live’ scenario ability

59

>Digital cameras are perhaps
the most convenient choice
assuming you don’t already
have a camera. Though they
can be expensive, by shopping
carefully, you can usually find
one for less than $200. Digital
cameras usually come with
software that allows you to
dump your pictures directly to
your computer. You'd then
load them into either your
photo editing software to add
some special effects (like your
callsign) or directly into your
SSTV software ready to send. If
you're getting a camera spe-
cially for SSTV, remember,
quality here isn’t like a photo-
graph, so don’t overspend on a
high-end camera — no one
will be able to tell the differ-
ence whether you spend $200
or $2000. Another point to
remember is that digital cam-
eras do not need a
frame-grabber so you'll save
some money there.
>A frame-grabber is a hard-
ware device that will grab a
single frame of a moving pic-
ture. Whether you're using a
VCR or a camcorder, you'll
have to use a frame grabber to
convert the moving pictures
into a single picture.
>Debugging a computer sys-
tem or a ham radio setup is a
systematic elimination of prob-
lems. Some problems are as
pesky as bugs, but you’ve got
to get them out and debug the
system so it works right.
60
(“Hey Bill, let me send you a picture of what my
cat just dragged in!”)
Your camera can be a camcorder, a live video
camera (such as used in security monitoring), or
a digital still-framme video camera. Even the very
popular Connectix Quick-Cam can be used.
If you already have a camcorder you will save
hundreds of $$$ by using it. However, no matter
what camera you use, you have to get the picture
into your computer. For this you'll need a frame-
grabber and software. Some still-frame cameras
include a built-in transfer system. Some SSTV
hardware does too. If you’re using an A/V
equipped PowerPC Macintosh computer, you
can use its built-in frame-grabber and software.
So, to boil it all down, to operate amateur
SSTV or Fax, you'll need:
/Camera ($300 and up)
/Frame-grabber (built-in or $200 and up)
/Computer (80386/25 MHz or better)
/SSTV (hardware or software)
So, What Now!
Okay, say you already own a camcorder
which has RCA (composite) outputs that you plug
into your VCR or TV. Good, you've got a camera.
You also own an older 386/33 that the kids
have condemned as being too slow for their
Invaders of the Planet Gloop game. Good, you've
got a computer.
You're also on a budget since you're trying to
educate your beloved warriors of the planet
Gloop. And, you don’t want to build or debug
anything. Fine. Your best alternative is to buy a
Pasokon system, install it in an empty expansion
slot of your derelict computer. Then you're all set
to receive SSTV for around $300. If you want to
send ‘live’ pictures as well, you'll have to fork
out another $200 or so for a frame-grabber that
will plug into another empty expansion slot.
If you're on a budget and want an SSTV system
that will plug into your laptop and be truly
portable, and you don’t want to build anything,
then the MFJ or AEA system is what you'll need
for about $300. A portable frame-grabber to use
with your camcorder will cost you another $300.
 Even better would be a 16-bit sound card
installed in your Pentium laptop or desktop
computer. Then you could use a software option
such as Chroma-Pix for $120. One of the best
solutions around for a very reasonable price.
Or, you want the best. Fine. Buy a Robot 1200
system with Scotty and Martin EPROMs added for
around $1200. Add a Pentium computer, camera,
and image software (Graphics Workshop, etc.) for
another $2,000 - $4,000. Your entry into the
annual St. Patricks Day ‘Best SSTV Picture’
contest will be a delight to see. Let's review the camera
options. There are three:
On the other end, you could build a Vester
circuit for about $20 and, with your computer, be 1- A film camera and scanner
on the air! You'll still need a camera and frame- 2- A digital camera
3- A video camera and frame-
grabber or a digital camera if you want to send grabber.
‘live’ pictures.
That’s all there is to it. It does make it more fun The easiest to use and set up is
if you use image software such as the Shareware a digital camera. It is also the
Graphics Workshop, the commercial cheapest in the long run.
PhotoFinish®, or even Windows™ Paintbrush.
You can then add words, your call sign, combine
pictures, or share your latest artistic masterpiece.

| Can SEE!
Plug everything in, read the manuals, and tune
to 14.230 or 14.233 during the day. Tuning is
critical on SSTV, so make sure you’re exactly on
frequency (when the transmitting station begins
talking, tune so his voice sounds perfectly nor-
mal). Once you're tuned in, you'll begin
receiving your first picture. Receive for a couple
of days and learn about your equipment before
you try transmitting.
It’s appropriate to let the SSTVers sending
pictures know that you’re viewing. You can ask
questions or ask for a repeat if you need it. Don’t
ask for a repeat if you’re still learning to adjust
your equipment; wait for the next picture. Do ask
for a repeat if you missed it and you've been
asked to comment on it. A single SSTV image
takes on the order of minutes to transmit so don’t
waste air time with unnecessary repeats.
When you have a suitable picture ready to
transmit (you'll get plenty of ideas from your on-
air viewing) and it’s your turn to send a picture,

61
It’s as if a bunch of guys are
sitting around a table and
each takes a turn talking in
order around the table. On
the air, either there’s a leader
who specifies in what order
everyone talks, or you just
jump in when you have
something to say, or... there
are numerous variations to
roundtables, but there is also
an etiquette to follow. Listen
carefully and you'll see.
Antenna
===I Amateur Radio
| (0 Transceiver
SSTV using the Pasokon or some
other expansion card
Antenna
Amateur Radio
Transceiver
Computer Robot 1200
SSTV setup using the Robot 1200
stand-alone unit
Antenna
Amateur Radio
Transceiver
SSTV using a multimode TNC or
an interface such as the Vester
system
62
simply announce your call and in what mode
you'll be transmitting the picture.
If there is a roundtable going, this is not the
time to send your first-ever picture. You may have
RF bleeding into your system or some other
problem and you don’t want to waste
everybody's time with a garbled picture. Work
out any problems with another ham first, then
everyone will have fun sharing your pictures.
So Many Modes, So Little Time
Don’t let the numerous modes intimidate you.
The easiest way to start is with Scotty1. It is by far
the most widely used mode. Begin with that and
play with the other modes once you've become
proficient and comfortable using SSTV.
It’s that easy. Here are a few examples:
Harmonic from the Ham Shack:
SSTV using a software-based
Antenna / SSTV converter and a digital
Amateur Radio camera. The camera uploads
| Transceiver its pictures directly to the
computer. The SSTV soft-
ware (like ChromaPix) works
Digital through the sound card
Came which sends the audio to the
microphone input and
speaker output of the radio.
=These SSTV examples were
all received off the air from
stations in Canada, the USA,
and DX stations. The receiving
location was the deep south of
the USA. The original pictures
were in full color. None of
these are ‘closed-circuit’ in
quality, but are close.
Equipment used was a long-
wire antenna tuned with an
automatic antenna tuner, an
Icom IC-735 transceiver, a
Pentium 120 MHz laptop
computer with built-in 16bit
sound card, and ChromaPix
SSTV software.

