band opening

soerenswl

hi all

15m was wide open to west coast usa yesterday - i was listening from midday to evening and heard not a single EI station - whats wrong with ham radio in ireland...

73
soeren.

pixbyjohn

soerenswl wrote: »

hi all

15m was wide open to west coast usa yesterday - i was listening from midday to evening and heard not a single EI station - whats wrong with ham radio in ireland...

73
soeren.

A lot of EI licence holders are not active on the bands.
Saying that I was on air for 2 hours yesterday.
There was a time in the past where I would spend many hours per day/night on air.
I don't think there is anything wrong with ham radio in Ireland but I would say there are easier and more reliable ways to communicate nowadays.
I love ham radio and love making a qso over the air but we are all different and some don't have the room for antennas or maybe they are restricted because of their neighbours/surroundings.
I use all modes but prefer cw & digimodes.
I use an old Ten Tec Omni 5 and a 1500 watt Titan linear. Also run an old Yaesu FT101ZD and simple wire antennae.

soerenswl

if comreg would accept my E class license there would be 1 more on air but they do only A and B...

so i´m damned to listen only.

i could make an additional test just for technical part in germany to get class A but thats a lot of stuff to learn.

irts courses on their homepage are no option for me because would need to do ALL again.

martinedwards

bear in mind that any EI stations may not have been audible to you, where as they could have been in the States.....

I know that ham radio is plenty active up north!

I was calling a Mexican station on 10m earlier thisevening and couldn't be heard past the other 4 GI & MIs calling him!

pixbyjohn

martinedwards wrote: »

bear in mind that any EI stations may not have been audible to you, where as they could have been in the States.....

But he would have heard the other stations exchanging the EI callsigns

Quaderno

soerenswl wrote: »

if comreg would accept my E class license there would be 1 more on air but they do only A and B...

so i´m damned to listen only.

i could make an additional test just for technical part in germany to get class A but thats a lot of stuff to learn.

irts courses on their homepage are no option for me because would need to do ALL again.

I went through that process myself in July. With the experience gained be means of a previous licence and a bit of work the exam can be done easily enough, especially when you remember that most of the other first time candidates probably don't have any practical experience with ham radio at all. I don't think it would be any easier (but a lot more expensive) to go back to Germany just to do the technical part and then apply for an Irish class 2 licence. Yes, you will have to learn a few other new things as well for the exam, but that's all stuff that you need to know anyway if you want to be active in Ireland. Only problem now is that the next exam will be this week (application closed already) and then again some time in July next year.

On the topic: While I was not at home yesterday those surprise openings are exactly what I find most fascinating about ham radio. You never what's going to happen next I think I will be a lot more active later in the year when the evenings get longer, right now it's still nice enough outside to not sit in the shack.

martinsvi

I try to stay away from contest bands during weekends

martinedwards

10m was lively today.....

18 CW QSOs inc

European Russia
Norway
Florida
Ukraine
Greece
South Carolina
Rhode Island
Bulgaria
Michigan
Nicaragua

OldRio

If 10m was open I bet 11m was bouncing.
Sometimes 10m resembles a grave yard and yet 11m is active.

martinedwards

true, I know there are some hams who wouldn't dream of breaking the terms of thier licence by actually transmitting on the CB band but who will have a listen to hear if there is any action there before going onto 10m to call out.

personally, I look at one of the many dx spotting sites.......

yesterday was great.

today?

dead as hector!

Mike 1972

martinedwards wrote: »

true, I know there are some hams who wouldn't dream of breaking the terms of thier licence by actually transmitting on the CB band!

Surely (as long as the power is kept below four watts and only standard CEPT frequencies are used then hams have as much right to transmit on 27MHz as the rest of us ?

Quaderno

Mike 1972 wrote: »

Surely (as long as the power is kept below four watts and only standard CEPT frequencies are used then hams have as much right to transmit on 27MHz as the rest of us ?

Yes, of course they have, but only as long as a certified CB transceiver is used instead of the ham-gear. The same goes for PMR, you can use any unmodified PMR446 device like everybody else does, but not a 70cm ham transceiver, regardless of the power used. Equally as a licenced amateur radio operator you are not allowed to make contact with any non ham radio stations even on the frequencies you are licensed to transmit on.

martinsvi

one of the amateur radio operator's license conditions clearly states:

(b) the Licensee shall ensure that the Apparatus is used only on such radio frequency spectrum as may be specified in the Licence

Licence clearly specifies all the ham bands. CB band is not there. that technically means - if you want to chat on CB, you have to have another rig, that is license exempt.

martinedwards

yup, but there is a definite them & us, though I know many hams do use 11m SSB with a LOT of power....

never saw the point m'self

watty

You can't use Radio Amateur gear for CB, 49, 446 or 864. You must use the appropriate CE certified for the band. There is no legal dual use equipment in Ireland or UK.

telecinesk

Does that make my ex-ukfm 27/81 rig modified for 29310-700 illegal ? Ha,well maby in EI.

