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Author Topic: Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)  (Read 5564 times)

AB0SI

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« on: September 03, 2004, 12:14:01 PM »

This is of no importance what so ever.. I was jsut wondering...

Back in the old days of the 1-year non-renewable Novice (xtrl-controlled only, etc.) was it required to go through Novice or could one "jump" directly into General?

If one could skip Novice, any idea waht portion of newbies do so?

People with lives obvious will be skipping this thread... for the rest of us, though.. <grin>

thanks

paul  AB0SI
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W3HF

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #1 on: September 03, 2004, 01:28:57 PM »

Paul -

I'm pretty sure that the only (post-1951) license that required "time in grade" was the Amateur Extra. It initially required two years previously licensed, which was shortened (in the 60s, I think) to one year, and then that was dropped in the 70s. No other license required being previously licensed. As a result, a "newbie" could start at Novice or any of the "intermediate" levels, like General, Conditional, or even Advanced. There was a table in the old license manuals that compared the various licenses, and one column was "previous license required." I could check through some of the old ones just to be sure.

I have no idea, though, what fraction of newbies started with Novice, and what fraction started at the higher grades. And I don't remember whether there were similar requirements prior to the 1951 changes that eliminated the old Class A/B/C licenses, in favor of Novice/Tech/Conditional/General/Advanced/Extra. It's possible that Class A had a time in grade requirement, though.

Steve

P.S. I hope this doesn't prove that I DON'T "have a life." :-)
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AB0SI

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #2 on: September 03, 2004, 01:32:35 PM »

Steve:

many thanks for the information.

No, it doesn't prove you don't have a life. It only proves you have sympathy for those of us who don't. :)

Paul AB0SI
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WA4MJF

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #3 on: September 04, 2004, 09:32:46 PM »

You could sstart as a Novice and
save the trip to the FCC office
until later or you could go to
the FCC office and take the test.

First you took a receiving and
SENDING test in code.  1A
5 WPm 1B 13 WPM 1C 20 WPM.  Which
ever you liked if you failed you
went home and came back 30 or more
days later.  If you passed 1A,
you took written Element 2 (Novice),
and passed you took Element 3
and were a Technician (with out the
(C) which was test you did not
take at the FCC office). If you passed
2, but not 3 you went home a Novice.
If you failed 2, you went home for 30
or more days and came back and took the
the Code test again and if you passed
took the written tests again.  If you
failed 3 you came back and took 3 again.
If you passed 1B you elements 2 and 3
and passed you were a General.  If not see
above for failing.  If you passed 1B and took
2,3 and 4A you were Advanced.  

The wait for Amateur Extra was 5 years and
later 2 years and later no years.

73 de Ronnie

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WA4MJF

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #4 on: September 04, 2004, 09:36:02 PM »

I should have noted that for the
code test you could take which ever
you could pass.  A lot of the high
speed ops, could not pass the
"slow" tests. They took 1C
and then the written test.  You had to
pass the code test at the required
speed or higher for any of the
license classes.

73 de Ronnie
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W3HF

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #5 on: September 04, 2004, 11:11:11 PM »

Paul (and Ronnie) -

I just checked the collection of old license manuals.

www.geocities.com/w3hf/lms.html

My earliest LM (1933) states that an applicant for a Class A license "must have one year's experience as a licensed amateur operator." This statement is repeated in all the books I have up until the elimination of that license structure.

The first book I have that lists the "new" structure (Novice to Extra) is the 1951, 27th edition. The table on page 6 lists the prerequisite for the Advanced license as "one year since 1934, except as a Novice or Technician." This is actually very consistent with the older rules, as the Class A licensees were converted to Advanced. (I hadn't thought of that with my earlier reply.)

The prerequisite for an Extra was "two years since 1934, except as a Novice or Technician."

As of January 1953, the FCC effectively withdrew the Advanced class from availability. This was part of the action that granted all amateur privileges to Generals. (Previously, Generals could not work voice on either 75 meters or 20 meters.) Then-current Advanced licensees could renew their licenses indefinitely, but no new Advanced licenses were being issued. As a result, the line in the license manual about the prerequisite for Advanced was deleted, since it could no longer be applied.

