Ham Radio & Survival Communications, Volume 2

Hello Everybody, Frank here.

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, six radio classes and one test day have passed. The radio class is now finished. Or, in the old radio days, we're over and out, or in the police world, we're now 10-7, which means out of service or off duty. But the sad fact is, the class is finished. Now, we can let the real learning begin.

As mentioned in the previous post, some folks were not interested in getting their ham radio license, and whatever the reason, it is theirs. Two of the gentlemen that chose not to pursue their license have purchased radios of high quality that can receive, transmit and listen. This is what they wanted and this is what they are doing, therefore, they can contribute to our neighborhood communication network. Both of them are in good locations. Radio is kind of like operating a business. Location, location, location.

You see, my house is a poor location for line-of-sight communications. But if I can reach one of these guys, which I can, they can relay information to me and from me, which is critical. So don't think that you have to have a ham radio license to be a vital contributing member for a radio communication system. One of these gentlemen is relying on CB radio for two-way communication. He also has a scanner and a shortwave radio, which are for listening. The other gentleman is a little bit more private. I know he has a capable VHF/UHF radio, and both of these gentlemen are in very good locations.

Now onto the ham radio part. I didn't really teach a lot about ham radio out of the Romanchik manual, but that was the manual we used for our information about what was on the ham radio licensing test. Some of the folks used QRZ.com for free online practice tests, others used Ham Test Online, which is a paid practice test service with tutorials. We spent time on some of the formulas, which are only about three for the Technician, and about the same for the General test. The concept that was taught was read the manual repeatedly, and take as many practice tests as you humanly can. Lots of people are busy right now. Some of the people in this class work a full-time job, go to school at nighttime, and attend school kid's functions, so as you well know, their time is limited.

The majority of the time we spent just talking about what I call radio. We talked about antennas, radios, power supplies, coax and other associated radio equipment. We talked about a lot of things that normally aren't covered in licensing classes. We talked about how you push the button and talk into the microphone, how you call somebody else on the radio. If you're using a handheld, which direction do you face? We talked about simple, practical things when it comes to using a radio. Like, don't put your antenna on your filing cabinet right next to your head and turn the power up. It's not cool to fry your brain. Some of us are already operating with diminished capabilities, we certainly don't need to increase that negative load.

It was a fun class. A couple of the people in there enjoyed my ultra dry humor. I learned a lot from them, too. Some of the questions that came up were things that I had never really thought about. But being a retired, professional teacher, I just made up an answer that sounded somewhat technical. They didn't know the difference anyway. Ultra dry. That's the way some people like it. On occasion we talked about the coming war, and most everybody was okay with that, because there is one coming, and it may be here a whole lot sooner than you think.

Back to the ham class. Well, test night came. We had to change location due to a scheduling conflict, and that went well. The people that came out to give the test, it was their first time, too. Our local emergency management office started a testing group. These guys are called VEs, volunteer examiners. They are a group of local ham radio operators that have qualified to be examiners, and volunteer their time, hence the term VE, volunteer examiner. So now our local emergency management office can offer ham radio test sessions without having to ask the help of a local ARRL ham radio club.

So how did test night go? We've got the building secured, the VEs showed up early, it is required to have a minimum of three, and there were five. We had nine people test.  Seven were taking their Technician's license, and I'm happy to say that all seven passed. Of those seven, one gentleman also took his General test which he passed. We had two folks that already had their Technician license that both took the General test, and they both passed. We had one woman in the group that tested. We had one young adult male, I think he is 17. If you've been reading along, you will know that everybody that took the test passed. In the mathematical world, that's 100% success. Now that was a good night.

One of the guys in the group had a concrete truck coming the next day to pour the base for his 'to be' future antenna tower. There were a couple of people that couldn't take the test that night due to a conflict in schedule. They will take the test at a later date. But our area now has seven new Technicians and three new Generals, and that Ladies and Gentlemen, is a good deal. We also have two local folks that chose not to take the test that are actively pursuing communication skills.

