When you "program" one of those Baofeng radios, what does it do?  If I buy a CB, there are already 40 channels set up.  Why do you have to program a Baofeng?

CB and GRMS radios use channels.  The Baofeng radios require frequencies and PL tone, if you use a repeater, to transmit and receive Amateur Radio (HAM Radio) signals.  Note an FCC license is required to legally transmit on the amateur frequency.  The license requires testing, but a little studying is all that is required to pass the test.

Until you have a license of some kind, just use the ones the factory put in.  It'll be ok.

You program in commonly used channels and nearby repeaters, and you can listen all you want. Or, get a license and learn to operate it.

How do you find out what the "repeaters" and "commonly used channels" are?

You program a frequency to a channel. A channel is simply a place you “park” a frequency in order to use it. The particular radio has to be able to be programmed to the frequency range you want to use.

Pre programmed radios have a set group of frequencies programmed into them....usually by the manufacturer.

Baofeng radios have a rather large frequency range so you can program whatever frequencies you want into the various channels. But the frequencies you want to program into the radio must be within the range that the radio can handle.

Repeaterbook.com lists most repeaters.

Please don't take this as me being a jerk, but you really should study for and take the Technician level test.  The test is fairly easy and there are lots of free study materials.  You'll learn how to operate your radio effectively and most importantly you'll be able to legally practice using it on the air.

You can google FRS GMRS frequencies and program those in your radio.
https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/ find your area and see what freq your local fire/police are on.
Repeaterbook.com will give you the local ham radio repeater info.

To program one of the Baofeng handhelds you have to buy a USB connector and download a free program called Chirp.  Chirp will allow you to load any repeaters you want to your handheld.  Otherwise, you will have to enter the information for each repeater manually, which is hell.  Go to miklor.com for a lot of useful info.

ham radios, including the baofeng, us a "variable frequency oscillator" that has usually 2 and a half to 3 digits of precision right of the decimal point.  for example, my local 2 meter repeater was 147.210.  you could tune the radio to 147.209 or 147.211.  but if two groups of people were trying to talk just .001 apart, RF energy from crap antennae would bleed over and interfere.   but there are millions of possible frequencies to talk on (if you include the HF bands which aren't supported on the little baofengs)

so there is a band plan, which has guidelines for which frequencies are reserved for repeaters, which use one freq for send and a different freq for receive) and which are for simplex (talking on just one frequency like walkie talkies)

plus there are lots of modes.  you can "talk" with your "voice" using AM, FM, SSB and other modulation, as well as digital. or you can use morse code, or transmit video or gps/location data.   If i'm using one mode and you're using another, it's going to sound like squalking or a fax machine or something


so "programming" a radio usually involves configuring all of the above and much more, into a memory number, so you can press a button and have all of that recalled.   most radios support a large number of memories, so it's not like having 19 channels of CB.    then you can also program scanning those frequencies to see if anyone is talking, etc.

on more complex radios, you can also set up lots of types of filters to block sources of interference so you can hear just the signal you want.  

repeaters also have several features to control congestion.  for example, they can require you to generate a tone of a certain frequency in order to transmit, in order to make sure random idiots aren't accidentally transmitting.   so these need to be configured into the memory too.

on the baofeng's, you're usually putting very little info in.  the memory number, frequency, and if it's a repeater, the offset and tone, if applicable.  but baofeng has managed to make even that simple configuration extraordinarily annoying from the keypad, which is why so many people recommend the cable and app so you can program on your PC and download it to the radio.

To add to this....buy the correct Baofeng USB cord. The aftermarket ones usually need to roll back the prolific driver to get it to work and that’s a pain. Buy an actual Baofeng cord and it’ll work fine with CHIRP

From reading the questions asked I can tell you are not properly licensed to use the frequencies and power levels available on the Baofeng radio.

Sell it (or do not buy it in the first place).  Buy a standard off the shelf radio with "channels".

If you really want to use a Baofeng radio then study for your Amateur Radio License and you will understand all of it.

Any other use would be an illegal activity.

No need to go full Amateur License, but it would help explain a lot of the basic radio concepts.  I hate saying "easier" as nothing is easy; everything you want to learn requires effort; however, getting a GMRS license requires nothing but a fee and is good for 10-years and a very liberal "family" use license.  What I like about Baofeng is that you can program them for just the channels you want, your local repeaters, add in the NOAA weather channel, and if you have any non-encrypted emergency frequencies you could monitor.  You can also program in channels for receive-only 2M or other amateur bands.  If you have a dozen radios, you can choose the squelch within your group.  It's not rocket science, but it does require a little understanding; if they're your radios, you can make them stupid-proof (for the most part) the users, but you need to know what you're doing.  The nice thing about the GMRS license, is that for close-range comms, you can get more interest as more members of your family would be allowed to operate them off your license (also motivates you to control how they're used so you don't get a fine for their stupidity)

ROCK6

Nope, no jerk...sounds like good advice. I'll swing over to the FCC website and track down how to apply.

