Posted: 9/27/2009 7:16:34 PM EDT
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Need Radios, 4-5 mile N-LOS. Prefer Li-Ion batteries or Alkaline. These will be for SHTF, but would like to test/ maintain periodically. SOOOOO...
HAM friend says I could get a Handheld (without license), that ops on 2M or 6M?? Whichever is lic free. Would prefer a HAM type as in SHTF the other bands would come in useful. Please any input welcome. But, need some form of comm soon. 4-5 mile a must and Handheld... probably will invest in two base stations as well. |
| cant use either of those feq's without a ham license. your options are the M.U.R.S. feq's or the blister packs of FRS/GMRS radios. just study up and get your ham ticket. 4-5 miles is going to be pushing it depending on terrain. MU.R.S's is limited to i believe 2 watts. with M.U.R.S. i get about 2 miles give or take from inside my truck to inside my house so 3-4 miles outside would be about max. |
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Quoted:
HAM friend says I could get a Handheld (without license), that ops on 2M or 6M?? Whichever is lic free. Yes, you can buy a Ham handheld radio without any license - and you can use the radio listen on any frequency without a license - but you'll need at least a Technician Class Ham Radio License to transmit on the ham bands. The exam for the Technician license is easy, almost free, and doesn't require you to know Morse code. |
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Quoted:
HAM friend says I could get a Handheld (without license), that ops on 2M or 6M?? Whichever is lic free. Would prefer a HAM type as in SHTF the other bands would come in useful. amateur (ham) radio requires an operating license, and clearly your "HAM friend" would know this. it will do you no good whatsoever to get an amateur radio and not get licensed, for the simple reason that you will not be able to learn valuable information about operating your radios and communicating with others. as an analogy, it would be similar to someone buying a handgun and then putting in a shoebox at the top of their closet "just in case the SHTF and i need a gun". firearms and communications alike, do not expect to "learn on the job" when SHTF. ps, 6m in a handheld is useless. Quoted:
Please any input welcome. But, need some form of comm soon. 4-5 mile a must and Handheld... probably will invest in two base stations as well. read the following thread and gain a better understanding of 1) radio communications, 2) the limitations inherent in handhelds (HT's), and 3) why ham repeaters exist: http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=10&f=22&t=604477 it will be difficult for you to select appropriate radios before you have a better understanding of the art and what is commercially available. if you skip the self-education part, i think you will find that you may end up with a poor communication plan and the wrong radio equipment. this is no different than buying a rifle, a mountain bike, or a laptop. ar-jedi |
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Read the thread ar-jedi linked to. It will explain alot of things you should know before investing time and money on this hobby. All in all, HT's will not cover all your needs, so still get a Ham license. It costs ~$15, and is very, very easy with a little studying and no learning code, and lasts for 10 years. If you still are apprehensive, or want to get on the air now, you can get a GMRS license which is good for 5 years for $80. The wait time is about 1 day, and there's no testing. Still, it's no substitute for Ham Radio. So, you've read the Radio 101 thread, and still want some handhelds. Please continue! I'd also look into surplus Motorola radios. You can get surplus MURS or GMRS capable HT1000 handhelds for a pittance these days, you can get brand-new OEM NiCad, NiMH, and Lithium rechargeable batteries, as well as a clamshell that operates on 12 AA's. These radios are amazingly resilient and virtually indestructible and hundreds of times better than cheap FRS radios. Newer or encryption capable radios are going to be more expensive, though. |
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Quoted:
4-5 mile N-LOS. Seems most people didn't pick up on this. By N-LOS you mean NOT-Line of Sight correct? Talking over/around a mountain/hill or other terrain is going to be pretty much impossible over a 5m mile range with anything in the VHF/UHF range without the use of repeaters. I would think 75m ham band would be the best for this but it won't be any type of portable ops like a handheld... |
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Looks like I am getting a license then. 4-5 mile is a must as SHTF plan includes two locations as important to us. I am a tech person, so learning the radio wont be much of a deal. "Ham Radio Friend" didn't steer me a stray, I just may not have qouted him verbatim. He had shown me his Yaesu?? Handheld and said without a license, I could operate on the X meter band, but if that was 6M and it is crap...well, that is no matter then.
Not to keep this thread going on forever then, will the linked HT communicate with GMRS and or FMRS also?? I will read the link as well. I plan on hitting Hamfest in Stone Mountain, Georgia in October/November and will increase my knowledge and maybe buy some gear there as well. |
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Quoted:Not to keep this thread going on forever then, will the linked HT communicate with GMRS and or FMRS also?? I will read the link as well.
NO. the HX370S is VHF only. FRS and GMRS is UHF. even with a HAM license you cant talk on GMRS without that specific license. its not covered under the ham license. |