New 2 way radios on market. Need a good 2 mile mountain range (1 Viewer)

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slickrock

slickrock

Joined
Aug 15, 2005
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Location
Lemoore, CA (south of Fresno) / Cortes Island, B.C
i have a pair of Uniden GMRS radios. Say 40 miles...yeah right. Maybe line of sight for a few miles. I use them to stay in contact with my son in Canada when he is on the beach and I'm at my cabin. I'm 600 feet above him and 1/2-2 miles away but trees and actual land mass can be between us if he goes more than half a mile away and follows the coast. I loose the signal now at under a 1/2 mile. It's a matter of safety that I can stay in contact with him for injuries and wild animals. I need a recommendation for a good 2-way that can reach At least 1.5 miles through a forest environment (if that is possible). Would like to keep it below $150 for a pair. VHF using the higher frequencies isn't an option because I don't want to annoy the Coast Guard, military, fishing boats, and cruisers. Also VHF is used heavily around the marine environment and a 13 year old using or having access to those frequencies can lead to trouble.

Since there are so many new radios out there this year, thought someone might have a new option.
 
See what frequency you can use as a HAM operator in Canada. Maybe a couple of those cheap Baofeng 2m handhelds would be just what you need. $25-$40 each.
 
If I can lock the frequency so my kid doesn't change the channel, would they get the range I need? I saw those were very low cost but know nothing about them.
 
I would add the longer antenna (15.6"). You should be able to get at least 2 miles worth of range.
 
Cool. Will start the research. Thanks for pointing me this way.
 
They can all be easily programmed bit the computer.
There is essentially no difference between 4W and 5W. Those two look like a Baofeng copy. I haven't heard of them. Just read the reviews about them.
A pair of 4W Baofeng should be yours for $50 instead of $80 for the other pair. That way you have some money left for a good pair of antennas. Probably the most effective way to improve the performance anyway.
 
2 miles is a short hop for 2M ham. I love the little Chinacom radios. I have several of the Baofeng UV-5Rs and have used them over the last few years for trail comms, event comms, etc in any environment you can think of including inside office buildings. They have been dropped on rocks and run over by trucks, have days worth of battery life, dual band (2m and 70cm), and cost $29 delivered.
If there is a local 2m or 70cm repeater in your area, your coverage is now the range of the repeater.

Yes, there is a key lockout. I use it all the time.
Impossible to beat IMO.
 
The closest repeater is roughly 15 miles away...line of sight a cross the water Looks like a pair of Baofengs are on my list. Thanks guys.
 
Just remember to get your son and yourself licensed - even in Canada the equivalent technician class license should be easy to study/test for. Here in the US it is an easy test and something to have some fun studying up for with your son.

Or if you live in the US and just travel to Canada, get the license here and you can use it there as well when traveling.

cheers,george.
 
Sounds like a plan. Thanks.
 
I'll probably get a couple of those too, my son (10 yo) saw them and started drooling. I'm sure he wants to play with them with his friends. Otherwise maybe when we go snowboarding we can use them.
 
I bought a pair of these (mostly because of the reviews and they come with needed accessories). http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OH2UG92?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00

Now I need a license for my son and me (US and Canada). There are so many sites online that offer study materials, practice tests, and testing, that I don't know what is legitimate or what isn't. Can anyone recommend a good site to use? Would like to also take the test online but need to obviously learn/study before hand. Thanks, Dan
 
Tons of online tests you can use to practise (free). ARRL is the the big amateur radio organization in the US.

The actual test is a written test - you have to go and take it in person (unless something has recently changed).

eHam.net Ham Radio Practice Exams is just one online practice test (there are LOTS). Find a local HAM radio store and go in and ask about study guides they recommend and the local testing schedule (where/when). Tests are handled by actual HAM operators that have certification to supervise the test and then mark it and then enter you into the system if you pass for issuance of a license and call sign. Costs a few $ for the the whole process and your 10 yr license.

