2 Way radios in the truck

[handirifle]

k0ua

Thanks for the feedback on the posted link. It does seem the guy mentioned I would need a license. I wonder how this would fare in an emergency, similar to using a ham radio, but for shorter range?

As most on here probably do, we live rural, but for times when I am in town it would be nice to talk directly to home. Much better than cell phones for that, IMHO. I worked with the above mentioned Motorola setup at work, for over 4 years and they were fantastic. Eventually the boss got some hand helds. Shorter range (about 10 miles) but great for certain circumstances. They were a LOT more money then, IIRC the handheld was about $1500 back then.

It would either be something like the link or a VHF off Ebay.

Any idea what the licensing process for the linked one would be?

 

[JoeyDude]

I know VHF radios tend to do better in town and in the hills since the UHF are more line of sight. The little GMRS radios are not cutting it. Am sittin in Las Vegas tonight, going the the NFR here Monday, then the Cowboy Christmas. Got separated from our friends while in town and were 1/4-1/2 mile away and could not understand a word. That's not what I want.

Antenna size, antenna height, antenna restrictions (blockage) and power output all contribute to better transmission and reception of signals.

If you want to continue to use FRS / GMRS type radios, try getting an external antenna for it. That will boost transmission and reception by an incredible amount. If the radio is hand held, you're dealing with the potential for your body to block some of the signal and the metal of the vehicle to block a lot of the signal, not to mention the building / terrain you're trying to transmit through. Radio waves do not conduct well through solid objects of any type, metal and stone being the most difficult.