A Little About My Radio Communications Past
The abbreviated version: As for me, I have been around radio communications since I was a little kid (as far back as I can remember). My family (and extended family) belonged to a few camping clubs. We used to travel all over the place and all the time (almost every other weekend). My parents, uncles/aunts, grandparents, were all CBers. They used to get me on the CB and talk.
I think I was about ten or eleven when I got my first set of CB HT radios. They were Radio Shack five-channel models and required crystals. I used to take them apart and play around with mixing and matching the TX and RX crystals to get different channels (and off-channels).
After that, I got a set of 49 MHz headset communicators from Radio Shack. I remember around this time, I used to go to RS and look at all the Amateur radios and scanners and dreamed of having them. I picked up a few more crystal-type radios and my own mobile CB that my dad helped me convert into a base CB. I used to talk to people all over, both locally and far away. I also got an Amateur Radio book (Gordon West) and started studying it. Back then, it was much more difficult to become an Amateur Radio operator. You had to start out as a Novice and learn code. I was young and didn't quite get it all (actually I was too lazy to remember all the stuff you had to remember).
When I was fourteen, I became an LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) Explorer Scout. Now I was using LAPD radios (to include the old Moto MX300/MX330). This sparked my interested into getting a scanner. Someone gave me a scanner (can't remember what type) that used crystals. For the life of me, I could not find the crystals I wanted for LAPD.
Finally, I saved up enough money to buy my very own digital controlled scanner (no crystals needed). It was a
PRO-32. In high school, a friend of mine was a HAM and got me interested in Amateur Radio, again. It was still too much for me (had too many other things (girls) going on for me to spend time studying and trying to learn Morse Code), but I attempted (a little).
Before I got out of high school and before I went into the military, I joined the Civil Air Patrol. While there, I bought and had modified an Icom
IC-W2A dual-bander. This radio was also a wide-band receiver (including cell, which was analog back then). I had lots of fun with that radio - still have it, too. I started to get into search and rescue communications, as well as Air (AM), while in the CAP.
Time went on and I became a cop in the Air Force, further advancing my interest and usage of Communications equipment (and still in the CAP, as well). I also worked security before and after the military (using radios). Then I became a policeman in Los Angeles. Eventually, as an administrative Lieutenant, one of my functions was in charge of all the communications and IT equipment (dispatch, HTs, mobiles, Nextels (eventually), CAD, computers, etc.), working with the Dept radio engineers when needed. During this period is when I bought the most communications and scanning equipment (got a lot of it on eBay) - see my sig below (
Icom IC-PCR1000 and
IC-R1, Uniden
MR8100 and
BCT7, etc.).
More recently, I finally resurged my interest in Amateur Radio and got my licence, formerly KI6FLS, and now K9DJW (thanks to a personal meeting with Gordon West (WB6NOA)).
Most recently, since LAPD went digital, my wife bought me a Uniden
BCD396T, last Christmas - probably the best scanner I have ever owned, at least the niftiest scanner.
I would say that on a scale of 1 - 10, my technical skill of radio communications is a 6 or 7, and my general knowledge is a 7 or 8. Although, I guess it depends on to whom I am talking about it - someone who knows little or nothing (who would think I am a guru) or someone who is knowledgeable (which would reflect my numbers above). For the most part, I am very tech savvy. However, many times I feel I know nothing when talking to a real expert (engineer type).
My dad used to say, "A jack of all trades and a master of none." Well, maybe a master of some...
73's