7 watt PMR 446 rigs ( I think) £35

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TL:


Good re sponse you areright on track with your understanding.

20 metres and 17mere bands will be ideal long term long range bands. The snag is that to set up an network on either right now will require us to get licensed or to operate illegally.

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TL: Re Morse ( CW)

(For distance work, why don't we preppers all just learn the basic "CW" or Morse as it is known?? Then we can have rigs for peanuts and the range will be magnifique!! Would that not be good enough for long range messaging? A bit like texting.... At least the signals will be clear and mistranslation will be minimal. Talkie stuff could be just for our local issues. Morse is pretty simple compared to the ins & outs of all the other Ham theory stuff. It is reliable and effective across the world. Signals get through well and with only very low power requirements. Is it not worth revisiting this alltime classic that is universal in acceptance??) TL.
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Absolutely true what you have written about morse ( CW) Far better range and much simpler, lower cost, more reliable and more user serviceable kit. Take a look at the small wonder labs SW20 for example.

Again Ham rigs on which we cannot legally experiment without a license.