Here in a week or so, I'm going to get back in touch with everybody to see if we can start practicing communication between individuals and groups. It will take a week to ten days for the folks that took the tests to get their FCC online approval and call sign. When I said

earlier now the learning begins, that means we're going to learn to communicate with each other. Different locations, different antennas, different radios, some AM, some FM, some VHF/UHF, some HF, CB which is HF, GMRS which is UHF, MURS which is VHF. We have folks out here that are strung out for miles, and a couple on the other side of a mountain. Without giving locations, if the testing site was the center of the circle, we have folks from the class about 25 miles north, 30 miles south, 20 miles east, and eight miles west. If the electricity is on we will use repeater connections. If the electricity is not on, we will use line-of-sight communications and NVIS (look it up).

So now the work begins. It's been fun. It's been challenging. I truly hope that this works, because folks, we have a war coming. Read into that whatever you want to, but it is coming and it can't be stopped. Some of us have made the choice that we want to be able to communicate. Maybe we can get a few more neighbors or a couple more relatives on board, because right now we cover a large logistical area. We need to be able to warn our neighbors, therefore, we need to be able to communicate.

We'll talk more later, Frank

Ham Radio & Survival Communication Class, Volume 1

Hi Everybody, Frank here.

Well, Folks, I did something last night I haven't done in four years. I actually taught a class. Except this time, it was a group of adults, and this time, my clientele was not a group of teenage prisoners. They weren't high school, public school kids. You know, prisoners. This group extended from probably about 19 to, I'm going to say, 65 years of age. We had some laughs, which remember, Humor is the Essence of survival. 

Our local emergency management director spoke for a little while at the beginning. I invited him, I wanted to thank him for providing us with the materials that we used. This also provided him the opportunity to address some of the needs of the local folks where they live.

We started off by using the Romanchik, KB6NU, new Technician's manual, which is a great way to help get the Technician's license. We got into the very basics of it, the first few pages of the manual. This deals with E = I x R and P = I x E. You see folks seem to think that you have to learn a lot of formulas, but you really don't. I showed them a couple of shortcuts that actually work.

Wouxun

Wouxun & Baofeng

Then we did a little show and tell. I showed a handheld, which in the ham world called an HT, which is a handy talky, and the non-ham world is called a walky talky. 

 

I took the radio apart, which means I took the battery and the antenna off, and showed them the three basic components of the radio system. These are the basic components of any radio system, which are the battery/power supply, radio and antenna. For demonstration purposes here, I am using a Wouxun radio, which is a $120.00 radio. The Baofeng radio above is the $35.00 radio.
 

 





Then I showed them how you could eliminate the battery, with a gizmo called a battery eliminator. It plugs in where the battery would normally go, and has a coiled cord coming out the back that connects to your lighter plug/power port. Now you can connect to that big battery in the car. 

 

Then I connected a magnet mount type antenna that attaches to the roof of your car and with an adapter plug, connected it to the port where the removable antenna was. 

Wa-la! Now you have a radio that has an external antenna with a much greater distance, and a much bigger power supply that is renewable as long as you have fuel for your car. 

 





Then I connected a hand microphone to the radio, so now there is a full functioning 5 watt, dual band radio. This can be used for GMRS, MURS, ham radio, police, and fire frequencies. This is a very capable little radio. The cool part is the Baofeng radio itself costs about $35.00. The external antenna is about $20.00. The battery eliminator is about $10.00, and the antenna adapter is about $10.00. You do the math. You can have a full functioning, UHF/VHF system for under $100.00. That includes the microphone, too. If you don't need all the stuff for your automobile, for $35.00 you can have a fully capable, handheld, UHF/VHF radio. Folks, you just cannot beat a deal like that. You can also listen to the weather on it. You can even listen to the railroad frequencies on it. You can listen and communicate on the marine band frequencies, if necessary. And you can also listen to FM commercial radio. An unbelievable deal.

In an emergency, like a natural disaster, you can talk to your neighbors down the road. If you can talk to your neighbors down the road, then you can also know when the bus is coming to round people up for free rides to the FEMA camp. You know, where the government will take care of you.