=In the area of the picture

adjacent, you'll see some war-
bling and noise in the picture
lines. This is due to static.
When the transmitting station’s
signal fades a bit, you will hear
the background noise get
louder. You'll see this increase
in the apparent loudness of the
static as a warbling of the pic-
ture lines or as random dots in
the picture.

63
 Electricity
An Invisible
Super Hero
In This Chapter
J/What is Electricity
/ How it Works
/What it Does
/Current & Volts
/ Resistance
>A resistor slows down the
flow of electrons.
>A capacitor can be thought
of as a tiny, severely-limited,
battery that stores electrons on
one side just like a big battery.
>An inductor acts much like a
tiny, severely limited, battery
as well, except it converts the
electrons from an electrical
entity into a ‘halo’ of magnetic
energy, then, when it’s needed,
it collapses the ‘halo’ magnetic
field, and converts it back into
electrons.
>A transistor is a valve or
switch. It can be used to turn
the flow of electrons on or off,
or to limit or accentuate the
flow in a controlled fashion.
64
\
N), one can tell you exactly what electricity
is. But, we'll try anyway.
It is the orderly flow of electrons migrating
from a source of excess electrons to a region of
depleted electrons. There, doesn’t that clear
things up? It’s sort of like the wind, we can see
it’s effects, we can even harness it and use it to
great advantage, but you can’t see IT, you can’t
touch IT, you can’t taste IT, smell IT, or even hear
IT. Electricity is just like that.
An atom is made up of a center ball called the
nucleus and an outer shell made up of electrons
called the electron cloud. The nucleus and the
electron cloud have an equal charge, or attrac-
tion, for each other — that’s why they stick so
closely together.
It’s the Dating Game
If you had 5 boys and 5 girls and one girl left
the group — how long do you think the lonely
boy would be satisfied to stay lonely? Not long!
He’d scout around to find another girl. That’s
how an atom works. When it loses an electron,
the equal attraction between the nucleus and the
electron cloud becomes unequal and the atom
begins looking for a free electron to fill the void.
A battery is simply a storage box into which
we force a bunch of free electrons to stay on one
side, and we force atoms who are missing an
electron to stay on the other. When we connect a
wire from one side to the other, we provide a
path along which the free electrons can migrate
over to the other side where they can attach
themselves to the electron-deficient atoms.
Of course, as a proper parent, you want to
control the manner and speed at which these
‘attachments’ occur. In an electrical circuit we
use resistors, capacitors, inductors, transistors,
and many other parts, each exerting a specific
type of control over the flow of electrons.
Electrons always flow in an orderly fashion.
They ALWAYS flow to or toward an atom. This is
because an electron has a negative charge of 1
(one) and is a single, free entity.
 Remember a whole atom has a zero charge; >A negative plus a positive
hence, no attractiveness. However, when it loses cancel each other out: -1+1=0
an electron (the negative part), it doesn’t lose any | 0% ~5+5=0. But if we losea
of its nucleus (the positive part). It therefore has tte
result have more positives then
more positives than negatives so the total effect is
negatives, we end up with a
positive. And positives attract negatives (don’t ask positive result: -4+5=+1
which are the girls and which are the boys.)

Fat & Slow — Thin & Fast

The atom, consisting of many pieces, is
heavier and slower than a single electron so it
waits for an electron to find it. The positive atom
attracts a negative electron. Electricity flows from
negative toward positive.
Once the electron and atom meet, the atom
once again becomes neutral and no longer
attracts anything. When all the atoms have found
a mate, the battery is dead.
Simple, isn’t it? Well, that’s all you need to
know to grasp the basic theory behind all elec-
tronics. You'll soon be hooking up your radios,
putting up antennas, and explaining it all to your
neighbors. Whoa! Not quite so fast. In order to
turn those highly-attractive electrons into produc-
tive citizens, we must put some parental control
on the process. We'll see how math solves the
problem in Chapter 13.

Meanwhile,
Out in the Garden...
Suppose you're out watering your lawn.
You’ve turned the water faucet on about halfway
and you've covered the end of the garden hose
with your thumb. You vary the pressure with your
thumb to force the water into a fan shape, or a
far-reaching jet for the corners, or just let the
water flow freely around your feet.
From high school physics, you may remember
(no need to be able to visualize or even compre-
hend the underlying principles of molecular
cohesion or atomic forces, etc.) that water as we
know it and use it is a collection of individual
molecules. Electricity is exactly the same — a
collection of like-minded individuals. So, for the
sake of our analogy, we'll call the water coming
out of our garden hose ‘electricity’. The garden
hose itself is the wire the electricity flows along,
and the grass, plants and soil in our garden form

65
 the electric circuit since they soak up or absorb
the water (electricity).
Let’s further say the water source (battery) is
not the regular city water system, but a tank
sitting on the roof of your house.
Now, you can cause resistance to the water
flow (current) by applying various amounts of
thumb pressure (resistor) on the end of the hose
(wire). You can even put enough pressure to stop
the water flow completely. But, you would
probably put just the right amount so as to water
the garden without either soaking it and emptying
the tank too fast, or taking so long that the plants
die under your feet. Your thumb (resistance)
controls the water flow (current) and indirectly,
the water pressure (voltage).

We're Getting Wet...

The amount of water coming out of the hose is
equivalent to what we call electrical current.
Anything that slows down, or restricts that flow is
called a resistor. The force that pushes the water
out of the hose, in this case the water above our
heads in the tank on the roof, is analogous to
what we call Electromotive Force (EMF) which is
measured in volts and is commonly referred to as
the voltage.
In our garden example, you could directly
affect the force of the water coming out by
changing the height of the tank of water. If you
put the tank below your hand height, no water
would come out at all. If you put it a hundred feet
up in the air, the force of all that water backed up
a hundred feet high would be pretty hard for your
thumb to hold back. You’d need a more powerful
thumb (not a bigger one — the hole in the end of
Electricity the hose hasn’t changed).
The higher the tank of water the greater the
Higher Tank Higher Voltage
force of the water coming out — the higher the
Less Thumb- Less Resistance
voltage the greater the force of the electricity.
more water more current The less restrictions on the flow of the water
through the hose, the more water that comes out
More Thumb- More Resistance the end and into the garden — the less resistance
less water less current
on the flow of electricity, the more current that is
used up in the electric circuit.
The more you press your thumb on the end of
the hose the less water gets out — the more

