I have been interested in radio since I was a kid in the 60's, laying in bed at night with a transistor radio looking for the farthest away radio station I could find. I got busy raising a family and never did anything with it. I actually got my technician license in 2009 but did nothing with it as we prepared to retire. I now fulltime with my wife and have time to entertain this interest. I am at a lose on how to start. I down loaded echolink with the hope of being able to log on and listen, just to get familiar with proper procedure. But apparently I can't use echolink that way. What would you recommend for someone in my position to get his feet wet? I posted in this subforum because I full time and that has special challenges.
I'm sure there are several ways you could get started, but it's really hard to beat having someone close by to help "in person." My best suggestion would be to find a local ham club and attend a meeting. Most clubs that I know of would jump at the chance to help get someone active on the bands. I'm also pretty sure that several in the club would also be RV folks too. For the most part hams are probably the friendliest people I know. If you happen to see a large antenna or better yet, a call sign license plate on a car, knock on the window. If you have 2 meters you could give calls on the local repeater or .52 simplex.
I would suggest going to the Amateur Radio Relay League website: arrl.org and getting one or more of their books. Get a radio that receives shortwave if you want to listen. There is an amateur radio RV forum: openroadsradio.net and the RV forum: rvforum.net has an On the Airwaves thread.
which RV site? I just bought my first travel trailer and have my rig in the pickup (since I have been told I'll void the warranty if I install it in the travel trailer)
I've owned travel trailers for over 40 years. I've never heard of voiding a warranty over installing an aftermarket item of any kind, let alone a ham rig. The manufacturer's warranty on travel trailers is not particularly all encompassing. They rely on the warranties offered by their suppliers for most of their coverage, especially for things like appliances. I am thinking that some specifics need to accompany that sweeping statement. For example, random drilling through the rubber roof membrane will likely void that warrant. But it is possible to install stuff on the roof without voiding the warranty; you just have to follow the roof manufacturer's instructions when doing the install. Many RV dealers offer aftermarket solar electric systems that require running screws and sometimes even wiring through the roof. They install them to the roof manufacturer's specs and there's no problem. I already have a 2M/70CM antenna installed on my fiver and it certainly didn't void any warranties to do so. The 12vdc wiring for the 2M mobile is connected direct to the coach battery and routed into the coach without any drilling. Again, nothing done to the trailer that would void any warranty of any kind. I'm wondering what you wanted to do that would have voided the warranty?
