Trials & Errors #65: Defining the Spirit of Ham Radio

Please join us in a discussion of the many elements that make up that special "spirit" of ham radio. It's been referred to over the years, many times in print or YouTube videos, and it's about time that we sit down to try and define it. Join the forum here and add your thoughts! Read the article at this link.

 

Another good article! I see a couple of things here that I can relate to.
First off is the experimentation. When I was in tech school we were told that our degrees were actually a license to learn. So aren't our ham licenses! Some of the guys I worked with were hams. I got encouraged through them to get my license. By experimenting with my ham transmitters I learned much that I could apply to the big broadcast transmitters that I worked with. It had a lot to do with my gaining expertise with those big transmitters! Rf is rf whether a hundred watts on hf or many kilowatts on vhf. The circuits may look much different physically but they do the same things.
Next I noticed mention of the comradely aspect of ham radio. There weren't many hams in my area so I really didn't get a chance to experience it personally. It did remind me of how this aspect is present in many volunteer organizations. I spent many years as a volunteer firefighter in my community. Sure, it was fun playing with and working on the rigging but most everyone was there to help our their neighbor in time of emergency. Why else would you carry a radio 24/7 and drop everything to go help out someone? It certainly wasn't for the few hundred dollars a year that you might get for answering calls! We see the same thing in amateur radio. In times of emergency hams will drop everything to help out their neighbor whether he is across town or around the world.

 

Nice comments Harold and thanks for the nice thoughts. Yes, I spent a lot of time in a small town that had a volunteer fire department, and I remember how those guys were all very close and the comradery was one of the major reasons for that. Dave W7DGJ

 

First, Thank You for this article, and the many before it. With the many advances in technology, (an exciting aspect of amateur radio, for sure) still remains the personal connections that are made and made possible by our 'craft'. In an age where isolation is increasing, it is good to know that you and many many others value 'hams helping and encouraging hams' all over the world. Your article does a great job of explaining the value and the mystery of amateur radio. Well done...

 

"The Spirit of Radio" is a song by RUSH (c) 1980

Early on (In the early 80's) I participated in 2m help for Percheries, Balloon Chasing, Running Events, Storm Chasing, etc. Most any excuse to 'Commit an act of Ham Radio' would do. If I had another hobby, I would try to incorporate Ham Radio into it, and even tried dragging it to work with me by keeping a copy of the Amateur Radio Handbook as a reference material on my desk.

I've done the Jeep Comm thing, and frankly it was easier to get people to grab a FRS/GMRS handheld that to get people interested in Ham Radio.
Ham Radio brought up the impression to many I talked to of 'Needing to take a Test' and 'Expensive Radios', so even without the code requirement.
Even when I presented evidence to cancel their assumptions, they would rather not bother if they just needed simple Comms; FRS/GMRS fit that bill. I have a UHF-HF Rig in the Jeep that I'd had some nice QSOs on. I like using the Memo App on my phone to record at least the time and Calls, and use the Repeater Directory App to find my grid so I can log it when I get home.

I've always done some sort of homebrewing, though when I repaired things to component level for work that took a hit, because, well, 'Postman taking a walk on his day off' syndrome. However, there has always been a crossover there with homebrewing experiences improving my work, and work experiences improving my building skills.

So what do I get out of Ham Radio?
Community: I enjoy talking to people, and I have made some lifetime friends, and acquaintances via Ham Radio. That said, I am more of what you may consider to be a 'Lone Wolf'.
Learning: I enjoy learning new things, and Ham Radio pushes me to learn new things. I may not immediately like the new thing, but it's there if I need a change in perspective.
Lack of Politics **: Yes, I put astrohickys on that. To me, Ham Radio is a shelter from the steady stream of political bias and messaging that ever increasingly invades our world via the media and the internet. Whenever someone brings up politics in a QSO, I politely change the subject.

 

Thanks Paul! Much appreciated. Sometimes these more esoteric topics are harder to write (as opposed to a product review or something more black and white). That's why I appreciate positives and negatives here on the forum. Dave, W7DGJ

 

Hi Ron, thanks for the post, and for your typo catch, which I fixed. I do my own editing, and as an experienced writer/editor, my only excuse is macular degeneration, which means that sometimes I can't see those things. Always appreciate the help because I can course correct instantly from my laptop and fix the issues. Your comments about the Jeep'ing and radio were spot on, as there is indeed a place in the world for a plain vanilla FRS/GMRS walkie talkie. My friend who runs a big outfit in Georgia (ham club) tells me that it's a big part of their club and that they all love roughin' it in their jeeps with their ham HT's. I guess it is a part of the drive that we have to get outside and have fun. Thank you also for your comments about Politics as yes, many (like you) will immediately change the subject if you go near one side or the other. That's a lot of the crap you hear on 75 meters and so on when oddball hams have their whiskey next to them and the radio turned on. Politics or religion -- I guess neither belongs on our bands, although I'd much rather have a "God Bless" than a dig at how I voted. Dave, W7DGJ

 

Hello Dave,

I really enjoyed reading this article you wrote. The definition of the spirit of radio varies between individuals, I think. But no matter their definition, there is one thing that is in common across the board and that is the enjoyment of radio. And that is not just in the AR community, it also exists in GMRS and CB.