66
resistance you put in the path of the electricity,
the less electricity gets through.
You could reverse the flow of water and if you
did it fast enough you'd have an alternating flow
(alternating current—AC). If you did it only once
you'd have a reversed DC current just like when
you reverse the red and black wires on a battery.
A Day in the Sun to Dry Off...
Let’s examine another example to help solidify
the concept. Just remember, it is an abstract
concept, but you understand what wind or
sunlight is and electricity is nearly identical in
principle. Don’t sweat it.
Let’s say you have a window that is covered =The window is a channel
by a venetian blind. To simplify the picture, (wire) through which the sun-
light must travel to reach its
pretend that the blind is a single, very big slat. In
destination
the morning when the sun shines directly through
the window, as you crank that one slat open, at
first, only a small sliver of sunlight appears on the
wall opposite. You can’t see the sun’s rays as
they speed past the blind over to the wall but
you can see what happens to them when they hit
the wall; they cause a bright spot to appear.
Again, you can’t see the sun’s rays, you can’t
directly touch, smell, or hear them, but you can
see what they do and you can feel them warm up
your skin. You can even put them to work for you
in the form of solar cells, solar water heaters,
water purifiers, etc.
Now, as you open that blind more, the spot on >If you view the blind directly
the wall gets bigger until it becomes the size of on, it will appear to get smaller
the window. You are directly controlling the size as you open it up until it is
of the bright spot by controlling the amount of fully open and looks like a
rays coming through the window. The blind is small horizontal line.
acting like a resistor by inhibiting the free flow of
sunlight through the window. By changing the
blind’s size, you are directly controlling the
amount of resistance in the path of the sunlight.
We can’t change the speed of the sunlight but
we can change the amount flowing through the
window.
You can’t control the speed of electrons but
you can change (with resistance) the amount
(current) flowing through the wires into the
circuit. How hard it pushes through the wires is
called voltage.
67

>In this example, the wall is
the circuit since it is ‘using’ the
sun’s rays. We know this be-
cause the wall becomes warm
to the touch. The energy flow-
ing through the window is put
to work in the form of heat.
An electrical circuit uses the
energy supplied to it via its
wires by producing sound or
radio transmissions.
>The amount of electricity
flowing through a wire is
called the current and is
measured in amps.
68
Triplets — A Bundle of Energy
You see, the three elements, resistance, Current
and voltage, are inseparable; if you have one, you
have them all.
Even a piece of wire has resistance, so we can
calculate the effect of it on the electricity flowing
through it. Remember in our sunlight example,
the window was analogous to a wire and we used
the venetian blind to exert a controlled amount of
resistance on the flow of sunlight through the
window. If we wanted a small amount of light,
we simply put a large amount of resistance in the
path by closing the blind. If we wanted all the
light, we simply removed the resistance from the
path and let the full amount of sunlight enter the
window. But, what if we wanted more? We’d
have to cut out a bigger window. Even the win-
dow exerted a limit on the amount of sunlight
that could pass. The window then had its own
limiting resistance. Similarly, an electrical wire
places a limit on the the flow of electrons. It can
only pass so much electricity until it reaches its
limit. Pass that limit, and it'll probably melt.
The point of all this is that Ohm’s Law, as we'll
see in the next chapter, is the most fundamental
principle in electronic theory. Ohm’s Law math-
ematically combines the three elements of
resistance, current, and voltage. In order to
understand and properly apply Ohm’s Law, one
must first understand what these elements are and
how they interact with each other.
It all becomes relevant when you're hooking
up your HF transceiver in your car — you must
select the correct size wire to carry enough
electricity from the battery to the radio without
melting the wire or losing too much voltage.
Ohm’s Law is the tool to figure it all out.
(>a that even wires are part of a
Ohm’s Law
circuit since they form part of the path along
which electrons flow, so Ohm’s Law applies to Obey It, or Face
them as well. Also, remember that resistors, true the Electric Chair
to their name, resist the flow of electrons. The
electrons push so hard that a few even die.
Hence, fewer come out than went in. Ohm’s Law
will tell us in terms of voltage what was lost to
the wire’s resistance. The lost volts will be equal
to the amount of current multiplied by the wire’s
resistance:

E (lost volts)=2amps x |.5ohms

B=2 315
/Applying Ohm’s Law
E(Lost Volts)=3
/ The Power Law

Therefore the voltage lost or dropped equals 3

volts DC. The battery (where the electrons started
from) is 13.8 VDC, and, along the way, it drops
by 3VDC. So, when we subtract what was lost
(13.8VDC - 3VDC = 10.8VDC) we find a sur-
prise. We don’t have enough left to run the radio!
There are two solutions:
1) make the wires shorter (so the electrons
don’t have to fight such a long distance)
2) use bigger wires (more room to travel;
hence, an easier trip — just like on the freeway).
Another commonly used law is PIE (as in
apple pie). Power equals current (I) times voltage
(E). P=I*E. Use PIE to calculate how much current
your radio will use and from that calculate how
long the battery will last. Let’s say your HT has
an output of 2 watts and uses a 10 volt battery.
Power is 2 watts. Voltage is 10volts. Use P=I*E.
2=I*10. Algebra tells us we can rework the
equation for |: 1=2/10 or current = 1/5amps
which is 200milliamps. If the battery is a 1
amp/hour battery, then it will last at least 5 hours.
+E=IR_ is the mathematical
form of Ohm’s Law. In English
it reads: Voltage (E) in the cir-
cuit equals Current flow (I)
multiplied by the Resistance in
the circuit (R).
=The Mho, like it’s spelled, is
the opposite of the Ohm. It is a
measure of Conductance. The
conductance of a circuit is the
opposite (in math it’s the recip-
rocal) of its resistance. The
formula for the Mho is the
reciprocal of the resistance:
Mho=1/R
In our example, the resis-
tance of the power leads was
1.5 Ohms. The conductance
then is:
Mho=1/1.5=.75

Here’s a handy way to use the equations. The conductance of the

Cover the letter you want, then plug in the
numbers you have. With Ohm’s law, if you want
| (current), then divide E
(volts) by R (resistance.) If
you wanted to find Power
power leads is .75 Mhos.
A Mho of infinity is a perfect
conductor (doesn’t exist on this
planet). A Mho of 1 equals 1
Ohm of resistance.

ie? itervera f
ieee
Itipl

69
 Using the
Theory
Short Vertically
Challenged
Circuits
In This Chapter
/Soldering Irons
/Testing Tools
/ How to Test
/ Discrete Components
>VOM is pronounced by
saying the letters “V-O-M”. It is
redundant and incorrect to say
“V-O-M Meter” as that would
be saying “Volt-Ohm-Meter
Meter”.
>A soldering iron can be used
for woodburning or other hob-
bies, but it should be dedicated
to that use. If you were to use
the iron for other purposes,
then use it to fix your radio,
residue buildup on the tip of
the iron will significantly re-
duce the heat-transfer from the
tip to the component being
soldered.
70
: © Whough the days of build-it and fix-it your-
self are virtually gone, we can still, given the
knowledge, with relative ease and confidence,
install our radios and antennas, and repair many
of their common ailments. We've covered
Ohm's law and basic electricity. In this chapter,
we'll take a look at the equipment used to test
and diagnose where all those electrons are going.
There are two basic repair tools that every
amateur should never find himself without. They
are the soldering iron and the VOM. Along with a
discussion of the proper use of these two tools
we'll look at other tools the amateur might find
useful.
The soldering iron is the most useful and basic
repair tool in the electronics user’s toolbox. It is
also the most misused. The purpose of a soldering
iron is to melt metals of various compositions, but
mainly those alloys made primarily of lead.
To use your soldering iron to melt wax, heat
up a cup of coffee, or practice wood burning is
not only unsafe, but it will reduce the effective-
ness of the iron when subsequently used to solder
electrical components.
When you purchase your soldering iron, make
sure it has a replaceable tip. Unless you want
your iron to serve more than one purpose, you do
not need a replaceable or changeable element;
that feature will only add to the cost of the unit.
The life of a replaceable element is the same as
the life of a standard soldering iron, and a re-
placement element will cost more than a standard
iron when it burns out and needs replacing.
What Size Is Right?
The size or wattage you need depends entirely
on what you plan to solder. If you use an iron that
is too hot for the job, you will literally melt the
innards of the component being soldered, melt
the glue affixing the copper circuit patterns to the
circuit board, or you'll melt the insulation on the
wire being soldered. Following is a list of maxi-
mum recommended wattages:
 J 15-watt for IC chips, or miniaturized circuits >A deviation of +/-5 watts
/ 25-watt for general circuit board soldering from the suggested wattages is
/45-watt for coaxial connectors & BIG wires acceptable.
/100-watt ONLY for 10awg wire and larger

