Beginners Guide to Amateur Radio

• How do I become a Radio Amateur (Ham)?

• Nearly every country in the world requires all Hams to have a license before operation is allowed. In some parts of the world it can be very difficult to obtain a license due to political circumstances. In the UK licences are issued at a cost of £15 a year. For the under 21's there is no license fee.

• How do I get a licence?

• Before you can acquire a licence you will normally need to pass some kind of examination to show you are competent to use a radio transmitter. Often the reasoning behind this is that radio transmitters can often cause interference to other radio users and you need to be able to minimise or deal with any such interference. In the UK there are several classes of license, each which must be completed before upgrading to the next class. Examinations are conducted by the RSGB and are held at various centres around the country.

• More Info see Radiocommunications Agency site (UK)

• See also RSGB site

• What classes of license are there?

• In the UK there are three classes of licence these are:

• Foundation License: Access to most bands (including HF) with 10 watt power limit.  The easiest exam out of all the licence classes, usually taken on a weekend course which includes hands on training.

• Intermediate: As for foundation plus 10 meter band and power 0f 50 watts.

• Advanced: Full access to all bands with 400 watts maximum power.

• Other countries may have similar licence structures. Note that if you have a UK class A you can operate in some other countries using your UK licence.

• What do I need to set up a ham station?

• A simple station consists of three basic elements: (a) a receiver (b) a transmitter (c) antenna also known as an aerial. Most commercially available equipment combines a receiver and transmitter into one and is known as a transceiver. Antennas are not normally integrated into the transceiver (as with a portable domestic receiver for instance) and there will normally be some sort of cable connecting the transceiver to the antenna. If the transceiver is not designed to run off mains voltage you will also need a power supply unit that plugs into the mains and supplies power to the transceiver.

• How much will it cost?

• This will depend what frequencies and modes you intend to operate and whether your equipment is commercial or homemade. most beginners start out on the VHF and UHF bands usually 144Mhz or 430Mhz. Homemade equipment for these bands can be difficult to construct. However, in recent years there has been a glut of commercial equipment for these bands. Secondhand prices have also tumbled dramatically. Now you can buy a dualband handheld (walkie talkie) for less than 70 UK pounds brand new! add a small homebase antenna and cable and you can be on the air from your home for around 110 UK pounds. Secondhand equipment can be bought privately, through dealers or from radio rallies that are held up and down the country mostly in the summer months. An HF (shortwave station) can be put together using secondhand commercial gear for between 150-250 UK pounds. Alternatively HF equipment can be homemade and a complete single band CW (morse) station could be put together for less than 50 UK pounds.

• Ok so that's the bare basics, designed to give the complete beginner an idea about what amateur radio is all about!

• More detailed info can be obtained by checking out the links given.

• Don't forget this isn't necessarily a Geeky hobby, you can make heaps of friends and have lots of fun!