These little radios will also provide you with communication while your children are outside playing. If you're interested in getting your ham radio license, which is real easy, and you're carrying one of these $35.00 radios, and you get real lost while you're out deer hunting, there are few places in this country that you cannot reach a ham radio repeater. Just food for thought.

Overall the class went well, had a real good turn out of about 25 people. Some there are not interested in getting their ham radio license, and that's great. Some folks there just wanted to improve their communication skills. Well, folks, I know most of you don't live in my neighborhood, but I encourage you all to give serious thought to improving your communication skills, because, just look around, seriously look around, there are hard times just right around the corner. We are going to need to communicate, local and long distance, but it starts local. Every community has some type of ARRL radio club. Go on their website and find a local club. Learn how to communicate using radio. $35.00 is a real inexpensive insurance policy.

We are going to meet five or six more times, and the whole purpose of this class is to eventually get people communicating, because that day is coming, maybe real soon. I'm not going to play head games with you, like there are biker zombies coming. But, for whatever reason, if we need to shut down our community, and people have even 10 minutes notice that there is something bad coming down their road, then they can at least be out of their house and away from the carnage that could be coming. This is the purpose for this class. The whole purpose for this class is to help save my life, and then my family's lives, and then there is the domino effect. It will spread. We have got to be able to communicate. Please wake up.

We'll talk more later, Frank

We Are Two! Be Vigilant!

Guess what? We're two! We began our blog on May 30, 2013 with much trepidation and doubt that it was an intelligent move on our part. Doubtful that anyone would find it useful, interesting or even read it, and trepidation at putting our thoughts out there in internet land. But we felt compelled to share what we know, what we have experienced, and our knowledge of the need to prepare for the demise of our country and society. Unfortunately, the call to prepare still needs to be sounded for as many as will listen, so we continue to share our lives, our thoughts and our preparations.

Frank's first radio communications post was about rules and safety. From there he moved on to CB radios and regular family handheld, or GMRS and FRS radios. He has taught folks how to get their ham radio license, what equipment they need to meet certain communication goals, and how important radio communications will be to all of us when no other means of contact is available. We want to thank everyone that has asked questions and shared with us their success at obtaining a ham radio license. It is always great to hear that something we wrote helped them along the way.

Fern has shared goats, gardening and cheese making. Canning, cooking and insects. Even though she has shared many things in these categories, she has learned a great deal from the comments you have left. We enjoy the 'conversations' we are able to have with you through the comment section. The article is not finished or complete until we have had the opportunity to learn more, or be given food for thought, by you the reader. You see, even though we share many things here in hopes that it will be useful to someone, we have also learned a great deal from all you have shared with us. For that, we are truly grateful.

We have had the honor to be featured on several prominent blogs in the homestead/preparedness/survival areas. We would like to thank Patrice Lewis of Rural Revolution for tutoring us when we first began this blog. She took the time to answer many questions and give us pointers.

We would also like to thank James, Wesley Rawles of SurvivalBlog for featuring several of our articles on his blog. These folks have helped increase our readership and allowed us to share with many more people than we would have ever reached on our own. Every time you comment, you give us more to think about, research, and learn. We truly appreciate all that you teach us.

Besides radios, chickens, cheese and bugs, we all need to be astutely aware that our government is playing some serious games. Most of us are aware that the economy, not just of the United States, but of the entire planet, is in serious, serious disarray. We've all seen bugs and birds, fish and mammals do everything they can to survive. Our government is no different. It will do what is necessary to keep itself with it's head above water at any cost. Just take a look at quantitative easing. It doesn't work and hasn't worked. 

 











Now is not the time to become complacent. Look at Baltimore, or Chicago. If we look very closely it would appear that our government is stirring the pot and turning up the heat. I know these are sad things to say, but if we look closely, it appears that the lines are being set for some type of civil insurrection. Just watch a cattleman herd his cattle. If he wants them to go a certain way, he doesn't have to use lots of force, he just very gently coerces the animals in the direction he desires. This is what is happening in America. We're all being led like the cattle, ultimately to the feed lot and slaughter house. Metaphorically speaking, of course. 

