Emergency radio

[gregr]

I am thinking that an emergency radio is an oft forgotten piece of survival gear...or is it? Should the civilian grid go down, I want a way to still be able to receive any information on the situation, as well as instruction and information on the status of supply chain and expected return to "normal". Anyone else think this? What emergency radios do you OWN. Not what you think looks good or cool. But what do you own and trust your family's safety and information gathering to?

 

[Ziggidy]

I struggle with this. I am currently (leisurely) studying for the ham radio and I do have a GMRS license. From everything I can read and from the expert advice given on INGO, ham is the way to go. My concern are those close to me who would not be able to communicate with me on ham. I am thinking I will most likely do the ham route and still be able to communicate with those not on ham. (if I understand everything correctly)

 

[Ziggidy]

PS, I am not even a novice in this arena yet. Just my personal thoughts.

 

[radar8756]

There are designated Radio Stations you are directed to tune to in a Emergency for further information

..... Emergency Alert Indiana

 

[blain]

At this point I OWN WeatherX FR1807. We've used it a couple of times during extended power outages. It works very well for what it is and the cost. I would like to include a crank type/solar, emergency radio, just in case.

 

[Tradesylver]

Good shortwave receiver.

 

[1SG USA Ret]

There are radios that tx and rx on both gmrs and ham bands. Get your tech license and access the most popular ham band (2 meters) 144-148. A good deal for a GMRS 40 watt mobile is on R&L Electonics website, about $199. Alinco makes a 50 watt wide band for $371 but it is the bomb. Also check out Ebay.

 

[Leo]

I am just thinking out loud here, having not looked into it in years. With a hand held 2 meter radio, isn't it really dependent on repeaters? What kind of distance would that be without clicking into a repeater? I never worked anything higher than 20 meters and that was through a full wave folded dipole antenna, not very portable

 

[Tradesylver]

I am just thinking out loud here, having not looked into it in years. With a hand held 2 meter radio, isn't it really dependent on repeaters? What kind of distance would that be without clicking into a repeater? I never worked anything higher than 20 meters and that was through a full wave folded dipole antenna, not very portable

With a HT on top of a hill it's pretty much line of sight. And most HT's might get 5 watts on the high power setting. 2 meter FM is highly dependent on repeaters for wide area coverage. You'd be better off with a mobile 6 meter FM rig with 25 to 100 watts for wide area coverage without using a repeater. But if you're interested in a 2 meter HT I might have one for sale. 73

 

[fullmetaljesus]

I have a couple baofeng ham radios and I have two yeasu ham radios. I've been a ham radio operator for 14 years now.

If you check the link in my sig you will find all the info you need to get started studying for your ham lic. If anyone has questions about ham radio just let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Dont expect to put a radio in your go bag and expect to use it when the SHTF. There is a learning curve. And its pretty steep. I felt that firsthand. And I had been a ham for 3 or 4 years at that point.

I never bothered to learn the manual programming of my radio. I always use the PC cable and CHIRP. I took the two radios with me on vacation. (just the radios) While attempting to change something I accidentally wiped all configs from the radio. Having not bothered to learn the menus, I effectively bricked the radio because I couldnt get the configs to match. There is even a pic of me minutes afterward. Sitting on the beach with the radio in my hand looking ticked as hell, contemplating whether to chuck it into the water. The wife chuckles when she comes across that pic.

If you want that stash it and go feature, get a GMRS set. Channelized radios can do the go bag thing for comms within your party.

Also, more info here.

INGO HAM Radio Club

I don't know about everyone else out there, but I would like to become involved with radio communications club. I can't think of a better group of folks that I would like to learn the basics from. What do yal think? Greater Indianapolis Area

www.indianagunowners.com

 

[SnoopLoggyDog]

Been looking at this to use as a dedicated multiband receiver. Different versions are on Amazon. They are priced below $200. Lots of vids on YT.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Been looking at this to use as a dedicated multiband receiver. Different versions are on Amazon. They are priced below $200. Lots of vids on YT.

If all you want to do is receive, these are tried and true

Shortwave Radios

ccrane.com

 

[fullmetaljesus]

Dont expect to put a radio in your go bag and expect to use it when the SHTF. There is a learning curve. And its pretty steep. I felt that firsthand. And I had been a ham for 3 or 4 years at that point.

I never bothered to learn the manual programming of my radio. I always use the PC cable and CHIRP. I took the two radios with me on vacation. (just the radios) While attempting to change something I accidentally wiped all configs from the radio. Having not bothered to learn the menus, I effectively bricked the radio because I couldnt get the configs to match. There is even a pic of me minutes afterward. Sitting on the beach with the radio in my hand looking ticked as hell, contemplating whether to chuck it into the water. The wife chuckles when she comes across that pic.

If you want that stash it and go feature, get a GMRS set. Channelized radios can do the go bag thing for comms within your party.

Also, more info here.

INGO HAM Radio Club

I don't know about everyone else out there, but I would like to become involved with radio communications club. I can't think of a better group of folks that I would like to learn the basics from. What do yal think? Greater Indianapolis Area

www.indianagunowners.com

Please share this pic

 

[PistolBob]

There are radios that tx and rx on both gmrs and ham bands. Get your tech license and access the most popular ham band (2 meters) 144-148. A good deal for a GMRS 40 watt mobile is on R&L Electonics website, about $199. Alinco makes a 50 watt wide band for $371 but it is the bomb. Also check out Ebay.

The 2m band in Indy is dead. You might once in awhile, hear someone on the repeaters during drive time, other than that, VHF is a waste of money here.

In Indy the Indy600 GMRS repeater seems to be a lot busier than amateur 2m systems. GMRS is limited to only 50w though, so the footprint isn't nearly as big.

I guess it's be good to have both licenses and make yourself familiar with operations on both.

 

[GarandMD]

Thread is a bit old but I will put in my thoughts. Firstly, decide your purpose. What do you want to do when whatever the scenario occurs. Listen only and to what? Communicate by voice or messaging? With whom and where? Then obtain some knowledge (from RELIABLE online or others) to help one decide on the tools you will need to achieve that; transceivers, receivers, antennas, power. Then use it. That part will require a license in most cases. As Cameramonkey said above, one can not just buy a radio, stow it in the go bag and expect to use it when the time arises. Even the radios I use daily at times require me to look up something in the manual for a function that I don't often do.

I have both Ham and GMRS licenses. I rarely use the GMRS. GMRS is limited to a set number of channels and I believe most but not all operators use the linked repeaters. I am on 2m vhf daily, mostly simplex covering most of the county but also some repeater use. In the scenarios to which I think you are considering, one would not rely on repeaters; analog (HAM,GMRS) or digital (d-star, fusion, DMR). Nor the internet and grid power.

Many of the above comments are partially correct. 5w HTs are not line of sight but more unobstructed horizon; radio horizon. As an example, they can communicate with the space station, radio satellites and commercial pilots at 30k feet; not that I would do that on a regular basis. With an antenna at 35-40 feet (think a Slim Jim antenna in a tree) they have quite a range. Add a 50w mobile radio in cross band repeat and you have gained a lot of distance.

Well that was wordy. Perhaps more than my 2 cents.