Join The Club
Want to join the Gisborne Amateur Radio club?
Membership is open to all amateur radio operators in the Gisborne/Tairāwhiti region.
Membership costs $35 annually and payment is due by the end of June.
If you would like to join please complete the membership form and pay the membership fee.
Membership fees can be paid via;
Online Banking: 03-0638-0063692-000
or, In Person to the club Treasurer
Please make sure to include your callsign as the reference if paying via Online Banking.
Updating Membership Details
If you are an existing member, you may use the membership form at anytime to update the details we have on record for you.
Want to participate in club activities?
Keep an eye on our Facebook page. It's a private group, but after a quick verification of who you are we will allow you to join.
Most Tuesday evenings from 6:30pm there is a gathering at the EIT club room where many spontaneous activities happen including hands-on radio practice, antenna building and theory, technology demos, buying and selling gear, and hanging out with other hams - there's always something to learn!
📍 Come on down to one of our general meetings. We run them on the 1st Tuesday of every month. Excluding some holidays.
🗓️ Check our Events calendar for the most up to date information on our next meeting.
🤩 We'd love to see you there, even if you don't have an amateur radio license!
Want to get an Amateur Radio License so you can transmit?
Hey! I'm Liam, ZL2DEV, a relatively new radio operator, having obtained my license in November 2022, so I'll try to answer to the best of my knowledge based on how I studied for and got my license and also provide some useful links.
I saw a "Ham Cram" course being offered by one of our local learning facilities, EIT.
I signed up for the ham cram which ran over 2 days, and we were given study guides, which are available on the NZART website.
At the end of the course, on the 2nd day, we sat the exam. The NZART website has an exam generator application you can use to create a practice exam.
If you pass the exam, the instructor collects your information and 3 callsigns that you would prefer to have allocated to you.
The instructor will register one of the available callsigns to you in the Radio Spectrum Management system, and once this is done, you will be able to legally transmit on the amateur radio bands in New Zealand.
What are the requirements for the exam?
You will need to answer at least 40 of 60 questions correctly in the exam.
How can I study for the exam?
Take a look at the NZART study guides.
Download the exam generator application to create a practice exam.
These links from the Wellington VHF Club website may also be useful;
Can I transmit on amateur bands between 5 MHz and 25 MHz?
If you want to transmit on amateur bands between 5 MHz and 25 MHz you will need to have made 50 contacts (QSOs) with other stations and have had your license for at least 3 months.
Can I use my New Zealand Amateur License in other countries?
If you want to transmit in countries other than New Zealand, using your General Amateur Operator Certificate you will need to check the government rules of that country to see if they allow a New Zealand amateur licensee to transmit.
I recently travelled to Australia and the United States and was able to transmit in both of the countries as long as I added a prefix or suffix to my callsign based on the countries rules.
Have another question?
Head over to the contact us page, we're happy to answer any questions you may have.