Summertime is coming. Lots of daylight and lots of heat. October is the traditional month for stock market problems, and some of our financial bubbles cannot continue to survive. You need to keep an eye on Greece, because if they go down the drain, that will be the end of the European Union. You need to pay attention to congress, also. This is unquestionably the highest concentration of corrupt, white collar criminals ever organized. They, like the government, will do anything to keep their heads above water. We do not have a representative type of government any longer. Are there exceptions to the rule? Of course, but they are few and far between. So, if our government will do anything to keep it's head above water, and congress will do anything to keep it's head above water, I don't think that you and I, the common people, are really on anybody's agenda. We are just slaves.

There are a few other topics to pay attention to. We have a serious immigration problem. Our borders are being flooded with unskilled criminals, not just from Mexico, but from other countries with which we have serious enemies. The Department of Human Services, or whatever your state calls it, has created a huge population that refuses to work, and our government has conveniently created a majority welfare subculture. The educational system, as I stated before, is a pathetic, cesspool pretending to be educating our children, while the children are actually being indoctrinated. Are there exceptions to this rule? Sure there are. 

Now is not the time to drop your vigilance. A lot of prominent individuals are predicting a serious disruption this fall, and some are saying earlier. Please pay attention and get prepared. If I am wrong, Hallelujah! If I am right, may God be with us all.

Frank's favorite poster

 
God gave us the incentive to share our lives here, and in turn we have been greatly blessed. We thank you for reading our words and sharing your lives with us.


From the humble hearts of, 

Frank & Fern Feral

The Time is Now

Many people read our blog for the garden, goat or chicken news. Some may want to know how to can vegetables, make cheese or have a more productive homestead. Some may be interested in radio communications, which is great. But I have to tell you, the reason we write this blog is to share the message that the time of preparation is almost past. The collapse is here. We are living in it's midst, trying to hang on to 'normal' as long as possible.

There are tremendous changes unfolding in our world. The beast has been loosed upon all of us, rich and poor, free and bond, regardless of location, culture, color or religion. There are so many news stories, blog articles and

economic statistical reports which indicate that huge, life changing

events are unfolding at an ever increasing pace across the globe. There are so many things happening that even if you just try to focus on one area like the economy, the racial tensions, the loss of freedoms, the out-of-control governments of the world, the war-like maneuverings of various countries around the globe, the gutting of our military, the thieving banking industry or the non-inflationary prices of food, you could spend all of your time just trying to keep up with one single area.

Frank is in the process of setting up a class to help some local folks get their ham radio license. But the real reason for the class is to bring together a group of people, that will be able to set up a communication

network around our small rural area. We are all rather spread out and the ability to communicate will be crucial when the cell phones don't work anymore, yes, anymore. In a few short weeks, Frank has met a number of men that openly discuss the coming collapse of our society in some form or fashion. Surprisingly, these men know that changes are coming, and coming quickly. This is the first time we have stepped out into the community to share our message. The time is now. The wolf is at the door.

The main emphasis of this class is how to set up radio communications systems whether they are FRS, GMRS, Walkie Talkies, CB, shortwave, ham radio, MURS, or combinations of these possibilities. They will be talking about survival radio communications. They will be setting up a way to keep our area informed of what is happening, who is coming down the road, who needs help, etc.

The timing of this class is very interesting as well. You see, Frank reads voraciously everyday he has a chance. There are well known, respected

individuals within the economic community that are pointing out the signs of impending death. And soon. There are many, many people that are concerned about the military and police 'exercises' that are happening around the country. There are more and more articles, blogs and news stories about unrest, riots and resistance throughout our country. There are more and more indications of terrorist activities world wide. Frank tried to start this class up earlier, but things just didn't come together. The timing wasn't right, but it appears it is now. The time is now.

If there is something you have wanted to do to better prepare yourself and your family for very difficult and uncertain times, the time is now. If you

have been wanting to learn a skill, take a class or start a garden so you will be better prepared for the stores to close, the time is now. If you have plans to relocate and your job or other obligations are not keeping you in place, the time is now. If you have the opportunity to form some kind of community group that can help look out for everyone when the wolf is at the door, the time is now.

