249

Tell us why we should unexpectedly come to love your hobby.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 26 points 1 year ago

I just can't afford the equipment. I thought about it back in the analog days, but back then you had to learn Morse code and I just didn't think I was up for it.

[-] Twitchy1@lemmy.dbzer0.com 16 points 1 year ago

Money is the biggest issue. I've had my general for years... have never been able to afford a radio to use those bands at home. Ive had a magnetic loop antenna all ready to use in my garage for several years but no radio to run it. The local 2m/70cm is just old guys complaining usually. Passing traffic is fun during hurricanes... Only so many times I can enjoy trying to hit satellites that are swamped with people.

[-] agent_flounder@lemmy.one 10 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Morse is no longer required-- yay!

And with the appearance of low cost Chinese brand radios, the equipment can be cheap for 2m, particularly.

The usual go-to for new hams is the Baofeng UV-5R and similar. The cost is about $20-30. It's not the greatest radio and is kind of messy but for $20ish who cares if it gets you on the air.

Also Hamfests are a great place to pick up cheap used gear. For example I got an entry level 2m mobile rig (an old Radio Shack model) for $10 and antenna for similar.

If you want a new higher quality handheld transceiver (HT) there are options at $100 or less from Alinco and Yaesu. (Maybe Kenwood and Icom have budget options too idk)

[-] Anticorp@lemmy.world 7 points 1 year ago

You can get a Baofeng UV5R for about $20 and it can broadcast on ham frequencies! Just don't tell anyone I recommended that radio to you (I have 2 of them though). Morse code isn't a requirement anymore either. Time to do it!

this post was submitted on 08 Sep 2023
249 points (99.2% liked)

Ask Lemmy

26997 readers
407 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions

Please don't post about US Politics. If you need to do this, try !politicaldiscussion@lemmy.world


Rules: (interactive)


1) Be nice and; have funDoxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them


2) All posts must end with a '?'This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?


3) No spamPlease do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.


4) NSFW is okay, within reasonJust remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either !asklemmyafterdark@lemmy.world or !asklemmynsfw@lemmynsfw.com. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].


5) This is not a support community.
It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email info@lemmy.world. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.


Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.

Partnered Communities:

Tech Support

No Stupid Questions

You Should Know

Reddit

Jokes

Ask Ouija


Logo design credit goes to: tubbadu


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS