US to Bali Alone by Sailboat Is Goal for Indonesian [Cal30] - The Jakarta Globe

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rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> wrote: > > > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or > Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? > Reggie > >

Allen, Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? Regards, Wayne From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >> > >> > >> > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? >>Reggie >

I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. [cid:image005.jpg@01CA9463.9C8EFC50] [cid:image006.jpg@01CA9463.9C8EFC50] As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are “always on” chattering QRM about something. In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. [cid:image009.jpg@01CA9463.9C8EFC50] Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running… The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) Allen, Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? Regards, Wayne From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<mailto:my… [at] hotmail.com>> wrote: rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

I don't really know the answer to your questions but I am guessing they did not have SSB radios. Who listens to those marine SSB anyway? There are tons of HAMs on all the time to offer assistance and many bands so a band that will reach someone is likely. There may be advantages to Marine SSB that I am unaware of. I am going to guess that a HAM radio and some internet help could make it work on the marine bands as well. Not sure though. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 2:23 PM, Wayne Gillikin <wa… [at] yahoo.com>wrote: > > > Allen, > > Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce > results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would > like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more > effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, > marinifization... What? > > Regards, > Wayne > > ------------------------------ > *From:* Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Sent:* Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > > I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked > with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. > That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM > equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local > HRO. > > Just another option. > > Allen > > > On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<my… [at] hotmail.com> > > wrote: > >> >> >> >> rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or >> Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? >> Reggie >> > > > >

An obvious thing I will just point out that if you are in an emergency situation, you don't need a licence to use the HAM band. Having a radio opened up is a great idea. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 3:18 PM, <ti… [at] ch2m.com> wrote: > > > I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on > Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. > > > > > > > > > > > > As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. > > > > The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and > Grib File requests to run our routing program. > > > > I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor > 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there > in the sailing world to support Icom. > > > > I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as > quite poor. > > > > There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly > what you want. > > > > Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that > “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. > > > > For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, > without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up > on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this > requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes > and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… > > > > When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; > including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a > plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire > behind the boat. > > > > I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls > off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), > then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the > entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line > under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring > off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port > Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the > worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes > them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos > Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We > also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are > “always on” chattering QRM about something. > > > > In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide > copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the > other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing > that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This > foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. > > > > > > > > Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to > keep everything running… > > > > The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is > only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 > for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, > $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, > Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. > > > > > > *From:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] *On > Behalf Of *Wayne Gillikin > *Sent:* Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM > > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) > > > > > > Allen, > > Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce > results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would > like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more > effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, > marinifization... What? > > Regards, > Wayne > > > ------------------------------ > > *From:* Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> > > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Sent:* Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM > > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > > I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked > with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. > That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM > equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local > HRO. > > > > Just another option. > > > > Allen > > > > On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<my… [at] hotmail.com>> > wrote: > > > > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or > Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? > Reggie > > > > > > >

a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio buffs. To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: ti… [at] ch2m.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are “always on” chattering QRM about something. In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running… The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) Allen, Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? Regards, Wayne From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> wrote: rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html Cheers Charlie From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r good Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 7:25 PM To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio buffs. To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: ti… [at] ch2m.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. [cid:885150801@14012010-2858] [cid:885150801@14012010-285F] As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator... I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that "experts" did not agree on some very basic things. For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer - and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine... It's worked fine since... When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat - what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best - longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are "always on" chattering QRM about something. In the picture below, the oval is California Girl's waterline, a 1" wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than "radio foil" and much much cheaper. [cid:885150801@14012010-2866] Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running... The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) Allen, Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? Regards, Wayne From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<mailto:my… [at] hotmail.com>> wrote: rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

