Stephen VK2RH is a member of Waverley Amateur Radio Society, ARNSW, the WIA, the ARRL, the RSGB, FISTS #14118, SKCC#6556, NAQCC #4150, QRP-ARCI #13446, FP#-2531, NEQRP #723, Flying Pigs QRP Club, NJ QRP and AQRP.
Main ham radio activity is exploring how to operate effectively from a tiny spot within the heart of the inner-city! …in grid square QF56OC.
Hi Stephen
Where’s a good place to start exploring the ham radio community & skills?
I have a couple of 5w uniden 2-way uhf’s & though I realise the frequencies are quantised within a narrow bandwidth I’d still like to begin exploring. Maybe get a larger antenna for better reception & transmission while @ home. Also I like the robust independent power to communicate over long distance that radio provides – if the mobile & ‘landline’ phone + internet ever when down all hell would break loose!
Anyway, I look forward to your reply.
Marc
Hi Marc,
Great question. The best place to check first is the WIA site at http://wia.org.au. The Wireless Institute of Australia has stacks of info about the many facets of ham radio and most importantly links to clubs close to where you are. The bottom line about getting on the air is getting a licence and this has never been easier than today. Again the WIA site has all the info you’ll need. The other avenue to gathering info and opinions is via the hundreds of different email discussion groups that hams have started. Generally there’s a high level of support and enthusiasm to be found on these. Search yahoogroups with “ham radio” to sample some that appeal.
I’m keen on building gear and operating low power on HF so you’ll see some of the lists I regularly check listed on this site. And it sounds like you might be interested in operating portable in the field, independent of the power grid. HFPack and Summits on the Air are a couple of activities I think are great about ham radio. I hope this info is useful.
Cheers, Stephen VK2RH