HK wrote:
I was testing a new VHF handheld the other day, and I switched to
Channel 9 and asked for a "radio check" from anyone who was picking up
my signal. Got a couple of good responses, including one farther away
than I thought a handheld could reach, and one response from some
a**hole who was "annoyed" that I was asking for a radio check.

He said, "use another channel, dammit."

Well...

I know channel 16 is inappropriate for a radio check, but I always
thought channel 9 was just fine.

If you want a VHF radio check, what channel do you use?

And you pilot a lobster boat?

Really?

On Oct 3, 7:02 am, HK wrote:
I was testing a new VHF handheld the other day, and I switched to
Channel 9 and asked for a "radio check" from anyone who was picking up
my signal. Got a couple of good responses, including one farther away
than I thought a handheld could reach, and one response from some
a**hole who was "annoyed" that I was asking for a radio check.

He said, "use another channel, dammit."

Well...

I know channel 16 is inappropriate for a radio check, but I always
thought channel 9 was just fine.

If you want a VHF radio check, what channel do you use?

those of us in the USCG use channel 9 for radio checks with boaters...

Around 10/3/2007 9:05 AM, Wayne.B wrote:

On Wed, 03 Oct 2007 07:27:11 -0700, Chuck Gould
wrote:

Some goombah cuts in on 16 immediately and snarks, "Asshole! Nobody
has call letters any more."

I hear commercial boats using call letters fairly frequently.


Oh, they're still around all right; just last month I ponied up for a
shiny new SA license and call letters from the FCC.



--
~/Garth - 1966 Glastron V-142 Skiflite: "Blue-Boat"
"There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing
as simply messing about in boats." -- Kenneth Grahame
~~ Ventis secundis, tene cursum ~~

Garth Almgren wrote in news:5mp15eFeendpU1
@mid.individual.net:

Some goombah cuts in on 16 immediately and snarks, "Asshole! Nobody
has call letters any more."

I hear commercial boats using call letters fairly frequently.


Oh, they're still around all right; just last month I ponied up for a
shiny new SA license and call letters from the FCC.




If you go outside the territorial waters of the USA, assuming of course
you are in the USA, you MUST get a "Ship Station License" (SA) from the
FCC to use even the most miniscule VHF walkie talkie, or be in violation
of international law (ITU).

http://wireless.fcc.gov/services/ind...=ship_stations

If you operate ANY marine HF/SSB equipment, anywhere, you MUST be in
possession of a Ship Station License (SA), no matter where you are.

Your Ship License should also be issued a REAL MMSI for your VHF and HF
DSC equipment, not the bogus Boat/US block, which means nothing outside
the US.

You need not use your Ship License callsign on VHF inside US
waters....but you better well properly ID your station on HF, anywhere,
or on VHF outside the US.

You are required to have in your possession a Restricted Radiotelephone
Operator's Permit, licensing YOU, personally, to operate the licensed
radio station, last time I checked, too. My first RROP had its own
"callsign" of sorts, 20J0121, which was exactly like the old CB callsigns
back around 1957 when I got mine...(c;
http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/rp.html

Of additional interest, and requirement if you have GMDSS transmit
capabilities, you are also required to have one of the GMDSS operator's
licenses!
http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/rg.html
If you go no further than 20 miles offshore and have ONLY VHF GMDSS
aboard, you only need this restricted operator permit by taking test
elements 1 and 7R at any FCC office or approved testing facility.
If you go further than 20 miles offshore, as many of us do, you must have
a full GMDSS Operator's License, test elements 1 and 7 to operate GMDSS
offshore.

Now, take a look at:
http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/wncol.html
which tells you who needs an OPERATOR's license for WHAT......
It says:

"You need a commercial radio operator license to operate the following:

Ship radio stations if:

the vessel carries more than six passengers for hire; or
the radio operates on medium or high frequencies; or
the ship sails to foreign ports; or
the ship is larger than 300 gross tons and is required to carry a radio
station for safety purposes."

Notice the keyword "or" in this statement.....There is NO EXCEPTION or
EXEMPTION for "voluntary" ship stations (SA classification), like your
yacht. The ONLY time you don't need an OPERATOR's license is if you are
on VHF Marine in US waters.

I've argued this with many. VHF DSC is part of the GMDSS system. IF you
operate DSC on Channel 70 in a non-emergency, non-life-threatening
situation, according to these rules, you MUST get at LEAST a Restricted
GMDSS Operator's License, if not the full GMDSS Operator's License. This
means standing for testing of Elements 1 and 7R at an FCC test facility!

Are these new VHF DSC radios with some DSC capability other than calling
for help being operated legally w/o the licenses? So far, I've gotten no
answer.... FCC's website says you must have a full GMDSS Operator's
License to use it OUTSIDE THE USA.

As usual, FCC/ITU rules are a hodge-podge of conflicting statements you
need a government law firm to translate into English.


Larry W4CSC
NOT operating DSC on
S/V Lionheart WDB-6254

On Oct 6, 8:43 pm, Larry wrote:
Of additional interest, and requirement if you have GMDSS transmit
capabilities, you are also required to have one of the GMDSS operator's
licenses!http://wireless.fcc.gov/commoperators/rg.html
If you go no further than 20 miles offshore and have ONLY VHF GMDSS
aboard, you only need this restricted operator permit by taking test
elements 1 and 7R at any FCC office or approved testing facility.
If you go further than 20 miles offshore, as many of us do, you must have
a full GMDSS Operator's License, test elements 1 and 7 to operate GMDSS
offshore.

i

I've argued this with many. VHF DSC is part of the GMDSS system. IF you
operate DSC on Channel 70 in a non-emergency, non-life-threatening
situation, according to these rules, you MUST get at LEAST a Restricted
GMDSS Operator's License, if not the full GMDSS Operator's License. This
means standing for testing of Elements 1 and 7R at an FCC test facility!

i wonder how this is enforced. i'm willing to bet few CG watchstanders
know or care about this provision. probably if you use the GMDSS
feature on your VHF radio, if there's some kind of legal
ramifications, the FCC would get involved.