I learned all my code from Gordon West so I would trust his advice. I might add that the couple I knew were saved because of HAM radio were in fact picked off a reef in the South Pacific for what that is worth. My thought was more along the lines of having a radio on board in case of emergency in which case you will not be using it much. Sounds like there are good uses for marine SSB so I am liking the SSB radio with the HAM frequencies opened up in case of emergency. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 4:25 PM, r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> wrote: > > > a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West > > How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long > distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run > the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to > use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators > from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, > become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few > months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on > the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham > radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more > traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to > Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio > buffs. > > ------------------------------ > To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > From: ti… [at] ch2m.com > Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 > Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > > > I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind > (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. > > > > > > > > > > > > As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. > > > > The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and > Grib File requests to run our routing program. > > > > I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor > 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there > in the sailing world to support Icom. > > > > I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as > quite poor. > > > > There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly > what you want. > > > > Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that > “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. > > > > For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, > without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up > on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this > requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes > and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… > > > > When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; > including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a > plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire > behind the boat. > > > > I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls > off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), > then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the > entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line > under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring > off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port > Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the > worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes > them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos > Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We > also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are > “always on” chattering QRM about something. > > > > In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide > copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the > other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing > that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This > foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. > > > > > > > > Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to > keep everything running… > > > > The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is > only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 > for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, > $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, > Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. > > > > > > *From:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] *On > Behalf Of *Wayne Gillikin > *Sent:* Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) > > > > > > Allen, > > Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce > results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would > like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more > effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, > marinifization... What? > > Regards, > Wayne > > > ------------------------------ > > *From:* Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Sent:* Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked > with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. > That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM > equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local > HRO. > > > > Just another option. > > > > Allen > > > > On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<my… [at] hotmail.com>> > wrote: > > > > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or > Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? > Reggie > > > > > > > >

looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if hired done, round numbers. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info is still problematic, though. Reggie To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: hu… [at] bah.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html Cheers Charlie From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r good Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 7:25 PM To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio buffs. To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: ti… [at] ch2m.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are “always on” chattering QRM about something. In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running… The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) Allen, Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? Regards, Wayne From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> wrote: rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

I am going to make a wag that you could get a used HAM radio from ebay for $300-400 and run a wire parallel to your backstay for very little and a manual antenna tuner for under $200. However, this would probably qualify as another hobby. All HAM gear runs off 12 volts, btw. I have a Drake MN75 that will tune a random wire. It would not be the quality system that Timm has, but it would work. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 6:05 PM, r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> wrote: > > > looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if > hired done, round numbers. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional > offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be > best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info > is still problematic, though. > Reggie > > > ------------------------------ > To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > From: hu… [at] bah.com > Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 > > Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. > > http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html > > Cheers > Charlie > > ------------------------------ > *From:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] *On > Behalf Of *r good > *Sent:* Wednesday, January 13, 2010 7:25 PM > *To:* ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Subject:* RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West > > How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long > distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run > the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to > use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators > from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, > become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few > months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on > the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham > radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more > traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to > Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio > buffs. > > ------------------------------ > To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > From: ti… [at] ch2m.com > Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 > Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > > I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind > (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. > > > > > > > > > > > > As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. > > > > The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and > Grib File requests to run our routing program. > > > > I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor > 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there > in the sailing world to support Icom. > > > > I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as > quite poor. > > > > There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly > what you want. > > > > Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that > “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. > > > > For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, > without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up > on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this > requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes > and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… > > > > When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; > including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a > plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire > behind the boat. > > > > I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls > off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), > then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the > entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line > under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring > off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port > Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the > worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes > them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos > Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We > also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are > “always on” chattering QRM about something. > > > > In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide > copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the > other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing > that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This > foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. > > > > > > > > Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to > keep everything running… > > > > The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is > only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 > for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, > $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, > Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. > > > > > > *From:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] *On > Behalf Of *Wayne Gillikin > *Sent:* Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) > > > > Allen, > > Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce > results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would > like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more > effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, > marinifization... What? > > Regards, > Wayne > > > ------------------------------ > > *From:* Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> > *To:* Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Sent:* Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM > *Subject:* Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked > with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. > That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM > equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local > HRO. > > > > Just another option. > > > > Allen > > > > On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<my… [at] hotmail.com>> > wrote: > > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or > Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? > Reggie > > > > > > > > >

