Is Ham Radio Too Expensive?
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.ย. 2024
- Yes and no. Hopefully I can give a bit of context to the overall discussion that comes up quite often.
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Mentally add $30 for a decent antenna, but still not too bad.
After many years upon the earth as a person with varied interests, I've come to realize that all hobbies are somewhat expensive to get into. I have friends who are REALLY into going to NFL games to see their favorite team play. They spend what to me is a stupid amount for tickets. And they do that year after year after year. My wife has a friend who, with her husband, goes on 3-4 cruises per year. That's their thing. And they spend a lot of money on cruises every year. Concerts, sports, cars, whatever, it's all "expensive." I hunt. I fish. I play radio. That's all I do. But a lot of my hobbies involve an initial outlay of cash and then very little thereafter. I hunt with guns and bows I've had for years. I fish with rods and reels I've had for years. I have a good (not top of the heap) HF rig, a dual band mobile, a VHF mobile, and one HT (Baofeng). I've acquired those items over a period of years. And other than the occasional well-thought-out upgrade, I don't spend much money. So there is an entry point, sure, but I don't feel like amateur radio is more expensive to get into than any other hobbies people are into, unless, as you said, you wanna go top tier. That said, I'll see you at Huntsville! ;-)
I learned this from homebrewing beer. I know plenty of brewers who can make a decent beer with very inexpensive equipment and ingredients. I also know brewers who go all in and spend thousands on equipment. It's as cheap or as expensive as you want to make it.
My license + my (tr)uSDX + my hand-wound 49:1 + my UV5R+Plus = less than $200 for three years of GLORIOUSNESS!!! Compare to my World of Warcraft subscription over three years = $467.64. HAM can be cheaper than something that any teenager can scrape up = not a rich person's hobby!!!
Yeah, that's definitely my idea of fun, figuring out how to do it on a budget. I really want to start hand winding toroids, because it will save me tons of money. I'm making tons of contacts with my uSDR+ this whole DIY thing of making baluns and hombrew antennas is part of what lured me in to go get my license.
Thank you posting that. Excellent budget setup. Going that direction myself
Video title: "Is Ham Radio Too Expensive?"
Josh: "Yes my truck is autopiloting"
Aight maybe that's not the best way to start this one lmaooo
I used to be a professional driver for a couple of years. No way in heck I'm going to find myself stuck in an autopilot car again. Those things are a deathtrap waiting to happen. I drove across country once fighting the rental SUV that kept trying to get my family killed. Never again. I can hardly imagine how incompetent someone would have to be at driving to get any benefit from them. It is truly terrifying to think of these people and their cars on the road. The Darwin Awards is a new Olympics sport.
@@WR3ND ive had good experience with the autopilot on a model 3 though i dont own that car anymore
I saw someone leave this comment today: "God gave the wrong people money..."
It boggles my mind why someone could care how much someone else chooses to spend on a hobby. I had something similar in the Astronomy hobby. The president of the club making derogatory remarks because someone has a nice telescope setup. So much for being welcoming. I left that club 20 years ago and never looked back.
People finance $15,000 motorcycles, or $20,000 boats. A $10,000 ham station is a nice station. Thats a nice radio, amp, tower, and beam....
And you can refinance your home, and use the equity to buy some equipment.
@@HAMRADIOEXTREME-xo1lcYou could just... Get a loan! :0 just like for financing cars.
@@HAMRADIOEXTREME-xo1lc Hahahahahahaha!
Hey Josh! As a Patreon of your channel, I wanted to say I really think this was a great topic. I'm new to the hobby as I just got licensed (both Tech and General) in May of this year. I'm in the process of "building out my shack" and a basic Mobile setup in my truck. Have I spent a few bucks? Sure. However, I've also had and have other hobbies. I'm a firearms enthusiast, avid hunter, I used to scuba dive and play golf, and my wife and I love to travel. HERE's the difference with RADIO. I can put together a VHF/UHF station or mobile for less that $500 and an HF station for less than a $1,000. Once I've made that outlay, I can enjoy the hobby for years and years and not spend another nickel that I don't want to spend. With my other hobbies, there are ongoing expenses like green fees and cart rentals (weekly for that matter), ammunition, leases, equipment upgrades, and let's not even talk about travel. Radio, over the long haul, may be the least expensive hobby I've ever had! 73!
That is a good point as well! And thanks for the support.
So true
All my hobbies are expensive. My biggest hurdle with radio is the hidden cost of coax, terminals, wire, antenna analyzer, tuner, amplifier, etc etc and not really knowing what I really need when starting out.
I started with a Baofeng HT. Went to a field day. Purchased a G90 and listened on a hamstick attached to a spike in my backyard. When I heard people talking from around the world I upgraded to General and built an EFHW. A year later I upgraded to Extra and a Yaesu FT710. I have spent more than I anticipated but have comfortably grown into my current shack.
I feel like every hobby is $1,000 for your own gear. Snowboarding (board, boots binders, outfit) PCB repair (Hot tweezers, solder gun, solder sucker, smoke absorber, etc) Dirtbikes, DJing, real home cocktail bar, PC gaming, console gaming, t shirt making, audiophile setups, embroidery machining, musician, the list goes on and on.
Golf, mountain biking, hunting, camping....
Clubs, Clubs, Clubs! A guy from our local club lent me a very old 2m. hand held and a mag mount antenna for "my" first radio. He had an old HF rig that he was happy to lend me, too. And a lot of clubs have permanent set ups in their club rooms for members to use.
I got started in HF because a friend that I didn't even know was a ham, loaned me an older Kenwood 570D, a power supply, and some coax. My second EVER contact was Austrailia (from NV) and that's all it took. I called DX Engineering and ordered a bunch of stuff so I could get up and running with my own gear. Haven't looked back (but have bought more ham gear - 😉😉😉)
I'm 54m and got hooked on ham radio at 18 in 1988. I didn't get my tech and general until April 2022 and June 2022. I couldn't afford even an IC-7300. So I found the Xiegu G90 at $450. I bought a battery, some connectors, and speaker wire. I think I got into the hobby for $550 - $600. It's a great radio and I use it when I do POTA or other mobile HF at parks, beaches, mountains.
