BajaNomad

Mexico cracking down on unlicensed Radio operators in B.C.S area

Bruce R Leech - 12-1-2006 at 02:21 PM

I was talking to some men today from the equivalent of the USAs FCC and they are here with special equipment to try and catch some Illegal radio transmitting activity in this area. they will be working in B.C.S. for the next year. make sure you have your Mexican license in order or don't use it. they did not or would not say what they were looking for but I don't think it has anything to do with vhf marine radios probably HF or 2 meter I don't know.

73

[Edited on 12-1-2006 by Bruce R Leech]

Hey Bruce,

djh - 12-1-2006 at 02:30 PM

Bruce, are you licensed / a ham... (We all know you're a "HAM" :) , but are you also a ham radio operator?) If so, what is your call sign?

I'm not licensed, but I have my father's last (very nice) set. He was WW2 Navy Radioman ~ Pacific fleet (on two ships that were sunk... couldn't swim, managed to survive ~ he was a tough old cookie)... continued right up until the day he died (almost). His life call sign was W7MAY and I am in the process of getting licensed with his sign :-) ~ a little tribute, I suppose.

I currently cannot transmit, but I often listen in.... Reminds me of being a little kid in the late 50's laying awake late listening to all the sounds in my dad's radio room next to my bedroom.

David.

Bruce R Leech - 12-1-2006 at 02:43 PM

No David I don't xmit. but I am an avid DXer it is one of my favorite things to do is listen to the world on good radios DXing is very good down here. there is not much interference. even in the day time I can pick up every Continent in 10 minuets. I have been waiting for my Spanish to get good enough for the exams here and my code is not up to snuff ether, I need to be at 10 wpm for Mexico. so maybe some day we will chat on the radio. but for now I am happy just listening.

73

[Edited on 12-1-2006 by Bruce R Leech]

Hook - 12-1-2006 at 02:44 PM

They're probably looking for people in remote areas assisting the drug cartels. There have been many cases of remote pangero operations assisting them with fuel supplies, offloading, etc.

I would bet they ARE monitoring the VHF frequencies.

Cypress - 12-1-2006 at 03:46 PM

They ought to crack down on murdering SOB's.:(:( Much easier to jump on some poor granny with a CB.:D:D

Bruce R Leech - 12-1-2006 at 04:27 PM

here is a neat sit in English that shows every thing you newed to know about transmitting in mexico

73





http://www.geocities.com/wd9ewk/xe-permit.html

http://www.geocities.com/wd9ewk/xe-permit.html

villadelfin - 12-1-2006 at 05:57 PM

Thank you Bruce

djh, David...

Mexray - 12-1-2006 at 07:34 PM

...got something in common - my dad was a life-long ham, W6DDU - got his license in the 1930's. He too, served in the Pacific during WWII as a communications office in the Merchant Marine. He spent many months out there among some of those remote Pacific Isles!

He kept his original 'numbers' all his life, and was still active till about 4 years ago - sadly, he passed on this last summer. I used to marvel at his files of 'QSL' cards from the 40's and 50's!

I've always been interested in Amateur Radio, but just never seemed to have the time to get involved enough to get my licsence...

Bruce R Leech - 12-1-2006 at 07:39 PM

Mexray
they call that a silant kea when a ham passes. I am sure he is tapping out code where he is now god bless him.


lencho
I have several Radios that I use. At home I use a trio 9R-59d it is an old tube set , one of the last ones they made in about 1960. also a Yaesu FRG-100 with all kinds of antennas. For travel or camping I like my Zenith Trans Oceanic 7000 when I am traveling heavy or a Kaite 1103 when traveling light with an active loop ant. It is fun to listen and I also like to fix up Old radios and sell them or give them away.

73

Bruce R Leech - 12-1-2006 at 08:36 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by lencho
Quote:
Originally posted by Bruce R Leech
lencho
I have several Radios that I use. At home I use a trio 9R-59d it is an old tube set , one of the last ones they made in about 1960. also a Yaesu FRG-100 with all kinds of antennas.