I have to agree Allen. Timm, God love him, has a nice setup, but it can be done for a LOT less. By the way, no one has mentioned how much fun ham radio is. :) Tom From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 8:36:56 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I am going to make a wag that you could get a used HAM radio from ebay for $300-400 and run a wire parallel to your backstay for very little and a manual antenna tuner for under $200. However, this would probably qualify as another hobby. All HAM gear runs off 12 volts, btw. I have a Drake MN75 that will tune a random wire. It would not be the quality system that Timm has, but it would work. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 6:05 PM, r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >> > >> > >> > >looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if hired done, round numbers. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info is still problematic, though. >> > >Reggie > > >________________________________ >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >From: hu… [at] bah.com >Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 >> > >Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > >> >Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. > >http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html > >Cheers >Charlie > > From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r good >Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 7:25 PM >To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > >a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West > >How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio buffs. >> > >________________________________ >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >From: ti… [at] ch2m.com >Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 >> >Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > >I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. > > > > > > > >As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. > >The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. > >I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. > >I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. > >There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. > >Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. > >For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… > >When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. > >I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are “always on” chattering QRM about something. > >In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. > > > >Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running… > >The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. > > >From:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin >Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) > >Allen, > >Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? > >Regards, >Wayne > > >From:Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM >Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > >I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. > > >Just another option. > >Allen > >On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> wrote: > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? >Reggie > > > >

Acutally, I would respectfully disagree. Ham and/or SSB systems on yachts can be installed very reasonably and weather data is readily available in many parts of the world. Now, if you are looking for the Weather Channel, of course, forget about it....but there are well managed cruisers nets in most parts of the world that provide up to date weather info, and you can access the internet for weather info for virtually the entire planet. I have a friend in Florida that has an easily accessable weather net at http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/?MR=1, and, there are many more of these around the world... Although I do not yet have an SSB installed on Boomerang!, I will likely do that sometime within the next few months. Charles S/V Boomerang! 1980 Cal 39, Mark II St Michaels, MD From: r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 9:05:56 PM Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if hired done, round numbers.. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info is still problematic, though. Reggie To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com From: husar_charlie@ bah.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. http://www.hfradio. com/Information/ ssbham.html Cheers Charlie

I should add that a HAM radio will receive all frequencies in their range. My Rx goes from 100KHz to 30MHz and one newer one I just looked up will Rx 30KHz to 200MHz and 400-470MHz all in a radio about the size of a car radio. That one is $1200 new so the ebay ones will probably be more like mine. Also of note, you do not need to use the backstay as an antenna although it has its advantages. I have a whip, about 10 feet long, that was designed to go with an automatic antenna tuner and cover 1.8MHz to 30MHz. If you only need the radio occasionally, you can just haul a wire up a halyard. This web page looks interesting http://www.moonraker.com.au/techni/marineantennas.htm Shakesphere makes SSB marine whip antennas but like I said, a long piece of wire on a rope will work. The nice thing about SSB is that it is basically impossible to get the correct length antenna so almost anything will work as well as anything else. You are getting your matching from the tuner. Allen <http://www.moonraker.com.au/techni/marineantennas.htm>Allen On Thu, Jan 14, 2010 at 4:59 AM, Charles Strasburger < bo… [at] yahoo.com> wrote: > > > Acutally, I would respectfully disagree. Ham and/or SSB systems on yachts > can be installed very reasonably and weather data is readily available in > many parts of the world. Now, if you are looking for the Weather Channel, > of course, forget about it....but there are well managed cruisers nets in > most parts of the world that provide up to date weather info, and you can > access the internet for weather info for virtually the entire planet.. I > have a friend in Florida that has an easily accessable weather net at > http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/?MR=1, and, there are many more of > these around the world... > > Although I do not yet have an SSB installed on Boomerang!, I will likely do > that sometime within the next few months. > > Charles > S/V Boomerang! > 1980 Cal 39, Mark II > St Michaels, MD > > > ------------------------------ > *From:* r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> > > *To:* ca… [at] yahoogroups.com > *Sent:* Wed, January 13, 2010 9:05:56 PM > > *Subject:* RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > > looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if > hired done, round numbers. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional > offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be > best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info > is still problematic, though. > Reggie > > ------------------------------ > To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com > > From: husar_charlie@ bah.com > Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 > Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > > Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. > > http://www.hfradio. com/Information/ ssbham.html<http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html> > > Cheers > Charlie > > ------------------------------ > > > >