Some folks are talking about the end times that are indicated in the Bible. I don't know if that time is now, and Christ told us that no one would know. But I do know that we were told to keep our lamps full of oil. To sow and reap. To store up in times of plenty to provide sustenance when times are lean. We've also been told that when a people or nation embrace all that is evil and shun what is good, that it would suffer the consequences of those choices. We have been warned that times will be hard, and get harder. We have also been told that he who is warned has the obligation to warn his neighbor.

Neighbor. This is your warning. The time is now. No more procrastinating. No more excuses. Don't turn your head and say it isn't so anymore. Everyone can feel the coming calamities. Everyone knows that things

are not right and getting worse everyday. Don't be one of those people that says, "I know things are bad and getting worse, but I just can't think about it, it upsets me." How much more upset do you think you will be if a collapse occurs, that you knew was coming, but you did nothing to prepare for it? Can you live with that? Probably not. For the simple fact that you will have prepared nothing with which to survive. Now is the time to face up to the reality that our world will no longer be recognizable as it is today, not very far away in our future. Now is the time to do all you can to be ready for that mentally, spiritually, physically and emotionally. And, neighbor. Now that you have been warned, it is your duty to go and warn your neighbors. Even if they won't listen. It is your duty. 

We still get up every day, do the chores, and try to make our life a little better. A couple of days a week we try to share this life with you. Tomorrow is a new day, and we hope the banks will still be open, the stores will still have food on the shelves and we can continue trying to pretend that life is still 'normal'. But one day, things will change sharply, because they are changing every day. We will continue to do what we can to prepare for that day. Everyday. Because the time is now. Be ready. Be safe. Be careful. Be vigilant. Be blessed.

Until next time - Fern

Radio - Become a Ham, Part 5

Hello, Frank here.

Oh, you're back. I know in many classes, when you get into the math portion and simple formulas, you start to lose people. I don't mean from an educational, intellectual point of view. What I mean is, people's feet walk out the door. That's a shame, because there are only 36 questions on the test and I have seen the odds and probabilities of getting math or formula questions on the test. I don't remember what they are, but they are very small. So, if you can't get the math or you can't get P = E x I, then just memorize those answers. Memorize the questions too. It helps to know which ones go together. I hope some of you have signed into QRZ, if not, start now. This is not difficult, but it will take a little bit of time and it will take a little bit of study. There are many adults that have not studied for a test in a long, long time. So, brush away some of the cobwebs. As Mother Superior would say, "Put on your thinking cap", and do what you need to do.

Now, as before, and will be the case everytime, I am going to use the No-Nonsense Technician Class, Study Guide by Dan Romanchik, KB6NU. If you do not have this by now, then I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Today I'm going to be starting on page 10, Electronic Principles and Components. Many of these components you use in every day life. If you turn on a light switch in your house, which you probably do, then you use one of these components. The way this manual describes these components is the very basic level. Because that is what is on the test. In some cases you will see different symbols for the same item in different books. These symbols are not cast in concrete. There are slight variations. For the purpose of this class, these are the ones that are used on the test. So if you see a symbol that is different from one that you learned sometime in the past, it's okay. It's not necessarily wrong, but the one that is here is the one that is on the test. The object of this whole exercise is to pass the test.

The area we are going into, you are just going to need to learn it and figure it out. There will be a couple of diagrams coming up very shortly. These are simple diagrams with simple explanations as to what the components are. Remember, this is a simple test. It is not detailed. If you choose to study for more advanced licenses, they will become a little more detailed. But for right now we're going to make this simple. 

On page 8, under the word resistor, which is the first component, you will see a group of numbers and letters. The one under resistor is T6A01. This is the section and number of this question in the question pool. Here is the Technician 2010 question pool. Skip the first 3 pages, these are corrections that have been made. Pages 4 - 6 explain the different sections. It also tells you how many questions on the test come from each section. Starting on page 7 are the actual questions. In section T1A, the first question is T1A01. Next to that is the letter 'D' in parenthesis (D), that is the answer to this question. T6A01, answer (B) is on page 41.