I got my General Class back when code was still required, but haven't been at all active since arriving in Mexico-- too much else going on to listen to a bunch of old farts yammer on about what equipment they're running.

I think the Internet has filled a certain gap and made HF radio less interesting for a lot of folks including myself. A shame, since ham radio and particularly CW, is still a very viable long-range emergency medium when not much else can get through...

--Larry


Larry it is very easy for you to get a Mexican ticket sense you already have one .it is 900 pesos for five years and only need to fill out an application. I think that is the way I might go is to get my licenses in the USA and then get the permit here in Mexico.

Bruce R Leech - 12-1-2006 at 10:07 PM

Larry check this web site it will tell you all you need to know about Radio in Mexico and it is all in English.


http://www.geocities.com/wd9ewk/xe-permit.html

Bruce-----

Barry A. - 12-1-2006 at 11:29 PM

I have two Zenith Trans Oceanic 3000 Royals that are fun to listen to.

I never go camping without one.

I also have the Radio Shack DX 398 (made by Sangean) that is one heck of a receiver. With the single-sideband function and extra antennae I can listen to all the yachties talk every morning up and down the Gulf coast.

Fun, fun.

capt. mike - 12-2-2006 at 06:50 AM

Barry - i have that same radio for my palapa - so i went and ran a long length of copper to get good reception, wrapped it around the upper cols on the bldg so figure i got about 150' linear, attached the end to a 1/8" mini plug to put into the ext antennae jack, but frankly i am not getting stellar reception - any ideas, pointers?
also i am trying to pick up the various marine nets up and down the baja which go on at diff times. perhaps i can't get them during daylight??

Bruce R Leech - 12-2-2006 at 06:56 AM

Mick the ground is very important with a wire antenna. you might try a Loop or better yet a active loop antenna.

[Edited on 12-2-2006 by Bruce R Leech]

Cap.t Mike---

Barry A. - 12-2-2006 at 11:10 AM

Unfortunately the Zenith Trans Oceanic radios do not have the single-side-band capabilities so it is hard to pick up the ham operators and their weather broadcasts.

For really good listening I use the RADIO SHACK DX-398 receiver with their production wire antennae, which does have single side band capability and is digital. The DX-398 is out of production now, but you can pick them up on E-bay for a reasonable price----I paid $150-----they are stellar radios. The SANGEAN ATS-909 is the same radio, and is still in production, I believe. From Sangean they run about $300 tho, but they too are sometimes available on E-bay for much less.

The CHUBASCO NET opens in the morning at 7:30 AM, on 7.294 Mhz (lower side band). Good talk on weather in the Gulf-----lots of Yachty talk, too. This one is my favorite.

The SONRISA NET operates on 3.968 Mhz beginning at 7:00 AM winter and summer.

The US Coast Guard has weather forecasts from San Francisco every day at 9:30 PM (PDT) on 4426 Khz, 8764 Khz, and 13089 Khz and you can receive them on the better digital radios (DX-398).

(all this info from an excellent article on Baja by Ed Gillet in SUNSET MAGAZINE June 1999 )

I cannot add anything to what Bruce says here about a better antennae for the Trans Oceanic-----I use the built-in whip, but you are right the reception is not that great, especially as compared with the DX-398.

I am really pretty much a novice at this, so I may have already told you more than I really know. :O

Jack Swords - 12-2-2006 at 01:31 PM

Just a note on obtaining the ham license...the exams are now given by volunteer examiners and are very user friendly. We give exams here in La Paz every month and that is true in other parts of Mexico. The Loreto Fest in the Spring always has testing by volunteers. The code requirement (5 wpm now) for the General Class is due to be dropped soon as approval has been made. However the requirement does currently still stand. Get a Gordon West book and CD and it will prepare you on your computer for both the code and theory tests. Once you pass the tests the FCC lists your new call on the Internet (test results are sent to the FCC by volunteer examiners). To use your USA license in Mexico is, as Bruce indicated, a matter of getting a Mexican Provisional Reciprocal license from an SCT office by filling out a form and paying a fee. You then add an XE2 or XE1 Mexican prefix to your USA call and you are legal. Now you can operate on all HF bands with very high power in any legal mode.