For the Pacific Cup and the Transpac, SSB channels are required for contact. SSB Weather - developed by a Cal 40 sailor Stan Honey (and friends) www.sailmail.com<http://www.sailmail.com> Will work with HF, Sat Phone, SSB, or internet café. ... I've worked with Don Melcher of HF Radio. A grouchy - no nonsense guy, works out a security locked building in Alameda California. While Don's bedside manner is lousy, his expertise and gear is top notch. He's trouble shot and fixed our systems during blue moon events. His secret is that he uses his custom cables, custom software, and makes the system work before it goes out the door. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r good Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 6:06 PM To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if hired done, round numbers. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info is still problematic, though. Reggie To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: hu… [at] bah.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html Cheers Charlie From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r good Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 7:25 PM To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio buffs. To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: ti… [at] ch2m.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. [cid:im… [at] 01CA94FD.FD66F420] [cid:im… [at] 01CA94FD.FD66F420] As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator... I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that "experts" did not agree on some very basic things. For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer - and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine... It's worked fine since... When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat - what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best - longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are "always on" chattering QRM about something. In the picture below, the oval is California Girl's waterline, a 1" wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than "radio foil" and much much cheaper. [cid:im… [at] 01CA94FD.FD66F420] Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running... The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) Allen, Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? Regards, Wayne From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. Just another option. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com<mailto:my… [at] hotmail.com>> wrote: rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Moving from the high tech solution to a lower tech (quantitatively speaking) and lower power requirement (the real issue for me at least) was wondering if anyone has played or tested the various programs available that get their signal from a SW radio and run locally on a PC. There are numerous example on the net but would love to know peoples experience with these applications if anyone has tested them of course. Currently I run zygrib from france, open source software (windows,mac,linux) that uses various weather models to generate grib data world wide. Find its more accurate for 3 day forcasts for my local then NOAA wx even though it uses NOAA data in part for its modelling algorithm. The drawback of course is that you need a net connection. So I'm now looking for a low power solution to be able to get the similar data in areas where there is no net connection. A simple weather fax would do. Speaking of power consumption, the new netbook class is excellent. Real 6 hr run time if you dont use it to watch movies or complex calculations. For standard computer work, they are excellent wrt to power consumption and utilization. Model I use is a standard asus 1000ha with a six cell battery. Best regards -- /ch