Meanwhile as we nit pick ,New York repeater on 29.620 was S9 here earlier and I managed to open it with 4w into a dipole indoors.. 10M was totally up today. There was PuertoRico heard also the day before. Great fun on v low power.

martinsvi

Well if you have a ham licence, rig itself is legal, you just can use it for CB. however if you do not have a ham licence, it's illegal to have it. these laws are the same across EU and many other countries, nothing to do with EI in particular

telecinesk

Oh well in that case Im fine. lol. Licenced 12 yrs.

martinedwards

telecinesk wrote: »

Does that make my ex-ukfm 27/81 rig modified for 29310-700 illegal ? Ha,well maby in EI.

no, its on a Ham band and you're a Ham

a 10m set with crystals switched to work CB freqs on the other hand, WOULD be illegal.

watty

Amateurs may use any equipment modified in any manner, but only on Amateur bands and if it meets licence conditions.

A Modified 11m rig, even with a switch to revert to 11M is illegal to transmit on CB. It is perfectly legal for a Licence Holder on 10m. Confirmed by Comreg. BTW, uses SAME crystals, it's only rewiring Synth logic and a bit of tuning.

Listening on ANY frequency by any manner by anyone is legal in Ireland (but not in UK!) as long as non-Public transmissions content are not disseminated. In UK, you may only legally listen to "public" Transmissions (Which includes Amateur Radio, but apart from Broadcast, I'm not sure what else is legal in UK).

In Ireland it's not illegal to own a transmitter that needs a licence without the licence, only to operate it unlicensed. No-one will prosecute you for owning a 50KW Medium Wave transmitter, only for operating without a licence.

Once you modify a "licence free" (really "pre-licensed") CE approved transmitter (CB, PMR446, 864/868 SDR etc, WiFi Module) it's then illegal to use it on the "licence free" bands.

Quaderno

watty wrote: »

In Ireland it's not illegal to own a transmitter that needs a licence without the licence, only to operate it unlicensed. No-one will prosecute you for owning a 50KW Medium Wave transmitter, only for operating without a licence.

Are you sure? My licence explicitly states:
"(...) authorisation to keep, have possession of, install, maintain, work and use apparatus (...)".

I read this in a way that to "keep, have possession of..." apparatus without a licence would be in breach of the Wireless Telegraphy Act.

martinedwards

in the UK during the AM CB boom of the 80s the rigs were confiscated on grounds of illegal IMPORT, purely on not having had duty paid rather than being illegal to own as a unlicensed transmitter.

Of course, that's the UK, not The Rep. of Ireland, so obviously different!!

martinsvi

watty wrote: »

In Ireland it's not illegal to own a transmitter that needs a licence without the licence, only to operate it unlicensed. No-one will prosecute you for owning a 50KW Medium Wave transmitter, only for operating without a licence.

that bit is not true, It IS illegal to possess a transmitter without a licence unless the transmitter is licence exempt

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/1926/en/act/pub/0045/sec0003.html#sec3

watty

Depends how you interpret it. Also that is the 1926 Act which has been superseded and amended by later Acts.

Anyway for legal advice, consult a real lawyer, not the internet. Especially if you have a warehouse full of them!

martinsvi

watty wrote: »

Depends how you interpret it. Also that is the 1926 Act which has been superseded and amended by later Acts.

again, not true. Comreg website is very clear about this act:

The possession and use of radio equipment in Ireland is governed by the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1926, (Act No 45 of 1926), (as amended), which stipulates that an appropriate Wireless Telegraphy licence must be held, unless licence exempted. - See more at: http://www.comreg.ie/radio_spectrum/licensing.541.html

watty wrote: »

Anyway for legal advice, consult a real lawyer, not the internet. Especially if you have a warehouse full of them!

watty, I really respect You and Your contribution to this forum, and I really think that we both really want the same things, but we, as in - this forum, should not send mixed messages to it's readers. We have plenty of confused people already who think it's perfectly ok to point powerful lasers into skies near airports, we don't need them to start messing around with radio's as well. Law is very clear on what you can and can't do and there's a good reason why it is so.