10-Meter Radio Help Needed

Well the guys over at QRZ are talking it up over there about truck drivers etc. I find it funny that the members from there are coming here to even post anything. There was a member that was talking about a member here telling other members to just ignore him. Well Good for you Gladfly. If you would just answer a simple question without going into your little radio police rant then it would not be a problem.

Them hams can whine and cry all they want but the truth is that the FCC is starting to ingnore them and I got this from posts on QRZ. I wonder why? I mean if I had to deal with a bunch of whining cry babies that were crying about CBs with too much power then I would ignore you also.

The simple fact is that the FCC is all but given up on the 11 meter bands because if they were to go after every violator then it would cost them millions to try and enforce it. I also wonder how many of these hams hook their CBs up to some power and start transmitting on the 11 meter band?

I tell you what, you guys stay on your bands and we will stay on ours. I could careless what you guys do on the 10 meter bands or bands other then 11 meter because I don't use them period.

 

Rooster, tell your friend not to bail on his new radio. He just invested a good amount of money to buy it. Find a good local radio shop that can be trusted and have the tech put it on the bench to see where the radio is at after it got "whacked". A good tech will work on it right in front of you and tell you what is going on. I go to a guy in Denver exclusively. I have a spare radio under my bunk just in case but have never needed to use it. I would much rather listen to the stereo anyway these days, or sometimes just listen to the truck as I go down the highway. I get my best thinking done out there. Good luck, I know he will be very happy once it gets sorted out.

 

Something else, I wouldn't worry about the so-called radio nazis either. Anyone who minds their business and acts like an adult has nothing to worry about. There are way more things going wrong in the US these days than some guy talking on a converted 10 meter radio. There is a big big company that I would bet has a retail store within 20 miles of you whose company drivers run these radios and talk up there where you arent supposed to. I used to pull their trailers in the winter and figured out what frequency they were on with my scanner. One night there were a couple of them griping about the company using contractors and taking their work away and saying some uncomplimentary things about me specifically. They were pretty quiet after I joined their conversation for a minute. I wish I could remember the freq but its been a few years and not that important anyway. Good luck with the Connex

 

Hello, not a trucker myself but having used CB (the German spec 80 channel AM/FM/SSB units, but completely legal in mycountry) in the past and then moved on to ham radio because I felt too restricted with the conditions set for CB (though I still have a CB radio in my car, together with a ham 2m band VHF rig for listening to the trucker's channel, 9 AM in Germany, on long trips on the Autobahn).
Our CB radios, while having a few more channels, are legally just as restricted as their American counterparts (1 W AM, 4W FM and SSB). I never tinkered with my CB radio, but, during summer in good propogation conditions called sporadic E I managed to have contacts from my location in the western part of Germany near the border to France all the way to Italy, Slovenia and England. This is about 1000 miles and this with 4 watts on FM with a simple 1/4 lambda vertical antenna on the roof of my car!
The 11m CB band (and the 10m ham band) are at the upper end of the HF spectrum and are in many aspects already behaving like VHF.
They only get reflected in the ionosphere during strong solar activity (the radiation produced by the sun causes a layer in the high atmosphere, about 70 mile up, to be ionized, therefore becoming reflective to radio waves of a certain frequency. We are currently at the low point of the 11 year solar spot cycle, so these bands will still suck for the next few years). This is why good 11m propogation consditions also mostly happen during daytime in summer. The waves get reflected at this ionized layer and get bounced back to earth hundreds of miles away.
If this reflective layer doesn't exist (e.g. in winter, at night or during times of low sun activity), the CB radio waves will just continue to the horizon and then, if they are not getting absorbed by e.g. water vapour in the atmosphere, will just continue into space, so they are behaving just like VHF waves know from TV or light. Basically if the other guy is behind the horizon he can't hear you, no matter how much power you produce.

Also, a good antenna is the best HF amplifier, both for reception as well as for transmission. One important thing is the SWR, it defines how much of the energy sent out by the transmitter is actually radiated out by the antenna and how much gets reflected back into the transmitter, causing it to heat up. Also very important is efficiency of the antenna. You don't want to heat the air, but to radiate as much as possible of the energy sent out by the transmitter so that others can receive it (a 50 Ohm resistor at the antenna output of the transmitter will giveyou a perfect SWR, but it will not transmit, but instead turn all the radiowave energy into heat).
In the best case the antenna is resonant to the wavelength. This means for a vertical antenna (as most of you will be using) it should be 1/4 of the wavelength minus a shortening factor depending on the antenna thickness and the surroundings. Also very important is that the braid of the coax cable gets connected to a big piece of metal directly beneath the feedpoint of the antenna (the counterpoise, which theoretically should also be of 1/4 wavelength minus shortening factor length). This is why the best place for a mobile antenna is smack in the middle of a metal car roof.

