<description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;This week on Live Free and Ham, we cover a little bit of everything that makes amateur radio… well… amateur radio.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;It starts with a spicy debate about 146.52 simplex activity and whether encouraging people to actually use the calling frequency is somehow “ruining the hobby.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Then we shift into the real heartbeat of ham radio — the community.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode we cover:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Listener Winlink messages&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The reality of calling CQ on 146.52&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Why so many antennas are on the road but nobody answers&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Message relays and traffic-style contacts&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Todd’s Little Something Extra technical segment&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Listener voicemails&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;And somehow… a deep dive into coffee, Dunkin, and ham radio lifestyle&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Because if there’s one thing ham radio operators do well…&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;It’s talking about radios… while talking about everything else.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;************************************&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Support the show:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Buy Us a Beer: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lfhpodcast"&gt;https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lfhpodcast&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Patreon: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.patreon.com/LiveFreeandHamPodcast"&gt;https://www.patreon.com/LiveFreeandHamPodcast&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Facebook: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093543540309"&gt;https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093543540309&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Instagram: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/livefreeandham/"&gt;https://www.instagram.com/livefreeandham/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;************* Feedback and Questions! &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can always leave us feedback on our voicemail line at 978-233-1142&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Affiliate:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Live Free and Ham - 10% off all LFH Swag CODE: LFH10&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Reliance Antennas - 10% off and free shipping at &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.relianceantennas.com/"&gt;https://www.relianceantennas.com/&lt;/a&gt; CODE: LIVEFREEANDHAM&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Halibut Electronics - 10% discount on all purchases &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://electronics.halibut.com/"&gt;https://electronics.halibut.com/&lt;/a&gt; of $25 or more, limited to three uses per listener. CODE: LIVEFREEANDHAM  &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;YouTube Channel:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Live Free and Ham - @livefreeandham&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Eric (N1JUR) -  @N1JUR  &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Paul (N1OG) -  @NovemberOneOscarGrouch  &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Todd (W1STJ) -  @W1STJ &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Swag/Shows/Updates:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://livefreeandham.com"&gt;https://livefreeandham.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Join our Discord:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://discord.com/invite/zas2cAVNPs"&gt;https://discord.com/invite/zas2cAVNPs&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;If you would also like to learn more about the hosts:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Todd (W1STJ) - &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://w1stj.com"&gt;https://w1stj.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Eric (N1JUR) - &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://n1jur.com"&gt;https://n1jur.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Paul (N1OG) - &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.qrz.com/db/N1OG"&gt;https://www.qrz.com/db/N1OG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Live Free and Ham Podcast

Live Free and Ham Pod

Apparently, We’re Ruining Ham Radio… By Actually Using It

MAR 16, 2026154 MIN
Live Free and Ham Podcast

Apparently, We’re Ruining Ham Radio… By Actually Using It

MAR 16, 2026154 MIN

Description

<p></p><p>This week on Live Free and Ham, we cover a little bit of everything that makes amateur radio… well… amateur radio.</p><p>It starts with a spicy debate about 146.52 simplex activity and whether encouraging people to actually use the calling frequency is somehow “ruining the hobby.”</p><p>Then we shift into the real heartbeat of ham radio — the community.</p><p>In this episode we cover:</p><p>Listener Winlink messages</p><p>The reality of calling CQ on 146.52</p><p>Why so many antennas are on the road but nobody answers</p><p>Message relays and traffic-style contacts</p><p>Todd’s Little Something Extra technical segment</p><p>Listener voicemails</p><p>And somehow… a deep dive into coffee, Dunkin, and ham radio lifestyle</p><p>Because if there’s one thing ham radio operators do well…</p><p>It’s talking about radios… while talking about everything else.</p><p>************************************</p><p>Support the show:</p><p>Buy Us a Beer: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lfhpodcast">https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lfhpodcast</a></p><p>Patreon: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.patreon.com/LiveFreeandHamPodcast">https://www.patreon.com/LiveFreeandHamPodcast</a></p><p>Facebook: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093543540309">https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093543540309</a></p><p>Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/livefreeandham/">https://www.instagram.com/livefreeandham/</a></p><p>************* Feedback and Questions! </p><p>You can always leave us feedback on our voicemail line at 978-233-1142</p><p>Affiliate:</p><p>Live Free and Ham - 10% off all LFH Swag CODE: LFH10</p><p>Reliance Antennas - 10% off and free shipping at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.relianceantennas.com/">https://www.relianceantennas.com/</a> CODE: LIVEFREEANDHAM</p><p>Halibut Electronics - 10% discount on all purchases <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://electronics.halibut.com/">https://electronics.halibut.com/</a> of $25 or more, limited to three uses per listener. CODE: LIVEFREEANDHAM </p><p>YouTube Channel:</p><p>Live Free and Ham - @livefreeandham</p><p>Eric (N1JUR) - @N1JUR </p><p>Paul (N1OG) - @NovemberOneOscarGrouch </p><p>Todd (W1STJ) - @W1STJ </p><p>Swag/Shows/Updates:</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://livefreeandham.com">https://livefreeandham.com</a></p><p>Join our Discord:</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://discord.com/invite/zas2cAVNPs">https://discord.com/invite/zas2cAVNPs</a></p><p>If you would also like to learn more about the hosts:</p><p>Todd (W1STJ) - <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://w1stj.com">https://w1stj.com</a></p><p>Eric (N1JUR) - <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://n1jur.com">https://n1jur.com</a></p><p>Paul (N1OG) - <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.qrz.com/db/N1OG">https://www.qrz.com/db/N1OG</a></p><p></p>