Ham radio recommendations

[ScottyXbones]

With the cell networks going down yesterday I would like a backup system to communicate with family in the event of an actual attack on our communications/electrical grid/utilities. Can anyone recommend a good ham radio setup? I?d like to be able to reach about 35 miles up and down the 15 freeway corridor, that?s probably only possible by hitting a repeater station, right? Would we be best off with a 5-8w handheld or a more powerful home setup? Recommendations on batteries like a jackery that can support about 15 min of talk time a day for 2-3 weeks? How likely would it be for the electrical grid to be attacked along with our communications?

[ChuckD]

A cheap Boafeng UV5R would do all you ask - there is no part of the I-15 that is not in reach of a repeater. A 7 W solar charger from Harbor Freight plugged in to your car will keep your car battery charged and you can use a car charger to keep the radio charged. I would recommend adding a couple extra batteries, a cheap case, and a Nagoya 771 antenna.

That is just the start point though. If you're going to go down this road you really should get a license - so you can learn how to use the radio and practice with it. If you don't know how to use the radio then it wont be worth much: which repeater will you connect to? Is there a single repeater that covers the entire area you want to connect to, or will you need to use multiple repeaters? Who will you talk to? How will you program the radio? If you get licensed & practice you will know the answer to all these questions.

There are also many other ways to get better stuff. You could get a higher quality handheld like a Yeasu, or you could get a mobile unit that has more power, you could get a better mobile antenna, or a permanent antenna, all the way up to HF radio that costs several thousand dollars and a permanently mounted antenna tower.

Keep in mind with cost that you will need to get radios for everyone you want to talk to (unless they have them already), they will all need extra batteries, solar chargers, better antennas, etc. So if you need to outfit 10 people, and can get the whole kit for around $100 ea as opposed to $500 ea - that's a big difference, Also if you are wanting to be prepared for an EMP/CME you will need to double everything you buy and buy a faraday cage/pouch to keep your backup in.

Also at this point you are still dependent on a repeater, which will be crowded, could be unusable in the case of a EMP, and even without an EMP it could be damaged or simply break. You could eliminate the repeater with an HF radio - but the price skyrockets.

Have you considered a Garmin in-reach or Spot satellite communicator?

There is a lot to think about.

[DolphinFan]

A good antenna will go a long way.
I have a Comet 333 and a Comet GP9 UHF/VHF.
The antennas have gain, so a 5w hand held can put out much more.
I like the AnyTone 779 UV 20 watt, comes with a cigarette lighter attached power adaptor.
I cut it and installed Anderson Power Pole connectors. I have one in the car and one in the house/station.
They cost around $100 each. And I can simplex 70 miles or more with good tropospheric ducting. We do a wormhole net simplex on 446.500 Wednesday nights.

[ChuckD]

A good antenna will go a long way.
I have a Comet 333 and a Comet GP9 UHF/VHF.
The antennas have gain, so a 5w hand held can put out much more.
I like the AnyTone 779 UV 20 watt, comes with a cigarette lighter attached power adaptor.
I cut it and installed Anderson Power Pole connectors. I have one in the car and one in the house/station.
They cost around $100 each. And I can simplex 70 miles or more with good tropospheric ducting. We do a wormhole net simplex on 446.500 Wednesday nights.

"Antenna gain" is shown/calculated as DBi. It is not actual gain, but rather an increase achieved by focusing a beam in a direction. Think of it like the "feels like" temperature on the weather channel - when it says it is 35 degrees but feels like 26 degrees; if you had a thermometer it would read 35 degrees, but if feels like 26. The signal does not become stronger, but by focusing direction it has the characteristics of a stronger signal.

The best antenna (for increasing range) would be a dish with a narrow focus. The downside is that you could only communicate within that beam. On the other hand an omni-directional antenna can communicate in a full circle but as the beam is not focused the signal will not go as far. Using a full-wavelength antenna gives you the best of both worlds (but takes up more space, is not portable, and is more expensive), if you need more DBi than that allows a Yagi antenna is the most practical directional antenna.

None of this changes the other characteristics of RF signals. So if you are limited by line of sight (lets say you are in the bottom of a bowl shape), an antenna with a higher DBi will not overcome that limitation.

While I don't know the specifics of your requirements, I would try to avoid directional antennas to give you the most flexibility & ease of use.

[user120312]

OP, if this is a SHTF type deal I'd set it up for mobile and to run off a vehicle. It could still run off shore power/battery backup (I have a Jackery 1000+ with expansion battery).

If limited essential communications are the primary, I'd investigate the costs of amateur radio versus satellite type locator/text solutions.

I have the Jackery and a Gooloo 4000 for easily portable multi-purpose power sources. Where I live is a forested canyon so mobile coms are essential if not within the canyon itself, presuming cellular is down. Even with it up, a significant amount of the canyon is dark so cell phones in that part are useless to very limited.

With radio, everyone will have to be on the same page so keep that in mind. Most folks have cell phones. Far fewer have or are interested in radio. Are you going to supply everyone with gear and train them? Or?

[Librarian]

With radio, everyone will have to be on the same page so keep that in mind. Most folks have cell phones. Far fewer have or are interested in radio. Are you going to supply everyone with gear and train them? Or?

...

After thinking about it for a while, I realized I had no one to talk to. So I've decided not to bother with ham radio.

[OlderThanDirt]

...

