The ARRL General Class License Manual for Ham Radio, Level 2 [Paperback]

American Radio Relay Legaue (Author), Ward Silver (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0872599965 | ISBN-13: 978-0872599963 | Edition: 6th

All You Need To Pass Your General Class Exam!

Pass the 35-question General Class test.
All the Exam Questions with Answer Key, for use July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2011.
Detailed explanations for all questions, including FCC rules.
The General Class license is the second of three US Amateur Radio licenses. To upgrade to General Class, you must already hold a Technician Class license (or have recently passed the Technician license exam). Upgrading to a General license--which conveys extensive HF privileges only requires passing a written examination. Once you do, the entire range of operating modes and the majority of the amateur spectrum below 30 MHz become available to you.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Amer Radio Relay League; 6th edition (March 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0872599965
• ISBN-13: 978-0872599963
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #406,478 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

H. Ward Silver has the experience of a 20-year career as an electrical engineer developing instrumentation and medical electronics. He also spent 8 years in broadcasting, both programming and engineering. In 2000 he turned to teaching and writing as a second career. He is a contributing editor to the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and author of the popular 'Hands-On Radio' column in QST magazine every month. He is the author of the ARRL's Amateur Radio license study guides and numerous other articles. He developed the ARRL's online courses, 'Antenna Design and Construction,' 'Analog Electronics,' and 'Digital Electronics.' Along with his comedic alter-ego, Dr Beldar, Ward is a sought-after speaker and lecturer among 'hams.' When not in front of a computer screen, you will find Ward working on his mandolin technique and compositions.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great study guide for new General Class (element 3) ham exam., November 21, 2007

By 

David Fowler "Dave" (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The ARRL General Class License Manual for Ham Radio, Level 2 (Paperback)

This latest edition of the ARRL General Class License Manual (Sixth Edition) covers the newest element 3 question pool that became effective July, 2007 and goes through June, 2011. (Another review here is not talking about this book - this book is the latest and will be good until mid-2011.) Just make sure you get the the Sixth Edition which you are looking at if you are reading this review. If you buy it used, make sure it is the sixth edition!

This book covers every question in the General Class question pool very well. It is broken into bite size pieces so you can study a little and then review the questions from the pool related to the topic you just studied. ARRL provides a great support web site for this book at www.arrl.org/gclm that even includes a PDF of the question pool with the questions arranged by the book topics so you can easily review the questions as you go. (The book tells you what questions to review at the end of each topic.)

I got my technician license three months ago and just passed my element 3 General Class exam with a score of 100% using just this book and an online exam study site. For an online exam study site, I strongly recommend www.kb0mga.net This site lets you take sample tests from the official study question pool. It remembers which questions you haven't seen yet or got wrong so you will see these questions more often if you take several practice exams. It also randomizes the multiple choice answers so you don't get lulled into memorizing which answer (A,B,C, or D) is correct for a specific question. This is good since the real exam you take also randomizes the answers from the official question pool.

Note - this book is not for getting your first amateur radio (ham) license. If you don't have your technician license, get the book Arrl Ham Radio License Manual: All You Need to Become an Amateur Radio Operator (Arrl Ham Radio License Manual) This is also a great book.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Book for Getting Your Amateur Radio General Class License, December 23, 2007

By 

P. Jacobs (Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The ARRL General Class License Manual for Ham Radio, Level 2 (Paperback)

I agree with David F 's review. I am fairly new to amateur radio and also recently received my (first level) Technician's license. I do not have a background in radio or electronics but was interested in moving up to the (second level) General license.

This ARRL book, like the Technican's book, provides the information needed to pass the current FCC General exam (always choose the latest edition for current exam information), along with every question on the exam and the correct answers. Technical information is provided in relatively small chunks, in a manner that is fairly easy to learn and understand.

Due to the contents of the exam, some of the material is quite technical and some (such as which frequencies are assigned for specific uses) simply must be memorized. But the book does try and explain other exam material (such as circuits, components, antennas, etc.) and gives examples.

Again, this book will not teach you everything about ham radio but will help you pass the FCC General license test. It can be used as a self study guide for someone with a technical background, or together with a course taught by a local radio club to really learn the material.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Success in 5 days!, January 1, 2008

By 

Michael E. Bennett "TerminatorT2" (Wichita, KS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The ARRL General Class License Manual for Ham Radio, Level 2 (Paperback)

I joined a group within the Men's Auxilliary of the VFW to study for the test for the Technician License. The class met every week for six weeks. Five days before the test, I recieved my copy of the General Study Guide. I read about 1/3 of the book and read through all of the study questions. I also took 2 of the free practice tests online. I missed 2 on the first attempt, and a bunch (too many to pass) on the second attempt. I decided it was worth attempting the General test, if I passed the Technician. I passed the Tech test with no problem, so tried the General. I passed (just barely!) I should have taken more time to study, but a pass is a pass! This book really helped! I did have one year of electronics training in high school (one hour a day class 30 years ago) and obtained my Novice License at that time. I had to pass a 5 words per minute Morse code test. I never did have a radio back then, but now have a portable 2 meter handheld that I've been having fun with the past 2 weeks. I recommend this book (and the other 2 in the series) for anyone interested in obtaining their Ham License or wanting to upgrade. I am now studing for my Amature Extra License. KD0CMF