OK hows this for a PMR 446

[The Local Ned]

Ahem....."UHF wankie talkie"......



..Something I think we should make clear....those WALKIE TALKIES do not have a 'vibrate' feature.

[Paul]

Oh boy, all this fuss about naught.
Lighten up folk.

To little me it's simple.
If you want a radio get one.
It don't matter what, just try to get everyone you want to talk to on the same channel.
Isn't that what LS is trying to do? Help you all talk on the same channel.

As for guaranteeing or demanding performance
No such thing. There must be 1001 things that can affect range and performance without including the chimp on the mic.

Do some of you think radio works everytime, everywhere?
Sorry matey, it don't happen.

I have read good points in this thread, good for me that is:

CB is no good (apparently). Noisy and full of cr@p.
If you all don't get one that suits me.
We all use CB round here and on average we're only 5 miles apart. Less noise the better thank you.

The UV-5R needs a license.
SO WHAT? STHF time I'm going to be REALLY worried about that.
Still the price is right and apparently they are dead easy to use.
LS or TLN will help me there (Please).
I'm a bit unhappy it doesn't come in shocking pink but no matter.
SWMBO will just have to use a black one like me when shopping.

[Lightspeed]

(8 November 2012, 23:22)Paul Wrote: Oh boy, all this fuss about naught.
Lighten up folk.

To little me it's simple.
If you want a radio get one.
It don't matter what, just try to get everyone you want to talk to on the same channel.
Isn't that what LS is trying to do? Help you all talk on the same channel.

As for guaranteeing or demanding performance
No such thing. There must be 1001 things that can affect range and performance without including the chimp on the mic.

Do some of you think radio works everytime, everywhere?
Sorry matey, it don't happen.

I have read good points in this thread, good for me that is:

CB is no good (apparently). Noisy and full of cr@p.
If you all don't get one that suits me.
We all use CB round here and on average we're only 5 miles apart. Less noise the better thank you.

The UV-5R needs a license.
SO WHAT? STHF time I'm going to be REALLY worried about that.
Still the price is right and apparently they are dead easy to use.
LS or TLN will help me there (Please).
I'm a bit unhappy it doesn't come in shocking pink but no matter.
SWMBO will just have to use a black one like me when shopping.


Hi Paul,

Dry my friend DRY!!! :-)

Re colour coordinated UV5r rigs.....

Well you are nearly in luck. being Chinese the specs are often wittering on about their fashionable appearance Ughhhhhh!

But, also being Chinese, they have for some reason produced the radios in Yellow, Red, Blue, Camo colours, as well as the boring old black ones of course.

Pssssssssssssst: Word is that the yellow ones have better range than the rest, but don't tell anyone that I told you. ( message CTCSS encoded so that no one else can read it!!!)

73 de

Lightspeed

[Paul]

Tee Hee. SWMBO will be pleased.
Technical point though.
UV-5R uses a 7.2 volt battery pack.
Sealed or not?
Can it be re-celled with say AA NI-Mh?
I ask because I'm expecting no mains and running a generator for 10 hours for a simple radio isn't cost effective let alone sensible.
Yes I know about the car kit but I'm not going to rely on fuel being available either to run a car.
I'd rather have a radio that runs off AA cells to enable solar charging.
So, sealed or not?

[Lightspeed]

(9 November 2012, 17:12)Paul Wrote: Tee Hee. SWMBO will be pleased.
Technical point though.
UV-5R uses a 7.2 volt battery pack.
Sealed or not?
Can it be re-celled with say AA NI-Mh?
I ask because I'm expecting no mains and running a generator for 10 hours for a simple radio isn't cost effective let alone sensible.
Yes I know about the car kit but I'm not going to rely on fuel being available either to run a car.
I'd rather have a radio that runs off AA cells to enable solar charging.
So, sealed or not?

Hi Paul,

Yes there is a AAA cell case see:

http://www.happyhamshop.com/baofeng-uv5r...-1300.html

I also use the little UV3r type HTs ( there are several types on the matrket) They atre lover powered, smaller, and runs on 3.7v mobile phone power packs that charges off a USB port. They also have a AAA battery cover available. The UV3r is less user friendly to non radio savvy folk as it only displays frequency not channel names, but ease of charging and powering it is impotrtant to me.

---

Another vendor of AAA battery packs, better price:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Battery-Pack-B...3f1e90e5ed

---

Or alternatively charge straight from 12v or run directly from 12v with these:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-DC-In-Car-...2a245d46dc

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/22-35-12V-Car-...4d02fcc3fe

[Skean Dhude]

The car kit means it will run off 12V not just fuel.

[Paul]

True, that's SD.
I've just finished reading the user manual.
Neat if a little confusing.
I like the fact that I can turn the key beep and screen back light off.
Good for OPSEC.

Only things I didn't like was:-

• It's a soft start device i.e. it's drawing 75mA even if off.
  Operationally that'll mean in down times, I'll be unplugging the battery pack.
  Forget to do that and 16 hours later it'll be flat.
  
