Encouraging New Hams

How many of us have the last 2, 3 or more radios they have replaced, still sitting in the shed gathering dust? The amount of photos I’ve seen of shacks the world over that have 4 or 5 radios neatly set up on shelves either in a shack for use or just sitting in a shed or storeroom is mind boggling.

Often the reason for keeping an old radio is that the value is so low that the nostalgia of that radio exceeds the amount you could get for it. In todays environment of $500 software defined radios out-performing a conventionally designed radio purchased for $5000 15 years ago, this is now often the case.

So thinking about the nostalgia of an old radio that isn’t worth selling, what if you gave or long term loaned that radio to a new ham. You might be encouraging a young person in your neighbourhood who has asked you what that big mast is for, offering it along with some assistance to your local high school as a STEM program, or just giving someone who is interested enough to do a foundation license but doesn’t yet have the required funds to purchase their first HF rig. Either way, seeing someone get the same joy you once did with an old radio, otherwise not being used, is a good way to relive the fun you had with that radio.

A long time ago, I was the beneficiary of an act like that. I had sold my old CB to pay for a bus fare to Perth to sit my Novice license test. On arriving back, the president of the club I was in loaned me his converted CB which I had a lot of fun with in the first year or so I was on air. Other hams in the club also assisted me with stuff they weren’t using. The result of that has resulted in a life long enjoyment of the hobby.

Along those lines, why not get your local club interested in approaching local schools and organisations like Scouts and Girl Guides etc to not only run a session about ham radio but donate some radios for their use once licensed. You might find an influx of new young members that might breathe a new lease of life to a club that might be getting a bit stale. The cost of this is a bunch of slightly older radios that would otherwise only be gathering dust in the shack. Seems like a bargain to me!

Another idea I wouldn’t mind floating is that all the clubs in any given area get together and form a “bank” of older radios for this purpose. I’m not talking about boat anchors that only the most experienced ham will be able to get going. I’m thinking of radios that are 10-15 years old, that while not having HDMI ports and software defined brick wall filters and the like, can still be connected to a PC and used on FT8 and are still in good working order. I know at Ham College, where I teach here in Perth, we often get either bequeathed radios or are asked by a silent key’s family to assist in getting rid of old radios. I have to say, I have personally often run a mile from those opportunities – mainly because we have a room of boat anchors and no room for any more. At Ham College we are getting well over a hundred new hams on air each year, many of which could benefit from a donation of a radio – maybe as part of joining their local club. I’m sure Ham College could (and has done in the past) provide a plug for local clubs as part of the foundation course, and knowing a new member may be able to either gain or be loaned their first radio would be a huge draw card.

So… why not have this kind of conversation at your next club meeting. I think you’d be surprised at what a bunch of club members could put together as a bank of gear, and the ongoing benefits to the club of a bunch of new members. Stop leaving all those great rigs gathering dust and put them to a use that will benefit yourself, your community and the hobby in general.