These rules stayed in effect until 1967. The 58th edition of the LM shows the effect of "incentive licensing." The Advanced class license was reinstated at this time, but without a prerequisite. The Extra still had a two year requirement.

Some time between 1971 and 1972 the rules changed. The November 72 issue of the LM shows the Extra requirement dropped to "one year above Technician."

The final change shows up in the May 1976 edition. This is the first one that shows the elimination of the one year requirement. That book states:

"The earlier requirement for a year of experience with some other calls of license has been dropped; thus, in theory, at least, an applicant could take the 20 wpm code test and all the written elements during one visit to FCC and, if successful, receive Extra Class as his first amateur license."

And I guess this really proves I don't have a life! :-)

Steve
W3HF
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W5HTW

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #6 on: September 08, 2004, 05:27:24 PM »

By the time I got into the hobby, (1956) you could no longer take the Novice or Technician tests at the FCC office. Previously that had not been the case.  Before the FCC stopped giving the Technician exam, since the Tech written was identical to the General written, if you had taken and passed the Tech test at the FCC office, you had credit for the General written if you went to the FCC and took the General code of 13 wpm.  

By 1956 the Tech and Novice both were only offered by mail.  The test had to be administered by a General or higher class ham, but only one - no team.  You applied to the FCC and you received an envelope with the test sealed inside.  You took this unopened to your chosen examiner.  He opened the first envelope and you filled out the application.  He administered the code test, and he immediately decided if you passed or not.  The code test was receiving first, and then sending.  You had to pass both.  

If you did not, he could not open the second envelope, containing the written test, but had to return it to the FCC.  If you passed, he opened the second envelope and proctered the written.  He was not supposed to advise you afterward if you had passed or failed, as he did not have the actual answers.   He then sealed the code test certification and the written exam in the supplied envelope, and mailed them to the FCC.  About nine weeks later you would receive your license in the mail.

In the mid 50s, the Novice ticket permitted operation on CW only, on narrow segments of the 80, 40, 15 meter bands.  Frequencies were 3750-3800, 7150-7200, and 21100-21250, the biggest band for the Novice.  The Novice was also permitted AM voice operation on 145-147 MHZ.  On all frequencies, Novices were permitted no more than 75 watts plate power input to the final stage of the transmitter, and were limited to crystal control.  The license was good for one year, could not be renewed, and if you had ever held any US ham license, you could never again apply for a Novice ticket.  It was a beginner's ticket only.  

The Technician could be held simultaneously with the Novice.  During the mid 50s, the frequencies allowed a Technician did not overlap those allowed a Novice, so the two could not communicate with each other.  In addition, the Technician was good for five years and could be renewed.  Consequently a lot of Novices also got Technician tickets, often just to "preserve the call sign" until they could get their General.  The reason for this was the Technician call sign issued was the same as the Novice call sign except without the Novice designator.  My own Novice call sign was KN4JSG and my Technician call sign was K4JSG.  When my Novice ran out, I still had the same call sign I would have had had I upgraded to General.  

The Technician ticket did NOT allow operation on two meters!  But it allowed "all amateur privileges" including full power (one kilowatt input) on six meters and then on 220 mhz and above.  The Technician ticket was issued by the FCC to "encourage experimentation on VHF and above."  

Some time in the early 1960s, Technicians were granted access to two meters as well.  Around that time the Novice became a two year term instead of one, and could be renewed.  By the time Incentive Licensing came along, the Novice bands were shifted down.  Eighty meters moved from 3750-3800 down to 3700-3750, for example, to make room for more SSB operation by higher classes of licensees.  Forty meters shifted from 7150-7200 down to 7100-7150.  

A bit of the past!

Ed
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WA1RNE

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #7 on: September 09, 2004, 01:10:34 PM »

 W5HTW;

I concur....

 My Novice license was granted in November of '73 and was good for 2 years. About 18 months later, I upgraded to General, then Advanced another year or so later....
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N2EY

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #8 on: September 09, 2004, 04:39:14 PM »

>Back in the old days of the 1-year non-renewable >Novice (xtrl-controlled only, etc.) was it required >to go through Novice or could one "jump" directly >into General?