On June15 2024 I took my tech class exam and passed with 100% thanks to you and HRCC, and then they gave me the General class exam that I did not study for, and I passed with a score of over 90%. I did all of this during the time I was off work getting chemotherapy and radiation treatments for head and neck cancer.
Amateur radio is a hobby that will stay with you for years and years.
I've now got the POTA bug and have set a goal of being the first to activate 10 locations in 2025. 73. John Eckert
Get better soon our ham friend, 73
Just some perspective from the other end of the experience spectrum - I'm a new HAM (Like about as new as you can get - I got my call sign literally 2 hours ago). Still waiting on my first HT, and I'm planning on staying there in the short to medium term. I don't know what about this hobby will spark my interest, and I'm not going to drop a ton of money until I am comfortable with what I have. Just getting used to basic radio comms and the limited tools I will have at my disposal will take time. For me to try and immediately jump into the HF +$1000 shack is a sure way to give another HAM a great bargain on used radio gear in about 6 months. Like all things, its a journey, not a destination. I specifically decided to get into this BECAUSE it had a low entry cost. Just like in any other hobby, you can dump a ton of money on tools and gear, but that doesn't mean you will know how to use it.
Congrats!! Get a cheap ht like a baofeng. Its easy to use and program. Enjoy the hobby
Funny thing. A friend of mine had mostly given up on ham radio. He had even given me his FT-757GXii and tuner. Then something happened - the Baofeng came out. It was so unbelievable that you could get a VHF/UHF handheld for £30 (as it was at the time) that I told my friend and he ordered one as well. Well...that got him back in. I asked him if he wanted the 757 back and he said no, and went out and bought an FT-450 and put an antenna up at home. He then wanted to work mobile so he bought an FT-891 and an ATAS antenna...
For someone on a shoestring budget it might appear to be too expensive. With the Chinese manufacturers entering the market it does lower the entry cost. It is possible to get into the hobby as a Technician for less than $300 for a handheld, a 25 watt mobile for the vehicle, another 25 watt mobile for the shack, and a power supply. That does not include antennas, coax, and antenna mounts. Some quick Amazon searching shows someone can easily get into the hobby for $500 or less to have a complete mobile install, a home shack, and a handheld. However that doesn't take into account how they will mount their base antenna. That will easily get a Technician started on 2 meters and 70 cm using analog FM voice. The only required recurring expense is the $35 licensing fee the FCC started charging two years ago.
It is like any hobby, it can be as expensive as you make it. Take paintball for example. You can get an entry level starter kit that includes a marker, mask, and air tank between $200 and $300, but that is just for the equipment. There are high end markers that cost $1,500 and high end masks that are in the $200 range. Then there is the recurring costs of field fees, paint, and air fills. The pricing for the recurring costs will vary based on the local area, but lets just say it is $80 per player for a day of walk-on rec play for field fees, all day air fills for one compressed air tank, and a case of 2,000 paintballs. If you play twice a month that is $160 per month. That doesn't include any events such as tournaments, big games, or scenario games. Let's say entry for your average big game or scenario is $65 for a two day event and the average player purchases two cases of paint at $65 each. You are looking at $195 just for the event, but for easy math we can round up to $200 for entry and paint. If someone plays four scenarios or big games a year they are looking at $800 a year. With those figures a player who averages two walk-on days a month and four big games a year will end up paying $2,720 a year for entry and paint. That doesn't include food and travel expenses for the big events that aren't at their local field.
My son who is a pilot and a ham needed a new HT that is strictly for aircraft use. He just bought a new one while at the EAA air show at Oshkosh from a large aircraft supplier. He said they sold several brands and recommended a product for his specific requirements. This is what a store is all about.
Says the man "driving" in a new $75,000 self driving electric truck.
I did drive a 2012 beater I paid $7k for to save up. 😅 but yes, irony is not lost.
I make enough money to drive pretty much whatever I want. I drive a 2001, f-150 I got from a relative for basically nothing. I'm not cheap either. I've got a nice house with a lot of acreage. I just don't put money on vehicles because the value drops so quickly. I drive past people living in trailer parks driving trucks way nicer than I'll ever drive. People probably think I'm crazy but I don't care. What a person drives tells you zip nada about what they make. But, it is a free country. Spend your money how you wish.
Drive whatever you want! Great video!@@HamRadioCrashCourse
I think you are spot on with this and I have both ends of the spectrum but I still have a ton of fun with the Simple Baofeng
Thanks Dave. I appreciate your thoughts!
I wanted to get into HAM to have emergency coms while boondocking in our camper. The price and need to study for a license put that on the back burner. Recently, I started researching it again and found out about GMRS and bought some TIDRADIO HD-3s and the FCC GMRS license. Now that I'm exposed to it I'm interested in HAM again but I can focus on learning and the license while playing with the GMRS. Once licensed I can reset one of the HD-3s to HAM and play legally with some limitations until ready to build a system. For me GMRS is the "gateway drug" allowing me to immediately play. For others it might be all they need, and cheep. I like that I can monitor most frequencies if I want but the radio prevents me from accidentally transmitting illegally. Additionally, in an emergency I could "reset" the radio to HAM and make a legal emergency call. TH-cam has definitely accelerated my learning between you and Notarubicon. Awesome videos.
The cost is one reason why I have not pursued the hobby.
?? You cant afford a Baofeng? Maybe this hobby isn't for you.🤔
I'm a ham and a cyclist. For quality equipment your going to start at $1000 for both hobbies.
Yup, this is basically any hobby. My wife got in to crochet. Ask me how much money we've spent on hooks and yarn. :P A lot of hobbies require you to continuously buy something. If you crochet, you need more yarn. If you woodwork, you need wood. If you cook, you need ingredients. If you build models, you buy model kits.
In Amateur Radio, you can buy stuff once and never buy another item again, if you don't want to. And that doesn't stop you from enjoying the hobby.
Haha same here. But, I just got started as a ham. Got too much to list from cycling. Already scouring the web for ham stuff lol!
Tell me! I spent $6k building a Steel all road type bike. GRX di2 groupset was $3k!! but I got the bike I wanted. Then there is my golf clubs,bag etc!! Thats why I still rock an IC 718 instead of the ic705 that I really want!! $2k here in Australia
@@TrevHollandMy wife took up knitting about 10 years ago. Even back then enough natural fibers to make a sweater cost about a hundred bucks.