Soldering Iron Stands

While you’re purchasing the correct soldering >=Tip style is just as important
iron, you should also buy a soldering iron stand. as iron wattage. Below are
shown the two general tip
It may seem like a superfluous item but it will shapes. The conical shape is
save your rug, not to mention your lap, on a daily the correct one to use for all
basis. The standard die-cut flimsy stands sold electronics work. The spade
with every soldering iron do not have the weight shape is useful for heating
necessary to hold the approximately 700 degree large areas such as very large
iron motionless. If you should merely bump the wires, coaxial connectors
iron’s electrical cord, it will jump off your desk (though conical shapes will do
and onto your lap, quickly vaporizing items adequately as well). Realisti-
you'd prefer remained... well, you get the idea. cally, you won’t need or
effectively use the spade
Proper soldering iron stands have a protective shape; don’t get it.
coil shield around the firmly held iron so even
when the cat lovingly brushes by, he won’t be
branded. And, don’t shortchange yourself. Get
one that has a sponge in the stand base.

Tip Selection and Maintenance

Every 10 minutes or less you should get in the
habit of wiping the tip of the iron on the wet
sponge in a twirling motion which swipes the
entire tip surface. Keeping the tip clean of burned
rosin and other melted debris will markedly
lengthen the life of the tip, thus saving you Conical Spade
unnecessary replacement costs. or Pencil
When you purchase the iron, it is a good idea
to purchase a couple of new tips as well. Each tip
will last you about 3-4 months when used daily.
After you’ve plugged your new iron in and it’s
warmed up, tin the tip. Tinning is done by melt-
ing liberal amounts of solder on the tip up to
about a 12-inch back. Inspect your tinning care-
fully as it must fully cover the tip area. If there are
any voids in the tinning job, the untinned areas
will not adequately transfer heat and you'll end
up with overheated components. >It’s time to replace the tip
before it looks like this:
The Art of Soldering
The purpose of solder is to provide an unbro-
ken, low-resistance, joint for electrons to travel
71
 along. Solder has no appreciable physical
strength and, over a period exceeding 10-25
years, may become brittle or even crumbly. This
type of deterioration generally occurs when the
soldered connections have been subject to
moisture, excessive vibration (i.e, up against
your Car engine), or constant extremes in tem-
perature.
Electrical solder is generally made up of 60%
lead and 40% tin. It is extruded during the manu-
facturing process like long, unbroken pieces of
macaroni and the middle is filled with rosin.
Rosin comes from tree sap and is also used by
violinists when “rosining up the bow.”
You should actively avoid breathing the smoke
generated by soldering. The burning rosin smoke
contains unburned rosin vapor which will stick to
the insides of your lungs and may cause breathing
Good Bad or problems down the road if inhalation occurs on a
joint cold joint regular basis.
A proper solder joint is one that is heated the
_ cut here | least amount necessary while achieving good
kaa a
molten solder flow to the joint. On electronic
components, you should not touch the soldering
iron to the joint for longer than 5-7 seconds. If
you find yourself keeping the iron tip to the joint
longer than that, you're either doing something
wrong, the tip is improperly tinned or needs
replacing, or you’re using an iron that is too small
for the job. With the proper wattage iron, it is
just the joint that is heated and soldered quickly.
With an undersized iron, the joint and its at-
tached components act like heat sinks sucking
>Note how the solder flows the heat away from the iron while not allowing
smoothly around, and on, all
the joint to become hot enough to solder and
surfaces of a good joint. This
joint is on the surface of a
dangerously overheating the components in the
circuit board and the leads of a mean time.
capacitor. For small circuit board jobs, you should use
the smallest size solder. This way you won't be so
likely to melt too much solder onto the joint. It
will also melt faster thereby allowing you to
solder more quickly and reduce the chance of
overheating the components.
Here are the steps to soldering correctly:
/ Clean the tip
/ Melt some fresh solder (and rosin) on the tip
/ Touch both sides of the joint to be soldered
72
.
 /After 1 second, gently touch the soldering iron
tip with the solder
/ Watch the joint carefully, you'll see the solder
begin to flow like water into the joint Cold Joint
/ Apply the solder to the joint until it flows evenly AEM
over the entire joined area
/Remove iron from joint yy

The entire process shouldn’t last more that 3-5 ee

seconds. Globing the solder up around the joint
won't do any good. That is called a cold joint
because the joined surfaces were too cold (not
heated sufficiently) to create proper adhesion.
You cannot force the solder to flow. When it
flows, and it will of its own accord, then you've
got a good connection.
A cold joint is no good simply because it does
not provide a proper electrical or physical con-
nection. The inside of the joint will corrode over
time and the joint will eventually fall apart.
Good joint
>If you have a cold joint, heat
the joint again and apply only
the tiniest bit of solder to in-
sure a good joint. Or you can
remove the old solder with a
solder sucker or Solder Wick,
then resolder. Either method is
prone to overheating the joint
so BE CAREFUL and QUICK.

