utah-jk

A year ago I was wheeling on the old pony express trail in Utah with my brother-in-law's Toyota Land Cruiser club. After taking a lot of crap for driving a Jeep, my brother-in-laws Land Cruiser died. It wouldn't turn over. A mechanic in the club diagnosed that the fuel pump had died. What happened next was truly impressive. There were 2 ham operators on the trip. While we were strapping the dead Cruiser the 40 miles out to Wendover, the ham operators were able to arrange that a club member (who hadn't gone on the run) buy the correct fuel pump and meet us in Wendover. He got to Wendover about the same time as we all did. In the parking lot of one of the Casinos the mechanic installed the fuel pump for my brother-in-law.

Because of this episode, I am thinking that it would be good to become a ham operator. It sounds like the licensing is fairly easy - just study and pass the exam. Is the Technician Class adequate, or is the General License better.

And more importantly, what type of gear would I need to have a fairly functional setup in my Jeep? Since I live in Utah, and the areas we go wheeling are often remote, I would want a setup that would be useful in case of a breakdown or another problem in a remote location. How expensive is the gear?

By the way - there was not another derogatory word about my JK after my brother-in-law's Cruiser broke down. And my brother-in-law, after several trips with me to Moab, now recommends the JK to friends who want a reliable 4WD vehicle!

goldtr8

Those are some good questions?

Because there are may types our there, 2M, 10M and others. Plus you want to have a CB in the mix as well for the guys on the trai.

So we have to consider what antenna's to mount, where to mount, and what ham frequiences are actually active.

I am slowing studying all this stuff as Ii also want to have a ham license and good ham radio in the jeep for emergencies when the phone does not work.

So this could be a cool discussion on what type of ham stuff to have on board for emergency use not for talking around the world.

Now if you are in a 4x4 club with a bunch of hams in it then it could be easy to figure out as you get what they have so you can communicate with them . But if this is not the case what is the pros and cons of different systems in a jeep.

Machine154

I just pulled out my police scanner and also looking at CBs. I think HAM is also a cool idea. I'll be tracking this topic. Maybe we can chat someday.

RextheJeep

I will be tracking this also. Who know what I might end up with?

Skippman

I've been thinking about trying to build an amp rack under the drivers side seat to mount the radios to.

utah-jk

I should have mentioned that I already have a CB for short-range communication. I agree that CB is great for talking to people in your group while on the trail, but with how limited its range is, I think that ham would be a great addition to CB.

AK4Dave

Ok.......let's see here....lol Yes, as you found out, it's hard to beat the HAM freqs as far as emergencys go........ESPECIALLY when you are remote and not able to hit a cell tower. If 10m was open right now then a Tech license would allow you to use a small portion of that band. A Tech license would let you access 2 meter repeaters as well, and the range can be pretty substantial. But depending on terrain, power you are running, and where your local 2m repeater is located, you may not always be able to hit the repeater.

The General license is far and away a better license because it gives you A LOT more (voice) privliges on the many bands. When it comes to emergency coms, as well as local and DX, then 20 meters is the band of choice. This band will be open when most aren't. It is also probably the most populated band, which means a lot more easy to find somebody during an emergency. To talk on 20m you have to have a Generals license. Another plus to having a Generals license is that when 20m propagation closes down for the night, then you can get on the lower bands ie, 40, 80, and 160m. This is good beacuse maybe your emergency happens during the night, then the lower bands are usually wide open. One last thing a Generals license allows you to do is run power. Meaning, you would be allowed to put a nice little amp in your jeep and take your 25 or 100w and make it 500 or more. Sometimes this little "extra" would be just what is needed to make a contact.

As far as gear goes. If you feel you will never be outside of repeater range, and if you feel limited coms is all you need, then a plain 2m FM mobile radio would suffice. Here too, you can add a 2m amplifier for that extra kick need to hit the repeater. I would also say that a simple 10meter mobile would be all that's needed, but at this time in the solar cycle, other than ground wave (local coms), 10m is rarely open. That will change but at this time any good 10m openings are still few and far between. But, if you pretty much want to assure yourself of a contact, then a radio capable of 100 watts on 20m is the way to go.

How expensive?.....well as you know that's a relative term, but for the averge Joe HAM, yes, they can be pretty spendy. Most HAMS, when starting out, myself included, went for a used rig in nice condition. They are all over the place. If you want to buy a radio and be done with it, then any of the Icom 706 series radios will provide you with all you need. They can be sometimes be found for less than half the price of new. My sugestion to you would be to read around a lot on these posts, and visit a local HAM club meeting. There should be at least one or two HAMS that might have radio gear that you may be interested in.

Good Luck...!!!

Skippman

I tried that. Went to the local HAM Shack, went to a HAM fest, etc. Everyone I talked to was pretty condescending. I'd liken it to being new to guns. Everyone it seems like that you talk to when buying your first gun can't be bothered to help you pick one out. Same thing with MY experiences with HAMs. The only exception is my co-worker here at the office. He's kept me interested enough to actually want to buy a radio and get into it. I got my license as part of a disaster training program here in STL.

I'm trying to find a low cost 2M/440CM radio that I can use to monitor FRS/GMRS frequencies and to talk to local repeaters. I'm also looking for a decent combo antenna, preferably a fiberglass whip. That seems to be impossible to find. I thought HAM stick made one but I can't find it anymore.

Jeff

I use a Larsen NMO02/70 dual band antenna that is at least 10 years old. Diamond and Comet also make good antennas. I standardized on a NMO "Motorola mount" years ago to help keep costs down. A good antenna is not cheap (NMO02/70 is about $70) but will last for many years.
since I am in the USCGAUX, my radio is legally modified for the marine band and this antenna handles the 156 MHz fine.

N4XGI

AK4Dave

Oh yeah......I don't doubt that at all. I didn't say that you could end up finding a bunch of old grumps that won't waste their time to help a newbie, but they are that way in life too....just grumpy old men set in their ways. What has happened in the HAM community is that the old timers are all pushed outa shape because they dropped the morse code testing. Most of those guys feel that if you aren't into morse code then you aren't a "real" HAM. Many of those guys could barely tollerate a new HAM as it was, but to add a no-code Tech into the mix.....well, they just ain't happy about it. They feel that a HAM should be really knowledgeable about electronics as well as everything else. In their time they had to study long and hard to become a HAM AND be proficient at morse code to boot. Now they feel that a license is pretty much given away, and it has brought a lower class individual into the mix. In a way I can see their point. But to just sit there and bitch about it forever, and not move on with the rest of the world is non-productive if you ask me. It is the way it is. The FCC made the ruling, not the new HAMS.

But that's not to say that the HAMS in utah's area are going to be the same way. He might run into a bunch that are like your co-worker. I'd like to hope so for sure.

I know you're stuck on the fiberglass whip idea, and I understand why. I too thought HAM Sticks made them. But an other option would be to go with a Wilson for HF and then a Larsen for VHF. They'd match that way too. I'm surprised you haven't found a nice used radio on either eham, qth, qrz, or ebay? Unfortunately if you don't want to settle for used, a good dual band rig usually isn't very cheap.

Good Luck....