Portable Radio Options

Jackalope · Oct 29, 2016

I use the Boafengs for loaner radios. Personally, I use an Icom ID-51A, because it's waterproof, has a built in GPS, and it has the capability of transmitting text data, photos, etc. when using the digital mode. Plus it gives a small degree of privacy, as analog radios are unable decipher digital transmissions. The new Kenwood TH-D74A has potential too. In any case, as was suggested, I have multiple AA battery packs for my radios.

FrankenCub · Oct 29, 2016

freddy said:
This is an interesting read:

Militia Radio Frequencies

The Motorola Talkabout Ms355r are a good waterproof Frs/gmrs for $45 each.

Uniden Homepatrol (base or handheld) is a scanner only, but capable, and very user friendly for the beginner.

Better than the Baofengs are: Yaesu, Icom, and Kenwood. But certainly more money. Yaesu Vx6r is a high quality waterproof handheld transceiver.

Whatever you get, be sure it will run on AA batteries, not just proprietary lithium ion batteries.

Interesting read? Notice the buzz words, militant, assault rifle, sniper..Talk about an anti-Liberty article! Especially from a proponent of the 1st Amendment! Great propaganda article.
My mom has a Yaesu and a Kenwood, very good radios. But I think most people who are getting into this really aren't willing or able to afford the coin it takes to buy those brands, I certainly can't afford them. The Baofeng are really respectable radios for what they are, and AA battery packs are available for them. Replacement Li-ion batteries for them are really inexpensive too and the Baofeng radios are very easy on battery life. I've been using my GT3-TP as a scanner for a month or so and still haven't needed to charge it.

freddy · Oct 29, 2016

Best line from that militia link....

The contents of this wish list and the fact that it appeared on the second day of the armed standoff tends to indicate that these particular militants were neither preppers nor survivalists. They forgot to bring sleeping bags and food; but they remembered to bring ammo and Baofengs.

freddy · Nov 2, 2016

Picked up a few Baofeng Uv82 radios for $26 each. Same price as the slightly lower quality Uv5r. Wow, they are impressive!

Drinkthekoolaid · Nov 2, 2016

freddy said:
Picked up a few Baofeng Uv82 radios for $26 each. Same price as the slightly lower quality Uv5r. Wow, they are impressive!

Is the uv82 better than a uv5r?
And what is the difference between a uv5r5 and a uv5r v2?

I see the uv5r5 being sold for a few$ more but I can't quite tell where this radio fits into the lineup. Is it better than a version 2 uv5r?
Sorry for so ma y questions I'm a noob but trying to learn

Drinkthekoolaid · Nov 2, 2016

Willjr75 said:
Internally, they are all the same. They all receive the same frequencies. Externally, they change things here and there for marketing purposes.

The UV82 had a louder speaker though compared to the UV5R and bigger buttons. I have the BF-F8HP. It is the same as the UV5R but in 8 Watts instead of 5 Watts. It doesn't have the louder speaker but it's loud enough. I listen to it work and hear it just fine in noisy environments and it isn't even turned up all the way.

Just decide if you want a 5 Watt or an 8 Watt and go from there with the cheapest.

Thanks

How much of a range increase is 5 to 8watt?

Drinkthekoolaid · Nov 2, 2016

Last question for now..

I'm looking into solar charging options and it seems most have usb cable outputs. Can you charge a baofeng directly with a usb or do you need to get some type of adaptor?

Drinkthekoolaid · Nov 2, 2016

Willjr75 said:
This guy in the thread linked below was able to charge his with a portable solar power panel hooked up to a car cigarette lighter adapter.

I'm working on getting the same setup.

My $125 SHTF comms setup. - Calguns.net

I've read that page and confused how a cigarette lighter plugs into a solar panel?

Would this work? Plug this adapter into the solar panel usb output for power source and directly to the charging base?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01BDAKLSQ/ref=ox_sc_act_image_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A37ZSVIDBH6Z3H

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01HNGCQEG/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A11DZT6VKD1BL0

freddy · Nov 2, 2016

Compare UV82 UV5R - Miklor

EMSBronco · Nov 2, 2016

For a lot of info on these Chinese imports, check out Miklor Radio Information Site - Miklor . That site has technical info, reviews, info on the CHIRP programming software, and lots of other useful info.

The differences between the models are slightly more than just external looks. For example, the 82C has a feature that allows you to lock out the keypad and is type accepted by the FCC for Amateur and commercial use. The 82 is based on the same chipset as the 82C, but is not approved for commercial use. The chipset in the UV-82 series is different than the UV-5 series.

If you read the reviews on some of the Ham radio sites, you will see discussions about difference in squelch, receive and transmit noise, etc as well as other bug fixes. The different versions within each series have different versions of the firmware that show the manufacturer is trying to improve different parts of the product. Note that the firmware cannot be updated, so when looking at these radios, try to determine if they have the latest firmware (read reviews from other purchasers, etc). All of the models have the same frequencies and similar performance otherwise.

Note that some radios cover different bands. For amateur radio, 144-148 MHz, 220-222 MHz, and 420-450 MHz are the 3 main bands you will see in these radios - but they can only cover 2 bands, so you will usually see a description covering 2 out of the 3 bands. The 220-222 MHz band is not used as much and the majority of the dual band radios sold cover VHF 136-174 / UHF 400-520MHz, which includes those 2 ham bands. They can be programmed to cover any frequency in those ranges, but outside of the amateur bands, they are not FCC type accepted and are technically illegal to operate. So, yes, they can be programmed to cover the FRS/GMRS channels, but even though no license is needed for FRS, these radios are still illegal on those channels. Yes, many people use them for FRS anyway, but just be forewarned.