You can just memorize the test question pool and answers (the quick, but not 'clever' approach) or you can get a study guide to actually understand what the question is asking you and why one specific answer is the correct one.

When my whole family went for the test we did a combo of the two. My youngest (7yrs old) at the time got 100%. So, the test isn't hard, it just requires a few weeks and maybe an hour or two (depending on you pre-existing knowledge) per evening to study/learn.

The questions are a mix of technical (not too technical for technician class) and regulations and common sense. Sort of like taking a driving test.

Assuming you reside in the US then take the US test and get your US license. You can then use that license in Canada and many other parts of the world (reciprocal agreement, though you usually will suffix/prefix your US license with a few extra letters to make it clear you are using an out of country license. For instance I can use my US license in Oz for 90 day stretches without any issue. I just add a VKn suffix to my US call sign (e.g. VK6 if I'm in western australia).

For US call sign use in Canada, see the bottom of this page ->

US Amateurs Operating Overseas

cheers,
george.
 
Thanks for the info George. Will start to seriously look into the process during a vacation I have coming up.
 
Why get a license to run a couple walkie talkies???? Seems pointless. Unless you're just doing it for fun & time spent together, which is always good!
 
LFD2037 said:
Why get a license to run a couple walkie talkies???? Seems pointless. Unless you're just doing it for fun & time spent together, which is always good!
Click to expand...

Ham radio - need license. Yes, you can use it without a license - but that's not legal and not smart. The amateur radio bands are something we need to preserve - there are a lot of commercial sources that would love to get those bands for monetary use. Amateurs fight to keep those bands open for our use - why would one want to sidestep a license. $15 pays for the test and the local VEC gets a about 1/2 of that. The license is good for 10 years, renewal is essentially free.

Yes, they are walkie talkies, they are also nominally 5W and can easily hit repeaters 20 - 40 miles away. You need to understand how to make use of that capability and use it correctly where other licensed folk are using it too. No license means you pretty well have no clue what you are doing (and if you studied for the test to understand what you are/aren't allowed/able to do, then why not go the extra little step and take the test and become licensed?).

You learn a new skill, you meet folk in a new community, you learn the correct use of the radio etc etc.

Sorry, but I can't imagine anyone seriously recommending to use a piece of HAM radio gear without a license.

cheers,
george.
 
slickrock said:
Thanks for the info George. Will start to seriously look into the process during a vacation I have coming up.
Click to expand...
I bought a few of the study books for the HAM technician license test. I found those to be very much a waste of time in preparing for the license test - everything is couched in feelgood stories about how astronaut soandso has been a HAM radio operator for 50 years etc etc. Takes you forever to find the information you want, and I don't have the patience for that. I did better with practicing exams after signing up at QRZ.com - they track your progress, and you can do training exams in special sections and topics.
 
george_tlc said:
Ham radio - need license. Yes, you can use it without a license - but that's not legal and not smart. The amateur radio bands are something we need to preserve - there are a lot of commercial sources that would love to get those bands for monetary use. Amateurs fight to keep those bands open for our use - why would one want to sidestep a license. $15 pays for the test and the local VEC gets a about 1/2 of that. The license is good for 10 years, renewal is essentially free.

Yes, they are walkie talkies, they are also nominally 5W and can easily hit repeaters 20 - 40 miles away. You need to understand how to make use of that capability and use it correctly where other licensed folk are using it too. No license means you pretty well have no clue what you are doing (and if you studied for the test to understand what you are/aren't allowed/able to do, then why not go the extra little step and take the test and become licensed?).

You learn a new skill, you meet folk in a new community, you learn the correct use of the radio etc etc.

Sorry, but I can't imagine anyone seriously recommending to use a piece of HAM radio gear without a license.

cheers,
george.
Click to expand...
Ahhhh, I see. It's a frequency thing. I know nothing about HAM radios, obviously.
 
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