Communication

[churchmouse]

We have been seriously looking into a set of 2 way walky's with a base station. Many out there and all lay claim to being the best.
Any recommendations from you who already have these. As stated, 2 hand held's with good range and a base unit.

 

[XDLover]

In my experience if you aren't going the Ham route then Midland. I've used Midland radios for the last 10 years and tried a few others that weren't as good!

 

[churchmouse]

Midland is one of the brands I have on my list as the specs seem to be in line with what I want them to do. They have a compatible base unit as well.
Have considered Ham in the past but time, budget and other issues always get in the way.

 

[Royal-1]

I posted this in the Portable Ham thread also, but I'll recommend it here as well.
Look at the BaoFeng UV-5R; 2 meter/70 cm HT radios, about $130 for 2 radios and the programing cable.
You can program them to any frequency in the 136-174 & 400-480mhz bands.

FRS and GMRS bands are in that range!
NOAA weather radio is also in that range so these can RX that too.

They are full 5 watt radios. can select low power too if you want only 2 watts output.

The Midland even the "base station" is only 5 watts max and with a fixed antenna, the BaoFeng radios you can attach a better antenna to them, like a real antenna with some gain.

I don't want to knock the Midlands, as I also own a set of them, they are waterproof-ish after all. But do some research into these cheap Chinese ham radios if you ever do get your ticket then your already set up. You will get much more radio for the money.

 

[churchmouse]

I posted this in the Portable Ham thread also, but I'll recommend it here as well.
Look at the BaoFeng UV-5R; 2 meter/70 cm HT radios, about $130 for 2 radios and the programing cable.
You can program them to any frequency in the 136-174 & 400-480mhz bands.

FRS and GMRS bands are in that range!
NOAA weather radio is also in that range so these can RX that too.

They are full 5 watt radios. can select low power too if you want only 2 watts output.

The Midland even the "base station" is only 5 watts max and with a fixed antenna, the BaoFeng radios you can attach a better antenna to them, like a real antenna with some gain.

I don't want to knock the Midlands, as I also own a set of them, they are waterproof-ish after all. But do some research into these cheap Chinese ham radios if you ever do get your ticket then your already set up. You will get much more radio for the money.

I read this info in your other post. It is interesting and may be something we will consider. The antenna issue was something I was discussing earlier as to if we could increase the range of something like the midlands by getting an antenna up on the roof. If these are fixed then it would be far to much work to accomplish. Your idea might be the ticket. If we were operating in a SHTF scenario and there was no infrastructure, no repeaters operating, what would the range be with better antenna's.

 

[smokingman]

We have Mororola talkabout's
Model MR355/356

It is better in my opinion than any of the others we looked at.They have several advantages.One is they can all be set up as repeaters.This means 4 of them could have an effective range of around 15 miles(in reality).The claimed range is 35 miles each,the reality is 3 miles max in the woods and maybe 8-10 with clear line of site.
The range is greatly extended if you can link to a repeater,most walkies do not have this ability.
They also have weather band and emergency alert bands.


These where purchased online.
They are GMRS radios,as such you are required by law to obtain a radio license before use.$85 dollars good for the system/family.The BIG difference between GMRS and FRS is watts allowed.FRS you are limited to .5 watt,GMRS is up to 50 watt or 100 times the power.These are 5watt.

$74 dollars per pair on sale.

http://www.abt.com/product/64601/Mo...=scfroogle&utm_medium=sc&utm_campaign=froogle


http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/general-mobile-radio-service-gmrs (GMRS license information,it is not the same as a short wave and no testing is required)."You can apply for a GMRS license if you are 18 years or older and not a representative of a foreign government. If you receive a license, any family member, regardless of age, can operate GMRS stations and units within the licensed system.

Differences between HAM(Amateur)and GMRS
http://nv.mara.net/ham-radio-vs-gmrs/

 

[Sailor]

I have some 25 watt base stations for sale. GMRS. PM me if interested.