A dangerous hobby because the consumables are purchased in smaller amounts and at irregular intervals that Make it hard to see the true cost.
I was going to mention cycling. Look on the internet and everyone recommends spending at least $3k for an entry level bike. I want to get into it but not that bad. Plenty of fun to be had with a $1k bike.
Guns, RC Cars, 3D Printing, PC Gaming are all “expensive” hobbies. Everything is relative and there’s an affordable starting point for every one of these hobbies. Do research and start where you can. Be open minded about buying used. That’s my 2 cents.
Exactly.
I just got in to the hobby and got my Technicians. I bought the ic7300, and yes it was pricey. But then I built my own dipole with old speaker wire, tuned to the Technician's 10m frequencies. I bought a very cheap switching power supply that supports the radio and nothing else, and I bought a 50 foot length of RG58. Cheap, high loss, don't care! In a couple nights, I made nearly 40 confirmed QSOs on FT8 from all over. Australia, Asia, South America. Incredible. This is the way to do it. Buy the best radio you can afford, and then cheap out on literally everything else. Get on the air and start having fun. I'll upgrade things over time. But for now, I'm having a blast with what I have, and I didn't break the bank.
Yeah but man you should really try voice. I know your station might not be ideally set up for it, but right 10 meters voice is a ghost town which is sad, because then that's when the government starts taking away those frequencies and giving them to somebody else.
@@user-cz3tz8no8u It can't really, it's a worldwide band.
Go to a hamfest!!! I saved up 500$ when I got my license. I was hoping to get a hf radio and I walked out with everything I needed to get on the air that night. And I had 50$ left over!!!
Tell them you’re new and excited about the hobby. I made several good friends from that hamfest. They treated me great and gave me fantastic deals. Was it a 80s radio? Yes. But it worked and I was on the air having a blast the next day.
Good idea!
It can be expensive for buying newer top radios with all the bells and whistles. I am still a tech but got my first hf radio, a used ts-140s for under 200 at a local hamfest. I also got an mfj versa tuner 2 for under 100 refurbished and guaranteed to work at a different hamfest. I got on 10m with a homemade dipole and a cheap balun and coax on Amazon. I got a a rigblaster nomic and have been working the world on ft8. I have other more expensive items like antennas and a ts-50 for mobile operations, but have not spent more than 275 on any single item over the three years since I was licensed. I would love a modern radio with all the bells and whistles and a nice waterfall display, but have been able to work hf on my 10m privileges via phone and digital. You can spend a fortune on this hobby or you can spend only a few hundred bucks and have fun. 73 from KC3UNE in PA.
Yep, this is the way to do it. Even if you could potentially afford a shiny new set, this establishes that you really want to do this and you're never going to lose the money on a $200 all band HF radios when it comes time to sell, if you feel you do want to move up to something shinier.
$200-$300 for a used HF rig, roll your own wire antenna for a couple dollars, throw it up in a tree with some inexpensive RG-58 and your on air talking around the world. People that complain that radios are to expensive have no clue what they are talking about. Radios are ridicousley cheap these days compared to what they use to cost back in the day. Back then people would save up for a year to numerous years to be able to afford a radio. A new radio in the 70's cost the average person 2 to 5 months wages. These days it's 1 to 2 weeks wages.
I totally agree my first radio a Yaesu FT207 2M handheld cost me over 2 months pay, I just saved every week until I could afford it
I inherited my FIL's TS-430 and a set of Drake 4-series boxes. Didn't need them, but I could not even give them away. Everyone wants new appliances.
@@marcdb9974 Yet everyone on the Facebook pages complains how everyone selling wants nearly new prices for old radios. There's some sort of disconnect somewhere.
I started with a used Kenwood TS-820 ($200 at a local hamfest), a diy 9:1 unun (less than $25 in parts), and a spool of wire from Home Depot (about $45). 50 feet of Radio Shack coax (less than $50). Measure the wire, slingshot it into a tree and I'm on the air. 8th place in MD QSO party about 10 years ago, with that rig. I upgraded to a Yaesu FT450 about 9 years ago ($800). Also upgraded to LMR400, but still slinging wires into trees for homemade antennas. You can spend surprisingly little if you look around.
Many (most?) new Hams and those exploring the hobby are getting their introduction on youtube, like a lot of activities these days. While youtubers are reviewing low cost alternatives, they are using (sometimes multiple) $1000+ HF rigs, definitely multiple $500+ HTs and multiple high end antennas. Those new Hams are being "influenced" by virtual Elmers into thinking, consciously or subconsciously, that they need to have that gear. I'm not disparaging the TH-cam Hams by any means, I follow many of you, and value your opinions and reviews. I'm just saying that is why there is an impression that it is an expensive hobby.
Even some of us more experienced hams see this same image! I have been licensed near 30 yrs. I like to follow a few of the YT videos just to see what's going on with the newcomers. I am a VE as well. I try to do my part to help the new hams, but I am not flashing a new piece of gear every few days or months.
Many youtubers are trying to put their best foot forward, not realizing that most viewers are only seeing money being shown off instead.
This is also why the cheap Chinese radio videos do so damned well for the youtubers. They are cheap radios, they are garbage actually that folks can afford. However the truth is most hams know they arent worth the plastic or the box they are shipped in, yet everyone buys them up because they are cheap, the item and the investor, and I do mean that to be a bit of a slight! Its why these videos exist aftercall.
If we want better products, we need to be better at what we ask for, not just at the price point to which we bitch but in the products we request. The Baofengs and the all the variations of it in names and design, are not the problem, the purchaser is. The Yaesu 710, or Icom7300 at $1100-$1500, yes is a little steep to me even at first. However that price has held solid for about 12 yrs so far as I bought my last new rig in 2012 and paid those prices as well.
What is disappointing is a bunch of new products on the market being touted as big boy toys when in truth they arent much more then "Fisher Price" toys repackaged (IMHO). That seems to be the story of the Baofeng and no one seems to mind, but if you dare discuss the quality of the Yaesu, Icom, Kenwood Alinco's, oh no, then we have arguments because well, those just cost too much!
We often review all the economic options, so I am not sure I’m following this completely.
