Whats happenning to OZ?

[rredbeak]

Remember years ago HF cb,Scanners,Ham Radio,electronics parts,base antennas [beams too] were all in The DSE,Tandy [when they were seperate],Jaycar and a HOST of others i cant remember.Getting a better price was as easy as a ph call and MAYBE a 5 min drive to pick it up.

Not just one model but serveral cb's,Kenwood,Yaesu,Icom all had their own shops.

The TV commercials we're full of cb related stuff for their many varied buisnesses.

Before you could buy a Ham tcvr you HAD to literally produce a Lic ROFL...

Whats gone wrong in OZ,I know UHF cb is the new oz world order but sadly hf has sufferred badly.

Cheers Rod

[SteveO]

Mobile phones

[bodyguard]

cheap Internet for the masses

[vk4 wanna be]

I got on ch 11 the old am call channel the other day nothing but the static sad to hear in a way.

[rredbeak]

well,with the cycle at the bottom or close to it doesnt help hf cb dx. but it is active most days.

personally i dont see the internet as a killer of hf cb or ham for that matter,but rather a really big help.

you can arrange over the net LIVE and have them monitor and respond to your hf call if heard.

a bunch of hams are doing it daily.

but my point in my original post is the hobby of radio in general has died,or more to the point replaced/forgotten with UHF cb.

one thing i will say is the idiots have ALL gone UHF leaving the HF CB bands quiet and really good contacts are the norm,but in much reduced numbers,the thrill of hearing exotic stations return is lost.

Diehards only i suppose.those that put them in drawers etc ,its time to dig them out,revive the waning interrest.

im a ham as well BUT hf CB is and always has been my main interrest.

Cheers Rod

[bodyguard]

some valid points Rod, I am also a ham & I believe the net has killed the golden age of radio.

Nothing like an early morning start listening out for the elusive G calls or getting swamped by the Italians.
If you called CQ and nobody answered then you would just have to find another freq. No setting up QSO's before you start calling, thats what I love about ham radio

[Scannersplitterguy]

I started on 27Mhz a bit over 30 years ago.
Had a used Realistic AM cb and finally bought a Pearce Simpson 40 ch SSB when I started working.
The skip cycles were great and I remember talking to Yanks on AM (while mobile) in the middle of the day!
One thing that bothers me is that the diehards on 27Mhz (usually ch35 LSB) still sound the same.
ie>seeeku dx, seeeeku dx.....power mike at full throttle. And they always use the words 'there' or 'there go'....intriguing!