It was always possible to bypass Novice and go straight for Tech or General.

Until the Advanced was closed to new issues at the end of 1952, it required at least a year as a Conditional or General (old Class C or Class B). When it was reopened in 1967, there was no experience requirement.

Extra required two years as a General, Conditional or Advanced until the mid-70s, then one year, then nothing.

>If one could skip Novice, any idea waht portion of >newbies do so?

Very few - probably less than 5%.

The whole reason for the Novice being created in 1951 was so that newcomers could learn by doing. Prior to that time, a newbie had to do 10 or 13 wpm code and the General written just to get started. (10 wpm code before 1936, 13 wpm after). The Novice was meant to be a sort of "learner's permit", not a permanent license.

But I wonder sometimes if it was really such a good idea. A lot of hams learned 5 wpm by methods which had to be unlearned in order to get 13 wpm (such as thinking of "H" as "four dits" rather than the actual sound).

73 de Jim, N2EY

who had one of the first 2 year Novice tickets, dated October 12, 1967.
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N2EY

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Old Novice lic. rules (.U.S)
« Reply #9 on: September 10, 2004, 10:40:57 AM »

A few very minor points:

>If you did not

[pass the code tests]

>, he could not open the second
>envelope, containing the written test, but had to >return it to the FCC. If you passed, he opened the >second envelope and proctered the written. He was not >supposed to advise you afterward if you had passed or >failed, as he did not have the actual answers. He >then sealed the code test certification and the >written exam in the supplied envelope, and mailed >them to the FCC. About nine weeks later you would >receive your license in the mail.

Sometime in the early 1960s, FCC changed that procedure yet again. The volunteer examiner (no capitals) would give you the code tests, then write to FCC certifying same and asking for the written. When the sealed envelope came, he/she would give you the written and send it back to FCC. If you passed, you got the license about 9 weeks later, and if you failed you had to do the whole thing again. This new procedure saved FCC time because they only had to deal with folks who'd passed the code test already, but it added yet another delay cycle to the process.

>Frequencies were 3750-3800,

Actually 3700-3750. Novices never had 3750-3800.

The original 1951 Novice privileges were even stranger: tiny slice of 80 CW, 11 meters (!) and part of 2 meters. (145-147 MHz). Early in the '50s, 11 meters was dropped for Novices, and slices of 40 and 15 added.

>The Technician ticket did NOT allow operation on two >meters! But it allowed "all amateur privileges" >including full power (one kilowatt input) on six >meters and then on 220 mhz and above. The Technician >ticket was issued by the FCC to "encourage >experimentation on VHF and above."

The original Tech license was 220 and up *only*! At the time (1951) there was no manufactured ham gear for those bands, so a Technician then had to either homebrew or convert equipment in order to get on the air.

Then 6 meters was added, and in the '60s 145-147 MHz, same as Novices. That way, a VHF-oriented Novice would not lose privileges on 2 by upgrading to Tech.

--

One thing I have not seen documented was exactly what happened in the 1948-1954 period that caused so many rapid changes and policy reversals. For example, in 1951, the old "ABC" system was expanded into the Novice/Technician/Conditional/General/Advanced/Extra system that is still the basis for our present license classes. In those days you needed an Advanced or Extra to work 'phone on any HF amateur band between 3 and 25 MHz. Which in those days meant 75 and 20 'phone, because 15 and the WARC bands were not allocated to hams, and 40 had no 'phone segment.

The plan announced by FCC in 1951 was that they'd stop issuing Advanced at the end of 1952. Then, in mid December 1952, FCC completely reversed itself. Conditionals and Generals were given full priviliges effective February 1953. Soon after, 40 got a 'phone segement, and when 15 was opened to US hams about 1954, it also had a 'phone segment.

The 1951 plan had been in development since soon after the end of WW2, yet just when it was about to take full effect, FCC completely changed direction.

Anybody know why?

My guess is that FCC wanted to push SSB development, compensate for the loss of 160 (a very popular preWW2 'phone band) and also get Generals and Conditionals off 10-11 meter 'phone to ease the TVI situation. But those are just guesses after the fact.

73 de Jim, N2EY



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