GMRS GMRS RADIOS

[MNwr786]

I never understood the idea of turning on a radio every three hours for just three minutes. If we lose our time standards (internet not available, WWV off the air or conditions are bad), how do people expect to keep their clocks that accurate?

I posted this link about watch stability somewhere, not sure if it was here. There was a discussion about watches but cannot find it. A smart phone without a connection to the tower/internet is a HORRIBLE clock. You will likely lose 4 minutes in a week due to the temperature changes in the phone. A typical quartz crystal wrist watch loses track of 6 to 8 seconds a day. Anyhow, I think recommending that we only listen for 3 minutes when SHTF is foolish, these people didn't think that through.

 

[DrHenley]

I never understood the idea of turning on a radio every three hours for just three minutes. If we lose our time standards (internet not available, WWV off the air or conditions are bad), how do people expect to keep their clocks that accurate?

 

[MNwr786]

Hahaha! I would prefer one of those new laser etched astrolabes, but that sundial will work

 

[BillMasen]

Got a printable version?

Nup sorry probably because only the PMR frequency is any use to me.

 

[MNwr786]

Another issue with that every three hour for three minute schedule is that noon in my time zone is an hour after the the people on the other side of the time zone line. Will they be listening at 1pm when I key up at noon? Not on that schedule lol.

 

[DrHenley]

Set the schedule in Coordinated Universal Time.

 

[lfsense]

I have some Baofeng Hts programed for prepper freq. that I loan to non-hams. The ham HTs stay in my hands! Does not hurt to cover both possabilities. de KA5SIW

what is the currently used prepper freq.?

 

[lfsense]

Got a printable version?

That is very outdated.

 

[firewallsrus]

Great spread spectrum transmitters too. Oh, and they put out five watts if their working properly (which is about 1 in 100). Most of them, given the energy wasted on the wide dirty transmit are good for about 750 mw as measured with a Bird Watt Meter. You get what you pay for. But they will be good for chocking the tires on the trailer.

As I should have stated in my original post, these are only my opinions. I got my amateur license in 1970 and since around that time have been studying and working full time in electronic communications.

The original poster was looking for candidates to equip friends/neighbors with in an emergency. I suggested considering the BF-888 because it is even less expensive than the blister pack radios and has a detachable antenna which can be swapped out for much better antennas which are readily available and it's I/O ports are Kenwood compatible. If you want to by 10 Japanese radios to hand out like candy in an emergency (like Yaesu, Icom, or Kenwood) then go for it.

I'm not sure your post was responsive to the OP and the reason for the thread. Actually there are no BF-888 radios that put out close to 5 watts of energy rather than their rated 3 Watts. It might surprise you to note that amateurs have reported successful Earth Moon Earth (EME) communications by bouncing as little as a 25 Watt signal off the surface of the moon (nearly 500,000 miles round trip)

As far as spread spectrum, there have been measured harmonics on a lot of Chinese radios, but I haven't seen any data on the BF-888. On the UV5r radios, the harmonics have been demonstrated to be beyond FCC allowable limits, but the levels are still low enough that the energy wasted in those harmonics is negligible. Due to a phenomenon called FM capture, the strongest signal on a given frequency will completely replace other signals. This is one reason FM is such a low noise environment. Low level harmonic noises coming from one FM transceiver should not be enough to interfere with other users on different frequencies.

 

[radiogoon]

Very familiar with the 888's and what they are capable of. We use them in our All-Star nodes. My buddy who runs our county radio department came up with the design. We strip the RF boards out of them, pull the final so it only runs on the pre driver (although if you're not familiar with All-Star this is all Greek to you). Might surprise you to know I was working VHF meteor scatter last weekend with 1 watt. You probably also know then that since the FCC halted the importation of those radios till they met compliance, programing them anywhere you like in the UHF band doesn't work any longer.

As to the 5 watts, here are the specs from the manual:

I've been licensed since 1989 and hold an Extra Class license, so you can reign in the condescension. Maybe we'll catch you on All-Star, or P25, or DMR, or C4FM, or 2m SSB, or HF sometime. I like to hang in the Novice sub bands and help the new guys out who actually want to learn code. They make for good QSO's and I'm not so full of myself that I mind having a leisurely 5wpm QSO. But the bottom line, BaoFengs are cheap pieces of junk that shit up the local repeaters with their spurs, dead audio, and roger beeps. They are fun in the trap though.

