mrtransportation wrote:Hi All,
I read all responses from people on this topic and totally agree with all of you for not transmitting on railroad frequencies. I have few questions to ask all you.
I was thinking about buying this Kenwood TK-270G radio from a friend that had it for a while, which he used to just listen to railroad frequencies when he watched trains and did not transmit or did any other illegal activities with this radio. Yes, it can transmit, but button is not functioning. My questions is this if I bought this radio from him. Do I need to get a ham license or FCC license to own, have or just listen to(not transmitting) with? Is crime to have one of these radios in your possession, on you, etc? Any advice or useful comments would be great from some of you dealers, ham operator etc. Also if there is license that is required to have or must get. Please let me know.Thanks.
I think you would be better off purchasing, as someone mentioned here, a brand new scanner. Radio Shack sells some damn good portable models, and for reasonable prices. I believe any radio shop or retail location that sells portable radios and electronics usually sell scanners. I always say it is better to start with brand new equipment than to waste money on "hand me down" used equipment.
The issue with purchasing that older radio is that someone can get their hands on it (i.e. if it gets stolen from you and the person realizes what it is and what can be done with it) other than you, they CAN get the button repaired, and that can open the door to someone other than yourself using it in an illegal manner that interferes with operations. Personally, I would not purchase it, and would stick to a nice, brand new scanner.
Just keep in mind, in some states, possession and use of a scanner is illegal, given that it can be used to listen in on police/emergency service frequencies, or in some places to have and use one, especially in a vehicle, still requires the user to be a licensed radio operator. Here in New York, you cannot possess one in a vehicle at all unless you are a licensed radio operator. I would say take time to familiarize yourself with your state/locality laws regarding scanner possession and usage. And if you get one, use it wisely.
Railroading is not a career, it's a lifestyle! Railroading........what other life would I wanna live?