• You can now help support WorldwideDX when you shop on Amazon at no additional cost to you! Simply follow this Shop on Amazon link first and a portion of any purchase is sent to WorldwideDX to help with site costs.
  • Click here to find out how to win free radios from Retevis!

Wild & Crazy Idea

The Will to Survive is installed in most of us and not be passive sheep who are lead off to the gas chamber. Most of my thoughts have been about stupid Rag Head Terrorist wanting to do their dirty work on our ground. But the intentions of the thread was to learn more about radios.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rwb and kopcicle
But the intentions of the thread was to learn more about radios.
I'll elaborate then.

lowest common denominators are 11m and GMRS/FRS.

This bit is based on numbers alone. There are more blister pack GMRS/FRS and CB radios in existence than any others. There are many 12v sources even if it becomes a stationary bicycle and an alternator. The 460MHZ rice radios are better served with a solar panel/car charger for cell phone. it's just the default option.

Real communication will be HF bands , 160, 80,40 , 20m. There will be stubborn hold outs on 2m and 70cm until the backup power runs dry. The wild card as always is 6m .


Again, it's about numbers. Many general coverage radios exist and most require 12v. They're 120v counterparts won't be as useful but shouldn't be ignored. Aside from the Bonafide Whackadoodles from amateur radio's lunitic fringe, don't discount or ignore the resourcefulness of the community. Okay, even the whackadoodles have their moments, just don't give then the keys to the asylum.

Beyond the numbers there are the bands themselves. Long distance communications are only possible with an extensive relay net or the distances covered by HF radio.

So for my $$ and sense M0NKA, uBitx, uSDX, and/or any QRP general coverage xcvr that is widely community supported.


This is and has been for a while an interesting area of amateur radio. There have been many competing and collaborating projects over the last ten years. All are centered around portability, general coverage, ease of use, flexible power requirements, low current drain, and high efficiency. Any of the above projects deserve a deep dive. I figure if you are interested you won't need links to find them.


a PLL02A or uPD858, MB8719, a few blister back crap radios.

The most frequency agile radios of the 11m class are the PLL02A (SSB and AM) with only manipulation of the binary input coding needed to modify them.
The uPD858 radios are a bit more obscure but their BCD coding is a little different. With the MB8719 radios we're back to binary coding and the 11.1125/11.3258 crystal swap. For more interesting modifications ask a panda.
(for those that haven't been playing along at home for the last few years search the forum for a post I made containing the word panda)

Solar panels until the batteries evaporate ....

I should have said "solar panels OR until the batteries evaporate"
Solar panels need either some type of buffer like a storage battery or farad class capacitor in line with some sort or regulator on the output. Should infrastructure collapse, battery technology becomes a finite resource.
regulation can be found in some wall warts and again in vehicle charging systems. In the end louvers or venetian blinds over the solar panel might be the regulator.

boring you yet ?
 
Exactly. I’ve never seen a 12m only radio so not sure just why the question about which radio to convert.
If you go back to the original question and look closer it explains the question is ask by someone with NO Ham knowledge or experience and is trying to learn something about the selection of radios so I don't just buy radios with out knowing what I'm doing. Everyone has got to start somewhere and a forum is a good place to learn.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rwb
Communications will be important, but most will be SOL when the power grid goes down or the Energizer Bunny dies.
I personally have multiple Solar panels and storage batteries but nothing last forever. If things really got bad people would start stealing batteries. One thing for sure I'm not going to lose any sleep over it, or start building a Bunker. LOL
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rwb
If you go back to the original question and look closer it explains the question is ask by someone with NO Ham knowledge or experience and is trying to learn something about the selection of radios so I don't just buy radios with out knowing what I'm doing. Everyone has got to start somewhere and a forum is a good place to learn.


Well since those 10/12m radios are not really ham radios and are really just designed as CB radios with extra frequencies and power, the fact that someone has no ham radio experience really had no bearing on the issue as I saw it.
 
Well since those 10/12m radios are not really ham radios and are really just designed as CB radios with extra frequencies and power, the fact that someone has no ham radio experience really had no bearing on the issue as I saw it.
When a normal CB hand sees "10/12 meter" they think HAM radio. They don't have the slightest clue about the type of radio used, much less "just designed as CB radios with extra frequencies and power." If it's not a 29LTD, 949/959 or the such they think it's HAM rig. Most of them don't even understand that a radio that splatters doesn't mean it's hyper powerful., even SWR and propagation boggles many of their brains, so radio design/types totally eludes the average hobbyist. It's no different than these kids today thinking a car with a manual trans is a ultra high performance version of the same car with an auto trans.....They just don't know.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Crawdad
Actually, the radios do not replace a band with 11m, they are expanded to include 11m. I would get an expandable 10m radio.
HomerBB gave me probably the simplest explanation to my question. I belong to several radio forums and got involved with CBs back in the early to mid 70s but never had much money to spend on the hobby because of life's demands. It was always a dream to be able to talk skip so in retirement here I am working on my Bucket List but I might only buy 1 more radio because there is other things on my Bucket List also. If i buy 1 more radio I want to make sure it is the Right 1. There is a lot of Hype & Opinions in the radio world and a half dozen forums and buying a Lemon like that McKinley is enough to Pizz a guy off but I am old and wise enough to know that once in while your bound to just get a bad apple. Happy DXing !
 

dxChat
Help Users
  • No one is chatting at the moment.