73

 

[firewallsrus]

Very familiar with the 888's and what they are capable of. We use them in our All-Star nodes. My buddy who runs our county radio department came up with the design. We strip the RF boards out of them, pull the final so it only runs on the pre driver (although if you're not familiar with All-Star this is all Greek to you). Might surprise you to know I was working VHF meteor scatter last weekend with 1 watt. You probably also know then that since the FCC halted the importation of those radios till they met compliance, programing them anywhere you like in the UHF band doesn't work any longer.

As to the 5 watts, here are the specs from the manual:
I've been licensed since 1989 and hold an Extra Class license, so you can reign in the condescension. Maybe we'll catch you on All-Star, or P25, or DMR, or C4FM, or 2m SSB, or HF sometime. I like to hang in the Novice sub bands and help the new guys out who actually want to learn code. They make for good QSO's and I'm not so full of myself that I mind having a leisurely 5wpm QSO. But the bottom line, BaoFengs are cheap pieces of junk that shit up the local repeaters with their spurs, dead audio, and roger beeps. They are fun in the trap though.

73

Your distain for cheap radios makes me wonder why you even bother to respond to a thread when the OP was a question about radios cheap enough to hand out. So your point is that they are cheap and beneath your dignity, then you explain that you tear them down for parts because they are inexpensive. They are inexpensive because they are cheaply made. This is what makes them a candidate for being seen as "disposable". They do work at least as well if not better than the blister packs.

As to power, it seems we may both be wrong. Yes, the manual (and some advertising) shows <=5 Watts, which is correct if the manufacturer designed them to be 1.8 Watt units. Here's a link to the FCC page showing the equipment authorization request when it was applying for part 90 approval showing the designed output power at 1.8 Watts:
https://apps.fcc.gov/tcb/GetTcb731Report.do?applicationId=SH25rkP7lF2PVYZb3cklng==&fcc_id=ZP5BF-888S
You like to run digital modes. How nice for you. Again, you couldn't be further from the topic of the thread.

Repeater problems: Roger beeps are caused by radios programmed to provide a roger beep, not because of a manufacturing defect. Our local repeater has never been bothered by very low level spurious signals, dead audio could be caused by a lot of things including high priced radios not properly operated.

And to be clear, I didn't start the condescension.

 

[radiogoon]

Well if you saw condescension in my reply you read it into it. It's your money, buy what you want. We don't allow their use on our repeaters around here. And the instances of bootlegging since their availability has almost tripled. Just more crap to contend with.

I am now finished with any further comment as you are clearly convinced cheap Chinese junk is the second coming.

73

 

[MOS0231]

Okay.
Aside what I have experienced with in the military (SINCGARS), I know little to nothing about civilian radios.

I live in a hilly, heavily wooded area.
I am looking for a hand held that will get me the best range, features for the buck.
I understand some of the OEM antennas are crap, but there are after market antennas out there that are better.
Assuming a grid down, no repeaters up and running, using a solar panel to charge, what is the best hand held in the under $100 and even the $200 range I can buy?

 

[firewallsrus]

Okay.
Aside what I have experienced with in the military (SINCGARS), I know little to nothing about civilian radios.

I live in a hilly, heavily wooded area.
I am looking for a hand held that will get me the best range, features for the buck.
I understand some of the OEM antennas are crap, but there are after market antennas out there that are better.
Assuming a grid down, no repeaters up and running, using a solar panel to charge, what is the best hand held in the under $100 and even the $200 range I can buy?

One problem you're going to run into with handhelds is the frequency range. The higher the frequency, the shorter the wavelength, and your antenna length is measured relative to wavelength. This means to get a reasonably short antenna, you need very high frequencies. A characteristic of these is they don't reflect well or reliably from the ionosphere. The Texas highway sign below reminds me of a problem with handhelds. You just can't push RF through dirt. Some will bounce off buildings, vehicles and other unexpected obstacles. Some may refract when it encounters the horizon making the RF horizon slightly farther than the visual horizon.

The good news if you have a defined area is that if you happen to find yourself operating in an area not regulated by the FCC or any other nation's counterpart, an ad-hoc repeater can be set up in a few minutes with a pair of low powered disposable radios (including the blister packs) and a handful of parts. A pair located on a hilltop central to your area can extend your range. Old water towers, disused cell towers, and other tall things become available when the SHTF. With judicious use, a solar panel can keep the batteries charged to keep you on the air.

As someone noted earlier in this thread, chinese ham radios and blister pack GMRS/FRS radios are cheap enough to be disposable when you need intel. Clear as mud, right? I think the bottom line is it isn't a matter of money in this case, but ingenuity.