Are these new VHF DSC radios with some DSC capability other than calling
for help being operated legally w/o the licenses? So far, I've gotten no
answer.... FCC's website says you must have a full GMDSS Operator's
License to use it OUTSIDE THE USA.

As usual, FCC/ITU rules are a hodge-podge of conflicting statements you
need a government law firm to translate into English.


pretty much the case, i'd say.

On Oct 3, 9:27 am, Chuck Gould wrote:

It's been so long since anybody was required to have an FTC license to
broadcast VHF within the US that maybe 1/3 or more of the boaters
don't *really* know how to use it. CB slang is rampant. It's one of
the few aspects in life where the careless and uninformed publicly
announce their ignorance.


For a long time I'd said that there were two things (minimum) that can
turn grown adults into babbling fools.

1) An infant.

2) a cb radio.

?:

Around 10/6/2007 6:43 PM, Larry wrote:

Garth Almgren wrote in news:5mp15eFeendpU1
@mid.individual.net:

Some goombah cuts in on 16 immediately and snarks, "Asshole! Nobody
has call letters any more."
I hear commercial boats using call letters fairly frequently.

Oh, they're still around all right; just last month I ponied up for a
shiny new SA license and call letters from the FCC.


If you go outside the territorial waters of the USA, assuming of course
you are in the USA, you MUST get a "Ship Station License" (SA) from the
FCC to use even the most miniscule VHF walkie talkie, or be in violation
of international law (ITU).

Bingo. Though it seems to be completely unenforced for small
pleasurecraft in the Gulf Islands of BC, I have a few radiomen in my
family and didn't like the idea of illegally broadcasting.

For the same reason, I also picked up a ZA license so that I could use
my handheld GMRS at full power on those frequencies not restricted by my
being north of line A:
http://www.nwlink.com/~evenfall/radi...ne_a_gmrs.html

I'm starting to really dig radio. I've already got a plain VHF (no SSB,
DSC, or anything fancy) for the boat, GMRS/FRS for camping, hiking, and
Jeeping, CB for Jeeping and driving, and I'm also thinking about
studying up and adding ham to the list.


--
~/Garth - 1966 Glastron V-142 Skiflite: "Blue-Boat"
"There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing
as simply messing about in boats." -- Kenneth Grahame
~~ Ventis secundis, tene cursum ~~

On Sat, 06 Oct 2007 23:19:13 -0700, Garth Almgren
wrote:

I'm also thinking about
studying up and adding ham to the list

Hey - why not? All you need to do is memorize the question pool over
a week or so and you can go from zero to Extra in nothing flat - no
pain, no code - no knowledge beyond being able to answer questions on
a test.

Short Wave Sportfishing wrote:
On Sat, 06 Oct 2007 23:19:13 -0700, Garth Almgren
wrote:

I'm also thinking about
studying up and adding ham to the list

Hey - why not? All you need to do is memorize the question pool over
a week or so and you can go from zero to Extra in nothing flat - no
pain, no code - no knowledge beyond being able to answer questions on
a test.

Do I detect a tinge of sarcasm concerning the current method of issuing
licenses?

wf3h wrote in news:1191723567.937872.229660@
22g2000hsm.googlegroups.com:

i wonder how this is enforced. i'm willing to bet few CG watchstanders
know or care about this provision. probably if you use the GMDSS
feature on your VHF radio, if there's some kind of legal
ramifications, the FCC would get involved.



It's not enforced until someone becomes "interested in you", like most of
the rest of the laws. CG isn't, no matter what the PO2 bitching at you
on the radio says, the radio enforcement officers. The FCC is, for
civilians. FCC doesn't become "interested" until there's a complaint,
which CG would be the source of, I suppose.

After being told to **** off by a fancy boat dealer using marine VHF for
boat show comms on the dock and parking lot, I reported him to the FCC,
mostly because he ****ed me off with his "boat dealer attitude". (We
always attend boat shows in a little group wearing the jeans/t-shirts we
wear mowing the lawns, which makes us immune from most salesmen.)

FCC sent me a nice letter thanking me for my report, which I MAILED to
them, and had contact said boat dealer with an NAL (Notice of Apparent
Liability), the FCC's speeding ticket, which requires them to respond
within 30 days, IN WRITING. All FCC wants is it to stop and you to
explain that you know it was wrong and you won't do it again. That's
reasonable the first time. I doubt boat dealer told the FCC to **** off
and that he could do any damned thing he wanted with his VHF walkie, like
he did me.

Larry
--
If you're gonna buy a big, expensive boat, have a little fun with your
purchase. Dress like you're going to mow the grass when you're at the
boatshow. See if any of the Panama hat boys will give you the time of
day. If you find one treating you with respect, he's your man! The rest
of them are just assholes, anyway, you don't want to deal with.

My rich friend Dan sold his Hat 56 FBMY liveaboard and bought a big
house. We went to the boatshow dressed like this to buy Dan a new 20-
something runabout to play in. Everyone treated us like dirt, except
this one young man at Seel's Marine, who let us inspect the nice Grady
White with the Yam 150 and bimini top. His gross, that day at the boat
show, was $34,000 more than it would have been if he'd treated us like
dirt, too..............................PRICELESS..(c;