Wally,
I have an Icom-718 I bought from a cruiser who really did his homework. He liked it best and I like it fine. The 718 can be modified to transmit on non-ham frequencies for emergencies. Ham radios normally transmit only on ham frequencies but some can be modified remove this limitation. The FCC says they must only operate on Ham frequencies to minimize interference with other services, yet hams are allowed to build (and modify) their own transmitters and those can be capable of all frequency operation although operating outside of Ham frequencies is unlawful. In addition, the law does allow a vessel's Captain to use "any means at his disposal" to attract attention in case of distress. This is a lot like the USCG rules for manufacturers of boats for sale to try to assure innocent and often ignorant buyers of getting a halfway safe boat, yet once you own the boat you can many almost any modification you want. Marine radios transmit only on marine frequencies and usually are more expensive than Ham radios mostly because they are fully automatic. It is very important to have a good antenna tuner. I don't recall the brand I have, but the name consists of three letters. I am not aboard tonight to look. It is important the have a good ground and antenna. Think of a vertical antenna as used on a boat as one half of a dipole sticking straight up. THE basic radio antenna, a dipole, is shaped like a T. The stem of the T is the feedline from the transmitter which then splits into two wires to form the cross bar at the top. When excited by vibrating electricity, it creates a vibrating magnetic field which is the actual radio signal. The physical dimensions of the antenna determine its vibration frequency which must match the electrical vibrations produced by the transmitter for your signal to be effective. The antenna tuner is used to vary the the vibrating frequency of the antenna without having to actually make any physical dimension changes in the antenna itself. While you can use a manually adjusted tuner, most folks opt for the fully automatic type. For a boat antenna we turn the T on its side, so one wire goes up in the air, and the other down into the water. Since the underwater wire would not be practical, we have to provide an acceptable facsimile, a "counterpoise" usually called a ground, for the antenna to work right. In metal boats the hull is an excellent ground, but in wood or FRP boats other techniques must be used. The construction of these grounds, usually large metal plates or wires arranged like a asterisk, directly under the antenna, are the subject of considerable discussion. Norm S/V Bandersnatch Lying Julington Creek 30 07.695N 081 38.484W ----- Original Message ----- From: Wally To: [email protected] Sent: 8/3/2008 12:53:40 PM Subject: [Liveaboard] SSB Hello all - finally caught up with the list, thank you Ron! I'm looking for information on SSB as I'll need it for this winter's cruise. I've got only a very basic understanding of this subject, so you hams here, be gentle! In other words, light on the jargon. What equipment should I be looking for? What are some acceptable brand names? I know I need the transceiver, but do I also need a tuner or other equipment? Antenna? Ground? I know I want the marine freqs, but I also know that they are (sometimes?) blocked. What's with this? How do I know a specific radio will have the bands I want or need? I've seen some radios online that appear only to have one band, such as the 6m band. I presume that doesn't work for a boater's needs, right? A license for SSB is only a matter of signing the forms, right? And as a Canadian, I don't believe there is a minimum Morse requirement for me to get a ham license any longer? Lots of questions I know, but on a delivery from Puerto Rico last year, we had a brand new Yaesu that was essentially useless because the owner had no knowledge of the thing, it wasn't open to the marine freqs (despite having being sold on that basis) - I wasn't able to communicate with either Chris or Herb. So - anyone want to educate me here? Thanks, Wally The hours spent sailing are not deducted from your time on earth... Ask a question on any topic and get answers from real people. Go to Yahoo! Answers.
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