 

[Royal-1]

The Talkabouts are like any of the other FRS radios out there, they are not able to be used as repeaters by themselves. They can use a different TX and RX frequencies that is needed to use repeaters. GMRS has some set frequencies that are set up for repeaters, don't know if they are in use in Indiana anywhere or not, but the FCC has set the pairs up.

The radios that Sailor has is your best bet for distance, but you are not allowed to use that much power on the FRS frequencies, only the GMRS ones, and like said, you would need a license to run them on GMRS.

As to the other question on distance with any HT 5 watt radio, maybe in real world distance with a rubber ducky ant, 4-5 miles tops and to be able to understand each other over the noise floor static. Over water no obstructions which is what all the family radios advertise up to 36 miles! Just does not work out that well inland. If you can use a different antenna one with gain, and put it up higher, roof of your house, in the attic on the roof of your car... Then you might get 10-15 miles between the two, just depends.

With all the FRS radios, by regulations from the FCC, they can not have removable antennas. This is why a Ham radio is much better, if it can TX/RX on the FRS and GMRS bands even better when the stuff hit the fan. And they can also have independent TX and RX frequencies so they will also work with repeaters.

Talk to Sailor, find out more about what he has. If you want a portable, I would really look into those Chinese radios and invest in a better antenna for them.

Do some more Googling.

 

[Icarry2]

Please exscuse my ignorance.

So it is possible to buy a radio, hand held or portable base, that can be tuned for GMRS and HAM?

My thought is that if you purchase radios capable of this and buy a GMRS license and then SHTF you can retune a portion of your equipment to utilize the HAM freqs and get more distance out of the equipment.

I am also curious how the talkabouts can be setup as repeaters. Can they be configured and setup as drops to extend your operating range?

Thanks for any info.

TJ

 

[Royal-1]

Please exscuse my ignorance.

So it is possible to buy a radio, hand held or portable base, that can be tuned for GMRS and HAM?

My thought is that if you purchase radios capable of this and buy a GMRS license and then SHTF you can retune a portion of your equipment to utilize the HAM freqs and get more distance out of the equipment.

I am also curious how the talkabouts can be setup as repeaters. Can they be configured and setup as drops to extend your operating range?

Thanks for any info.

TJ

I will state this as if SHTF has indeed happened, not going to discuss legal ramification, do that part on your own time. ;-)

Yes, if you buy an 2 meter/70 cm Ham radio, you can tune most of them to the GMRS and FRS frequencies. I also just found out the MURS channels are in the same bands, so that opens that up too for anyone that is a fan of Rawlings website, he likes that band due to it being quieter???.

By tuning them to the Ham frequencies it will not get you more range. Output power and antenna are the factors that will get you more range, that is if your not talking repeaters. (Repeaters are using more power and a higher better antenna...so...) What tuning them to the Ham channels will get you is more people hearing you, the Ham guys/gals. Remember if power is down, the repeaters are going to be down too so this might not be as big a deal.

The talkabouts would not be able to be used as repeaters, they can't RX and TX at the same time, they are not built to do that and with 1 antenna, they are too cheap. The only thing they can do is RX and TX on different channels, I won't even call them frequencies, because with a non ham radio, you are stuck with what they have programed into them, which is either FRS only (the really cheap ones), FRS with GMRS like the Talkabouts, or with the MURS channels. There might be some that give you all 3? Most amateur radios that cover those bands (2m/70cm) will cover all 3.

As far as I know, all amateur radios will have the ability to attach a better antenna to them. The commercial radios like the Talkabouts have a fixed antenna that you will have to open the case and do some mods to, which would render them illegal. They will also only allow the max power allowed by the regulations to be transmitted 1/2 watt for the unlicensed channels FRS, maybe 5 watts max for the GMRS channels. A Ham radio, (re-read the first paragraph about legalities), can go up to 50 watts on the GMRS channels using any antenna.

 

[XDLover]

Lets not get lost in this too deep. First of all in a SHTF situation you won't need to worry about any regulations
That said I have HAM radios and then Midland for other purposes. I originally had a high end Motorola setup and had a buddy with the Midland setup. The midland out performed my Motorola and even a set of older Radio Shack brand ones out did it lol. Hate to say it. I made the midland switch.