@@HamRadioCrashCourse Correct, which is why I said "youtubers are reviewing low cost alternatives". My point is that those same youtubers aren't showing themselves using a Baofeng in their activity videos, they're showing a Kenwood TH-D75A, and the new Ham viewer feels like he needs one too.
@@HamRadioCrashCourse my apologies. I was partially interrupted and thought I proofed my thoughts before hitting enter.
I absolutely agree with both you guys on what you're saying.
and because I dont recall exactly what I was trying to say , I will just let it go. I wont edit or alter what I said in fairness to conversation either.
The only thing I really do disagree with on with most youtubers, is please stop with the cheap radio reviews. i know they get lost of reviews, but they are garbage radios.
Lets make them bring the quality up, even if that brings the price point up to twice of what they are. I mean even a $100 HT that does all of what these things do would be a deal if it did it with purity out of the box the first time.
The price point allowed these to proliferate the market to people who just dont care. A lot of new Techs that dont care, because they only got licensed to play weekend warrior emcomm games, and they dont care what the FCC says etc
@@ChrisRobinsonKF6NFW You say they are garbage radios, but they're *almost* as good as the expensive ones, just not quite. But what they are, are unbelievable value for money, and a massive step up from what we had 35 years ago. They are handheld radios. They are used as walkie talkies, for hams to talk to each other while in the vicinity of each other, or a bit further via the local repeater. What else do you want from a handheld?
I wish the transceiver manufactures made more sub $600 HF transceiver. I'd love a FX-4CR type transceiver made from ICOM or Yeasu.
That sounds like a good idea. The Yaesu 817/818 series radios were like that but they were just QRP unfortunately.
The Yaesu FT-891 is pretty close and I’m sure you can find it sub 600 in used almost new condition.
@@TrenchKraft I have the 891 correctly. The FX-4CR is more compact, more similar in size to the trusdx(which I also have). I go backpacking and want something more compact and doesn't break the bank.
@@TrenchKraft That's probably true and I've heard it's a good radio. Or just get the radio I got an Xiegu G 90.
A good bowling ball will cost approximately $150. Add a nice pair of bowling shoes for $200 and then add a few games and refreshments for $50 bucks. Bingo... you are close to the Xiegu G90. An entry level type radio but remember - you can always sell the radio gear you no longer need or want.
I got my Technician class 2 years ago. Taking the test was fun. My son went with me, and he passed the General test because he studied for both. We have 2 Baofeng HTs and a mobile. I have only transmitted a few minutes and only with my son to learn that the Baofengs will only reach 1 mile. The cost of good equipment has kept us off the air.
You dont use the repeaters in your area?
You can talk over an area including many, many miles using repeaters, using a Baofeng H/T. Unless you have the misfortune to live in an area with no nearby repeaters.
A lot of people on here are talking about getting a $200 HF radio from a Hamfest. You can then make an antenna out of speaker wire, etc. Is $200 too expensive? It would be nice to be on HF.
This hobby is as expensive as you make it. Speaking on HF, IMO your budget should be allocated to largely your radio, after that it's coax, once you have those you can make your own antenna for pennies and use whatever cheap used or new computer you can find for any digital modes if that's what you want.
I am just over one year in this hobby, I started with a boafang, but now I have a 7300 bought from a friend that didn’t use it, a 7000 bought from an SK, and the only radio bought from a store an ID 5100! Almost 3k worth of radios for about for less than $2k!
The guy once cry once philosophy applies here. You may need to save up a bit, but then you have the radio for years with little to no outlay thereafter. One possible concern will be if the prospective ham lives in an area with little to no 2m or 70cm traffic - then you'll need to go to HF as a starting point (what i did). Thanks for the great perspective!
Amateur radio is not cheap, but there are musicians who spend more for one guitar than I did for my entire station and then some.
QRP CW transistor transceiver schematics are available online. It can be cheap to do Ham HF with CW.
I just bought a truSDX a few months ago, and I have been having fun working with building a couple of antennas and figuring out how to best build a setup for portable operations.
THIS video, Is a Very good example of WHY i Appreciate your channel!! I jumped straight to General only a couple
Months ago. Have Plenty of equipment- & 100% of my time is on 2m/70cm. Most easily used (repeaters). LOTS to do in that space!!!! Love your message! Keep the Grind
Thanks
The simple answer to this question is "no". Ham Radio is an *extremely* affordable hobby at the *entry level*. You can get started in Ham Radio with nothing but a $30 Baofeng H/T. There's absolutely no reason a beginner should assume they need to be buying anything that costs anywhere remotely close to $1,000. Now if they happen to have the good fortune to have plenty of disposable income, by all means, go load up on Yaesu and Icom gear. But in no way, shape, form, or fashion is that strictly necessary.
And if you want to step up to something more powerful with a bit more range, you can get a Chinse made dual-band mobile for less than $150 for 25W radio, and around $225 for a 50W radio. Are they the nicest radios around? No. Are they perfectly adequate for a n00b? Yep. Are they better and more feature packed than a radio that cost 5 times as much, say, 30 or 40 years ago? Yep.
This whole cost thing is only really an issue when people start comparing their setups to other people and lusting after the "nicer" rigs that others have. But that's true of most any hobby. You can, for example, have a perfectly great experience mountain biking with a $500 bicycle (I know, I've been riding one for 15+ years). But if you start looking at the people around you with their $3000 bikes with carbon rims, carbon fiber frames, blah, etc. and thinking "Ooooh, I need that to be a real MTB'er" then you'll make yourself miserable.
I wish there was a brick-and-mortar store available to me any closer than Milwaukee!
On the other hand, if HRO were closer to me, I'd have blown out my credit cards by now.
I'm in Chicago, and HRO Milwaukee is my nearest store, I went up there to get started and bought a Yaesu FT-710.
If i need anything radio related i go to hro in Milwaukee takes like half an hour to get there kinda spoiled fortunately i don't "need" things often
Just like any hobby you can do it on the cheap or you can go hog wild. I got into ham radio off of eBay I see the ton of money doing it I have bought very few new items other than incidentals all but one of my rigs, make that two were bought used. I bought an FT-857 and a Kenwood 480? 200 W mobile. Those are the only ones I bought new. I’m glad I did
Hi, started with a pair of Baofengs.. now I just purchased an Anytone D578 and turned it into a Manpack… just got it finished up. I’m gonna program it this weekend.
