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Post by AngelOfWar on Aug 6, 2015 14:45:20 GMT
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Post by LowKey on Aug 6, 2015 15:12:44 GMT
I like it.
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Post by Gingerbread Man on Aug 6, 2015 15:50:07 GMT
Like. And stickied.
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Post by misterdark on Aug 23, 2015 4:57:09 GMT
Nice.
May I also suggest a HAM net? After fiddling around a bit with antenna silliness, I have determined that 10 meter HAM should reliably cover the whole of the state (with a NVIS antenna) and I am willing to buy a cheap chinese radio to test this theory. Who wants to jump in?
*note: You do not have to have a HAM license to LISTEN to a ham radio. If you hear me talking, you can text the contact to me, it will be sufficient for our needs. If there ever happens to be an emergency situation, you are totally legal to hit the transmit key.
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Post by AngelOfWar on Aug 23, 2015 16:42:43 GMT
Yes, most definitely mister dark! A HAM radio is definitely on my "to get list". It hasn't been a high priority though, but seeing that I have most everything else, I should be able to slip one in. I will eventually work towards a liscense as well...maybe the GI Bill will pay for a course??? No telling how much more pain and suffering would have happened during 9/11, had the HAM Radio operators not have mobilized. Conventional comms were overwhelmed in short order, so the Gov. had to bring in HAM radio operators to coordinate supplies/responders from around the state.
Also, as stated, there's a LOT of stuff, that while illegal anyday of the year, becomes perfectly legal in a true emergency/survival situation, like setting snares or killing animals out of season.
On a side note, the Emergency Channels for CB is channel 9, and for GMRS, it's channel 7.
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Post by misterdark on Aug 28, 2015 5:14:52 GMT
After a ton of research, I have determined that 10m is a "maybe" band. It would all depend on whether the signals from the antenna bounce off the ionosphere or not. Most of the time (the old schoolers say ALL of the time) 10 meter ham just blows thru, and in 50 years, we would hear back from Vega.... not what I want.
At the moment, the only reliable medium range comms are on 160, 80, and 40 meters. There are NOT currently any Handheld HAM radios that cover that spectrum that I know of.
It is possible that 6 meter with a really good antenna could reach most of the state from the Columbia area, and triband handhelds that cover 6m, 2m, and 70cm can be had from China for not many monies. I'm bidding on a good mobile radio that covers everything, and researching the best antennas for each band; if I get it, it may be time to start a group buy on triband radios?
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Post by AngelOfWar on Aug 28, 2015 10:29:57 GMT
After a ton of research, I have determined that 10m is a "maybe" band. It would all depend on whether the signals from the antenna bounce off the ionosphere or not. Most of the time (the old schoolers say ALL of the time) 10 meter ham just blows thru, and in 50 years, we would hear back from Vega.... not what I want. At the moment, the only reliable medium range comms are on 160, 80, and 40 meters. There are NOT currently any Handheld HAM radios that cover that spectrum that I know of. It is possible that 6 meter with a really good antenna could reach most of the state from the Columbia area, and triband handhelds that cover 6m, 2m, and 70cm can be had from China for not many monies. I'm bidding on a good mobile radio that covers everything, and researching the best antennas for each band; if I get it, it may be time to start a group buy on triband radios? I'm down Mister Dark...it would have to be timed with my access to "excess boy-toy funds" though. As far as radio's go though, the big thing that will cover distance is 1) Power, and 2) Antenna. Now, don't read this wrong. Power has a lot to do with it, BUT, the antenna is THE MOST IMPORTANT thing in any comm set-up. This applies to HAM, CB, GMRS, AM/FM, etc. The most important thing with antennas is in this order: 1) Length. Pick a frequency (or three, one step up, and one step back), and calibrate your antenna to that frequency. This is why truckers use 19. It's the freq. that is in the center of the FCC's authorized CB freq's, so, 19 is the most clear channel for uncalibrated antennas. 2) Wave. This is kind of like length, only this covers the ratio size of the antenna. There are math formulas to use to determine the initial required length. Once you figure that out, you determine if you want full wave, 1/2 wave, etc. So, a 2 meter band antenna (~6 feet) would require a ~6' antenna. That would be a "Full wave antenna". A 3' antenna would be have wave, so on and so forth. 3) Height. This is rather obviuous. The higher you can get it, the better LOS you will have, and thus, further distance, clearer comms. There's more, but, if you want Mr Dark, open a new thread in the comms section, and we can take it from there, so this doesn't get bogged down. |
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Post by red on Aug 28, 2015 23:44:25 GMT
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Post by misterdark on Sept 23, 2015 5:59:43 GMT
The Baofeng is very highly rated, it works, it is mostly waterproof, and it is 1/2 the price of a Yaesu. Remember that without a license you can always listen to anything you find, it is just a problem if you hit the transmit key. --- except in an emergency situation, when FCC rules say it is ok to transmit on HAM bands for emcom. The only "problem" with the Bao radios is they are limited to 2 meter (and that strange stepchild 144cm) - both are useless beyond 10 miles unless you get some really nice antennas. BTW, this is the same "problem" experienced by Icom or Yaesu radios, in the 2m band, it is mostly line of sight, and antenna length dependant. Personally , I had great success hitting local (and even not so local) repeaters on 2meter on my FT60R with a 19" antenna with a counterpoise. (aka tigertail) - on one occasion had a nice ragchew with a guy driving down from Greenville - he was probably 60 miles away, but we were both on repeater, and the signal was 5 by 5. In an emergency, I expect the repeaters to drop offline first. |
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Post by kutter0311 on Jan 24, 2016 5:00:40 GMT
The Baofeng is very highly rated, it works, it is mostly waterproof, and it is 1/2 the price of a Yaesu. Remember that without a license you can always listen to anything you find, it is just a problem if you hit the transmit key. --- except in an emergency situation, when FCC rules say it is ok to transmit on HAM bands for emcom. The only "problem" with the Bao radios is they are limited to 2 meter (and that strange stepchild 144cm) - both are useless beyond 10 miles unless you get some really nice antennas. BTW, this is the same "problem" experienced by Icom or Yaesu radios, in the 2m band, it is mostly line of sight, and antenna length dependant. Personally , I had great success hitting local (and even not so local) repeaters on 2meter on my FT60R with a 19" antenna with a counterpoise. (aka tigertail) - on one occasion had a nice ragchew with a guy driving down from Greenville - he was probably 60 miles away, but we were both on repeater, and the signal was 5 by 5. In an emergency, I expect the repeaters to drop offline first.
I wouldn't be too sure. Lots of repeaters are set up to run w/o maintenance. |
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