Resonant antennas work best for HF operation. There are many for sale and they can be made cheaply, but a long wire is not usually the best without a coupler. Resonant antennas are peaked for a given frequency(s) and resist noise. Those of us on boats use an antenna coupler to make the antenna appear resonant to the tranceiver. We can regularly make contact with Internet gateways in the US to do e-mail from our boat with 10 to 20 watts (saves boat batteries). With the new digital modes like PACTOR or even ham TV, the ham bands offer lots of opportunity for communications and experimentation. Jack Swords, N1IY, s/v La Paloma

Hook - 12-5-2006 at 01:51 PM

Jack, my New Years resolution is to get my license in '07. As I live in a tract with a pretty strict HOA, I doubt I will get approval for an antenna on my roof. Can you recommend some mobile units that I could install in my truck/camper and would also be a good unit to move to my boat? Would like it to cover SSB and anything else needed for L-O-N-G distance communications.

I'm really not into doing much chattering at home anyway, although I love to listen to stations on my Sony ICF-2010. Unfortunately, it doesnt have the frequencies of the various Baja nets.

Thanks for the tip on the Gordon West book and CD.

BTW, would this HAM equivalent license in Mexico make me legal for VHF use as well? Aren't we all supposed to have a VHF license for Mexico, even though it has been dropped in the US?

bajalou - 12-5-2006 at 02:02 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Hook


BTW, would this HAM equivalent license in Mexico make me legal for VHF use as well? Aren't we all supposed to have a VHF license for Mexico, even though it has been dropped in the US?


Ham license only covers ham frequencies

http://www.eham.net/exams/

http://www.aa9pw.com/radio/

A couple of sites where you can practice taking the exams.

The exam for Tech is very easy - I scored just under passing and had read the books (partly) over 5 years ago. Practiced taking it and now pass each time I try. So easy my wife is going to get a license too. (and she's not technical at all)

Hook - 12-5-2006 at 02:06 PM

"Ham license only covers ham frequencies"

Well, I knew that was the case in the US, which is what those links describe. But Mexico may have more liberal policies.

Do we need to have another license in Mexico for VHF, Lou?

bajalou - 12-5-2006 at 02:52 PM

My VHF, I'm supposing you mean Marine VHF and yes there is supposed to be a different license.

BajaWarrior - 12-5-2006 at 04:21 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by bajalou
My VHF, I'm supposing you mean Marine VHF and yes there is supposed to be a different license.


Where would one obtain a license for VHF if one were required? Every other house in the San Felipe area has one and we have always used them freely. Even to call the police in the South Campos.

Do locals have to get one too?

bajalou - 12-5-2006 at 04:27 PM

I too am in San Felipe where the cab company uses channel 8 etc. I don't know where one would get the license, probably Mexicali, but the use of these radios in this area is all against all the rules anyway - so having a license wouldn't make the use allowable. As I understand it, ALL marine radios should be licensed.

MARINE VHF

bajaguy - 12-5-2006 at 05:12 PM

Speaking of.......Bass Pro stores (and catalogs) have the Midland handheld 5 watt/12 mile range on sale for $39.99 each (with rebates)...a really good deal, usually $59.99. I have 2, and they work great........BUT ONLY ON THE WATER (legal disclaimer added)

[Edited on 12-6-2006 by bajaguy]

oxxo - 12-5-2006 at 05:12 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by bajalou
I don't know where one would get the license, probably Mexicali, but the use of these radios in this area is all against all the rules anyway - so having a license wouldn't make the use allowable. As I understand it, ALL marine radios should be licensed.


You must have a license to LEGALLY operate a VHF radio in Mexico. A Ham license does not cover you. Communications on the water is the ONLY place where VHF radios can be LEGALLY used anywhere in the world. This has largely been ignored in Mexico. It is my understanding that the Mexican Navy is getting involved because some of their emergency communications have been disrupted by illegal use of unlicensed radios on shore. VHF radios have also been reported to be used on land for the drug trade and the military is attmpting to do something about it. A VHF license can be obtained for marine use at the office of the Capitania del Puerto - the Port Captains office - at any port of entry. In San Felipe, his office is located adjacent to the marina. The license is less than $5 per year.

