Footloose replied:

It's a "ham" or amateur radio and no it won't work on the VKS network. In fact the rules governing operation on the VKS network expressly forbid the use of ham gear.
You have to pass an exam to become an amateur radio operator, and there are many on this forum, including myself.

Grungle replied:

Hey Troll,

Its an amateur radio so you need to be licenced accordingly. Also it doesn't come with any antennas (of which you would need 2 to fully utilise all features). Autotune antennas make up 1/3 of the overall cost of a system. HF radios are pre-programmed / pre set with suitable channels whereas with amateur radios you can manually adjust your transmit frequency which means you can talk on any frequency which is a big no no in Australia.

I found this in the "Terms of sale" section of the listing:

"It is a condition imposed by Ebay (at the request of the ACMA) that any radio transmitting equipment be sold to appropriately licensed persons only. If you have any doubts in respect to your licensing status, please feel free to email us for assistance. This sale restriction does not apply to radio related accessories such as receivers, antenna tuners, speakers, power supplies, antennas etc (only equipment that can transmit or amplify transmission of a radio signal)"

To be an amateur radio operator, you will need to sit and pass a test and then apply for call sign/licence. This will enable you to buy an amateur set.

You can buy a HF radio without a licence but you will need to become a member of an organisation who authorises you to use their frequencies.

BTW It will work on VKS frequencies.

I am not an amateur enthusiast so please correct me if I am wrong anyone. I do have a HF however. Apart from that I don't no why so cheap as Yaesu is a good reliable brand.

Regards
David

Mike Harding replied:

The Yaesu FT-857D (I own one) is an excellent radio - it produces 100W HF SSB, 50W on 2m and 20W on 70cm (won't cover Oz UHF CB). It has more facilities than you could poke a stick at (but not Selcall) and is quite complicated to set up - 95 menus and 20 x 3 soft keys.

Like most Amateur Radio when it comes out of the box it will only transmit on the Amateur bands (which do not cover VKS737) however, like most Amateur radios, a simple modification to links on the circuit board permits it to cover a much broader range of frequencies including VKS737. It is technically illegal to use such a radio on VKS737 because it is not "Type Approved" as radios such as the overpriced Codans et al are. However, it is believed, many people do use Amateur sets on this service and providing one is capable of dealing with their additional complexity there is no good technical reason why one should not.

Antenna wise? A wire dipole in the trees will work better than most (all?) expensive autotunes and a "selectable whip" will also do a good job for about $200.

The seller you refer to on E-bay is a good guy and so are these people:

http://www.andrewscom.com.au/

Mike Harding

Member - Doug T (FNQ) replied:

Troll 81
Here's a link that might give you a help in posting links

How to do a link

.

Footloose replied:

I was wondering when Mike would appear. Yes such radios can easily be modified to both transmit and receive outside of the amateur bands, but an amateur operator is NOT licensed to use them outside of the amateur bands, except in the case of an emergency which is a case of life and death.
"Type approval" is not simply a matter of attaching a label, as Mike would be fully aware of, and there are MANY technical reasons why these radios do NOT meet the required specifications of the land mobile service.
Mike and have argued over this before, and things have not changed. He continues to suggest that it's Ok to use amateur stuff on commercial frequencies. It's not, and the amateur service does not advocate persons using them in this manner.