Welcome to the hobby.

You are on the right track - the best way to learn is by finding
someone experienced who can answer your questions as they arise. I'm
sure that there are some folks at your club who would be happy to work
with you - just ignore the fossils and talk to the others - there is
probably someone with similar interests to yours in there somewhere
(and equally tired of listening to the 'experts' - look for bored
facial expressions, or snoring )

Brief answers to your questions are below.

On Fri, 16 Jan 2004 09:06:00 -0600, "Scott"
wrote:

snip

1) Can anyone point me towards any resources to assist someone brand new to
the hobby? (Stuff like recommendations on the type of equipment to get for
the first time buyer)?

This depends a lot on what area of amateur radio you are interested
in. 2-meter operation is quite popular - all you need is a
handi-talkie and a list of local repeaters, and you're ready to go!
OTOH, if your interests lie towards experimenting with the digital
modes or DXing on HF (if you're studying Morse, I suspect that the
prospect of shortwave operation interests you), then it gets more
complex.

What would you like to do?


2) Also, any sources to purchase used equipment. I think I would rather buy
more functional used stuff, than new equipment that has less "bells and
whistles".

I have two preferences here.

Local hamfests are my favourite place for finding used equipment - the
prices can be lower than anywhere else, and you may be able to try
before you buy. Caution is required, though, as there are no
warranties - equipment is as-is.

Find one near you using this ARRL web site:

http://www.arrl.org/hamfests.html

Another possibility is a local ham radio store's traded-in equipment -
not cheap, but they will usually give you some warranty with it. You
can also shop by mail order or over the Web if a store isn't near you.
Most of the big shops advertise in QST or CQ - have a look, and check
out their web sites for what you need.

Online auctions such as eBay can be a good source of equipment as well
- but again, no guarantee that the equipment will work properly, and
the prices are considerably higher than at a hamfest.

3) One more thing...I am looking for information on antennas that is geared
to the novice.

The type and complexity of your antenna will depend heavily on what
you want to operate in the amateur spectrum - do a search on Google
for "Ham Radio Antennas", and you will find quite a few offering plans
for pretty easy-to-build ones to start with.

An example:

http://www.packetradio.com/ant.htm


Thanks folks.

Good luck!

73, Leo