Your Basic VOM

The VOM (Volt-Ohm Meter) is a must in every
>A VOM is a meter that
Amateur Radio operator’s tool kit. A simple unit
measures the voltage or resis-
can be purchased for as little as $20, while an tance of an electrical circuit or
elaborate test bench may use a computer model device.
costing a few thousand dollars.
>In the days of vacuum tubes,
When purchasing a VOM, the main specifica- the predecessor to the modern
tion to scrutinize is the input impedance. This VOM was called a VTVM —
figure tells you how much the meter will affect Vacuum-Tube Volt Meter.
the device being tested. The less the device is >Reactance is the same as
affected, the more accurate your resulting resistance. Except that resis-
measurement will be. tance applies to resistors and
The higher the input impedance, the less the reactance applies to inductors
and capacitors. It is measured
VOM will affect the device being tested. Inexpen-
in ohms.
sive ($20) VOMs generally have an input
impedance of 1000 ohms (1K ohms), while more >=Impedance is the combina-
expensive ($50) unit will have a FET input circuit tion of resistance and
reactance. Any circuit that has
with an input impedance of around 10,000,000
a combination of resistors and
ohms (10 megaohms). capacitors/inductors produces
VOMs use either digital or analog readouts. impedance rather than resis-
Digital VOMs are generally smaller and use less tance or reactance. Impedance
battery power. Analog meters are generally is measured in ohms.
bigger, less rugged, use more battery power, but >A FET (Field Effect Transistor)
are better for observing measurements that is nothing more than a sophis-
depend on a trend. For example, one measure of ticated transistor. It is
the quality of an electrolytic capacitor is to commonly used at the input
device in VOMs.
73
An analog circuit deals with
a variety of conditions, not
only on and off but everything
in-between as well. An ex-
ample of an analog circuit is a
stereo-amplifier. All sounds
from very soft to very loud are
played. A digital circuit works
only on digital signals — sig-
nals that are either on or off.
These two states are also re-
ferred to as high or low. Morse
code is a digital signal. Dots
and dashes are on while the
spaces are off. Another ex-
ample is a doorbell. Buzzzz or
silence; nothing in between.
=While a VOM is designed to
measure volts and ohms (resis-
tance), a LCR (inductance,
Capacitance, Resistance) meter
measures reactive values. L is
the mathematical symbol for
inductance.
>A display becomes meaning-
ful when it reads enough
nonzero digits to be useful;
normally two or more digits.
74
observe the rate at which it charges. This is done
by setting the VOM on a high resistance scale
and attaching the probes to the electrolytic
capacitor under test. Be sure to observe polarity.
A large capacitor (1000mfd or more) will show a
slow (many seconds) increase in resistance. This
increase is easy to observe and diagnose on an
analog meter, while it is very tricky, even impos-
sible, on a digital meter.
VOMs can now be purchased with capaci-
tance value scales, transistor checking, diode
checking, even frequency counters built in. If you
plan to get an LCR meter, you don’t need to
spend the extra money on a VOM that has a
capacitance scale. However, the diode and
transistor checking is a good feature to have if
you want to build or do any serious repair or
diagnostic work.
Using a VOM is quite simple. Make sure
you’re using the correct measurement range (and
reading the correct scale on an analog meter). If
you're unsure which range is appropriate for the
circuit under test (if you’re measuring a DC or AC
voltage for example) ALWAYS use the highest
setting on your meter to start with. If that range is
too high, then disconnect the test probes from the
circuit, lower the range by one setting, and retest.
Continue this procedure until the reading be-
comes meaningful.
Be sure to double check polarity when making
tests on polarity sensitive devices. These include:
/ Transistors
/ Electrolytic and Tantalum Capacitors
J Integrated Circuits
This list is not all-inclusive — learn about
unknown component types before subjecting
them to any testing regimen.
To Testa Resistor:
/ Select the proper range on your VOM based on
the resistor’s color coding.
/ Touch the test probes to each end of the resis-
tor. The red probe should be plugged into the
Positive (High, Pos or ‘+’) post and the black
 into the Ground (Gnd or ‘-’) post. Posts on a VOM or any
/ The resistor is good if its measured value is meter can be of any number of
within the tolerance specified by the color styles. Don’t expect them to
bands look like ‘Posts’.

For example. A resistor has color bands of

black, brown, brown, silver. It’s rated then at 100 Component color coding is
ohms +/- 5%, thus its measured value can be covered -indletaibindh= ARBs
anything from 95 ohms to 105 ohms. Amateur Radio Handbook. See
Appendix A.
To Test a Capacitor:
/ Select the proper range based on color coding,
imprinted value, or best-guess.
/ Touch the test probes to each side of the
capacitor observing polarity (+ to + and - to; -) if Electrolytic capacitors are
necessary. Probes are plugged in as for resistors polarized and are used prima-
or, if provided, in the capacitance posts. rily in power supplies and
/If the reading is okay (it reads reasonably close) audio amplifier circuits.
then check the resistance of the capacitor. It »Reasonably close for a ca-
should reach infinity, but may not. Close is pacitor can be as much as +/-
okay. If the reading doesn’t reach over-range on 25% of the rated value.
a medium (100k or so) range, then the capacitor Check your manual to find
is bad. Period. out what the ‘over-range’ or
. infinity indication is on your
To Test a Diode: ae ‘
J Test as for a resistor except use the Diode
setting. If no diode setting use the 5k or so
setting.
J Test the diode first with the red probe touching
the left side, then test with the black probe
touching the left side (the other probe on the
opposite side, of course). In one orientation, the
meter will read infinity and in the other orienta- >A reading from 0 to about
tion, it will read 0 (zero) or close to it. Other- 500 ohms is acceptable.
wise, the diode is bad.

To Test an Inductor:
The test procedure is identical to a resistor,
except you'll be reading inductance instead of
resistance.

Other Pieces of Test Equipment

LCR meters are now readily available at prices
most can afford. They are more expensive than
VOMs but their technology is equally more
sophisticated. Choose an LCR with smaller ranges
rather than larger. Most of the components
amateurs test are smaller. To an amateur opera-
tor, there is little real difference whether the unit
75
>An analog meter uses a real
meter to read measurements
from. It’s called analog be-
cause what is read is directly
analogous to what is tested —
the analog meter shows you
everything.
>A digital meter uses 3 or 4
digits to display the tested
results and it’s referred to as
being digital because it doesn’t
tell you everything inbetween.
For example, if the meter said
.001, does that mean .0005 or
.0015? You don’t know and
can’t tell because the meter
doesn’t tell you inbetween
values. Remember, digital
information is that which is
either on or off, there’s no in-
between.
>CRT stands for Cathode Ray
Tube. All tube-type displays
use a CRT. TVs, radar screens,
computer monitors, and touch
screens at discount store auto
departments all use CRT dis-
plays. CRTs are about the only
‘Tubes’ left in common use.
76
is a 3 or 4 digit meter, or whether it measures up
to 3.999 or 1.999 on the meter. The different
measurement ranges will take care of those
variations.
An LCR meter is not a necessary piece of test
equipment unless you are building or repairing
on a fairly sophisticated level (not just power
supplies).
For the amateur who really wants to get into
his computerized commercially-built radios, a set
of digital probes is very useful. Some VOMs have
digital probes built in. However, the stand-alone
units are usually more functional.
A measurement probe will provide you basic
information on the digital state of the circuit
under question. An injection probe will inject a
selected digital signal into a circuit so you can
observe how it is altered by the circuit.
An AF (Audio Frequency) signal generator is
similar to a digital probe except it injects an
audio waveform into a circuit. It is useful if you
will be testing audio or analog circuits.
An RF (Radio Frequency) signal generator is
even more useful and more expensive than its
audio counterpart. However, you'll only need it if
you are tuning and aligning receiver circuits.
Most amateurs own and use a frequency
counter. Most modern radios use a digital readout
to display the frequency. This display is also a
type of frequency counter. A stand-alone fre-
quency counter is useful since it generally has a
much greater range from the lowest amateur
bands up into the VHF or UHF spectrum. This
makes it much more versatile on top of the fact
that it is generally more accurate.
The most useful and most expensive piece of
test equipment an amateur may use is the oscillo-
scope. The ‘scope can read and display on its
CRT display practically any signal an amateur can
create making it the ultimate test and diagnostic
tool available. You can even purchase software to
turn your computer into a ‘scope such is their
popularity. They’re expensive so you may not get
away with buying one just for fun.
 Appendix A Appendix B
Resistor & Capacitor International Phonetic
Color Coding Chart Alphabet
A — Alfa
color multiplier B — Bravo
Ist 2nd 3rd C — Charlie
black 0 0) none p — Delta
brown 1 1 0 gheaing ps
red 2 2 00
orange 3 3°: 9000 i as
yellow 4 4 000 G — Golf
green Bed OOOO H — Hotel
blue 6 6 000000 | — India
violet 7. 7 0000000 J} — Juliet
gray 8 8 00000000 Kori: ip
white 9 9 000000000 A 2)
M — Mike
No 4th band means a 20% tolerance
Ath band Silver, tolerance is 10% N — November
Ath band Gold, tolerance is 5% O — Oscar
P — Papa
Capacitor color coding is the same Q — Quebec
except the values are measured in pf eS = pene
(pico-farads). ga eae