 

[Sailor]

Any of the GMRS radios work good for about up to a mile, that is all the further I have been able to count on. If you need longer range than that get more power and your antenna higher.

It is illegal to use the chinese ht's on MURS, and GMRS if you care.

One person in your group should at least have a 2 meter radio and be able to monitor and use local repeaters. They are already set up with back up power, and a system is already in place to use them and handle emergencies.

 

[Royal-1]

Yep, I have a pair of the Midland's and a really cheap pair of Uniden's and now a pair of these BaoFeng's HT's. The Midlands are now for the kids, mostly because they are waterproof.
But for tactical SHTF use, I'll keep the real 1/5 watt & 2.15+ dBi gain antenna HT's for us adults.

 

[Royal-1]

It is illegal to use the chinese ht's on MURS, and GMRS if you care.

Yep, true even with a GMRS license.

This is good info from a reviewer on Amazon.

"This radio has international settings, meaning that the entire frequency range from 130-174mhz and from 400-480mhz is open to both TX and RX. This means you do need to be careful as a Ham license only allows you to TX on 2m from 144-148mhz and on 440 from 420-450mhz. The radio is not FCC certified to transmit on any of the Marine VHF, MURS, FRS/GMRS, or business radio or emergency services radio frequencies that lie in these frequency ranges and operating in those frequency ranges with this HT will expose you to FCC action."

So take that as it is.

 

[Icarry2]

Thank you all for the information.

 

[churchmouse]

great info. Thanks to all.

 

[IndyPrepper]

We have Mororola talkabout's
Model MR355/356

It is better in my opinion than any of the others we looked at.They have several advantages.One is they can all be set up as repeaters.This means 4 of them could have an effective range of around 15 miles(in reality).The claimed range is 35 miles each,the reality is 3 miles max in the woods and maybe 8-10 with clear line of site.
The range is greatly extended if you can link to a repeater,most walkies do not have this ability.
They also have weather band and emergency alert bands.


These where purchased online.
They are GMRS radios,as such you are required by law to obtain a radio license before use.$85 dollars good for the system/family.The BIG difference between GMRS and FRS is watts allowed.FRS you are limited to .5 watt,GMRS is up to 50 watt or 100 times the power.These are 5watt.

$74 dollars per pair on sale.

MR355R - Motorola Talkabout MR355 Two Way Radio at Abt


General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) | FCC.gov (GMRS license information,it is not the same as a short wave and no testing is required)."You can apply for a GMRS license if you are 18 years or older and not a representative of a foreign government. If you receive a license, any family member, regardless of age, can operate GMRS stations and units within the licensed system.

Differences between HAM(Amateur)and GMRS
Ham radio vs GMRS

I have also heard great reviews about this one from Walt at Indiana Self defense.

$80ish for a pair plus base station.

Get weather and emergency broadcasts too.. Not to shabby.

 

[Grizhicks]

I sorry guys, but these will not get you what you what: they cannot be set up as repeaters, they will work with GMRS repeaters, but those are seperate units. Even if these units have 5 watts (which I could not find on the web site of the link) I would not trust them for more than about a mile.

Also, the link (Ham radio vs GMRS) has some false info in it: GMRS cannot be use in the ham bands.

Don't waste your money; become a ham and get real radios. -- Greg

 

[IndyPrepper]

It will be handy however with my implementation.. Child in 5th grade, 1 unit in her backpack, one on the base station in my office.

 

[Grizhicks]

It will be handy however with my implementation.. Child in 5th grade, 1 unit in her backpack, one on the base station in my office.

I understand, but what kind of range are you expecting; if you have a 25 wat base station and she only has a handheld (5 watts at best), you are still limited to 'line of sight' and the power of the handheld. I see your point, but I just hate to see you waste your money. -- Greg

PS: let me know if you have any more questions or I can help in any way