Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012 — The family and I are getting ready to go see the new Star Wars movie rereleased in 3D, so this will be a comparatively brief entry; one based on an old QST article called “Your Novice Accent.”
This 1956 QST article (later turned into a pamphlet the ARRL sent to new Novice license holders) contained suggestions for getting on the air without sounding like a complete greenhorn, as well as good operating procedures (like the 3×3 CQ call).
The article also goes over commonly used prosigns and abbreviations, and general helpful hints for operating your station as a rock-bound CW op.
Fast-forward a few decades, and we find new operators no longer required to know CW. Once licensed (particularly once they get HF privileges), they are thrust into the mix with experienced operators, greenhorn mistakes and all. And what’s worse is I find many of these newer ops seem clueless as to the fact they’re even making a mistake.
One of the biggest influences on new hams is the fact the majority have gotten their feet wet in radio via CB. I’m not saying that’s necessarily bad; it was my introduction to CB radio at age that 11 fired my interest in SWL’ing and Amateur Radio. But one of the unwritten rules of Amateur Radio is that when you leave CB to join the Amateur Radio ranks, ops should leave behind the typical CB band operating procedures and practices. So, with tongue planted firmly in cheek, I’m making my addendum to the “Novice Accent” article.
NO CORN PONE ON PHONE. “Yeah, aww-righty, there feller, we gotcha 20-plus on the ol’ S-meter here, your mod-you-lay-shun is slappin’ that meter waaay over in the red.”‘
I know how ingrained the country-boy trucker lingo is in CB … not matter where you live, everyone on CB talks like they live south of the Mason-Dixon Line. It has no place in Amateur Radio.
Now I’m not saying accents and dialects are frowned on; everyone who lives someplace else normally thinks everyone elsewhere has the accent. Its interesting (at least to me) to hear accents and then match them up with their location. Nerdy stuff, I know.
LEAVE WHAT YOU PICKED UP ON CB ON CB. That’s the universal rule — you may have 30 years of experience in CB radio, but many of the techniques and ideas don’t translate well.
CB’ers who aren’t SSB-savvy may think they “aren’t gettin’ out” because the wattmeter isn’t showing a full 100 watts out; therefore, all knobs must be turned fully clockwise. Yelling in the microphone and adding an amplified D-104 usually doesn’t help communications. One of the most difficult things I have faced is trying to convince former CB’ers that “bird watts” aren’t any different than regular watts. Some of the myths of CB radio (like putting your coax cable in a glass jar during a thunderstorm) are just that — myths. But try to convince some new hams that what they believed may not be the only “truth” there is … well, it can be a difficult row to hoe.
And while I’m bitching, for the love of all that’s techy, PLEASE don’t use 10-codes on phone! And please leave the noise makers, the roger beeps and echo chambers on 11 meters.
AND FOR A FINAL FINAL … My one bit of advice to the CB’er-turned-ham is to simply open your mind, consider that some of the “facts” you knew as gospel as a CB’er may not have been as accurate as you once believed. And a word of warning … hams are notorious for always being “right,” so remember there are many different approaches when it comes to theory, antennas, etc.
Ham operators don’t really harbor ill will toward CB’ers these days (since most of us were once CB’ers) … but don’t start bragging about your Cobra 2000 with the slider and extra channels, and how much better those “bird wats” were than the “swing” you’re getting on your Yaesu FT-450D. Oh, and by the way, it is pronounced YAY-zoo, not YAH-zoo, like the city in Mississippi.
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