These are all the answers to all the questions. You will see these numbers and letters next to questions on all the free and paid practice tests. How cool. All the questions and all the answers. So here it is. Keep this document, it is invaluable. When you go to QRZ and sign in and do the practice tests, it will have this same T6A01 for this question. Wa-la! Isn't life good?

The first electronic component is the resistor. It does exactly what is says, it resists. As you're reading along, remember, that I am going to cover this part quickly. Resistors have values and that value is measured in ohms, which on your brand new mulitmeter, is measured in the resistance area. Remember, don't measure resistance on a live circuit or you will be buying a new

mulitmeter. The next word in bold letters is potentiometer. This is the volume control on your radio. Resistance is controlled by your potentiometer. A potentiometer is a coil of wires that is adjustable. If you have a dimmer light switch in your house, it's also called a rheostat, but for our purposes here it is a potentiometer. It is measured by resistance. 

Next is a capacitor. It stores energy. This is

one of those components that will get more sophisticated as we go along, but for now it stores energy. How much energy it can store is it's capacitance. This is measured by the farad. You have probably heard talk of a Faraday Cage which people like to store their electronic gear in in case of an EMP or CME, which we'll talk more about later. But the term farad comes from Michael Faraday. 

Next is an inductor. It also stores energy in a magnetic field and this stored energy is called inductance. It is measured by the henry. A coil of wire is an inductor. Here in just a moment you will see where you can take two inductors and make a transformer. You can also take an inductor and make a switch. More on all of this much later.

Next term is switch. When you turn your lights on in your house, it's a switch. And, of course, switches can get very complicated. But the one here is ON/OFF (on slash off). 

Next is a fuse. A fuse protects circuits from surges of power and too much power that doesn't come in the form of a surge. 

The next little bit is going to be about rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries. On this test, the non-rechargeable is referred to as a carbon zinc battery. This is not on the test, but C, D, AA, AAA non-rechargeable batteries are all 1.5 volts VDC. On this test rechargeable are referred to as NiCad batteries. 

These batteries are 1.2 volts VDC. So there is a difference in the voltage that comes out of a chargeable battery and a non-rechargeable battery. For the most part, this is not on the test, most electronic pieces of equipment will accept rechargeable batteries in place of non-rechargeables. Every now and then, you will find the exception to the rule. Note: I use lots of rechargeable batteries.

Okay. We're going to step into a different type of component now. A diode allows current to travel in one direction. Remember, this is a simple diode. Anode and cathode are the names of the two electrodes in the diode. Anode and cathode are also used a lot more. Example: the terminals of a battery are sometimes referred to as anode and cathode. But for this test purpose, it's the name of the two electrodes of a diode. The cathode side is identified with a stripe.

Transistor is a modern day type switch, or an amplifier. It's a cool little instrument. This little gizmo is what has allowed big jets to fly, men to go to the moon, and for you and I to carry a cell phone in our pockets that

has more storage capability than what used to take a large building to store. Of course, all that is not on the test, and maybe someday in the future, we will discuss what that means. All these little gizmos now are the size of little circuit boards, a little bit bigger than the diameter of a hair. That little transistor was invented by two men playing in their garage, in the good old United States of

America. Because without that invention, we would not be having this discussion over this medium. You'll see the term gain used with a transistor. This term is used to discuss how well it works. A bipolar junction transistor, just read the little descriptions about it there in the book, there could be two questions on it. FET stands for field effect transistor and it has a gate electrode.

An LED is that wonderful invention that has changed the way lighting is used. It means light emitting diode. I love LED's. All of my flashlights and some of my interior lighting are LED's and the little gizmos appear to work forever. Your batteries will last significantly longer. They produce little to zero heat and they just work. Somebody made a better mouse trap. I wish somebody could make a good coffee pot that works as well. Sorry for the distraction.

Okay. Schematic symbols is a name for standardized representations of components. That's what is on the test, but as I mentioned earlier, not all symbols are going to be the same in different places. Figure T-1. Here is what some of these components are that we have been talking about. Don't get figure T-1, T-2 and T-3 mixed up.  

