On Oct 3, 5:02?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?

Harry, how do you happen to annoy people who only hear you utter a
short phrase? Doesn't it normally require an entire sentence or
two? :-)

Any working channel should be fine for a radio check.

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.

Reminds me of a time about a yeat after the FTC suspended licensing.
I hailed somebody in proper format, including the call sign of my
station.
Some goombah cuts in on 16 immediately and snarks, "Asshole! Nobody
has call letters any more." Of course everybody with a license had
call letters until the license expired, but 16 wasn't the place to
debate this fool- nor was it worth the effort.