BTW, splatter caused by badly filtered and adjusted amplifiers also decreases the wanted antenna output. You want all of the power getting into the one channel you selected so that your buddy can hear you, you don't want the power be distributed all over the spectrum.

Another thing is: If you are using a lot of power you might be heard from a long distance, BUT can you hear the other guy? He might be able to hear you, but you won't be able to hear him.

BTW, the main rule for both CBers AND radio hams is NOT TO CAUSE INTERFERENCE IN ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. At least here, if a CBer uses more power, but doesn't cause problems in other bands, it is generally being ignored by the communications authority, but if you cause disturbances to other services (radio, TV, police, rescue andyes, radio hams), they will get their DF vans and come down on you like a ton of bricks. I know about a German CBer, who illegally went into the air traffic control bands to have his chats "because they were empty" and, since it wasn't his first offense, actually went to jail for it.

Also, why don't you get an amateur licence too? In our section of the German amateur radio club we have several long distance truckers with ham licencces, who bring ham radios along on long drives, AND they are also very active in CB.

Jan

 

Well, Brickhauler, I'm not going to rant and rave about it, but yes, you can go up into the ham bands if you want to. It won't be the radio nazis that will get you, however. It will be the FCC monitors--and the first thing you will know about it is either when your boss tells EVERYONE that two way radios have to be left home, or when he comes to you personally and hands you the liability notice from the FCC with your truck identification on it--with the invitation to pay Uncle Sam around $10,000. It happens, friend--and much more frequently than you may think.

The FCC does take a dim view to unlicensed intrusion in the 10 meter ham band. Ask any of a number of truckers who have had those 'invitations' given them BY THEIR BOSSES, or lacking that, ask taxidrivers around big cities--New York City especially--about the clamping down there to the ham band intrusions.

The same thing about high power radios and amps in the CB band. The output limit there is 4 watts, and as you said, the feds aren't too concerned about the drivers that have rigs peaked up to ten--or even twenty--watts. Run a thousand, however, from your big rig and keep talking while you're driving down the road. You will get noticed eventually, and maybe sooner than you think you will. You see, the FCC has turned a blind eye to most of the mess the CB band has become, but they've also let the LEOs know the FCC won't do anything about it if the LEOs take enforcement into their own hands.

In certain midatlantic and midwest states, state troopers have been known to confiscate radio equipment--and especially if either they're a ham or they know about prohibited radio models. Some may confiscate the radio and you'll have to get another. Some may adjust it (with their weapon) and give it back to you--useless. Either way, you'll get a little citation with a fine for having unauthorized equipment. As you said, the FCC has washed their hands of it--go to them and try to complain that the LEOs are trying to control the airwaves, and they'll laugh at you.

Is it really worth a few paychecks--or possibly your job? However trivial you may think it is, it is still breaking the law--and the bottom line is if you keep at it, eventually you'll get caught.

As someone else said--you want onto the 10 meter band, or you want something to occupy your time while driving, get your ham license. It is almost ridiculously easy to do these days--and just about anywhere in the country.

 

Just a question for our American friends:
As a radio ham in Germany I've got to pay a fee for taking the exam plus another fee for the issue of the licence (each about 100 Euros for the highest Class A licence). Then I've got to pay a yearly fee of about 15 Euros for using the frequency bands.
Do you have similar fees in the US?
So the Feds could see somebody using bands he is not licenced to use additionally as somebody who cheats them for the revenue?

Here the German equivalent of the FCC turns basically a blind eye to what is happening on the CB bands, as long as no interference is caused to other services (commercial operations, police, TV, radio, ham radio, rescue services, air or marine bands), either intentionally by deliberately operating outside the CB band or unintentionally by using one of these badly filtered harmonic producing amplifiers.
If they receive a complaint, they'll send their DF vans around and come down on you like a ton of bricks. They also have computerized fixed DF stations distributed over the country, which can home on an intruder within seconds.
I know a case about a CBer living about 20 miles away from me, who was regularly poaching on bands (including the ham bands) he doesn't belong to, with illegal high power equipment. Last time he was caught having a chat with somebody else using the air traffic control HF bands. Since it wasn't his first offense, he actually was sentenced to a prison term, plus all his (quite expensive) equipment was seized and he is still paying of a five digit fine (quite a lot for somebody who has constantly been on the dole for several years).

