VK Kits

The cost to become a licensed amateur in Australia is extremely high compared to many other countries. A person entering amateur radio in Australia sees costs of around $195 AUD or more. At Pride Radio Group we think this creates a huge barrier of entry for those less fortunate.

Foundation Exam: $90.00 AUD
Callsign Recommendation: $25.00 AUD
ACMA Licence: $80 AUD
Total new licensee cost: $195 AUD

To make the hobby a little easier to get started, and lighter on the pocket we are trialing a program to supply kits to hams with essential components and devices to get started with.

All the kits components laid out on my work bench

The kit contains the follow components:

• 2/70cm FM/DMR radio

• NanoVNA and RF Demo board

• RTL-SDR

• DMR Hotspot

• Toolkit

• Various cables and adapters

For a full list of equipment and where you can order the parts we used see the kits page here.

Along with the hardware we are planning a series of tutorials on how to use the equipment. These articles will be designed around someone who’s never used a radio or operated an amateur radio service before.

You can find our first tutorial here.

Kits are available for free provided you meet the following criteria:

• Member of Pride Radio Group (free membership)

• Reside in Australia

• Recently passed your first amateur radio exam

• Unable to financially purchase the equipment

If you believe you meet these criteria, contact Michaela Wheeler at Pride Radio Group.

For more information see : https://prideradiogroup.gitlab.io/vk-kits/