Radios for Communication—not the music kind

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HAAANK

HAAANK

Joined
Nov 25, 2013
Threads
70
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Location
Lakewood, Ohio
So I'm in the market for a radio and I'm not sure I have the story straight on the pros and cons between CB/HAM/handheld. I was in a situation a couple weeks ago where I got separated from the only other car (my parents) and we were worried about them. We ended up meeting back up at the end of the day in town but I consider this being a best case scenario. If there was an emergency we'd have been SOL.

My only real concern at the moment is range. I want to put on a whip and know that if I'm a significant distance away in the forest I can contact and be contacted.

So in short, what do I need to know? Looking for long range (5-10mi at least)
 
Then forget CB unless its line of sight. HAM is really the way to go and it can be handheld or not. Your choice.
 
You will want to go HAM. CB is barely ok at short distance and free. HAM is far superior, but requires a basic test. Once HAM though you can run simplex or repeaters. I love my Yaesu 8800, and still use my 7900 in my DD. You will get far better range with a mobile unit (50w-75w) vs handhelds 5-8w. I carry a couple handhelds and use my truck 8800 as base.
 
Radio might not be the best option for you. I use 75 watt 2 Meter radios (like HAM) at work, and if there is a mountain between you and your contact, you get dead air. You also have to be fairly technically savvy to work the damn things, especially when you throw repeaters into the mix. I have a CB in the 80 and it works ok if you can see the rig you are talking to, but in the woods is largely useless further than you can holler. If money is no object, it's hard to beat a sat phone. If your budget allows there are many other sat based comms that work anywhere. http://www.inreachdelorme.com/

http://findmespot.com/en/

That said, these little chinese radio's are getting very popular. They are cheap, and will work line of sight to around 25 miles. http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...vptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_6xccdx65zs_b
 
sbman said:
To use a ham radio legally both you and the other party will need a license. Studying for the license will help you answer the range question as well as what types of radios to use.
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Use no, transmit yes.
 
The Baofengs work great! Going HAM gives you much more capability as other have noted. These units are economical enough to carry a couple with you and much more economical to get into than CB. I spent a Saturday in April studying the test bank before taking the Technician Exam the same day. If you are only going to have one radio my advice is get your Technician License purchase either get a BaoFeng BF-F8HP (1,4 or 8 watt) or the UV5R. That said I also have CB installed in two of my 80s (Cobra wx st 75 and Uniden Pro 520xl). I like the Cobra with weather band but often find the mic cumbersome. For trail communication the Uniden is an excellent no frills option. I use 4' Firesticks and yodaTEQ antenna mounts on both installs.


...via IH8MUD app
 
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Dragos80 said:
You need to get what the other people you travel with have on their cars.
Anything else is simply useless.
Click to expand...
For 2way comm yes. but even monitoring on 2 or 70 can be better than not.
 
sbman said:
The usage requested here is two way communication. I hear of people using ham bands unlicensed frequently. The license is not hard to get and you learn about radios by doing so.
Click to expand...
I get that. And agree. Was just saying.....
 
retrofive said:
Use no, transmit yes.
Click to expand...

That depends. I TX on a ham almost every day with no license. So does every LEO, Fire/EMS, pilot, ATC, military, CG, DHS, NOAA, etc. I've also legally TX on ham during offroad races (SCORE/SNORE/etc) without a personal license. Also if your life is in danger you can use any freq you can raise help on. I would not hesitate to contact the patrol car directly in a serious emergency. That said, you should get your license.
 
tacosupreme said:
That depends. I TX on a ham almost every day with no license. So does every LEO, Fire/EMS, pilot, ATC, military, CG, DHS, NOAA, etc. I've also legally TX on ham during offroad races (SCORE/SNORE/etc) without a personal license. Also if your life is in danger you can use any freq you can raise help on. I would not hesitate to contact the patrol car directly in a serious emergency. That said, you should get your license.
Click to expand...
Was trying to keep it basic here, but yes you are correct. I also work direct and control the IT/Comm center for our EMT services. but those are controlled bands and same as even the garbage trucks I maintain the IT on.
 
Particular installations and occupations allow transmission on bands not normally available to the general public. If you contact an LEO on their frequencies and they come find you, I would expect that your radio will be seized unless you have a really legitimate emergency and no other communication option. Lost in the woods? Sure, transmit anything you can get your hands on.
 
sbman said:
Particular installations and occupations allow transmission on bands not normally available to the general public. If you contact an LEO on their frequencies and they come find you, I would expect that your radio will be seized unless you have a really legitimate emergency and no other communication option. Lost in the woods? Sure, transmit anything you can get your hands on.
Click to expand...
100% correct again. I was just pointing out some very basics. We are all the same page here. My radios are unlocked. But better know when to use them in that case.
 
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