This message caused the moderation, Buck.
References to auctions or auction sites, especially eBay, are strictly
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73 de Jim - AD6CW
K4IA@aol.com wrote:
The root problem is there is no Novice class license being given anymore.
The entry level tech is buying a walkie talkie. He gets bored with it after
the novelty wears off but the barrier to General and "real CW" is too big a
jump. He either puts the WT on eBay or hangs around waiting for the day when CW
is dropped. Little does he know he will probably get just as bored with SSB.
Used to be we had a ton of entry-level novices pounding brass in the novice
bands and that is how we learned CW and the magic of HF. With 75 watts input
and a crystal, you couldn't get in much trouble but you sure did learn how
to have fun. I was hooked 41 years ago and even though family and business
QRTed me for 30 years, I am still hooked today.
To keep this "on-topic," let me add TT has made some great CW rigs. Many
used ones are well within a beginner's budget. The ARGO V would make a great
Novice rig and a good choice if it weren't priced so close to the Yaesu FT-857
(now offered for $689 at HRO). What would be your favorite recommendation
for a newbie?
Seems to me TT is trapped. It can not produce rigs cheaply enough to
compete with the big guys on the low end. It has tried, with the Orion, to produce
something significantly better. So far, it has succeeded but is TT too
small to keep up? How can they support the Orion and at the same time be working
on the Orion II? Will the latest VaporRadio from Yaesu - the mysterious,
long-promised and still-unseen Ft-9000 unseat the Orion?
This is a tough business - I am glad I am on the consumer side and not a
manufacturer.
Radio k4ia - ex WN4TUF a real 5 WPM Novice and damn proud of it since you
ask!
"Buck"
Fredericksburg, VA USA
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