In my club, almost 75% are technician, some are general, and a few have reached extra class. Like with cars, a newly licensed driver will not have a Ferrari, but may have a nice sedan, with time and effort, the nicer cars may appear, until you reach your perfect car which is like finding your perfect radio, lol
Like any hobby I agree it can be as expensive as you want to make it. I recommend finding a nearby club and using the club's equipment and members to explore everything you could do.
I got started in ham radio as a high school student in 1975 with a used Heathkit DX-60 and Hammarlund HQ-100 purchased from the classified ads in the back pages of QST. VNA's were unheard of, and I could not afford an SWR meter or antenna tuner. The only accessory I had was a Dow-Key relay. My antenna was an 80-meter dipole made from bare copper wire from the hardware store and trimmed with a tape measure until my plate current found a good dip near the center range of the tuning capacitor. Despite Ebay skewing used gear prices skyward, there are still many great deals to be had with used equipment of excellent quality and features I could only have dreamt of back in the day. Accessories and antenna perfection are not worth the worrying about for any newcomer. VHF is incredibly inexpensive for the new Tech licensee unlike when I started. With HF, just find a cheap used 30-year old transceiver and have fun with it. You'll learn things and build on your experience.
It’s only as expensive as you make it. I started my 1st 10 years as a Tech with a used mobile and a used handheld. I saved an bought an upgrade handheld a new Yaesu VX-7. Ten years ago I upgraded to General and purchased a (used) Yaesu FT-857d. Due to job changes i put HF on the shelf and then relocated 3 years ago. This past spring, I caught the bug and dug out equipment I had never used. Using a homemade 20 meter dipole I got on the air and started making contacts. At hamfest I splurged and bought a couple of 20 meter hamsticks and made a better dipole. I did spend a little over $100 and bought a digirig so I could connect to my laptop and start doing FT8. So all-in-all probably less than $1000 in the past 10 years.
On a side note, I’m picking up ISS comms from my standard antenna on my VX7. Although I do have a 2m/70cm handheld Yagi I use for satt comms.
I started with an FT-891 as a base radio, cost me just under $700. Worked every corner of the planet on a fairly inexpensive EFHW. Also got a Xeigu G106 recently for traveling with, it qrp but works quite well for me using a cheap ebay EFHW with a wire tossed onto a palm tree from a hotel balcony. Only costs about $250. On the other hand I have used a Pixie qrp CW kit to make contacts, not ideal but I think it costed me something like $7. There's something out there for everyone if you look for it and use a little ingenuity. It CAN be expensive but doesn't have to be.
Ham radio is not just about your transceiver, it's about setting up a system, however minimalist. And this means planning for antennas, VNAs, linear amps, etc. It is easy to fall to fall into the Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS) in any hobby! I finally came back to radio after doing cameras and drones; you can always operate from your home, year round - good and bad weather.
I just bought an unused-as new Tokyo Hy Power 2M 300W amplifier. So I know what you meant by GAS. Did I need it? Probably not, but did I want a collectors item? Absolutely!🙌
I'm a new Ham. I got my entire shack setup for about $1100. That includes two HT, a mobile, and a G90. I can do a heck of a lot with that. Heck you can get a Feng and a 10m radio for like $275 and get a taste of HF and VHF/UHF.
bro im still rocking a baofeng hooked to a raspberry pi, digital stuff is wild
Nice way to experiment. Raspberry Pi can open a lot of doors!
Love the videos Josh you single handily helped me get my tech ticket. I’m working towards general now. I would love if you did a series like you did for tech but I’m 1000% sure there is a lot that went into that
It’s on work. Albeit slowly 🤣
@@HamRadioCrashCourse idk if you will see this lol. I made one of the most beautiful contacts my very first time on HF that left me wanting more (general) so that helped. The contact was in New Zealand and my qth is North Carolina.
I purchased a used 706MKIIG and power supply for $500 and an end fed antenna on eBay for $80. Which was half the price of my last smart phone.
Yes, it can be expensive but it doesn’t have to be. Most people are walking around with more expensive gear in their pocket than a used ham radio startup.
Got my ticket had a 1000$ bought a g90 ,battery some good coax and cheap ground mounted vertical had my first Dx contact in 20 minutes hooked forever
I went with the attitude of buy once cry once and got a DX10. Great radio but it has so many features I have no real interest in it’s a bit of a waste for me. In reality I would have been fine with a FT891 for about $800 less and done just fine on 10/20/40 meters which is really all I do on HF. Best advice is don’t jump until you know what you need, you may be surprised at how much money you can save.
One should go back decades to see radio prices. Modern radios also have many more features that earlier generators. I have a 1929 Atwater-Kent broadcast band receiver. In 1929 this radio cost $400 plus $125 for the tubes. In 2024 dollars this would be $9650.00. You are, of course, correct there many economical options to have fun with radio. Radios have never been cheaper.
Yowza! Good point.
It seems that it can be as expensive or inexpensive as you make it. You can use very inexpensive hand held radios for a lot of things and use inexpensive amps with those hand held radios in your car. The hand held radio won't do a lot of things as good as it can be done but if that is not what you are after then no problem. If you are looking to talk very long distances and have APRS and the full feature set of extras, then yes it will be expensive. Like if you buy a radio that can only be used on 1 band, granted the performance on that band will probably be very good but it means buying more radios if you want to talk on other bands.
I got my ham licence in 1986, over the years nearly all my radios where second hand. Now in 2024 i have a second hand Kenwood ts440s, several Baofeng handhelds and several old cb radios converted to 28mhz. So i enjoy ham radio being cheap and cheerful!!.
I've been licensed since '87 and my only new radios Have been a couple of Baofengs and a couple of Quanshengs.
While there was a time whan starting out that wanted a base station radio but as my interests were more on downsizing and being portable when needed to be, I instead bought the FT-891 after saving up for it for several months. The upside to making this choice was two fold. First, it was portable that delivered 100watts and secondly, the price was roughly half of what a new Yaesu 991A cost at the time. This along with a loaned Astron power supply and homemade 20/40 meter dipole got me on the air. In otherwards, my total investment was basically under $1000.00. Since those early days, I of course made some suggniicant upgrades, but still use the FT-891. I guess the point I'm trying to make here, is that while someone starting out can't afford a new Icom 7300, then perhaps going with a mobile may be more affordable that can be either portable or used in the house.