I think you will find that VHF use on land in Baja will become less prevalent as cell towers are added. VHF is "line of sight", receiver to receiver communications and therefore is not very effective on land but has a range of about 15 miles at sea. Oftentimes, range on land is less than 5 miles depending on the terrain. Cell phones, VOIP internet communications, and satellite communications are much more efficient, effective, and legal on land.

Bruce R Leech - 12-5-2006 at 05:27 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Barry A.
Unfortunately the Zenith Trans Oceanic radios do not have the single-side-band capabilities so it is hard to pick up the ham operators and their weather broadcasts.

For really good listening I use the RADIO SHACK DX-398 receiver with their production wire antennae, which does have single side band capability and is digital. The DX-398 is out of production now, but you can pick them up on E-bay for a reasonable price----I paid $150-----they are stellar radios. The SANGEAN ATS-909 is the same radio, and is still in production, I believe. From Sangean they run about $300 tho, but they too are sometimes available on E-bay for much less.

The CHUBASCO NET opens in the morning at 7:30 AM, on 7.294 Mhz (lower side band). Good talk on weather in the Gulf-----lots of Yachty talk, too. This one is my favorite.

The SONRISA NET operates on 3.968 Mhz beginning at 7:00 AM winter and summer.

The US Coast Guard has weather forecasts from San Francisco every day at 9:30 PM (PDT) on 4426 Khz, 8764 Khz, and 13089 Khz and you can receive them on the better digital radios (DX-398).

(all this info from an excellent article on Baja by Ed Gillet in SUNSET MAGAZINE June 1999 )

I cannot add anything to what Bruce says here about a better antennae for the Trans Oceanic-----I use the built-in whip, but you are right the reception is not that great, especially as compared with the DX-398.

I am really pretty much a novice at this, so I may have already told you more than I really know. :O


My Zenith Trans Oceanic radio dose have single-side-band capabilities and it works pretty good.:bounce:

Hook - 12-5-2006 at 06:07 PM

OXXO, it is not entirely true that on the water is the ONLY place to use a VHF radio worldwide. There are many licensed base stations on the VHF frequency. Maybe the most familiar are Vessel Assist stations, the Coast Guard, marine operators as well as many private citizens who operate on a shore-to-ship basis.

But thanks for the info on where to get a Mexican VHF license. That's worth it for 5 bucks a year.

BTW, I frequently get range of over 40 miles with VHF on the water. Atmospherics, I would imagine.

Hook - 12-5-2006 at 06:13 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by lencho
Quote:
Originally posted by Hook
Jack, my New Years resolution is to get my license in '07. As I live in a tract with a pretty strict HOA, I doubt I will get approval for an antenna on my roof.


As you will discover if you delve into ham lore, there are creative ways to deal with that situation. Have an attic with a wooden roof? No? Well, patriotism's all the rage these days, how about a nice flagpole...? :>

--Larry


My God, Larry, you're absolutely right!

Living here in the largest concentration of Republicans in California (The Unreal OC), I could probably get that ex-gunnery sargeant who is the HOA prez to raise the flag for me occasionally.

Hell, it's my patriotic DUTY!!!:light:

Jack Swords - 12-5-2006 at 07:46 PM

Hook, Larry is right about hidden antennas. A flagpole, attic antenna, even a vertical on the ground work. Search around as some manufacturers make such things.

I use a Kenwood TS50 in the sailboat. 100 watts, all ham bands, marine bands. Size of a small CB radio. Icom makes a similar unit. You can drive an amplifier with them if you want more power. Yaesu also has one. These are also on the used market from dealers, ebay or listings on the internet. Lots to choose from. All work on 12VDC.

