It seemed like a good idea at the time. I don’t know how I compare to others, but my three-plus decade amateur radio career is littered with failed projects and off grid mistakes. Much of it can be explained away as valuable learning experiences, but as I look back, there… Read more »
Call now! Operators are waiting! small solar power You’ve probably seen the campy ads hawking small solar power systems and “solar generators”. These ads make some remarkable claims and the manufacturers are deliberately vague on the technical specifications of these products. They further fuzz up the facts with unrealistic depictions… Read more »
It’s about ham-less options. I’m going to assume that everyone who reads this blog is either a currently licensed ham, or at least vaguely interested in becoming one. With that kind of a demographic, why should I even entertain the idea of covering non-ham radio communications? Well, it’s all about… Read more »
A good value for the money never goes out of style. Back in February of 2016 the Off Grid Ham 100 Watts for $300 solar project made its debut. Over four years later it is still one of the most-viewed articles on this website with several hundred hits every month…. Read more »
Thanks for making OGH a great website. 2019 has been a great year for Off Grid Ham! We racked up twenty-two articles (including this one), tens of thousands of page views, and a growing reader base from all over the world. It’s not lost on me that you readers are… Read more »
A hot topic. My May 5, 2019 commentary, The Transmitters of Freedom Should Be Turned Back On, unexpectedly generated a great deal of attention. It quickly became one of the most reposted and shared articles on this website. It’s encouraging that so many people care about this issue. It warrants… Read more »
Like it or not, you may become “that guy” (or girl). Amateur radio means different things to different people. Some like to tinker and experiment. Others are into DX or contests, or maybe community service projects. No matter what your motivations are, amateur radio serves a secondary usefulness that goes… Read more »
It’s hard to follow. One issue that seems to come up a lot in the off grid radio realm is proper system grounding. The rules and expectations are hard to follow. There are a lot of opinions out there. Many of them are accurate, others are not. Today we’ll go… Read more »
Beyond OPSEC. Last month we discussed operational security (OPSEC) and why it’s important to off grid hams. As a follow up to that, it’s worthwhile to talk about how to keep your communications private. After all, operational security is very difficult without also having some form of communications security. The… Read more »
You can’t unpull the alarm. All the things that make the internet fantastic can also be to its detriment. Looking up a callsign, for example, is as easy as tippy-tapping a few keys. None of us who were there miss the days of flipping through a three inch thick $29.99… Read more »
A lot of great info in one easy click. I find a lot of information about off grid amateur radio on the internet. Unfortunately, I have to sift through a great deal of mediocre content to find one worthwhile item. This article from the Dialtone Blog about buying a used… Read more »
A mature technology. AC inverters are like other technology in that during the early years they were very expensive and didn’t work particularly well. Over time they were tweaked and improved and today inverters are better and less expensive than their ancestors. I suggest including an inverter in your off… Read more »