New member

[Ben Holberg]

Hi everyone, I'm new here!! I'm not actually started in the field yet, but I'm very interested in getting to know more information. I've been interested in Ham since a man from my town came into my classroom in 5th grade with his radio and let us talk on it. I thought it was so cool, and now I'd like to start pursuing the hobby! It's going to be a while before I can get started though, because I'm unemployed right now and money is EXTREMELY tight. I know people say they're "broke" all the time, but it's actually true for me.

So like I said, I'm just here for research purposes since I can't get started, unless of course someone wants to "sponsor" me and pay my test fee and hook me up with an old radio of theirs!

Thanks for reading, and I hope to get to know you all well.

[5B4AJB]

Welcome Ben
go and buy yourself some tools, soldering iron, multimeter, screwdrivers etc, a basic toolkit (when's your birthday).
Now go and find all the stuff people throw out, TV's, radios, videos, record players, you name it.

Gain soldering skills by removing the components, gain a free supply of components meanwhile.
You can learn a lot simply by exposing yourself to electrickery this way.

Given enough scrap to take apart, you'll have enough to build your own simple radio station from plans on the web.

Visit a local radio club, that's probably the single most valuable source of information.
They will probably have a licensing test of their own, they might even have some old receivers for you to play with.
I'd better also mention the local library, you'll probably be suprised what's in there on the topic of radios.

Amateur radio does not have to be an expensive hobby to be enjoyable.

[Ben Holberg]

Thanks so much for your reply! I'm pretty sure my dad has an old soldering iron he hasn't touched in years, so I can probably get it pretty cheap (doesn't much cheaper than free! ). What type of "components" am I going to want to look for in TVs, radios, etc? Can you link me to any good, and very simple, beginner plans? This entire field is basically foreign territory for me, as I don't know much about electronics and stuff, but I'd love to learn, which is one of the reasons I want to get started.

[5B4AJB]

There are three basic component groups, resistors, capacitors & inductors, all with sub categories. Everything else is related to these basic components.
Start your search with Ohms Law, the basics of electricity.

Just practice desoldering anything you can, to begin with, you'll learn how not to destroy the components you're removing (how not to burn yourself too).