Until you have a license of some kind, just use the ones the factory put in.  It'll be ok.

This is not necessarily correct.
I purchased several BF-888's to use around the farm and decided it was prudent to reprogram them to use the gmrs frequencies.
Several of the preprogrammed frequencies were in restricted bands and I wasn't comfortable with potentially causing a problem.
Not just that it's illegal (most things I want to do are illegal, sigh), but transmitting out of band may affect devices or communications for emergency services or commercial services resulting in injury or other unintended results.

Listening without a license is not illegal activity. Programming a ham radio without a license is not illegal activity.  Stop giving wrong advise.

Unfortunately OP, people with this attitude are COMMON in amateur radio.

Get CHIRP, it's a free software program.

Buy a programming cable off Amazon.


Program all your local LEO channels and repeaters to listen in to until you are able to take your test to get a license.





Follow this guy

Studying for and taking the test will not actually instruct you on how to use a radio

What are your needs for a portable radio?  

Around town, farm, long distance comms or talking to neighbors when electricity is out?

Your wants and needs should be established first.

Bill





True, so if you own or buy the radio, be careful how and when you use it?  Do not use it out of the bands (Frequencies) you are allowed to use.

There are frequencies you can legally load and use on these radios!

Bill

There are also frequencies you can legally use but aren’t supposed to be using with these radios....but you can and will never have a problem if you do......

You have to go look it up.  It's not like the radio manufacturer can be expected to know what settings you need.

A lot of the radios you can buy with preset channels are sort of like comparing a kid's play set of tools to real tools.

However - knowing what your local repeaters are is likely to just get you in trouble until you understand what you're doing.  It's not like you can just punch that info into the radio and go blathering on it however you please without a bunch of pissed off people hunting you down.  There are also frequency restrictions in specific geographic areas due to stuff being set aside for military usage, etc.  You really don't want to screw up with that.

It's possible to mostly avoid getting into trouble using responsible levels of power on things like FRS frequencies, but be aware that a lot of the Baofeng type radios available the last few years are factory rejects or just cheaply made and may transmit a bunch of noise on other frequencies that will draw negative attention.

Read up on amateur radio / HAM, and be prepared for that crowd to ignore questions if you don't have a license, and to ignore them if you do have one if they don't like what you're asking.

Most GMRS repeaters are private; some require payment for use.  I have three in my local area, one requires payment (I don't use that one).  Also, just because you find a repeater in your area, AND you get permission to use it, doesn't mean it's active 24/7.  I found the two I can use, they're not on 24/7.  Both owners were more than helpful when I was getting started.  I've done plenty of RETRANS stuff in the Army, so the concept is familiar but it's a little different operation.  Again, this is the reason I'll build my own base-station and planning on getting a good 60-80 foot antenna up...  

ROCK6

It won't help him learn how to program his radio, but it'll help him learn about things like talking to a repeater, what frequencies to use, etc.  I was in the exact same position as OP a year ago.  I had bought a Baofeng and had no idea how to use it.  Studying for the test gave me the background information to figure out how to use my radio.

Its a HAM radio.  Regardless if its a Baoefeng, Pofung, Yaesu, Yamaha, Motorola...

The CHIRP programming software has a link to search by geographic area and other parameters.

OP, you have much to learn.  Good news is, it's not too hard, and alot of fun.  And it's very rewarding when you learn the skills, and can communicate effectively with others, next door or hundreds of miles away.

Check out the ham radio subsection, right here in the outdoors section.  A wealth of information you'll find....how to get licensed, how to use radios, etc.

It's all there!

Absolutely NOT. What comes in them from the factory are test frequencies from manufacturing/QC, not frequencies intended for communications.

Very possible to cause an interference problem and potentially bring unwanted attention to yourself by using frequencies that are not appropriate for your communications.


The CB is programmed from the factory with frequencies suitable for communications in a pre-defined service (CB).

Baofeng radios are designed for the land mobile radio service, where radios are programmed with frequencies as needed for that particular organization/user. They come from the factory as blank slates and require a suitable programming configuration to be entered into the radio before it can be used.

Again, almost all the Baofeng radios are NOT designed or intended for consumer sale and are not configured for consumer communications frequencies.


Maybe, maybe not.

The Amateur Radio Service is not the universal answer to communications, in fact it's the furthest from that.