I live on Social Security! Yes it isn't easy to do Ham Radio on a low income. But it can be done. ARES is mostly on VHF/UHF. There are a lot of repeaters that can be used with Tech License. Florida has a lot of repeaters, and nets on the repeaters. Florida has something that I don't think any other state has, that is the SAR NET! A lot of repeaters covering almost all the state all linked together.Free to use all you want until a State of Emergency is declared then only Emergency people in each county, the National Hurricane Center, and the state EOC can use it. But when there is a storm I have a radio on that because it gets a lot of information on it. We have a county repeater that is manned in the county EOC when there is something going on. We also have a Weather repeater to pass on weather information. All of this can be done with just a technician license! With radios in the lower price range. UV5R may not be able to do all of this but many lower price radios $100 to $300 price range can. Antenna and coax may cost more than your radio here! Sorry I got on my soap box! 73 W4DES
I agree with you sir. Hobbies, all of them, become expensive because it becomes an obsession! If you can control yourself and take it slow, it doesn’t have to be. The question is, how many can have control and enjoy the moment? I am not a HAM, at least not yet, BUT as a current GMRS and old school CB maniac, I am enjoying your videos and learning so when I make it to the next level I know what to do without going broke. I am enjoying the moment and savoring the slow motion. One day I might be able to cross band with you and all and my first words should be THANK YOU! I will never grow out of CB and/or GMRS due to my life style but ALL can be enjoyed equally as for what they are and how they are meant to be used. THE ART of communication and technology should never be limited to just one thing. It WILL become expensive, but you can delay that based on your income. SAVOR THE MOMENT! Take it slow. Thanks again.
Maybe the complaint about cost has an answer in a modular radio system using a plug-in rack/backplane like the PCI cards in a PC. With assembled and/or you-build options, it could drop entry costs significantly by giving operators a chance to add bands and options as they can afford to buy or build them, and create a lot of opportunity for experimentation. If there's one out there already, I'd sure like to know about it.
A better option would be an SDR with licenses that activate certain features, like they do now with the AOR-DV1 receiver.
Well said Josh as a new ham I think we have more opportunity for budget-friendly radios now than ever before
I think ham is a moderately expensive hobby. It's not race car collecting, but it's not reading at the library either. In addition to the radio, coax and power supply you mentioned, there's other stuff you kinda need. Maybe someone could limp along without this stuff, but life will kinda suck. You need a multi-meter, an antenna tuner and a NanoVNA or some type of antenna analyzer to match the antenna with your radio or at least get it close enough to use the internal radio tuner. If someone is going to save money with China gear, then add a spectrum analyzer like a TinySA to see if you're violating the FCC rules using it. It would be a godsend if one antenna was enough, but mobile and base are tough to interchange not to mention being a PITA to schlep back-n-forth. I did that briefly but it was untenable. Then multiply by the number of bands you want to work. My antenna collection wasn't a trivial expense. Add to that, I probably have at least $600 bucks worth of attenuators, adapters, dummy loads, patch cables, power cords, spare HT batteries, yada, yada, yada. That stuff adds up and of course it rarely interchanges between vendors (every HT vendor seems to feel the necessity to design their own battery form factor because I'm sure the sky would fall if Yaesu and Baofeng interchanged).
If it sounds like I'm complaining, I'm really not. It's more of an annoyance because the money isn't a big deal for me at this stage of my life. I can buy what I want without worrying about a budget unless we're talking crazy expensive. I'm older and I can't take it to the grave anyway but for a younger person, I think it's a significant chunk of cash to part with. Especially as you said with the Federal government debasing the US currency like crazy and causing price inflation that's making it hard for young people to make ends meet. To add insult to injury, we all make our newbie mistakes and buy stuff that we later discover wasn't such a good idea - like most everyone, I have that junk collection. Anyway, that's my two cents. I enjoy your videos. Take care. 73
I got into the hobby a few decades ago while working my way through college working in a restaurant (yeah, you could do that back then). I had to dig deep to find the $330 that I spent for my first 2m FM rig, which works out to something over $1200 in today's dollars. The rigs you get nowadays have far more capability, so no, the hobby is not terribly expensive compared to the "good old days."
Very good point.
I came from the public safety sector of radios into ham. Compared to those radios and infrastructure the ham hobby is way cheaper. But like you said you can put whatever you want into it.
Way cheaper is a understatement. Easy to get over $10,000 in one HT when it comes to public service radios.
@@mikesradiorepair yes sir I would love to get myself an apx next xe😅
@@CluelessRanchHand I got a APX 8000HXE all band a couple of months ago with all options. It was from a friends commercial shop. They had used it for about a year as a field sales demonstration model radio. They have pretty much sold them to everyone in the area that's going to buy them so they decided to sell it. Got it for $1.5K.
Radios are CHEAPER now than when I started! In 1975 I bought a Heathkit HW-16 for $100... in today's dollars that is $583.97! 80, 40 and 15 meters crystal controlled until VFO's for novices were allowed. whopping 45 watt output to homemade dipoles from donated #12 copperweld the local telephone company gave the ham club. Homemade insulators from scraps of plexiglass from the sign company... took me a year to save up for that radio!
Ham radios not being easy to use? Dip the plate, peak the output, maybe repeat for max power out... and RTFM!!!
I don't think people really appreciate just how inexpensive a lot of modern electronics are.
There's a reason why in Back to the Future when Marty tells his 1950s uncle that he has two TVs the boy responds "wow you must be rich"
As a 14 year old ham with a tight budget I found that it doesn't take much to get started on HF. The HF radio I bought was the Xiegu G 90 which is a beautiful radio that only puts out 20 watts of power. While some people may say that you can't make any contacts on 20 Watts I've seen different. On both CB and 10 meters I've made contacts to Wisconsin, Oregon, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Florida etc. plenty of times from my house in California and in Alberta, Canada. Now here's the catch the antenna is a Wilson 5000 magnetic mount 26-30 megahertz antenna that cost around $120 and the HF radio costs $400. Thus proving that you can get into HF with not a lot of money and still make tons of contacts.