After thinking about it for a while, I realized I had no one to talk to. So I've decided not to bother with ham radio.

In a SHTF scenario you will make new friends and be able to gather information, which will make you very popular with the ladies.

[XDJYo]

If the HAM license is a barrier, go GMRS. A lot of the same capabilities as HAM and zero license aside from registering on the internet and paying your $35. And 1 license is good for the whole family.

Another suggestion for the Baofeng units. Mine have been great. Get a good antennae too. You can find them bundled on Amazon. Get one that has USB charging as the wall outlet can be a pain at times since you need to carry the whole charging cradle if you're going mobile/camping etc.

[oddball]

With radio, everyone will have to be on the same page so keep that in mind. Most folks have cell phones. Far fewer have or are interested in radio. Are you going to supply everyone with gear and train them? Or?

Yes, HAM can be a difficult learning curve for a lot of people. There are people for SHTF who buy Baofeng UV 5Rs, leave them in the box thinking they can pull them out when SHTF and use them like walkie talkies instantly. It ain't like that. Similar to firearms, one has to learn, train, practice, and each person doing this needs to study and pass the tech exam. Which is why HAM is more of a solitary hobby for many, basically communicating with club members or complete strangers .

GMRS is the system I chose for emergency comms for my family and some friends in the DFW area, a network of 5-6 contacts. A GMRS license is good for 10 years, no test, and covers the entire family with the same call sign. GMRS radios are easier to understand and operate, even for those with little interest in radio communications (my wife). We have a pair of Wouxun KG-935G+ handhelds, great radios, but with the factory antennas (which are excellent), the furthest range we can get in our town for 2-way comms is 3.5 miles. DFW is pretty flat in terrain, but the metroplex of course is filled with houses, outdoor shopping centers, industrial parks, schools, etc. Antennas are pretty much dependent on line of sight, especially GMRS, so different factors like type of antenna, height of antenna, and coax cable can make or break long range comms. If someone is on one mountain top and the other person is on another mountain top, handheld comms is easy, maybe 25-30 miles with 5 watts. But trees, houses, buildings and especially earth obstacles like hills, mountains will effect range. In GMRS, higher power output can help punch the signal through. We are in the process of putting together a system; I'll have a 50 watt base station with a high gain UHF omni antenna 30' in the air, my son 20+ miles away will have a mobile setup in his car that can be made into a base, my wife a mobile for her work place 11 miles away, etc. The handhelds for the neighborhood and close in town. And we won't know if this all will work until we try it.

We are designing the setup to not be dependent on repeaters; during an emergency, SHTF, etc., IMO, one would be a fool to depend on a third party to be the middle man of emergency comms., especially if the grid goes down. I don't know what the OP's terrain is like; if line of sight is clear between you and your contacts, handhelds with a better antenna might do it. But if you live in a suburban/town situation like me, it will be more difficult than you think.

[cz74]

Yes like so many have already said above, OP should get GMRS for SHTF and get into Ham only for hobby. But then again in a real actual SHTF end of world as we know it scenario, nobody really cares who is licensed on the Ham repeaters.

[DaveInOroValley]

When I was into it, I really liked iCom radios (both portable and base units) and Comet antennas.

[user120312]

I got a couple Baofeng UV-82HP to test and learn on. The lady across the road is my guinea pig and my old shortwave gear part of the testing process.

With the lady, I'll put her on my CB and FMRS and compare her response.

I would expect young people to pick things up easier but she does fine with her computer and iPhone so I'm cautiously optimistic.

In any event, I want to learn about the gear and hands-on is the best way, even if I'm not using it actively. Coms generally suck in the canyon except for LOS and that's pretty limited.

[TheChief]

I got a couple Baofeng UV-82HP to test and learn on. The lady across the road is my guinea pig and my old shortwave gear part of the testing process.

With the lady, I'll put her on my CB and FMRS and compare her response.

I would expect young people to pick things up easier but she does fine with her computer and iPhone so I'm cautiously optimistic.

In any event, I want to learn about the gear and hands-on is the best way, even if I'm not using it actively. Coms generally suck in the canyon except for LOS and that's pretty limited.

It's been a while since my antennae theory training but I recall a challenge with certain antennae types and very local reception. The shape of the radiative field is toroidal (3d donut) and that the stations that are very close are in the weak signal area, think donut holes. These then have to rely on the signal bounce off the ionosphere. There were concerns with ghost receptions causing audio issues. Like I said, it has been awhile so not certain if new tech, materials, or approaches are in place to prevent the above issues.

I am saying all of this as while HAM has a longer range and more power than FRS/GMRS, you may be in the weakness zone of HAM. And this does not account for local repeaters.

[user120312]

I'm testing the units out. Took one out in the forest today using the NOAA weather service and FM feature as signal test points.

I doubt any normal person who doesn't mess with radio nor is interested in radio would want to take on the learning curve. I could see locking them onto a couple frequencies for local use but the rest, TBH, I wouldn't bother. Stick with FMRS/GMRS/CB/cell phone.

I'll enjoy learning and experimenting. Also, the included ear piece/mic isn't bad to learn with but I'd get better for serious use. Overall, though, two radios for less than I paid in 60's cash for my first serious piece of shortwave gear. Amazing how technology has improved and gotten less expensive over time.

[Paseclipse]

OP, get yourself a few cheap Baofeng UV5R's.