Kevin Park

okay so i passed my general exam like three weeks ago and im still trying to figure out exactly what frequencies im allowed to use. i know theres a chart somewhere but every time i look it up i get confused because some sources say different things or the chart looks different depending on where i find it. like i understand technician gets basically nothing on HF except a little bit on 10m but general opens up a lot more right? but then there are these areas that say "general" and areas that say "amateur extra only" and i cant always tell if the frequency im on is okay or not. also someone at my club mentioned something about phone vs cw privileges being different segments and that made it even more confusing. is there like a simple way to understand this or do i just need to memorize the whole chart

so ive been doing contests for maybe 3-4 years now, mostly single op on 20 and 40, occasionally dabble in 15 when conditions cooperate. usually end up somewhere in the middle of the pack in my category and im fine with that but i keep seeing these crazy high rates from the top guys and reading about SO2R and wondering if its actually what makes the difference or if theyre just better operators than me my current setup is a k3 and a pretty modest station, i have a second radio which is an old ft-950 sitting on the shelf doing nothing. ive read a bit about SO2R and i get the concept — run on one radio while the other is S&P on a second band — but honestly every time i try to set it up even just casually without any of the proper switching stuff it feels like im just making mistakes and losing QSOs instead of gaining them. like my brain cant split the focus fast enough is this just a thing you have to grind through and eventually it clicks or is it genuinely only worth it for the guys who are already top tier and have the full SO2R switching setup with the antenna isolation and all that? curious what people who actually do it think, not just the theory

this is really helpful to read honestly. im in the middle of doing my ICS 100 and 700 right now because our local ARES group requires them before you can even get on the call list and i keep second-guessing whether its worth all the time. hearing that it actually makes sense when you're in the middle of a real activation is kind of reassuring. did you use any particular net format at the shelter or was it just informal check-ins with the EOC?

yeah i was in the same spot when i started. honestly i just do all three now, once you have your logging set up it doesnt take much extra effort to export and upload everywhere. the LoTW setup is the annoying part because you have to get a certificate from the ARRL and it involves mailing something in or having a VE sign off, i dont remember exactly but theres instructions on their site. took me like a week to get sorted but after that its pretty seamless. eQSL i like because the confirmations happen faster, a lot of people confirm same day. physical cards i still request via QRZ for special contacts, worked a station in a country i'd never heard of last spring and definitely wanted a card for that one. dont stress about uploading everything retroactively, just start from now and you'll build up credits over time

so ive been studying for my general and im looking at the band plan for 40 meters and honestly its pretty confusing. I see theres different parts for CW and phone and digital but like where exactly can I use my voice? I have a kenwood ts-480 and want to make sure im not going to accidentally transmit outside the band edges or something. also do I need to worry about region 2 vs other regions or is that just for contests?

Looking to upgrade my knowledge for the new 2026-2030 Technician question pool. The new question pool is available now, but I'm wondering what resources work best for understanding the concepts rather than just memorizing. I used HamStudy.org for my original tech license years ago, but curious about other platforms. What combination of study guides, practice tests, and videos helped you the most? Planning to take the exam in a few weeks and want to make sure I'm fully prepared!

20 meters alone is worth the upgrade - The 20-meter band is arguably the best band for "working DX," that is to say making contacts with stations in foreign countries. I work Europe daily on 20m SSB around 1400Z. Also get access to FT8 and other digital modes on HF which are incredibly popular now.

Focus on the HF-specific stuff first - propagation, band plans, and antenna theory. The General Class exam consists of 35 multiple-choice questions covering topics such as operating practices, regulations, and electronics theory. You'll encounter questions about frequency allocations, station setup, signal propagation, antennas, safety, and more. The math gets a bit deeper than Tech level, especially with RMS calculations and reactance.