If OP wants to participate in the Amateur Radio service, then that's fine, start studying for the test.

If OP just wants walkie-talkies, he needs a programming cable and Chirp to get them programmed with GMRS or MURS frequencies.


No, it's not. Baofengs are radios designed for the asian Land Mobile Radio market. Some are Part 90 type approved for US LMR. None are type approved or designed for amateur radio (Part 97), although many are used (legally) for amateur radio.

Motorola are mostly Part 90 LMR, although some are Part 15 or 95 for MURS, 900MHz or the like.

Yaesu are Part 97 amateur radios, except for some very old models that were for Part 90 LMR before they rebranded the LMR stuff to Vertex.

"Ham" is not an acronym, and despite constant misuse, "ham" or amateur radio is not an all-encompassing term for any radio use or hobby.

That sounds like excellent advice, Alemonkey, from someone who was just where I'm at.

No need....just Start Here

From a military history perspective, "HAM" is exactly what it means "ham", as in "ham-fisted, and clumsy".  Those that struggled with morse-code where labeled hams, which was also seen as amateurish and unskilled.  The Amateur Radio world just kept the label as a bit of pride.

As Gamma762 pointed out, HAM or Amateur Radio has nothing to do with equipment or radio types, it's all about the frequencies/bands, and the amount of power used which are regulated for non-commercial, non-police/emergency, or professional-use.  

ROCK6

OK Kevin.

If someone came into survival and was all about building illegal SBRs and MGs they'd immediately be dogpiled and banned from the board.

Screwing around on the air isn't like putting non-CARB nozzles on a gas can. Just because you can order Baofengs cheap on Amazon or Ebay doesn't mean you can just do anything you want on the air without possible repercussions.

If trying to keep people between the guardrails on the air is being a "Kevin" then so be it I guess. FCC's fines start at $10,000 if you really want to FAFO. If your "FA" includes transmitting on Baofeng test frequencies like a police dept frequency or a federal wildlife tracking frequency, you might well experience the "FO" part.

I would think the concept of keeping a low profile would be somewhat obvious. Do you want to be a "grey man", or walking down the interstate wearing a florescent poncho.

OK Kevin



Make sure you wait 5 seconds between each shot at the range too.

Generally you'll find most Ham operators are helpful, but Amateur Radio has a huge number of snobs, jerks and just plain assholes. I suppose that is the way with most groups in life though.

Amateur radio guy here.

Test is easy to study for. Study for both the Tech and the General.  I found the tests to be very similar.

As in retread “You seem familiar” the same.

Study here for free

Set up an account.  They put the missed questions back in front of you.

Download Chirp and buy a cable
15 bucks to your door.

I have two and have MURS programmed in. MURS is license free. It was a private channel from central Ohio to the Outer Banks except one box store in Virginia was on the frequency. Three vehicles and we could and did talk for several miles.

Thanks to both SCWolverine & DanishM1Garand.  A studying I will go!

If you want handheld radios for tactical communications among your group, buy some commercial units designed and marketed for MURS.  I really like the Motorola RMM2050.  No license or programming required and they are much more robust than a Baofeng.

Not saying it's bad advice but your suggested Motorola is costly (about 6X the cost of a Baofeng) and doesn't offer the ability to listen to other frequencies. Without a license, someone with some knowledge can program RX only frequencies in for listening to what is going on around the area.

Other than listening to HAM repeaters and weather radio, there is not all that much to listen to.  Most public safety organizations have moved off of UHF/VHF in favor of trunked systems on 800/900mhz.  In any event, you cannot legally use the Baofeng for MURS, GMRS, or FRS.  The advantage to the packaged MURS units is that they are perfect for people who don't want to learn anything about radio.  The Motorolas I posted are good quality commercial units that you might actually want to use in a life or death situation.  A $25 Baofeng is a POS.  Yes, it is cheap, but you get what you pay for.  It is the equivalent of saying that a Glock 19 costs too much, so you want a Lorcin that works just as well.

If you really want cheap Chinese junk, here is a link to a pair of Chinese radios, set up for MURS, with speaker mics, for $59.

Link

I'm new to all this, so help me understand why you're saying it's illegal to access those frequencies with a baofeng?

He's saying it's illegal because it is. All those services require the use of equipment that has been type-accepted for those specific purposes according to the regulatory agency, and the Baofengs are not.

If you do it correctly and aren't causing any problems it's unlikely that you would ever have a problem, but it's against the regulations.

Part of the problem with this is we have a mish-mash of little snippets of communications capability, none of which is enough to satisfy reasonable consumer demands for personal communications. I said 20 years ago that we needed a more suitable and expansive no-license personal communications service, which should have been carved out of all the other spectrum reallocations over the past few decades, but they couldn't auction that spectrum to a phone company that way so Congress doesn't care.