VHF marine freqs are for use on the water as others have mentioned. In the USA we boaters do not have to have a VHF license for marine VHF, but the FCC rules require you to have a license if you travel internationally (also for any radar, EPIRB, etc.) The VHF license (actually a license to transmit on any marine freq) from the US FCC is about 100 dollars, good 10 years. You must also have an operators license which I forget the fee. Now, realistically do people traveling "internationally" get the US FCC license? Who knows? But, all the SSB marine nets require the assigned call letters be given when a station is participating in the net. These are the call letters assigned by the FCC with the station license. Mariners don't have the database to check calls (borrowed or made up), but hams do. QRZ.com is a site that lets you enter a ham call to verify the authenticity. There is a CD available to do the same. Many ham nets do check calls, never heard of marine nets doing so. Here in the Sea of Cortez cruisers just use their boat name on VHF marine, but I guess should be using their call letters too just like marine SSB. Maybe it will come to that if SCT starts cracking down.

Hook - 12-6-2006 at 09:39 AM

Just lost out in bidding on a TS-50 and the AT-50 on ebay. It went for 605.00. :(

Oh well, hopefully others will surface. Impressive list of good reviews on the unit on e-ham. Unfortunately, Kenwood decided to discontinue the unit this year.

I us Marine VHF and CB are the O.K. or???

K.Collins - 12-8-2006 at 11:27 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Bruce R Leech
here is a neat sit in English that shows every thing you newed to know about transmitting in mexico

73Do I need a license for CB or marine VHF while in Mexico!!!





http://www.geocities.com/wd9ewk/xe-permit.html

http://www.geocities.com/wd9ewk/xe-permit.html

Bruce R Leech - 12-10-2006 at 08:51 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by Hook
Just lost out in bidding on a TS-50 and the AT-50 on ebay. It went for 605.00. :(

Oh well, hopefully others will surface. Impressive list of good reviews on the unit on e-ham. Unfortunately, Kenwood decided to discontinue the unit this year.



Hook every thing withe Radios is going real high right now on Ebay the best time to buy this stuff is after the holidays and before tax time. that is when you get the real bargains.:light:

sell now buy then.

Hook - 12-10-2006 at 10:24 PM

That's good advice, Bruce. I am not that up on the whole ebay thing, really.

synch - 12-11-2006 at 09:28 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by Hook
Just lost out in bidding on a TS-50 and the AT-50 on ebay. It went for 605.00. :(

Oh well, hopefully others will surface. Impressive list of good reviews on the unit on e-ham. Unfortunately, Kenwood decided to discontinue the unit this year.



Wow, seems like a lot to pay just to avoid the costs of a cell phone

Hook - 12-11-2006 at 09:35 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by synch
Quote:
Originally posted by Hook
Just lost out in bidding on a TS-50 and the AT-50 on ebay. It went for 605.00. :(

Oh well, hopefully others will surface. Impressive list of good reviews on the unit on e-ham. Unfortunately, Kenwood decided to discontinue the unit this year.



Wow, seems like a lot to pay just to avoid the costs of a cell phone


Synch, you're just not getting the attraction of R-A-D-I-O. And it's more than just a retro thing.

It's a Hobby Thing.

MrBillM - 12-11-2006 at 10:29 AM

With today's technology and steadily falling prices on electronics, Ham radio can no longer be justified on a dollar basis, but there are thousands who simply enjoy it.

I'm another one of those who don't get the attraction of Ham Radio. In the past, I've had more than one friend devoted to it. One of those had a gigantic antenna system in his back yard and would stay up into the early a.m. hours talking to others all over the world. Different Strokes.

Of course, I'm one of those who doesn't even like talking on the telephone unless I have a specific purpose. When I'm at home in El Norte, my answering machine is ALWAYS ON if I'm there to screen calls and when I'm out of the house, my voicemail picks up. I NEVER answer my phone. When it comes to Cel Phones, the CHEAPEST call plan is more than I use, in the U.S or Baja.

IF I were going to be somewhere beyond Cel phone or VOIP Internet service, I'd buy a Satellite phone. The price is comparable to any radio equipment you might buy and the per minute charges are only significant if you're a Chatter.