Having been a radio nerd most of my life, including radio operator in the Marine Corps and licensed HAM for about 30 years, I prefer HAM over SSB as there are a lot of us old guys just listening in, ready to help. I will be presenting a HAM/SSB seminar at Pensacola West Marine. Maybe, I will just wait until Reggie is here. More later, Tom Vandiver, Cal Cruising 46, Satori, HAM call KA6WPG From: Tom Miller <tm… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Thu, January 14, 2010 12:55:39 AM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I have to agree Allen. Timm, God love him, has a nice setup, but it can be done for a LOT less. By the way, no one has mentioned how much fun ham radio is. :) Tom From: Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 8:36:56 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB I am going to make a wag that you could get a used HAM radio from ebay for $300-400 and run a wire parallel to your backstay for very little and a manual antenna tuner for under $200. However, this would probably qualify as another hobby. All HAM gear runs off 12 volts, btw. I have a Drake MN75 that will tune a random wire. It would not be the quality system that Timm has, but it would work. Allen On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 6:05 PM, r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >> > >> > >> > >looks like a top of the line setup will be about $5000.00, plus labor if hired done, round numbers. Maybe renting a satphone for the occasional offshore is getting more appealing, along with SPOT. Seems the SSB would be best suited to cruisers heading far offshore for a long time. Weather info is still problematic, though. >> > >Reggie > > >________________________________ >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >From: hu… [at] bah.com >Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 20:10:17 -0500 >> > >Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > >> >Here is a site with some information, but also some obvious marketing. > >http://www.hfradio.com/Information/ssbham.html > >Cheers >Charlie > > From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of r good >Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 7:25 PM >To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > >a quote from a recent article in Latitude 38 by Gordon West > >How is Ham (amateur radio) different than SSB radio? If you're new to long distance marine radio, I suggest not even worrying about it. Although I run the Radio School and some of the income comes from teaching students how to use Ham radio and pass the test, I generally discourage new SSB operators from taking that step right away. Get the no-test license for SSB radio, become familiar with the procedures and protocols, and use it for a few months. If you find that you're one of the very few cruisers who talks on the radio so much that SSB frequencies aren't adequate, then look into Ham radio. Or, if you're going to the South Pacific, where there is lots more traffic on ship-to-ship channels, you might consider eventually moving up to Ham status. But generally speaking, it's really only for serious radio buffs. >> > >________________________________ >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >From: ti… [at] ch2m.com >Date: Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:18:08 -0700 >> >Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > >I have two Rigs; Icom 700 Pro on California Girl and Icom 810rt on Freewind (pictures below) both are opened up to provide SSB & HAM. > > > > > > > >As I do not have a HAM license I only use the SSB side on my ships license. > >The SSB is used to do race reporting, weather updates, SailMail Email and Grib File requests to run our routing program. > >I picked Icom because it was best supported by SailMail and the SCS Pactor 3 demodulator… I also like that there is a lot of support groups out there in the sailing world to support Icom. > >I would have to rate Icom documentation and support from the factory as quite poor. > >There is a huge assumption that you are already an expert and know exactly what you want. > >Radio set-up and use is a very black art, I found during my research that “experts” did not agree on some very basic things. > >For example I worked on the Icom for a few days to try and get it to work, without success. I took it to a dealer – and he asked if it had been set up on a PC and unlocked and loaded yet. Since I knew nothing of this requirement, and the manual was silent, I said nope. He spend a few minutes and put the brains into the machine… It’s worked fine since… > >When setting up the ground plane I was faced with different suggestions; including a counterpoise (inside the boat – what I did), a Dyna plate (a plate bolted outside the hull- creating ugly drag) and dragging a wire behind the boat. > >I finally bought into the idea that if you picture that the signal falls off the antenna and has to Bounce off the ground plane (like a trampoline), then you get better propagation. So I set up my ground plane very long, the entire length of the waterline, and then added a large surface area, in line under the antenna, so the signal could hit a large area, and really spring off. On the way to Hawaii we stay in contact with Stations in Hawaii, Port Angeles, Point Reyes, San Diego and Houston Texas. Hawaii Stations are the worse and require careful planning to get them up before the sun crushes them. Our best – longest distance contact was from Portland to the Galapagos Islands. Not great via Ham Land stations, but from a boat, fairly good. We also have to avoid channels with Russian and Japanese fisherman, as they are “always on” chattering QRM about something. > >In the picture below, the oval is California Girl’s waterline, a 1” wide copper strip is imbedded into the hull (Cal Factory) there, I then added the other items as shown. I used the heavy gauge Copper Foil with rubber backing that you can find at Home Depot for isolating a building from a deck. This foil is much thicker (4x) than “radio foil” and much much cheaper. > > > >Now I use the SailMail site and some of their recommended consultants to keep everything running… > >The cost is fairly high, as sailing things go, just getting the radio is only a small first step. $800-1200 for the radio, $400 for the tuner, $500 for cables, $300 for the backstay antenna, $1200 for the SCS demodulator, $300 for the upgrade and more cables, $400 Installing the RF Counterpoise, Ships License and $250 a year for the SailMail Co-op association. > > >From:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Wayne Gillikin >Sent: Wednesday, January 13, 2010 2:24 PM >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB (Allen) > >Allen, > >Out of curiosity, did your co-worker also have a SSB that failed to produce results? I am completely ignorant about radio technical stuff but would like to know why HAM would be more effective than SSB. If HAM is more effective, why do cruisers seem to go with SSB? Is it price, ease of use, marinifization... What? > >Regards, >Wayne > > >From:Allen Edwards <al… [at] PaloAltoPhoto.com> >To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com >Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 4:30:14 PM >Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB > > >I would suggest getting a HAM license and a nice HAM HF radio. I worked with a fellow who went on a reef and was rescued because of his HAM radio. That is what the cruisers I have knows have done. ICOM makes good HAM equipment but there are lots to pick from. Talk to someone at your local HRO. > > >Just another option. > >Allen > >On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 9:00 AM, r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> wrote: > > rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? >Reggie > > > >

