Maybe I’m the last actual licensed ham radio operator to watch the movie Frequency, but I did so this morning. I was playing around with searching the TV guide the end of this past week and searched for ham radio and it showed this movie so I recorded it. My wife says we’ve seen it but I wasn’t a licensed ham yet. I didn’t remember it so I watched it again.
There’s a lot of ham radio in it. A few thinks not so real (other then the entire plot) was that they often talked without pressing the PTT button. And of course, the son wasn’t licensed, or at least they never said he was in the movie. Looking this up online the following is pointed out: The radio was a Heathkit SB301 which is only a receiver. The SB401 is the transmitter. He would need both to carry on a conversation.
The call sign of the dad played by Dennis Quaid is W2QYV and is currently the call sign of the Niagara Radio Club in NY State.
Anyway, this probably isn’t news to anyone reading this as I’m sure I’m the last ham to see the movie.
73,
K2DSL
You can transmit on a 301. You have to add a flux capacitor to the receiver, and tune it with a left-handed sonic screwdriver (right handed won’t work. You can get the parts out of the stock fuel injection system out of a 49 ford pickup, but You’ll have to change the antenna fluid to make it work. Note that after the mod, the radio will no longer be California emmissions legal.
kd0mnd
Jason
Oh, and that’s a great movie!!
No, you’re not the last. My husband n5rtg and I n4rtg just watched Frequency in August. We had never heard of it until we were discussing ham radio with our dentist and he mentioned we would enjoy it being hams. It was a great movie, one we’ll be sure to watch again.