Tue 14th May 2024 19:32:03
Amateur Radio - MM3NTX
As some of you may know, I recently gained my Foundation Amateur Radio Licence and callsign MM3NTX.This means that now I can transmit (on the amateur frequencies
available to me) to other amateurs all around the world. I'm limited to
10 watts output on most bands, and I don't have access to the 28Mhz/10m
band or satellite services, but for most stuff it's fine.
How I Got Started
I started to get interested in Amateur Radio from my dad (GM1OPO), when I started meeting his "radio friends" and started going with him to Radio Club
A few years ago, our friend Ian in Innerleithen was interested in amateur radio, so we took him to meet our friends, and he decided to get his licence. As I had studied Physics in High School, I decided I'd go along too and join in. We started to meet up every Tuesday at Arthur's in Peebles and would study the (as was then) RAE Manual (Radio Amateur's Exam). Both Ian and I were studying so that we'd eventually be able to take our exam and get a licence. Well, the Tuesday night studying started to become a Tuesday night chat and coffee. LOL
Ian did however go on to get his RAE, and the (as then) 12WPM morse test required to get the full "A" licence.
I never really got back into it until this year, when Jim at the Club said that the Port Seton club were organising a Foundation Course. Nowadays, the requirements for a licence are different and consist of 3 levels, Foundation, Intermediate, and Advanced. So Jim put me forward for the course and 2 Saturdays later, I had my "Pass" slip and could operate under my dad's callsign until I got my own from Ofcom/Radio Licensing Agency.
The "Radio Club"
Our local radio club meeting is the Galashiels and District Amateur Radio Society GM4YEQ. We meet every Wednesday night (yes, those on MSN that know me... that's why I'm not online on a Wednesday night!) in Galashiels, and have a general chat about anything (yeah, I mean ANYTHING, from computers to radios to every day life!!), and either a radio will be set up and played with to see what stations can be heard (and sometimes talked to), or someone will come in with a new/old/ebayed radio for us to take to bits and look inside, or we'll set up the PC and play on it. There's tea, biscuits and chocolate snacks there too.
Every year we hold an Open Day, or Radio Rally, where we have traders from all over the UK, come and set up tables, selling all manner of things related to the hobby, such as radio equipment, antennas, computers and computer supplies, books, and some people come and set up a table just to sell the radio and electronic junk they've had lying around (usually since the last year's Open Day!). We also hold a Bring 'n Buy stall, where people can put their old equipment up for sale for other people to look at and buy. The beauty of it is that the buyer can meet and talk to the seller, ask questions about what he's buying, and maybe even haggle with the price. There's also a caterer on the day, selling hot drinks, hot bacon rolls and other hot/cold food to get us through the day. The Open Day is the club's main source of income, with the traders' tables, admission at the door, and Bring 'n Buy stall commission. The club is non-profit with all income going towards club equipment and accommodation hire.
I created a website for the club, with a bit more information and photos of what goes on. Any suggestions for content etc are greatfully received.
The Global Amateur Community
I think more so than the technical aspect of the hobby, Amateur Radio is about the social aspect of communication. Amateurs can speak to and make friends with other people all over the world. Yes, it's easy to get a computer, go to one of the social networking sites and make friends there, but on Amateur Radio, there's more accomplishment when you make a contact as far away as Australia, or Fiji, using nothing but a radio and a piece of wire strung across the garden. Amateur radio is a global community with thousands of like-minded people, all keeping in contact, some having been amateurs for 30-40 years. This community aspect is especially apparent at club Open Days, where amateurs from all over the country meet up with old friends, or sometimes meet an "on-air" contact in person for the first time. People from as far away as Cornwall, Kent, or the north of Scotland come to our Open Days, as well as other clubs' events around the country, such as the Magnum Rally in Irvine, and Norbreck in Lancashire.