I have an Icom 735 on Short Wave with an AH-2 to tune the backstay. The experience of several friends is that running a wire up parallel to the backstay is not too great. A lot of the energy is coupled into the grounded backstay and doesn't radiate. I hired a rigger to come out and put an insulator at the top of the backstay. I disconnected the lightning ground bond wire from the base of the backstay and connected it to the AH-2 which has a spark gap inside. People will tell you you need an insulator at the bottom but a fiberglass hull is an excellent insulator. Probably not a good idea on carbon fiber hulls. Having the backstay hot is a slight safety hazard. I won't use the radio when anyone is in the cockpit. But if you put an insulator above normal reach and run a wire along the lower backstay to get up to the insulator, the same coupling issues apply. I guess one could disconnect the bond wire, add a spark gap for lightning protection and then the lower part of the stay would not be grounded, reducing the coupling problem. I don't recall my best DX, but I checked into the MM net on 14.325 whenever I wanted to, if I could hear them, they could hear me. Al Waschka - K5TAN 1974 Cal-25 #1693, Sweet Mary 1985 Cal-33 #0085, Short Wave

We were enjoying the winter of 2001 in the Exumas with about 50 or so other cruising boats when Bobbie had to fly back to California as her Mom had a heart attack. So, since it got boring and with no close supervision, I piddled around with my HAM radio and antennas, (or is it antenii?). I have always had an insulated backstay on our Cal 46 and had made some good long distance contacts, like Australia and Egypt. I had recently hooked up the modem connecting my PC with the Icom SSB/HAM and was receiving and sending e mail through Winlink, a free service provided by land based HAMS. I respected the other boats in the anchorage with less output, so made my contacts early or late, mostly on 20 meters with a guy in Nashville, TN. I was also active on the Waterway Cruising and Radio Club, receiving their excellent WX reports each morning as well as reporting conditions at Georgetown. One morning I made contact with another bored HAM up in Virginia, so we conducted some antenna tests. In addition to my insulated backstay, I had mounted a 13' Shakespeare whip on the side of my radar arch. I tested on the back stay, several operational frequencies, then I changed to the whip. I had better reception and a stronger signal on the whip, so I have continued using it. However, you must have an adequate mounting system, i.e., base mount then up 3' to 6' a holdoff. No problem if you have a radar arch, like I have. There are many variables and that is one reason I enjoy the radio hobby. Tom Vandiver From: Al Waschka <aw… [at] bellsouth.net> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Sun, January 17, 2010 10:21:59 AM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB & HAM Fun I have an Icom 735 on Short Wave with an AH-2 to tune the backstay. The experience of several friends is that running a wire up parallel to the backstay is not too great. A lot of the energy is coupled into the grounded backstay and doesn't radiate. I hired a rigger to come out and put an insulator at the top of the backstay. I disconnected the lightning ground bond wire from the base of the backstay and connected it to the AH-2 which has a spark gap inside. People will tell you you need an insulator at the bottom but a fiberglass hull is an excellent insulator. Probably not a good idea on carbon fiber hulls. Having the backstay hot is a slight safety hazard. I won't use the radio when anyone is in the cockpit. But if you put an insulator above normal reach and run a wire along the lower backstay to get up to the insulator, the same coupling issues apply. I guess one could disconnect the bond wire, add a spark gap for lightning protection and then the lower part of the stay would not be grounded, reducing the coupling problem. I don't recall my best DX, but I checked into the MM net on 14.325 whenever I wanted to, if I could hear them, they could hear me. Al Waschka - K5TAN 1974 Cal-25 #1693, Sweet Mary 1985 Cal-33 #0085, Short Wave