For me personally, I am one of those people that void a warranty within 120 seconds of taking a piece of electronics out of the box as I like to take things apart to see how they were put together. How the boards are set up/placed and assembled tells you a lot about the company that made them or the engineer that designed it. I do this with most of what I buy. I know, sort of weird. I really enjoy experimenting and building my own devices if I can, especially with tubes and if one of my radios is not working right, I like to take it apart, throw the scope on, and try to diagnose it. This is my definition. When I was a lad, I got the spirit with my first MW radio in the 80's. An inexpensive little thing, probably cost £4 tops, but it brought part of the world to a boy in a small rural town at night and that sense of magic has never left me though I do know the principles behind it all now unlike then.

And that is how I discovered AR. My gramps gave me a SW radio shortly thereafter and I heard these strange duck sounds in some parts of the dial. He explained that was suppressed carrier from AR stations. More magic! Didn't understand it then, but again, I do now.

I know it is different for everyone. I know everyone has their own definition. Isn't that part of the spirit, though? Differing perspectives united by the passion for radio, no matter how you approach it. Yes, there are some that, at times, ruin it with their behaviour as was mentioned above, but overall, the spirit remains for those that love the premise. Radio has no borders and is only limited by learning curves which can be surmounted. What a wonderful way to engage with others and expand one's horizons.

73's Dave. Thank you for this article. I think this is one of my favourites that you have written.

Tony
AA7FR

 

Thanks Tony. You hit on a good point . . . the "magic" of radio, especially back in the day. I still think that young people can be convinced that it's cool and magic, because this is communication from one antenna to another is not something you're going to get in the Internet world. Dave, W7DGJ

 

Dave, as has been said: "another good article". Thank you.

Now, as to the "Spirit" of Ham Radio:
Tony/AA7F said: “…but it brought part of the world to a boy in a small rural town at night and that sense of magic has never left me though I do know the principles behind it all now unlike then.”.
THAT was it! the wonder of "how, why does that happen?" Some number of 'transistors' (went to the latest dictionary to define that one) in 1957ish, under the pillow at night or up in the wilds of Northern Wisconsin, listening to a local AM station (WLS, Chicago) when it starts fading out and some other station starts overriding it (Texas I found out), then France, Germany, etc. That was the initial 'kick' and that sense of the "Wonder" and "Magic" still exists even though I now understand the "How and Why" of propagation and other "stuff".

That spirit of the "Wonder and Magic" is what I now try to impart to newer hams coming into the hobby. Some understand or get a glimmer interest, some just instantly label me as an OF. I usually introduce myself as such beforehand to maybe let them know where I'm coming from. It can get a grin or two every now and then.

Yes, I too tend to "take the back off" if only because I want to see the innards. Can't do much now with all the surface mount and integrated IC's, but it can be gratifying to see well-executed assembly. Or shudder at some of the not-so-well built stuff on the market. But I did that to that little pocket radio way back then, and the big cathedral cabinet SW/MW radio I finagled from my grandfather. (Learned about RF burns on that one. But that was always part of my hands-on learning style (grin)).

Unfortunately I have found, at least locally to me now, that the "learning curves" Tony mentioned cannot always, or don't seem to be able to be, surmounted by many new(er) hams. Although it is usually very refreshing to sit at a hamfest information-style table (I.e.: LICW and SKCC of late) and see, hear and talk the number of young and older hams stopping by to look, hear, touch (play the music) of CW (Morse, Vail, Gerke, et.al.). A casual stop by to see the "things on the table" often enough leads to a half-hour chat about code, radio and learning about "The Wonder" of it all.

Keep up the writing and 72/73,

Mac/WT4BT

 

Thanks Mac. That magic that you and Tony talk about was so important in our early days . . . And then there's the magic of the secret language of code and CW. Both of those things got me when I was 15 or so. Much harder nowadays to get a 15 year old turned on by the same magic (although as I reported in another article, CW really gets the little kids interested when I am at a demo.) These "NewTech" hams (no relation to license category, as it means they are hams because of IT or Tech) seem to see coding as a sort of magic, though. Dave, W7DGJ

 

Hi Dave,
Enjoyed your article and totally agree with your 5 but might I add 5 & 1/2 to your list, (Friendship) Many of my mentors and teacher have become dear friends that given time, knowledge and wisdom to someone lacking a (GEM) which is freely shared. It can be across the street, town or the world but they are always willing, always there and truly missed when their key go silent. Yes, life long, true friendship is part of the (Spirit of Ham Radio)

Dave / NA7DP

 

Thanks Dave, so true.

 

I enjoyed your article and thanks for taking the time to produce it. I got into radio because it was a bucket list item and since I have started on my radio journey, it has made me realize that almost everything today is radio based just not in the form that most people suspect. I have had to learn many things to facilitate the completion of my own personal radio projects and I will have to learn many more things before I am through. If anything, it has broadened my horizons on what I thought I was capable of and I enjoy the hunt of the next project because it is mentally stimulating. 73

 

Thanks Brandon. I got SO MUCH out of my learning. Instead of learning about radio beforehand, I just crammed for the test. Then, I had years of gradually learning more about how radio works and how it impacts all of us. My favorite pastime is figuring out how propagation works with various antennas, etc. A great pursuit! Dave