[CQ-Contest] Travelling for Contests or Dxpeditions

Tue Sep 23 12:59:28 EDT 2014

Thanks for the clarification Kelly. I guess I'd always kind of hoped that
the FCC-issued license in my wallet would count for something, but of
course if they aren't familiar already with the hobby I'm not sure why
they'd be OK with accepting something that might (or might not) look
legitimate. And of course, that's only for US users who have documents
issued by their own government; I can see where they wouldn't even dream of
accepting something from another government as proof of anything. Then
again, I think the point of this is not to say "do you have a legitimate
reason to have that piece of gear", but rather "does that pose any threat".
(I've leave the discussion of whether this is effective or not to others,
on another reflector).

73,
     David, K2DBK
     k2dbk.com
     k2dbk.blogspot.com
     twitter: @k2dbk

On Tue, Sep 23, 2014 at 10:13 AM, Kelly Taylor <ve4xt at mymts.net> wrote:

> Dave,
>
> I think you misunderstood my point: Carry a copy of QST to show the guy
> it's
> a legit hobby and not some hopped-up excuse to board a plane with dangerous
> goods. IF it has an ad for your radio, even better.
>
> I've had many, many conversations with many people from all lines of work,
> including airport security staff, who don't have the faintest flippin' idea
> there even IS a hobby involving radio, let alone know what ham radio is.
>
> Unfortunately, it all comes down to the little warning we see at Canadian
> airports: You have the right to refuse inspection if you choose not to fly.
>
> Sadly, it doesn't matter whether you find the new rules to be annoying. I
> find almost all of the security charade to be meaningless, but I do have to
> get where I'm going and submitting is the only way to do that.
>
> The opinion of a TSA agent would be almost meaningless. I've seen so many
> variations in opinion and procedures that it seems some agents make up
> their
> reaction to a situation on the fly.
>
> Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.
>
> 73, kelly
> ve4xt
>
>
>
> On 9/22/14 4:49 PM, "David Kozinn, K2DBK" <dkozinn at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > I'll reply to a couple of comments here. First, I have to assume that
> > simply turning the thing on should suffice. The guys isn't going to
> expect
> > you to work DX from the airport terminal. ("Hey, I don't know if that's
> > legit; 20 meters is open now and you can even work into Europe from
> Newark
> > Airport? Please come with me sir".)  And I'll bet that most agents will
> > have no clue about ham radio, although once I did have a guy who claimed
> to
> > be a ham, though he couldn't (wouldn't?) tell me his callsign. He asked
> > some questions that were a little "off" for anyone who has ever done much
> > on the air, but again, that's not their job.
> >
> > As far as carrying around batteries, packs or otherwise, if it comes to
> > that, I guess I can deal with it, but having to carry around a bunch of
> > batteries just in case the guy decides to make me switch it on is
> annoying.
> > It's not like a phone that's got a built-in battery. On top of that, I'd
> > assume if you go the "unopened batteries" route you'd need to immediately
> > pick up more as soon as you landed, just to be on the safe side.
> >
> > Finally ,as far as carrying a copy of QST with my radio in an ad, I'm
> still
> > using my trusty Icom MkIIG as my travel radio and that hasn't been in a
> > magazine for years. :-)
> >
> > Anyone on the list know someone in the TSA that could answer a question
> > about how likely this is to be an issue?
> >
> >
> > 73,
> >      David, K2DBK
> >      k2dbk.com
> >      k2dbk.blogspot.com
> >      twitter: @k2dbk
> >
> > On Mon, Sep 22, 2014 at 3:21 PM, Jim Brown <k9yc at audiosystemsgroup.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> On Mon,9/22/2014 10:11 AM, David Kozinn, K2DBK wrote:
> >>
> >>> The powering up things is of concern to me even for domestic travel.
> >>>
> >>
> >> Depending on the radio, the receivers in most 12V rigs will at least
> turn
> >> on and run from a fresh stack of 9 AA cells. A K3 draws only 1A in RX
> mode,
> >> +100mA with the 2nd RX. A KX3 draws a quarter of that. Another option
> is a
> >> low capacity LiIon battery pack. This 6Ah pack sells for about $65
> prewired
> >> with Power Poles and weighs less than 2#. Note that it's
> current-limited at
> >> 2A by the protection circuitry.
> >>
> >> http://www.batteryspace.com/custom-lfp-18650-battery-12-
> >> 8v-6000-mah-77wh-2a-rate-w-pcb-7-2.aspx
> >>
> >> Or this one -- 5Ah, but output current limited to 10A, for $80, a few
> >> ounces lighter.
> >>
> >> http://www.batteryspace.com/lifepo4-battery-12v-5ah-60wh-
> >> 10a-rate-with-led-indicator---replace-sla-12v-4-5ah-lighter-
> >> weight-and-higher-capacity----un38-3-passed.aspx
> >>
> >> Both of these batteries have passed the safety testing that makes it
> legal
> >> for them to be on an aircraft. There are many cheaper alternatives from
> the
> >> same vendor that have not passed that testing.
> >>
> >> 73, Jim K9YC
> >>
> >>
> >>
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