Mica caps use a black first dot T, =) Tange

indicating the AWS code and the U — Uniform
third dot of the color code sequence V — Victor
will be the lower left hand dot. W — Whiskey
X — X-Ray
Y — Yankee
Z — Zulu
 Appendix C Mobile, AL - Gulf of Mexico
6850.1, 9156.6, 11143.1
0250 Surface Analysis
Commercial Maritime 0300 — Significant Weather
Weather Fax (WeFAX) 0310 Offshore Forecast
0850 Surface Analysis
0900 Significant Weather
All Times are in GMT, Frequencies are
0910 = 18/36-hour Forecast
USB in kHz
1450 Surface Analysis
1500 — Significant Weather
Halifax, NS - Western North Atlantic
1510 Offshore Forecast
6328.1, 10534.1, 13508.1
2030 Surface Analysis
0001 — Significant Weather
2040 — Significant Weather
0015 — Ice Chart
2050 _18/36-hour Forecast
0312 Surface Analysis
0401 Wave Analysis
0414 12-hour Wave Analysis
Though these are commercial broad-
0514 24-hour Wave Analysis
casts, they are easy to receive on
0601 — Significant Weather
Amateur Radio equipment. Your
0614 36-hour Wave Analysis
receiver must be broadband receive
0901 = Surface Analysis
capable; most new radios are. For an
1101 Ice Chart
antenna, a simple longwire (untuned)
1201 Significant Weather
will work just fine. And, a multimode
1512 Surface Analysis
TNC is fully capable of decoding and
1601 Wave Analysis
even printing the weather surface
1614 =12-hour Wave Analysis
analysis and weather aloft meteorologi-
1714 24-hour Wave Analysis
cal charts and synopsis available on
1801 — Significant Weather
these frequencies. These stations
1814 36-hour Wave Analysis
transmit reliable, strong signals and are
2120 Surface Analysis
great not just for testing one’s receiving
2201 Ice Chart
setup, but also for weather forecasting.
Boston, MA - N of 35 N & W of 60W
3240.1, 7528.1
0530 Surface Analysis
0540 12-hour Prognosis
0550 36-hour Prognosis
0600 3 & 4-day Prognosis
1730 Surface Analysis
1740 =24-hour Prognosis
1750 48-hour Prognosis
1800 Oceanographic Analysis

Norfolk, VA - North Atlantic Ocean

3355.1, 8078.1, 10863.1
0000 = Schedule for Next 24 hours

78
 Appendix D
Common Amateur Radio Abbreviations

1.T.U. — International Telecomunications Union — Based in Geneva, Switzerland,

this international body of representatives from each country regulates the world’s
common airwaves.
1.A.R.U. — International Amateur Radio Union — The worldwide federation of Ama-
teur Radio societies (like the ARRL) created in 1925. It represents the interests of
amateurs globally.
W.A.R.C. — World Amateur Radio Conference — This event took place in 1979 and
reallocated amateur and other frequencies in the RF spectrum. Other WARC meet-
ings may occur as the ITU representatives feel necessary.
F.C.C. — Federal Communication Commission — Located in Gettysburg, Pennsyl-
vania, this federal government body regulates the use of radio frequencies and
licensing both non-commercial (CB, amateur, and experimental) and commercial
(AM, FM, Shortwave) in the United States.
A.R.R.L. — American Radio Relay League — Based in Newington, Connecticut, this
‘club’ has a membership of 28% (170,000+) of the licensed amateurs in the U.S.
There are over 2,000 affiliated clubs at the local level.
A.R.E.S. — Amateur Radio Emergency Service — There are over 25,000 members in
this service which is a subsidiary of the ARRL. Organization is provided by volunteer
hams acting as Section Managers (SM), Section Emergency Coordinators (SEC), Dis-
trict Emergency Coordinators (DEC), Emergency Coordinators (EC), Assistant Emer-
gency Coordinators (AECs), or ARES Members. ARES began in 1935 as a group of
hams with appropriate emergency equipment who volunteered to provide emergency
communication.
R.A.C.E.S. — Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service — Hams participate in
emergencies by providing communications for local (CD), state (OES), or federal
(FEMA or DOD) agencies. This service is authorized by the FCC for amateurs to
provide communications for civil or state emergency personnel. Only a state or
federal official can activate the RACES system, unlike ARES. The FCC has provided
specific frequencies within the amateur bands that RACES members exclusively use
during a declared emergency. During such, active RACES members may only
communicate with other active RACES members.
V.1.P. — Volunteers In Prevention — Providing communications is one part of the
services provided by this group which is sponsored by the California Division of
Forestry (CDF).
A.C.S. — Auxiliary Communication Service — A combination of RACES and ARES.
N.T.S. — National Traffic System — Sponsored by the ARRL, this network of volun-
teers provides message delivery worldwide.

79
 Appendix E
RST Report system

>In the RST report sys- Readability

tem, the individual 1-unreadable
numbers which make up 2-just readable
the three digit report,
each stands for some- 3-readable with difficulty
thing different. The report 4-readable
is spoken using the indi- 5-exceptionally readable
vidual numbers. A report
of 599 is pronounced
“five-nine-nine”, not Signal Strength
‘tive-ninety nine’, or ‘five 1-very faint
hundred ninety nine’.
2-very weak
3-weak
=An RST is generally 4-fair
given during the course
of every CW contact. It 5-fairly good
provides you with feed- 6-good
back on the quality of 7-quite strong
your signal as it sounds
to the distant listener. An 8-strong
RST of 599 is a pertect 9-exceptionally strong
signal.
Tone Quality
>On voice (except re- 1-hissing note
peaters where the listener 2-rough ac note, no tone
hears the repeater, not
the one talking), since 3-rough ac note, slight tone
tone is not relevant, only 4-ac note, fair tone
the first two components 5-varying tone
are given. A report of 59
is a high-quality signal. 6-varying tone with some whistle
7-slightly varying tone
8-very slight varying tone
9-constant tone

