so ive had my tech license for about two years now and mostly just been doing 2m/70cm stuff, some APRS, helped out with a couple of public service events. its been fun but honestly i feel like ive hit a wall with what i can do and everyone keeps telling me to get my General so i can get on HF.

the thing is i dont really know what the exam is like compared to the tech exam. like is it way harder? i remember the tech exam feeling pretty straightforward but i heard the General has more math and like circuit theory stuff which honestly stressed me out a little. i was never great at math in school.

also i guess my real question is what do you actually get when you upgrade? like i know its HF but i dont know which bands or how much of them. is it worth it if i dont even own an HF radio yet? kind of feels like putting the cart before the horse but i also dont want to buy a radio and then realize i cant use most of it

honestly the General exam isnt as bad as people make it sound. theres definitely more to it than Tech but the math they test you on is pretty basic stuff, like you might need to know ohms law and maybe a little about how to calc resonant frequency but its not like youre solving differential equations or anything. i used the HamStudy website and just drilled the question pool for a few weeks, maybe 20-30 minutes a day and i passed no problem.

as for what you get, General opens up most of HF which is where things get really interesting. youre talking 40m, 20m, 15m, 10m and parts of others. 20 meters especially is like the workhorse band, you can work stations all over the world on a decent day with a wire antenna in your backyard. 40m is great for domestic stuff in the evenings. so yeah its a pretty big jump in what you can do.

and yeah i'd say study first, pass the exam, then start shopping for a radio. knowing youre licensed takes the pressure off and you can actually enjoy researching gear without feeling like youre jumping ahead of yourself. HF is a totally different world from 2m/70cm, way more variables but also way more rewarding once you start making contacts

went through the same thing last year, tech for like 18 months then finally sat down and did General. the question pool is public so theres really no excuse not to just memorize the answers even if you dont fully understand everything, though understanding it is obviously better. took me maybe 3 weeks of casual studying.

the privileges are worth it even before you have a radio imo. some clubs have club stations you can use once youre licensed and that's actually how i got my first taste of 20m before i bought anything. might be worth looking into if theres a club near you