73,
KO6DEF/AmericanEagle 930 California
Josh. Amateur radio is a pretty solid investment. You can sell a used amateur radio for really close to what a new one costs (sometimes more). I bought a Kenwood THD-74 for a little more than 500 dollars and when Kenwood briefly discontinued their amateur radio HT production the resale price for that radio increased dramatically more than the new price. So yeah radios cost money but they keep their value decently well.
really? then why cant I sell mine? Unless you are talking 20 bucks a piece at a swap. No one buys disposable income stuff in a bad economy specially if its only handled by 1% of the population.
@@Gracefull4 Yet there are so many people on the Facebook groups complaining that people want nearly new prices for really old radios. Someone must be buying them if they command strong prices.
Good points. The IC-718 is good for mobile too. I used one in my truck for County Hunting many years ago with great results.
Been at it for many decades. Yeah, things have changed - just like the tech inside the products. There are always cost extremes in most everything we do. But that's not fair. Most folks that point out the issue you're talking about are likely talking about the middle ground. And you certainly can't discuss the topic without factoring in a rotten economy. When people start deciding which food items they can bring home when a few years ago they might not have, a thousand dollar-plus piece of ham gear starts making the hobby look a bit different. Much of the gear being shown at the ham trade shows are well over $1k. Amps; 4-$5k. A newbie would see that and say, "yeah, it's a rich person's hobby",. A hobby for people with a few thousand to throw around. And that seems to be what most of the companies care about - the upper end. They're still thinking of yesterdays economic climate. Sure, there's always qrp but does that bring in new or young people? Some yes. Most, probably no. I for one, would like to see a few of these companies think 2024 and offer a few more budget-friendly items. Pretty sure it can done with all the advances made in tech. But maybe they don't see it in the numbers. I really don't know. Don't get mad. Just the way I'm seeing things at the moment.
But the big, shiny radios have never been so cheap. Under $900 for a top notch FT-710 is pretty good. Look what you get with that compared with, say, an IC-718. But the fact is that there has always been a second hand market for radio gear, dating back almost to the start of commercial radio sets. A $200 from a hamfest, as the person above you posted, it going to get you almost the same results. You see a lot of people in the comments here say how they started on HF with a $200 radio and some speaker wire. I don't know why people are reluctant to look to the second hand market...in 37 years of being a ham, the only new radios I've bought have been Baofengs and Quanshengs. I will admit to having bought some coax and connectors new, and a reel of wire...
@@paulsengupta971 The ham market has changed dramatically since I started in the 70's. We had heathkit. I built a couple. As we remember it - heathkit is gone. Alnico had a cheap entry level xcvr around 500 dollars just four or five years ago - gone. There were one or two others I forget that went away to make room for newer things. Then the economy went south. 1k is usually the price of admission. For a young person starting out or a retired person on fixed income - a thousand dollars ain't happening. As for used; if you live in a region that has such things, you're lucky. That too has changed. We don't even have a local annual field day anymore. Some folks would have to drive a hundred miles or more to visit a ham fest. With gas and food,..that deal begins to look a bit different. And buying through ebay or market place? An expensive gamble if it goes wrong. Ask how I know. My point? Companies in the business need to retool their lines and tailor them for a changing market place. Offer something in the get-you-in-the-front-door line. My opinion of course. Cheers.
I agree. I started writing a response, but it was getting too long. When considering how much money people will spend on the latest and greatest consumer electronic gear or trendy athletic/outdoor equipment (and most of those people never leave their backyards) ham radio is relatively inexpensive.
Hi Josh, People ask me all the time “How Much did that radio cost ?” My answer is “I don’t know, I haven’t sold it yet.” My cost for radios has been very low. Now resale on coax and antennas is pretty much a loss.
Today I have been a ham operator for 5 months now. Yeah it can be cheap or expensive. Most my radios are the Chinese ones. They work great they don't break the bank. 73 KQ4PMD
Don't let more experience HAMs make you feel bad for starting with Chinese radios. You're on the air and that is what matters
@@robert8342-w7x I know that. Ever since I got my license I have really enjoyed this Hobby. And talk some friendly people. So far I haven't ran into sand hams.
@HiTechHudson89 when I got started everyone was telling me to buy a $1000+ radio and talked down to me for starting off with a beofeng HT. That's why I said what I said. Hopefully I'll get you in my log one day
Good job Josh, its like any hobby firearms woodworking car racing, they are all rabbit hole hobbys. Start small and see if it is even something you want to do. 73
You ask as you “drive” your high end electric decked out truck
Expensive is relative, depends on income as well as how much of it one is willing to spend. Maybe the more interesting question would be is it overpriced? Big producers have their prices almost fixed (suspiciously so between them as well), while innovating at an unacceptably low pace for tech industry. One of the big ones even said recently that they don't plan to improve their most sold model any time soon "as there is no need". Sad. Chinese products are getting much better in quality, and the next big thing will definitely come from there.
New hams don't need to buy NEW gear! There are so many estate sales and online listings that you can find good deals and get into the hobby on a budget. Be smart and don't waste money on shit you don't know you will love.
100% I forgot to mention estate sales. They can be rare but massive come ups!
Trusdx kit and a cheap end fed half wave will get you started..... And hooked!
In general, any hobby usually comes at a cost. From collecting stamps to playing golf, you are going to spend money. Now it's whether you want to be sweating on a golf course or sitting at your ham shack in the comfort of your a/c having a beer. I'm not rich, but I'm also not poor. I got my GMRS in 2019 and my tech in 2021. I have a base GMRS ($300) and a few ht's that I use for GMRS and ham, I'd say about $600 between them all and just picked up the Anytone 878. One of my major set backs is this is a hobby, so anything that the house needs or any projects on my honey do list takes priority, and so does the funding. I guess my radio hobby is like Johnny Cash's song "One Piece at a Time". But so far it's been good. Slow and steady, eventually I'll be where I want to be equipment wise. Then I'll retire and have to move it all up 2 states and replant there.
Can also start with sdr for the new/young folks who don't want to buy a box. Lots to learn about signals, encoding and spectrum use that crosses over into rf hacking without much investment. It's still ham afaiac.
It can be as expensive as you want, but it doesn’t have to be expensive. That’s why it’s also relatively popular in less developed countries.
