Fm vs Am

[Master Chief]

What I don't understand is why is there such a NEED for freebanding, makes you feel special? I dunno, but I DO know around here the only CB channels utilized is 6,18,19,28,and 35, there is 34 channels not used! :?

This is why I don't "freeband". You should have seen the look on Bill Good's face when I took a virgin Cobra 2000 into him and told him NOT to modify it for extra channels! I told him, I only talk on 3 anyway. He did install the MOSFET front end and lock the clarifier together, but that was it. Later, I took it into Justin who did his own version of the NPC mod and re-alignment. Still, no extra freqs! Every switch on my radio does exactly what it was designed for.

Besides, the "freeband" above 40 is SSB and you are much better off using a basic ham radio than ANY CB. I loved the freeband in the 80's, but have no need for it today.

 

[bob85]

we freeband because thats where the rest of the world talks dx,
27.555usb is the international call frequency and alpha tango call freq, i also use 27.475lsb base or mobile to talk stateside dx,

it looks like we are losing our uk fm band so the stations that bother to move will be on midband 26.965 to 27405 fm,
thats ok right now but when the cycle comes back round its gonna be bedlam on there,
thousands of stations across europe and usa some on am some on fm all using ch19 as a local ragchew channel and nobody at all using legal power :roll:,
i am sure most of the uk will stay where we are unless the authorities decide to really enforce the new bandplan with lots of prosecutions.

 

[DXman]

What I don't understand is why is there such a NEED for freebanding, makes you feel special?

Oilpactch197,
I can't vouch for the other 10's of thouands of other people that operate from all over the world in the "freeband" area, but for me it certainly doesn't make me feel special to work stations in that area of the band. It doesn't make me feel special to drive over the speed limit either, but I still do it....just like the other millions of people world wide!!

By looking back thru my log book, it looks like my first contacts to Europe started in 1979 and that was above the 40 channels.
So if the conditions are willing I will still be operating in the "freeband" to this day and I am sure this will "really upset" a few people here, but the main thing is.. it doesn't bother me in the least.

Oh and speaking of FM....I have talk FM in winter months to Japan and Taiwan on 11 meters several times, especially back a couple years ago and will continue to do so. There are many stations coming from Japan and a few from Russia that are FM and on 11 meters.

So in conclusion:
I guess I am just a laid back radio operator of 31 yrs, that likes to talk DX around the world and such and do it with out a license.

 

[CollinsMan]

FM (NBFM) works GREAT on 160 meters! I run it on 1.992 Mc all the time as it really sounds good and cuts through the "line noise" and atmospheric static better than SSB. At least out to 100 miles or so.

Lots of folks ran FM on HF before SSB got popular back in the early 1960s. Lots of the old Collins stuff had it, for example...

It's too bad it isn't a legal mode on 11 meters here in the US as it really sounds nice, and the neighbors can't tell what is tearing up their TV, stereo,etc. as easily as they can if you run AM or SSB. CW can really mess with their minds, though!