80
 Appendix F
Q-Codes

QRA What is your station’s call sign?

my station’s call sign is... >The first line ends in a
QRB How far away from me are you? question mark and is the
My distance from you is.... meaning of the associ-
QRG What is my frequency? ated Q-Code when used
Your frequency is.... as a query. The second
QRH Is my frequency holding steady? line is the meaning of the
Your frequency is holding steady. Q-Code when used as a
QRI How is my tone? response to a question or
Your tone is not steady.
when used as a declara-
tive statement.
QR) Are my signals weak?
Your signal is weak.
QRK Is my signal legible? >The easy way to re-
The legibility of your signal is ... (1-5). member the difference
QRL Are you free to handle traffic? between QRN and QRM
| am busy now. is that QRM is Man-
QRM Is there interference from another station? made noise, while QRN
| am being interfered with.
is simply Nature Noise —
static, Cosmic noise, at-
QRN Is static interfering with my signal? mospherics, lightning,
Static is bothering me. etc.
QRO Shall | increase my power output?
Increase your power.
QRP Shall | use less power output? >The Q-Code was first
Decrease your power output. designed to speed up the
Shall | send faster? transfer of messages
QRQ when using CW (Morse
Send faster.
Code). By having a
QRS Shall | send slower? worldwide standard set
Send more slowly. of codes, shipboard, as
QRT Shall | stop sending? well as land-based, op-
Stop sending. erations were
QRU Do you have any messages for me? streamlined with greater
| have no messages for you. understanding between
QRU Are you ready to receive a message? operators. The meanings
| am ready to receive. of the codes are easily
QUW Shall | tell .... you are calling him?
translated such that you
can send QTH and a
Please tell .... | am calling him. French operator will look
QRX Shall | stand by? up QTH in his own lan-
Please stand by. guage and be able to
QRZ Who is calling me? respond — “QTH Paris.”
You are being called by....
QSA What is my signal strength?
Your signal strength is ...(1-5).

81
 QSB
QSD
+>QSD has a double
meaning. One must be QSG
aware of the context of
the conversation to inter- QSK
pret which meaning is
being used. QSL
>The term Traffic and QSM
the singular or plural
Message(s) are synony- QsO
mous.
>=kc is the same as kHz.
QsP
Kilocycles and kilohertz QSU
are used interchangeably.
>QSV The letter ‘V’ is QSV
the agreed upon letter
denoting a test. You
Qsw
might be testing a new QSXx
antenna, or a new keyer
— when operating CW, QSY
you would send a string
of v’s followed by your QSZ
call sign on a Clear fre-
quency. QTA
>=When using QSU or QTB
QSW, instead of saying,
for example, LSB or CW QTC
as the mode, you may
use the official mode QTH
type designators, see Ap-
pendix H for a detailed QTR
list.
82
Does my signal fade up and down?
Your signal strength fades up and down.
Is my keying correct? Is my signal distinct?
Your keying is correct. Your signals are bad.
Shall | send .... telegrams at a time?
Send .... telegrams at a time.
Shall | continue with my traffic?
Please continue with traffic.
Do you acknowledge what | just sent?
| acknowledgment what you sent.
Shall | repeat the last message?
Please repeat the last message.
Can you communicate directly with ....?
| can communiate (am communicating) with
Will you relay to ....?
| will relay to ....
On what frequency and mode shall | reply?
Please reply on ....kc in .... mode.
Shall | send a test string of v’s?
Send a string of v’s.
Can you send on ...kc in .... mode?
| will send on ...kc with ... type transmission.
Will you listen for station .... on .... kc?
| will listen on .... kc for station ....
Shall | change to .... kc?
Change to .... kc. | will change to ....kc.
Shall | duplicate each word | send?
Duplicate each word you send.
Shall | cancel message #....?
Please cancel message #....
Does your word count check with mine?
| do not corroborate the word count.
How many messages do you have?
| have .... messages.
What is your position in longitude/latitude?
My position is .... longitude, ... latitude.
What time is it?
The exact time is....
Appendix G nothing doing
nothing, | have nothing for you
number
CW Abbreviations now; I’m resuming transmission
old boy
all after old man
all before operator
about operator
address oscillator
again old timer; old top
antenna preamble
broadcast interference please
broadcast listener please
break power
all between; been press
before received solid; all right; ok; are
yes received
confirm; | confirm refer to; referring to; reference
check please repeat; | repeat
| am closing my station; call... said
called says
calling signature; signal
could operator’s initials or nickname
see you later schedule
come sorry
continuous wave traffic
delivered tomorrow
delivered thanks
distance thanks
electron coupled oscillator that
and thank you
fine business text
go ahead; resume sending you; your; you're
good-bye yours
give better address variable freq oscillator
good evening very
going word after
good morning word before
goodnight word
ground words
good well: will
telegraphic laugh would
here; hear weather
have transmitter
how crystal
a poor operator wife
message young lady
no best regards
love and kisses

83
 Appendix
QN Codes, Traffic Net Use only

The QN signals are special ARRL signals for use in amateur CW nets only. They are not
for use in casual amateur conversation. Other meanings that may be used in other
services do not apply. Do not use QN signals on phone nets. Say it with words. QN
signals need not be followed by a question mark, even when used as a question.

QNA* Answer in prearranged order.

QNB* Act as relay between and
QNC All net stations copy. | have a message i all net stations.
QND* Net is directed (controlled by net control station).
QNE* Entire net stand by.
QNF Net is free (not controlled).
QNG Take over as net control station.
QNH Your net frequency is high.
QNI Net stations report In.*. | am reporting into the net. (Follow with a list or traffic
or QRU).
QNJ Can you copy me? Can you copy Q
QNK* Transmit message for to
QNL Your net frequency is low.
QNM* You are QRMing the net. Stand by.
QNN Net control station is . What station has net control?
QNO Station is leaving the net.
QNP Unable to copy you. Unable to copy
QNQ* Move frequency to and wait for to finish handling traffic. Then
send him traffic for
QNR Answer and Receive traffic.
QNS* Following Stations are in the net. *(Follow with list.) Request list of stations in
the net.
QNT | request permission to leave the net for minutes.
QNU* The net has traffic for you. Stand by.
QNV* Establish contact with on this frequency. If successful, move to
and send him traffic for
QNW How do | route messages for ¢
QNX You are excused from the net.* Request to be excused from the net.
QNY* Shift to another frequency (or to kHz) to clear traffic with
QNZ Zero beat your signal with mine.

* For use only by the Net Control Station.