Since radio hams around here don't just have to get their licences, but also have to pay for the privilege of using the ham bands, they take a dim view of intruders, who think that they can use the ham bands for free.
Also ham operating procedures differ largely from CB radio.
Since everybody has a unique, government issued call sign, abusers are usually quite easy to track down (even though there exist a few idiots, who e.g. like to block repeaters by burping, farting etc.).
Ok, some hams exceed max power requirements (I know one who got hold of a HF end stage amplifier as used in a commercial radio station and has been occasionally transmitting with 10kW HF power to crack pile ups at some remote islands in the South Pacific, but this guy is a telecommunications and radio pro and made sure that he wouldn't splatter or cause interference).

Best is to get a ham licence yourself. In my village lives a CBer, who used to roam around in the 10 m band. I told him about the risks he was taking and gave him my old textbooks for the novice licence. If he takes it, he can actually do what he has been doing illegally up to now perfectly legally.

Jan

 

Thankfully, we don't have user fees like that. Cost to take the exam is $15, and it's good for 10 years, then you renew with a free form to the FCC. They issue your callsign, and you can get a "vanity" callsign for $11. So it's not a cost issue of avoiding the fees. Each time you upgrade is another $15 to take the exam, or you can take all the exams at once for the cost of one...at least, that was the offer through my club. Designated Volunteer Exam Coordinators issue and proctor the exams.

The tests themselves aren't that hard, and they removed the "morse code" requirements. And a $600-$1000 USD radio transceiver for the HF bands with a decent antenna will perform far better than any hopped up CB or export radio...used HF transceivers are also available for less, that's just entry level new HF transcievers.

Even through we don't pay as much as you do for the use of the amateur bands, we still guard them. Repeaters are often privately owned, so the owners (individuals and clubs) take effort to shut down intruders. The amateur community is generally welcome to use most any repeater, but if you interfere or try to jam the repeater, you will get the thunder called down upon you.

 

Based on the IRU suggestions, they also dropped the Morse Code requirements in most European countries (AFAIK currently only Greece and Turkey still demand it). Our licences arealso valid in the other European countries if we stay there for less than a few months (if we stay longer we'll need to get a local licence).
The dropping of the Morse code requirement caused a similar uproar here as in the US. I personally think that if you want to go to the more interesting parts of the amateur spectrum, you should learn it, at least this is my goal, though I find it quite hard to learn.

Here repeaters are also privately owned (either by individuals or clubs) but part of the approval requirements for setting up a repeater is to keep it open for all legal traffic. Illegal intruders also get hunted down here. A few years ago the Munich ham community set a trap for two intruders, teenagers who bought some 2m handheld radios from eBay, who kept on blocking a local repeater with burps and insults. The input sensitivity of the repeater was deliberately reduced by the operator, so that the intruders had to use higher transmission powers to get through. At the same time some other hams "fed the trolls" to keep them talking, so that the DF team of the telecommunications authority could locate them and have a cop they brought along arrest them.
One of the intruders was operating out of his home, but originally with very low transmission power, so that he was hard to locate, while the other ones though that they would be untouchable if the kept moving around the town.

Now they had their equipment confiscated, had a criminal record and had to pay a hefty fine.
The higher your output power, the better the DF teams can locate you and the modern computer controlled DF systems can get a fix on you in seconds.

Jan

 

Mr Gold Eagle, Thank you for your concern but maybe you misunderstood what I wrote. I am not saying go talk on 10 meters I just relayed a story about something I experienced. I have been running one kind or another converted 10m radio for 10+ years and never had a problem. My experience is that the higher quality radios seem to have a better sound than your basic cb radio does. Maybe I don't know what I am talking about but thats my opinion. I am pretty sure if the FCC is not going after the 3 or 4 guys in Denver or almost every big city you go to who are running all kinds of power and on the air day and night trying to annoy everyone they can, I don't think they will bother dumb ol me riding down the road trying to make a living in MY truck. As far as any cop taking my radio away goes, I think I would wind up being arrested if that happened, but that goes back to what I said about acting like an adult and minding your own business. If you are not doing anything to cause a problem there is no need to enforce anything. In short, I will stand by what I said about not worrying about using a Connex radio that has been converted to work on 11 meters. Unless you use the radio to cause a problem you should not have a problem. Just my opinion and experience of 10 years.