New on here and studying for my foundation licence so cannot yet tx. However listening in as best I can and find that my local repeater at Berwick upon Tweed which RX on 145.100 and TX on 145.700 is occupied for hours at a time by locals on the 145.700 frequency. Is this not an abuse and should they change to a free channel as my training is telling me. If so how can I expect to be able to use this repeater once I get my ticket?
Don’t know about in your country but here it is an abuse if the repeater is registered.
Only if it’s communications which could be appropriately carried out via alternate means (such as simplex). When it comes to locals, not everyone may be capable of simplex comms especially if they aren’t all sitting at home using base setups (i.e. HTs).
The OP in in the UK if I’m not mistaken. You also wouldn’t hear me complain of it much as 2m repeaters are fairly dead in my part of 5-land.
Continuing the discussion from Repeater abuse?:
If so many people are using it and successfully, why don’t you find a different frequency instead of being a problem. That sort of attitude won’t help you get along well in your community. I know that problem people here never are able to make successful coms…
sorry but the foundation course I have just done said very firmly not to tx on repeater output frequencies other than to make initial contact before moving to a free channel. Not meant to offend as I appear to have done. Simply want to use repeater to make initial contacts that appears impossible to do when the time comes because of this. Ofcom agrees and refers matter to local manager of repeater. Sorry again if I offend anyone but want to be able to converse with responsible folk.
You are a newcomer. You have a bundle of rules. You didn’t contribute to the costs of the repeater.
In districts with a repeater that is rarely used, it’s handy to simply leave a radio tuned to it, but often, the users may well be in simplex range of each other, so using the repeater output frequency inconveniences nobody at all, as these communities tend to all know each other. The folk on the output are reasonable people. They’ve probably been around for a long time, and they probably belong to the same club or group - and if they want to talk on the output, then they are not doing anything OFCOM have the remotest interest in. The repeater owner (or manager) may well be one of those talking on the output. The fact you’ve already contacted OFCOM, even before you can transmit indicates you have not remotely understood the community aspects of amateur radio. The concept of calling and moving to a free channel is perfect for the exam, but when locals are scarce, there’s simply no need or desire to do this. If things are suddenly busy, then the users will revert to conventional operation. One school of thought says that their simplex on the output idea is actually a good one as the conservation of power is a good one. Why transmit personal chit-chat over a huge wide area if everyone lives locally? Their system seems to work for them. You are the newbie, you need to learn local communications procedure - even if it’s different from what you learned on the course. When you study for exams, they tell you what the rule book says they must tell you. what you do when you get the licence can be very different. Me, for example - I never ever say my callsign in correct phonetics. I say George 4 Radio Mexico Texas. Mainly because I discovered years ago on HF that it generated more response than Golf 4 Romeo Mike Tango - I’d get the “Mexico Texas station go ahead”. Do you also hear the correct radio procedure in these chats on the output? I doubt it, but if somebody calls through the repeater, and they switch to the input to use it, I bet they change their operating style to suit.
This is ham radio - practice is VERY different to what you were taught. You need to really understand that your success as a ham depends on your ability to switch operating practice depending on the group our net you join. Do NOT even think about telling these people they shouldn’t do it. In fact, why not just join in and have a chat quietly, and locally when you get the callsign. If you want to converse, remember they have to want to respond. Newcomers talking to OFCOM is a very bad start to your ham hobby.
Very well stated sir.