84
 Appendix |
Amateur Call Sign Areas in the United States

The United States is broken up into 10 areas. Originally, all licenses were
issued based on the physical location of the transmitter. When a licensee
moved, his callsign was updated to reflect the new area (if the area changed).
However, new licenses are now issued based on the licensee’s stated home
address. When you move, your callsign no longer changes, regardless of the
area you're in. If you want you may add a slash and area number (N6ABW/4)
to clarify to those listening where you’re transmitting from. There are other
slash-area identifiers you'll hear on the air as well. /MM2 is a maritime mobile
(ship) operator in maritime region two. /AM is aeronautical mobile, while the
designation /mobile is an automobile. You won’t hear these much anymore
except perhaps on CW. On voice, most hams just say where they are. The
exception is ships which, for safety reasons, consistently use the maritime
mobile identifiers.

a 4 y.
\ Seath Coraling 9

\ ; Jry
> Alabame —{ —Goargla
/ Mississippi = fa
\ = \

{ Louisiana Florida

@ Hawaii
* ZW
=
*,! 6

USA Amateur Radio Call Sign Districts

85
 Appendix J
World Wide Web URL’s Related to Amateur Radio
The World-Wide Web is a dynamic beast. New sites are added and others
deleted daily. A search using “Amateur Radio” as the keywords will bring up a
plethora of additional sites worthy of your time. The “http://www.” has been
omitted (unless listed otherwise) for brevity.
Magazines
http:/www.trsta.com/hth/ ........:cccceceeeseeee 73 Amateur Radio Today’s “Ham To Ham” by Dave Miller
NZ9E - Official Past Columns Web Site
http://members.aol.com/cqmagazine/index.htm
dissabisn ii base acse at aes slapsSis aa E sates Nas CQ Magazine Home Page
POD CONMIGO sexsnseicnesccecruecbarcens sansa Popular Communications Online
Regulatory - Organizations - Licensing
arrl.org/newham.
html ........0cecssseseeneees ARRLWeb: ARRLWeb: How to Get Started in Amateur Radio
http://w5ac.tamu.edu/ham-exam-v2/ham-exam.htm
Bb cA reece oe a ye ee ee ie Ham Exam: Amateur Radio Practice Exams
acs.ncsu.edu/HamRadio/FAQ’ ........:::0 Amateur Radio Beginners Information Page
Miscellaneous
hsantennas.com/arcdb/srcheng.htm! ......... Search Engine for The HAM Classified Database
ring.com/trading/hamradio.htm .............++. RING! Trading Station - Ham Radio Worldwide Classifieds
webcom.com/webpub/ ..........::0scseeeeees The Virtual Hamfest - International Ham Swap -
vhamfest.com
CUPESOUONIY), 255-08 Sete cseenMen corer coeetvs,oeswas
neassns Welcome to QRZ! - QRZ Callsign Database CD-ROM
ts.infn.it/misc/timezones.html ...........:0 World Time Zones
acs.ncsu.edu/HamRadio/ftp.html ............. Amateur Radio FTP sites
m I
http://misma.org/hamlinks.htm#OnLine .... Useful Amateur Radio Links
http://acube.com/hamswapshop/hams.htm Links to other Hams
alpcom.it/hamradio/w3hr.html ...........-0++ RADIO WWW SERVERS
http://promet] 2.cineca.it/htDX/links/ham-www.html
PM Lc inins tpalightO Oe a MG See cca sae Amateur Radio WWW bookmark file
fo€ POV/Wib/aMateuly sctat...20+cBageenessoadyee Amateur Radio (Ham Radio)
webring.org/cgi-bin/webring?ring=amateurradio&list
Se ee ee oe Oe Amateur Radio Ring
acs.ncsu.edu/HamRadio/ .............:::sscee Welcome To the Amateur Radio Web Server
HeifitaclO-OMWMesCONy \-..5se5. deccane pontoons: Ham Radio Online
Radios, Antennas, Hardware, Software, Manufacturers
cablexperts.com/index.html .........::.:e CABLE X-PERTS, INC.
Gueqcg.comy/sigma.htrnliiy...:.....0-.:.0-<0eeee Sigma Wire Antennas
thewireman.com/new. html ........::eeeeee The WireMan - What's New
cdi2.com/build_it/power.htm ...........0:066 Power Page, Power Supplies
ridrake.com/index.html .............:ccesceeesees R.L. Drake
ARENT ATIN CONN ase is cen wonesiesen tgs Re Welcome to AES Online
SION PINE!S.GOM)....8..c gd tee abe eas Homepage of ChromaPix SSTV Virtual Machine software
ultranet.com/~sstv/ezsstv.html 0.0.0... SSTV - New! EZ SSTV version 3 - SSTV
ramseyelectronics.com/products.htm ........ RAMSEY Products Page, Electronics kits and parts
wp.cc.nc.us/ham/vendors. html .........60066 Amateur Radio Vendors Homepages
PASIOIIG. CONN «tins sstaucint ates cmesepeeenas RADIO CITY, Inc.
VENUSWW.deMON.CO.UK/ ........seeeeeeeseeeeeeees Venus Electronics Homepage
tapr.org/tapr/html/pkthome.html#pritp ...... The Packet Radio Home Page

86
 Notes & Doodles

on 6A KAS why tee

a 23 a
 Notes & Doodles

88
Notes & Doodles
About the Author
Starting at the age of 10, Kevin Cornwell began to drive his
sister into the Twilight Zone with the constant squawks and
hiss of his HeathKit amateur radio. After studying the theory
and study Morse Code practice, Mr. Cornwell jumped in with
both ears and earned his General class license when he was 13.
He's held the license NOABW ever since. In addition to a year
on the Marshall Islands as KX60H, Mr. Cornwell has operated
abroad in England (G) and Cyprus (5B4).
Mr. Cornwell keeps active on all lowbands, 2-meters, digital modes, SSTV, and enjoys chasing DX. His
enthusiasm for the hobby has infected his family with his wife, father, mother, and daughter licensed or
studying for their license. While tutoring his family members, he recognized the need for a simplified guide
to the daily operating practices of ham radio and wrote Aam Radio: Simplified.
Currently living in Florida, Mr. Cornwell provides Computer and Publishing Consulting services.

FZ=GOCEAN
Global Oceanic Communication, Education & Assistance Network is a 501(c)(3) Foundation
organized to provide procurement and transport for medical and educational supplies to
remote areas of the world. GOCEAN supports projects that foster a broader understanding of
the planetary community through education and open ae
@eeeseeoeceaeeaeseoease~e~oecdeeeeoeeeeeoeeoesnse 6 eeeooee*eoe@ees
eee eee eo © @

Yes! | Need Ham Radio: Simplified! pions Rush It Today!

(J | am ordering the book for personal use or as a gift
J We will be using the book to supplement our classes
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125 hooks At°$8.95 Gath. ssccecscssccscssrcistexsvansccscarcecesess ae eee ae
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J. i a your order in to:
Packet or email 1-530-475-0916
90
 Ham Radio: Simplified!
Every Ham Should Have a Copy!

The Perfect Gift for New Hams,

Hams-to-Be, Old Hams, Young Hams,
or Just Downright Confused Hams!

A non-technical guide on how to:

> choose a radio
> ‘set up a station
> string up-an antenna
> talk on the air
> use Packet, Morse Code, SSTV

Lots of illustrations, definitions, and

examples make hamming easy and fun.
A great learning tool both before and
after the exam.

ISBN 1-888740-00-0
PhotograFix Guidebooks | Il
Published in association with
GOCEAN a 501(c)(3) foundation
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