ICOM! From: r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

ICOM IT IS! If you can find a used older unit with an antenna matcher at a reasonable price buy it. I have used an ICOM like that and it worked flawlessly across the Pacific ocean years ago. I am sure technology has made them simpler and cheaper now. Mike Farrell From: Tom Vandiver <bs… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 3:09:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! From: r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Sept.7, I will be presenting a seminar at West Marine, Pensacola on Long Distance Radio, SSB, Amateur, (HAM) and modems to tie them into your computer. Since, Reggie and Barb will be in the great Chesapeake by then, I will have one for you on March 10, just after you get to the bayou and before we start rolling toward SoCal. Since your Cal 36 is parked next to my Cal 46, we will have our party - OOPS class on board Satori, where the radios are. On our last cruise, 2001, to the Bahamas for winter, then the Chespeake for the summer, then back home before Christmas, we really enjoyed being able to send and receive e mail while we were roaming. Since we are both HAMS, KA6WPG Tom and KA6WPF Bobbie, we used Winlink. It's FREE! Sail Mail SSB was an option for those who were not licensed for a few dollars annually. Later... From: mike farrell <ve… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 5:48:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM IT IS! If you can find a used older unit with an antenna matcher at a reasonable price buy it. I have used an ICOM like that and it worked flawlessly across the Pacific ocean years ago. I am sure technology has made them simpler and cheaper now. Mike Farrell From: Tom Vandiver <bshmarine@yahoo. com> To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 3:09:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! From: r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> To: cal_boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Tom Are you still in florida or have you gone to California and come back? Janet Plume Senior Editor/Breakbulk Magazine Program Director, JoC Breakbulk Conferences The Journal of Commerce, a division of UBM Global Trade 826 Fern Street New Orleans, La. 70118 Tel: 504-866-7076 Fax: 504-861-0175 Cell: 504-250-4539 Skype: janet.plume Email: <mailto:jp… [at] joc.com> jp… [at] joc.com www.breakbulk.com We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Tom Vandiver Sent: Saturday, February 27, 2010 5:10 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! _____ From: r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Hi, Tom. What kind of throughput do you get on that Winlink (bps)? Say Hi! to KA6WPF for me. Cheers Charlie From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Tom Vandiver Sent: Saturday, February 27, 2010 8:17 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB HAM PC Interfaces, etc. Seminar Sept.7, I will be presenting a seminar at West Marine, Pensacola on Long Distance Radio, SSB, Amateur, (HAM) and modems to tie them into your computer. Since, Reggie and Barb will be in the great Chesapeake by then, I will have one for you on March 10, just after you get to the bayou and before we start rolling toward SoCal. Since your Cal 36 is parked next to my Cal 46, we will have our party - OOPS class on board Satori, where the radios are. On our last cruise, 2001, to the Bahamas for winter, then the Chespeake for the summer, then back home before Christmas, we really enjoyed being able to send and receive e mail while we were roaming. Since we are both HAMS, KA6WPG Tom and KA6WPF Bobbie, we used Winlink. It's FREE! Sail Mail SSB was an option for those who were not licensed for a few dollars annually. Later... From: mike farrell <ve… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 5:48:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM IT IS! If you can find a used older unit with an antenna matcher at a reasonable price buy it. I have used an ICOM like that and it worked flawlessly across the Pacific ocean years ago. I am sure technology has made them simpler and cheaper now. Mike Farrell From: Tom Vandiver <bshmarine@yahoo. com> To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com<http://ps.com/> Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 3:09:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! From: r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> To: cal_boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

looking forward to it! thanks, Tom Reggie To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: bs… [at] yahoo.com Date: Sat, 27 Feb 2010 17:17:25 -0800 Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB HAM PC Interfaces, etc. Seminar Sept.7, I will be presenting a seminar at West Marine, Pensacola on Long Distance Radio, SSB, Amateur, (HAM) and modems to tie them into your computer. Since, Reggie and Barb will be in the great Chesapeake by then, I will have one for you on March 10, just after you get to the bayou and before we start rolling toward SoCal. Since your Cal 36 is parked next to my Cal 46, we will have our party - OOPS class on board Satori, where the radios are. On our last cruise, 2001, to the Bahamas for winter, then the Chespeake for the summer, then back home before Christmas, we really enjoyed being able to send and receive e mail while we were roaming. Since we are both HAMS, KA6WPG Tom and KA6WPF Bobbie, we used Winlink. It's FREE! Sail Mail SSB was an option for those who were not licensed for a few dollars annually. Later... From: mike farrell <ve… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 5:48:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM IT IS! If you can find a used older unit with an antenna matcher at a reasonable price buy it. I have used an ICOM like that and it worked flawlessly across the Pacific ocean years ago. I am sure technology has made them simpler and cheaper now. Mike Farrell From: Tom Vandiver <bshmarine@yahoo. com> To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 3:09:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! From: r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> To: cal_boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