You can also be part of a ham radio club and use that equipement and just buy a handheld or a movile radio for yourself
I'm new to this, and my initial observation is that amateur radio has a giant mass of free technical documentation. I do film photography, and the core texts start at 50 bucks a pop, and rising because they're out of print.
The reality is that you can spend almost what you want; and many hobbies take money to get started.
I know you can upgrade as you go along, but, after spending the "startng money," you don't "have to" spend lots to keep going.
Scuba diving comes to mind. There us an initial spend, but afterwards, its just maintaining your gear. Now, you CAN continue to buy the katest and greatest, but it's not necessary.
So, all in all, once you purchase your initial set up, it's maintenance and maybe add ons as you see fit, miving forward.
If you want to save money and still have a lot of fun with HF radio, learn CW and build your own antennas. This opens you up to getting the most value out of QRP radios on the less expensive end (QRP Labs stuff and similar).
100%!
I would love to have brick & mortar shop in the area. Touch the equipment, check accessories, talk to a person and check it out before buying.
As I understand it primarily a higher wattage the only benefit of it is it helps you cut through interference if there is any if you want better range invest in a really good antenna that'll give you much better results then a higher wattage
It’s that and more. But your antenna argument is spot on!
I have started off with a cheap uSDX+ for $125 Canadian I bought a 64:1 balun, scavenged some wire, picked of some cheap SO239 connectors from the truck stop, found a box of 50ohm coax at work with most of the box there, I also added an ATU-100 auto antenna tuner but I could do without it, but it helps. Now I have made contacts all over so far... Belgium, Serbia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Russia to name a few with only 1.6 watts going to the antenna. It's not a perfect setup, but I'm making contacts when propagation is good, and that's the point. I did research before getting my license while I was taking the course to figure out how to make it work on the cheap. I'm still trying to do everything on the cheap by looking for older used gear. You can start for less money, it just takes some research and scavenging
I started out with an old tube HF radio (Swan 500) and made an antenna for 40/15 meter band all for about $350 in 2017, just to see if I would be interested in the experience. SSB QSOs to Chile and Italy and of course all over North America got me hooked. You don’t have to spend a lot to enjoy ham radio.
Ham radio is very doable I purchased a very used kenwood TS 430 and have made some fantastic contacts also I had to learn how to use an external tuner . I spent 400 dollars for the entire set up
TV sets, computers, cell phones... plug and play... Amateur radio, GET THAT WALLET BOY!!!
Thank you for sharing & well said regarding your fair point of views towards the costings of ham radio.
Personally I think that the ham radio hobby has never been so cheap as it is today with so many cheap models to chose from , back in the early 80's hand held radios cost a months wages , so back in the day ham radios cost thousands of pounds , today with all the technology opens up a whole new avenue of ham radios & I'm very happy with all my cheap radios such as the CRT 9900 , the Alinco DX-SR9 ,CRT SS 7900 , President Mc Kinley & countless Baofengs , I really have lost count on those !.
So what I think is that there's the haves & the have not's & that's all over TH-cam on every hobby , TH-cam is gentrified for the most part , but why not ?, I love seeing all the new toys & I appreciate people having the time to put these amazing hobbies on TH-cam . it's fun to see , I love photography & have a lot of cameras & it's exactly the same path on TH-cam as ham radio .
I really do think there are way more options than ever before. Lots of great homebrew.
It could be expensive. But watch in the market for used radios, talk to hams at your local club that your interested 😃 it took me about 6 years break 1000$ point in used (and new) rigs. Sure, rigs are from the 80s but 100w (50w VHF). Got a filter, small rotor, 4 element vhf-yagi and manual tuner really cheap from a local ham. I bought my ht and mobile vhf/uhf new and one antenna, but thats all. The antennas are homebrew, awesome drawings to google or checkout on youtube 😀
Now later the shack has grown.
Dont be afraid of old rigs, they are often quality!
Couldn't agree more. Well said.
I agree 100%... it it is as expensive or inexpensive as we want to make it
My only gripe about building your first antenna. Is that if you are on your own, you need a antenna analyzer which is not cheap and if something doesn’t work out it can be discouraging to a newbie, i say buy your first wire antenna then build your second one so you have a good reference or you can always go back for a break and talk to someone on the radio if your having troubles
$50 for a NanoVNA. It’ll get you there.
£30 for a Nano VNA. Not that expensive. A fantastic tool. Even if you buy a HF antenna, you probably have to trim it, or fold it back, to resonance in whatever space you put it in. I've never bought a HF antenna. I've built several VHF/UHF ones too.
bought a boafeng 25 feet of rg213 a nano vna a female sma to pl239 a adapter and the battery eliminator for the boafeng and a couple chassis mount pl239 now I have a 1/4 wave vertical made from scrap 10 gauge romex that allows the UV-5R to reach the repeater 18 miles from me. When I upgrade to general I will get a Ubitx V6 and build a 80-10 meter ground mounted vertical for under a $100. I will have much less than a $1000 into my shack and will not be all that fancy but will be good enough for me if need more power I will build a amp.
Being a newer ham I can talk so much to this a lot of it is misunderstanding and misconceptions based on what the radios are capable of and how important troubleshooting is over raw power and features I have a list of good setups that I have used and I share with new people depending on what they are trying to do and I try to give them the reality of the radios capabilities. Keep it up josh 😊
Compared to many many hobbies - radio isn't that expensive. And the running cost of having the gear is minimal. Once you have the gear, you can use it for many years, without additional cost.
A small boat, a horse, good hifi system, motorcycle, hunting, and SO many more other hobbies - are much much more expensive, where people without blinking spending large amounts. And you need to keep paying to use it...
With radio your equipment last a long time. It doesn't go out of fashion from year to year. You invest and you keep the gear and the setup over a lifetime, getting better and better at using it and you upgrade gradually, its more about learning how to use it, than having the best gear.
I love my xiegu g90. I rm Italy kL203p I got for 78 bucks on eBay. Careful if you use a linear on an HF unit. Make sure your HF unit isn't pushing too many watts. And don't go outside the frequency range of your transistors in that linear.
@Josh... Your comment about hands on and visiting the store is spot on. Also, I bring my wife. There has been a few times where she said... "Yeah, why don't you get that today." Would not happen with an online order! ;)