In figure T-1, component 1 is a resistor. Remember, it resists. Component 2 is a transistor. In this function it is a switch to control the flow of current. Component 3 is a lamp. Component 4 is a battery. It is not mentioned here in Figure 1, but component 5 is ground. And it's not mentioned here either, but in component 4 also tells you which side is negative and positive. More on that later.

Let's scoot down to Figure 2. Okay. Component 2 is a fuse. It actually looks like a fuse, the old type that is still used in lots of pieces of equipment. If your car is newer, it has a blade type fuse, but the symbol represents a fuse. Component 3 is a single pole, single throw switch. Component 4 is a transformer. See the two coils there together? What it is going to do here is change AC, which remember is alternating current, into DC, which is direct current. In this figure, component 1 is not mentioned, but it is your AC input. Component 5 is a rectifier. If you look, component 8 and 10 also look like a rectifier, the reason is, that they are, just a little more complicated. This is a rectifier diode. It only allows current to go in one direction. Component 10 is not discussed at this time, but for future reference it is a zener diode. And also, component 8, is an LED. In this case, it tells you that the system is on. Component 6 is a capacitor. Read the description about a capacitor, they will get much more complicated. And a capacitor can also injure you. But for now you need to know what it says on page 13. Component 9 is a variable resistor. That little arm with the arrow going across the resistor, in the future, you will see that little arrow on other components. Component 7 is also not mentioned, but it is a resistor.

Okay, moving on to Figure T3. Component 3 is a variable inductor. Remember, an inductor is normally a coil. Component 2 is a capacitor, except in this case, it is a variable capacitor. More on that later on, but for this test, this is all you need to know about a capacitor. Component 4 is an antenna. You will also see other symbols for antenna and you will see other symbols for ground. 

Okay. Stay with me. We are just about finished. I am on page 14 of this manual. A relay is a switch controlled by an electromagnet. Relays are

used in all types of equipment and they are actually magnets. A relay can be used to open a circuit or close a circuit. An example: if you have a gas stove in your house, and the electricity goes off, you might not be able to use your cook stove because when the power is on a relay holds the gas valve open. When the electrical power goes off the relay closes and shuts off your gas. It is a safety feature.

Okay. Meter. This is not the type of meter we talked about earlier, like millimeter. This is actually a physical device that you can read on a numeric scale. The temperature on your air conditioner and

heat is a meter that tells you what the temperature is or was. A regulator regulates. In this case, it's talking about voltage. It controls the amount of power. LED, we talked about before, is a visual indicator or light that tells you something is on or off. And last, is an integrated circuit. It puts several things together. Not mentioned here, but it is commonly referred to as IC, integrated circuit. If you work in the electronics field, then you know that an IC is ancient electronics. A term you will see, that is not on the test, is SMT, surface mount technology. These are those little, bitty, teeny things that you can barely see without a magnifying glass. These are the resistors and diodes and etc. of today's ham radios.

Okay. Play with these diagrams. You will see at least one of these on the Technician's test. Read it over and over. Play with the questions in your head, and over time these things will start to come together. If you need more answers to questions that you can't put together, contact your local ARRL chapter and ask for an Elmer. An Elmer is a teacher or buddy or friend that will help you. They are good people and they will be glad to help. What I'm doing right now, I'm trying to help a handful of people. So. 

We have completed page 14. A whole lot of the test coming, is just common sense stuff. We're going to start dealing with sine waves. And to me, this is the fun part of what we're doing. It's actually what radio is made up of. So, if you haven't had fun yet, now is the time to start. Have I told you about God and his sense of humor? If you don't believe God has a sense of humor, then just go look in your bathroom mirror. And if you don't think that is funny, then look again.

Seriously, I hope that some of you have already read this manual and made arrangements with your local ARRL to take the Technician's test. Go to QRZ, sign up, and start taking the practice tests. When you get to about an 85% pass level, then go take the test. You should know by now that the next test is the General. It is available in the same format as the Technician Guide and you can take the practice tests free on QRZ. 
 

It's raining at my house today. Temperatures are about to drop. Autumn is about here.

We'll talk more later. 73, Frank

P.S. Frank told me this would be the shortest radio post yet! I just laughed.    Fern