any specific models? To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com From: bs… [at] yahoo.com Date: Sat, 27 Feb 2010 15:09:46 -0800 Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! From: r good <my… [at] hotmail.com> To: ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Good Grief! I wish I could be there. Is there any chance of a video DVD or something so those of us in Maryland could see it? I have always wanted to get the 10,000 foot view of these systems so I could at least understand what everyone is talking about. Thanks, Darr LaFon _____ From: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com [mailto:Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Tom Vandiver Sent: Saturday, February 27, 2010 8:17 PM To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB HAM PC Interfaces, etc. Seminar Sept.7, I will be presenting a seminar at West Marine, Pensacola on Long Distance Radio, SSB, Amateur, (HAM) and modems to tie them into your computer. Since, Reggie and Barb will be in the great Chesapeake by then, I will have one for you on March 10, just after you get to the bayou and before we start rolling toward SoCal. Since your Cal 36 is parked next to my Cal 46, we will have our party - OOPS class on board Satori, where the radios are. On our last cruise, 2001, to the Bahamas for winter, then the Chespeake for the summer, then back home before Christmas, we really enjoyed being able to send and receive e mail while we were roaming. Since we are both HAMS, KA6WPG Tom and KA6WPF Bobbie, we used Winlink. It's FREE! Sail Mail SSB was an option for those who were not licensed for a few dollars annually. Later... _____ From: mike farrell <ve… [at] yahoo.com> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 5:48:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM IT IS! If you can find a used older unit with an antenna matcher at a reasonable price buy it. I have used an ICOM like that and it worked flawlessly across the Pacific ocean years ago. I am sure technology has made them simpler and cheaper now. Mike Farrell _____ From: Tom Vandiver <bshmarine@yahoo. com> To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com <http://ps.com/> Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 3:09:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! _____ From: r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> To: cal_boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie

Could be done if people are willing. Simply upload the video to youtube. Would love to watch that one rather then the other crud you find there, sailing stuff excluded of course. Best regards /ch

I'm with Darr. Love to see that. Want to replace mine..... Charles S/V Boomerang! 1980 Cal 39, Mark II St Michaels, MD From: Darr LaFon <da… [at] verizon.net> To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Sent: Mon, March 1, 2010 9:45:54 AM Subject: RE: [Cal_Boats] SSB HAM PC Interfaces, etc. Seminar Good Grief! I wish I could be there. Is there any chance of a video DVD or something so those of us in Maryland could see it? I have always wanted to get the 10,000 foot view of these systems so I could at least understand what everyone is talking about. Thanks, Darr LaFon From:Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com [mailto:Cal_ Boats@yahoogroup s.com] On Behalf Of Tom Vandiver Sent: Saturday, February 27, 2010 8:17 PM To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB HAM PC Interfaces, etc. Seminar Sept.7, I will be presenting a seminar at West Marine, Pensacola on Long Distance Radio, SSB, Amateur, (HAM) and modems to tie them into your computer. Since, Reggie and Barb will be in the great Chesapeake by then, I will have one for you on March 10, just after you get to the bayou and before we start rolling toward SoCal. Since your Cal 36 is parked next to my Cal 46, we will have our party - OOPS class on board Satori, where the radios are. On our last cruise, 2001, to the Bahamas for winter, then the Chespeake for the summer, then back home before Christmas, we really enjoyed being able to send and receive e mail while we were roaming. Since we are both HAMS, KA6WPG Tom and KA6WPF Bobbie, we used Winlink. It's FREE! Sail Mail SSB was an option for those who were not licensed for a few dollars annually. Later... From:mike farrell <vectormenow@ yahoo.com> To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 5:48:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM IT IS! If you can find a used older unit with an antenna matcher at a reasonable price buy it. I have used an ICOM like that and it worked flawlessly across the Pacific ocean years ago. I am sure technology has made them simpler and cheaper now. Mike Farrell From:Tom Vandiver <bshmarine@yahoo. com> To: Cal_Boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Sat, February 27, 2010 3:09:46 PM Subject: Re: [Cal_Boats] SSB ICOM! From:r good <my1972ih@hotmail. com> To: cal_boats@yahoogrou ps.com Sent: Wed, January 13, 2010 11:00:01 AM Subject: [Cal_Boats] SSB rumor has it that when offshore a person should have a Satelite phone or Single SideBand Radio. How does one decide on which SSB to get? Reggie