And the MURS radios allow you to listen to that?

 
That's not correct. You can receive/listen to all of those using a Baofeng.

 
Except OP has already said he wants to learn. Don't be offended that your suggestion isn't the only acceptable option.


What sort of life or death situation do you envision occurring wherein a MURS simplex radio will be superior to a Baofeng that is much more versatile?

I am not evenly remotely offended, and I make it a practice not to argue with people on the Internet.  This is a technical forum, not GD, and I am keeping it professional.  I have an extra class amateur license.  All that means is I studied for and took some licensing exams.  The last one was sort of hard.  In the process, I learned some technical stuff about radio, and I have picked up a bit more since as I have explored my personal radio interests which are mostly oriented around survival and emergency coms.  I am also a lawyer by profession, so I tend to focus on the legal stuff a bit.  I have very little interest it talking to octogenarians about their ailments on 80 meters, but I am very interested in being able to gather information and communicate with others when the grid and/or Internet goes down.

Here are a few things that I believe are true:

1.  You cannot legally transmit using a Baofeng UV-5R in the United States, on any frequency at all, unless you have an appropriate amateur license.  They are not type accepted for any other use.  There is an exception for legitimate emergencies, but not for setting up the rig and practicing.

2.  The Baofend UV-5R is a poorly made, inferior quality radio, and it would be unwise trust your personal safety to one.  I cannot for the life of me understand why people who thing nothing of dropping $1K on a rifle or $500 on a pistol simultaneously refuse to spend more tan $25 on a piece of gear that you are much more likely to need in an emergency.  An entry level ham HT from Yaesu or iCom can be had for around $100 (I like the Yaesu FT-65 at the level), and it is a vastly better radio from both a technical and ruggedness perspective.

3.  A Baofeng UV-5R will not receive 800/900mhz public safety frequencies.  There are purpose built digital trunk tracker scanners that might allow you to hear some of it, but much of it is now encrypted.  About the only thing you are likely to be able to listen to are amateur transmissions and weather radio.  There are a few rural sheriff's offices and fire/rescue organizations that still us VHF, but they are becoming fewer by the year.  You can also listen, but not legally transmit, on FRS, GMRS, and MURS.

4.  Your options for radio communication without a license consist of CB (which has nothing to do with a Baofeng), FRS, and MURS.  Even GMRS requires a license.  Blister pack FRS radios are limited in power, and they are UHF, so they are pretty short range.  They are easy to use though.  MURS units are usually built for commercial use, are VF, and can have 2 watts of transmit power, so they are better for many purposes.

5. I don't care what you use, but you should at least know the law, so you know when you are running dirty.

I'll admit, I bought these on a whim and have thought about just selling them due to the technical nature of these compared with a simple CB.

Don’t be scared or intimidated by them. They actually are a good little radio for the money. They quality control isn’t as good as the big names so let’s say you buy 10 radios of two different brands. 5 Baofeng radios and 5 Yaseu radios. You might see a failure in one of the Baofeng radios while all Yaesu radios function properly.

When you buy Baofeng radios, buy a couple more than you need to cover possible failures. However, if you don’t get any failures in the first few months of use, they will likely work just fine for a long time. They are not horrible radios like some claim. They just aren’t as consistent as the big names when it comes to quality.

Another thing to consider....Baofeng radios operate on a much wider range of frequencies (for the same type of radio compared to the big names). Now yes you aren’t supposed to use those radios on many of those frequencies but frankly, aside from ham Nazis, no one else really cares. The big name radios can often be modified to open up their transmit ranges but that carries a few risks.

From a purely survival standpoint, the Baofeng is a better option for most people because it can work on so many different frequencies (after being programmed) that unmodified big name radios will not work on.

The interface with the Baofeng radio isn’t the simplest but with a little practice, it’s not too bad. There are videos all over YouTube that you can watch to help you learn (fair warning...ham types can be very dry and boring to watch on YouTube).  CHIRP is easy to use (if you have a genuine cable...don’t get the slightly cheaper aftermarket cable). The hardest part about CHIRP is setting up your frequency list to be uploaded to the radio. Once you get a good frequency list saved though, you can go in and modify it as needed and keep your programmed frequencies updated.

~ Removed, Waldo.

This thread will get locked if you can't discuss this like adults.

You've all been here long enough to know better.



So don’t use the memes that the site gives us to use. Got it.

Sigh.....



Rules.   It’s what keeps us free right?

Sometimes those rules have a purpose.  Interfering with a licensed radio service can be anywhere from annoying to fatal to someone else.