SSB vs HAM

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Show me one, a single one, report of anybody in Europe or USA being arrested or fined for having a SSB radio that is opened up for HAM and I'll start believing in it. There is no such report.

True. As I said before, I don't know of any such case.

Doesn't mean that it can't happen, though. Making an informed decision that the odds are low enough to be acceptable might be a perfectly rational choice. Ignoring the possibility completely is a whole different thing, and would be foolish.

And once again, for anyone who decides to take the chance, more power to you, and good luck. But if you happen to be the one in a million who DOES get caught, don't expect any sympathy.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by denverd0n

True. As I said before, I don't know of any such case.

Doesn't mean that it can't happen, though. Making an informed decision that the odds are low enough to be acceptable might be a perfectly rational choice. Ignoring the possibility completely is a whole different thing, and would be foolish.

And once again, for anyone who decides to take the chance, more power to you, and good luck. But if you happen to be the one in a million who DOES get caught, don't expect any sympathy.

You may be missing the point: you meet all and every requirement that they care about. There is no taking chances involved, because you have all the licenses and the radios that officially go with that. You would pass any inspection, if they ever do those, with flying colors.

To all:

My first installation was in Holland. I was 14 years old which was the minimum age for radio operators. We installed the radio and antenna and reported in for the required inspection. A man in uniform came by and connected an SWR meter between radio and antenna and checked it out. Called "Scheveningen Radio" for a radio check. Asked my and my father questions about how to use the radio and in which way. Said all was in order and left. A week later a station license and two operator licenses were delivered by mail. That was the last time I noticed they actually cared about it.

GMDSS is something different: it is about educating operators in how to improve safety of life at sea. I did my MARCOM-A training in 2002 and this was a full 5 days course plus a 4 hour exam. Those instructors care. You not only learn how to save yourself, you also learn how to assist others using procedures that are understood by the Search And Rescue stations around the world. Even if they can only copy a couple of words each sentence, they recognize the procedure and know what you mean. Very different from what I hear on the radio so often. I recommend anybody that did not follow a GMDSS course, because it's not required or otherwise, to Google it and find on-line material and study it. If not for yourself then because it gives you a better chance to save a fellow mariner some day. I've had a couple of those days already, it is not rare.

cheers,
Nick.