Tintalieau · Nov 13, 2016

Something i saw while exploring comm options for SHTF

Baofeng UV-5R repeater

nfernaays · Dec 23, 2016

I have just started looking into a radio addition, Does anyone have any recommendations? I have thinking either the BaoFeng BF-F8HP or the BaoFeng UV-5X3.
I plan on just using this for scanning and monitoring. Transmitting in a SHTF situation. Possible license down the road.

nfernaays · Dec 23, 2016

Willjr75 said:
The BaoFeng BF-F8HP has more power. 8 Watts vs 5. I picked this one for the extra range if needed when transmitting in a SHTF situation.

As far as receiving goes, both will be the same. That depends on the power of the radio that the 2nd party is using. They both receive the same.

Thank you for your input, I think I will go with your recommendation.

nfernaays · Dec 30, 2016

Willjr75 said:
The BaoFeng BF-F8HP has more power. 8 Watts vs 5. I picked this one for the extra range if needed when transmitting in a SHTF situation.

As far as receiving goes, both will be the same. That depends on the power of the radio that the 2nd party is using. They both receive the same.

My BF-F8HP arrived in the mail yesterday, spent all night playing with it. Great recommendation I love it! I still need to get used to all the features but by the end of the night I was dialed into some great chatter. Thanks again!

nfernaays · Dec 30, 2016

Thank you I will look into this!

Drinkthekoolaid · Dec 30, 2016

Willjr75 said:
Buy this cable to connect to your CPU. This specific cable from this link below. There are many counterfeit ones out there that don't work.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...ativeASIN=B00HUB0ONK&linkCode=as2&tag=btek-20

Download a program called Chirp on your CPU.

Home - CHIRP

With this program, you can enter frequencies and name them where they come up on your display. Ex. Albany PD, Albany FD, ect.

You can get frequencies from here.

New York Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference

I'm excited my uv5r and programming cable are already in transit. Just waiting now...

Jackalope · Dec 30, 2016

I've got a Uniden Homepatrol radio coming next week. It should give me another method of gathering information.

FrankenCub · Dec 31, 2016

Before I knew about the problems with the generic programming cables I bought one. It didn't work at first but realized it wouldn't seat correctly. After a little trimming of the plastic on the cable end it connects fine and works as it should. Probably just got lucky I didn't get a junk one. I use it on my GT3-TP through the BF-F8HP programming prompt in CHIRP. Works so much better than manually inputting everything. I never could get the manual entry thing right.

Drinkthekoolaid · Dec 31, 2016

I may have bought a generic programming cable...hmmm....

FrankenCub · Dec 31, 2016

You may still not have an issue, as long as the chip inside is good. I believe the GT3-TP issues are because where the cable seats is designed differently. It has more of a pronounced ridge around the area that ends up stopping the cable from inserting all the way, I don't think the BF-F8HP has the same issue. Give it a try when it comes in, just make sure you press it in firmly and feel the clicks as it goes in.

nfernaays · Jan 3, 2017

Willjr75 said:
Buy this cable to connect to your CPU. This specific cable from this link below. There are many counterfeit ones out there that don't work.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...ativeASIN=B00HUB0ONK&linkCode=as2&tag=btek-20

Download a program called Chirp on your CPU.

Home - CHIRP

With this program, you can enter frequencies and name them where they come up on your display. Ex. Albany PD, Albany FD, ect.

You can get frequencies from here.

New York Scanner Frequencies and Radio Frequency Reference

Willjr75, do you see any need to get one of these for the BF-F8HP?

https://www.amazon.com/Authentic-NA...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=QREDGYATDAK3T1BN32X8

Drinkthekoolaid · Jan 3, 2017

Willjr75 said:
If using radio to repeater(repeater amplifies the signal to many miles) to radio, the answer is no.

If using radio to radio with no repeater (this is called Simplex) the 8 Watt will get a little more range than the 5 Watt. Some guy tested it on another forum I lurk on and he got an extra 1 to 3 miles with the 8 Watt compared to the 5 Watt.

How much more range will that better antenna give you?

nfernaays · Jan 3, 2017

Willjr75 said:
If using radio to repeater(repeater amplifies the signal and rebroadcasts it to many miles that your radio cannot reach) to another radio, the answer is no.

If using radio to radio with no repeater (this is called Simplex) the 8 Watt will get a little more range on transmission than the 5 Watt. Some guy tested it on another forum I lurk on and he got an extra 1 to 3 miles with the 8 Watt compared to the 5 Watt.

If you just want to listen, the 5 Watt is enough. Receiving depends on the other radio that you are listening to transmitting.

Thanks, valuable input as always!

Portable Radio Options

.45 acp

.338 Win Mag

.308 Win

.308 Win

.475 A&M Magnum

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.475 A&M Magnum

.475 A&M Magnum

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.475 A&M Magnum

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.308 Win

.40 S&W

.40 S&W

.45 acp

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.45 acp

.45 acp

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.45 acp

.475 A&M Magnum

.45 acp

.338 Win Mag

.475 A&M Magnum

.338 Win Mag

.45 acp

.577 Tyrannosaur.

.475 A&M Magnum

.45 acp