  
• It's getting a bit of bad press regarding programming problems especially with Win 7 & and some linux.
  
  
• THere is a bit of a debate about some generic programming leads not working
  
  
• VOX can be lazy with certain microphones /head sets
  
  
• It's susceptible to damp apparently
  
  
• The variants keep on coming i.e. A, B, and C
  
  

Can owners please comment on these practical problems.

---

Typo, True that's should read True, thanks SD

[Oggydoggy100]

Hello, have any of you thought about Marine Band Radio's???????? They are availble with a 6Watt output for around £120. They are illegal to use inland, but when TSHTF who is going to enforce any infringments?
I have used M.B. Radios for work & they can reach 15 miles plus, line of sight. They have other cons over C.B. & other systems, i.e. great battery life.

[The Local Ned]

(9 November 2012, 18:11)Paul Wrote: True, that's SD.
I've just finished reading the user manual.
Neat if a little confusing.
I like the fact that I can turn the key beep and screen back light off.
Good for OPSEC.

Only things I didn't like was:-

• It's a soft start device i.e. it's drawing 75mA even if off.
  Operationally that'll mean in down times, I'll be unplugging the battery pack.
  Forget to do that and 16 hours later it'll be flat.
  
  
• It's getting a bit of bad press regarding programming problems especially with Win 7 & and some linux.
  
  
• THere is a bit of a debate about some generic programming leads not working
  
  
• VOX can be lazy with certain microphones /head sets
  
  
• It's susceptible to damp apparently
  
  
• The variants keep on coming i.e. A, B, and C
  
  

Can owners please comment on these practical problems.

---

Typo, True that's should read True, thanks SD

Excellent reply Paul.

It sometimes feels like I'm banging my head against a wall when I see how the advice or info that is posted up here is treated regarding comms especially , sometimes I try to play devils advocate and think along the lines of how can my info be used as a lever to negatively highlight a point being made , and I know for a fact that there are a few of us trying hard not to be too technical , but seemingly being ridiculed when it appears we are ?

Its like trying to learn someone how to build a brick wall over the internet - it wont work until the learner actually gets hands on experience.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back to your questions mate -

As regards drivers for those cables - Great site for info on UV-5R and driver links on it too.

I had very slight problems , only needed to update the driver windows had already installed , fine after that.
----------------

Colours - No pink I'm afraid , but other colours as LS says are available. , and in fact , complete housings are available to change with.

----------------

Dampness ? - the radios are not waterproof - you will need a cover or waterproof housing if using them in inclement weather , get the radio under cover and invest in a rain-proof ( not totally waterproof ! ) speaker mic.

----------------

Batt levels.

On standby -i.e power on , but receiving only , no TX , I've managed 3 to 4 days - nearly 90 hours of life.
Mixed use - 2 to 3 days.
Constant TX - and I mean after around 5 or 6 hours transmitting regularly, it still had a bit of power left.

The battery pack case is readily available , I will have one shortly.
---------------

Help using the UV-5R ? - stop being modest mate .

I know you're a diehard freebander - this radio will not give you any hassles at all -
squelch codes ? - for those who want or need only IMHO...tone burst for repeater access - press 2 buttons simultaneously for a micro second ( after inputting the correct tone burst freq in the software - simple to do , it really is. )
Arm yourself with the information regarding your local repeaters beforehand - young uns might want to know theres an android app called REPEATER that gives you all your local details, freqs , tone burst freq etc - input them into the software ( its basically an excel sheet ! ) and away you go.

Better still - get in touch with any one of us who have the radio , tell us what you want , and we can send you a .dat file which the software will recognise and install onto your radio - double click - jobs a good un.

You are well aware of how surprised I've been with its performance, it is a very useful item to have , and when TSHTF it will be invaluable.

----------------------
Marine Radio ? - the UV-5R does most of those frequencies too.

[The Local Ned]

One other point , and I will make it my very last public contribution to the comms debate.

Before anyone else is put off by the negativity that seems to be going around at the moment...especially regarding amateur style handhelds and their 'reliance' on repeaters.

Most repeaters are at as high a vantage point as possible.

They are sometimes already 'off the grid' as due to their remote locations - there are no power facilities close enough.
Some are generator powered , others have small wind turbines or have PV panels fixed to trickle charge.

After the grid goes down - both my 2 nearest repeaters should still be operational as they have alternative power setups already , and another is intermittent as its batteries recharge.

Another point to note - HAMs are also preppers in their own fashion - MOST of them practically live for the chance to help aid as primary comms during some form of disaster , their setups are geared towards power down scenarios and their RAYNET thing is already in an advanced form , with operating procedures already established.

Even with no repeaters these small dual band radios are still good for local patrol comms , forget about the silly PMR446 on 0.5w you can buy out of argos etc , invest in a UV-5R.

Please be aware of this when making your mind up to buy a UHF/VHF radio.