2m or dual band?

[Outdooraholic]

I'm new to ham and am trying to decide if I need a dual band or if 2m would be more then enough for my needs. My goal is having communication in the event of unforeseen situations out on remote trails. I don't plan on hanging out on the radio for fun, or getting far into the hobby side of it. Simply a lifeline in the event of being stranded in the wilderness without cell service. This will be a mobile setup. I'm leaning towards 2m only but wanted your thoughts as to whether or not 70cm/440 would benefit my situation.

Also I'm open to radio and antenna recommendations. I'm looking for something with good bang for my buck. Obviously the equipment depends on deciding between single or dual band first.

Thanks!

 

[Airmapper]

2M will do well all around. I'd add 70cm if you want to keep your options open. Depends on your local ham resources.

Scan your local area, and any areas you like to travel on Repeaterbook and see what you have to work with.

Personally, in my area, having 70cm lets me key up a linked repeater that covers Bowling Green, KY, most of central Tennessee, and some of Alabama I think. So if I had 2M only I wouldn't have nearly the coverage if I get on there and really need to raise someone.

That said, this repeater is not exactly in a rural area...so it's not like it's strategically placed to help me much. Especially when you factor in 70cm does not have the range of 2M in most situations.

 

[prerunner1982]

If you can afford a dual band radio I would get one. If it has cross band repeat it would allow you to use an HT while on foot, which may be a good option to have depending on where your adventures take you.

When I was first looking at mobile radios I also thought a 2m only rig would be fine but later learned that there was a linked repeater system that covered half the state using 70cm. Saved a little longer and got a dual band radio.

Another benefit that I like about a dual band vs mono band is the remote head. Sure makes it easier to mount a radio in a vehicle with few options for mounting a complete bodied radio.

I see that the Amigo Link repeater system uses a little of both 2m and 70cm for their satellite repeaters.

https://35b8434a-a-62cb3a1a-s-sites...hK5l4hwNpRCpD4XLbGjs-drydaBnI=&attredirects=0

 

[Frdmskr]

I'm of the always dualband school. If you are in a group and someone is beaconing APRS on 2 the group can shift to 440. On the 440 side you can listen, but not transmit, to FRS/GMRS and do crossband with someone listening on an HT who cannot transmit for example.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Sabre]

For the reasons above I also like to have the dualband capability. I got licensed for exactly the same reason you describe, and am not a "ragchewer." I chose the Kenwood D710 and found one used online for a great price. I mounted a rooftop Larsen dualband antenna on an NMO mount and am very, very happy with it. I also carry an extra whip for 70 cm and one for 2 m "just in case" I need a bit better performance. They take up no room and provide peace of mind in case something breaks.

An incidental shoutout for APRS: I found the APRS function alone a tremendous safety backup. When the path is set up for use in remote areas (increasing the number of hops that packets will take) my family and friends back home have a real-time map display of where I've been (and usually where I am). If something goes wrong I can send APRS SMS text and/or email when the signal isn't strong enough for voice.

 

[Outdooraholic]

Thanks for the insite guys! I downloaded the repeaterbook app and was quite surprised how many repeaters are in my area. There are a lot more 2m but a good number of 70cm ones too, both in my local area and in more remote areas where I frequent. I took my technitians test this morning and scored 100%!

An incidental shoutout for APRS: I found the APRS function alone a tremendous safety backup. When the path is set up for use in remote areas (increasing the number of hops that packets will take) my family and friends back home have a real-time map display of where I've been (and usually where I am). If something goes wrong I can send APRS SMS text and/or email when the signal isn't strong enough for voice.

I really like the idea of being able to use APRS for this. What would I need to set that up in addition to radio/antenna? Just a GPS unit? Can basic radio models do this or is it an advanced feature?

 

[prerunner1982]

You can make a basic radio do APRS by adding an external TNC. I use a mobilinkd TNC with Bluetooth which connects to my Android tablet (or phone) running APRSDroid. The tablet/phone provides the GPS and also displays the info on a map/list. I currently use a Baofeng HT for APRS with an external antenna and somewhere with quite a few digipeaters this would work okay, but digipeaters are fewer here so I plan on upgrading to a full mobile radio for the extra watts. I will still use the mobilink and tablet though. I like the mobilnkd and tablet configuration as there are no additional wires and I can have a full feature APRS set up as apposed to a tracker only type setup with no screen or map.

APRSDroid list view:

Map view:

 

[vtsoundman]

Go Dual Band...

There is little reason not to go dual band ...except if you are trying to make the system as economical as possible. You can save $75-150 on a single band vs dual band radio.

My wife and I are both HAM operators...we need the dual bands for our various use cases.
- We tend to use 70cm for simplex while caravaning as there is less traffic on that band...
- When our non-ham friends are around, we will give them frs/GMRS radios (70cm) and can use our radios to communicate with them at camp or caravaning...
- When we are out hiking or camping in remote areas, we carry a hand held setup on our person for 70cm and use a cross band repeater (over to 2m ) located in our trucks. The truck mounted gear has better antennas, stronger radios, etc...and allows us to get into distant 2m repeaters which our handhelds would never hit...

Edit...APRS, I forgot about APRS. We use APRS as our locator for family/friends when we go way off grid. My wife really feels better when I ping an APRS repeater when I go solo backpacking...

 

[1Louder]

For those in the iOS world there is a newer app called APRS Pro. If you have cell coverage you can just use that. If not there are ways to connect a cheap handheld to your phone to make the app APRS capable as well. I have not attempted to do this yet though. They also have a way to connect a Spot or Delorme InReach to the app. I have the Kenwood D710 radio with APRS. Also, yes to dual band!

http://aprspro.com/v1/

 

[KG4NEL]

I'm new to ham and am trying to decide if I need a dual band or if 2m would be more then enough for my needs. My goal is having communication in the event of unforeseen situations out on remote trails. I don't plan on hanging out on the radio for fun, or getting far into the hobby side of it. Simply a lifeline in the event of being stranded in the wilderness without cell service. This will be a mobile setup. I'm leaning towards 2m only but wanted your thoughts as to whether or not 70cm/440 would benefit my situation.

Also I'm open to radio and antenna recommendations. I'm looking for something with good bang for my buck. Obviously the equipment depends on deciding between single or dual band first.

Thanks!

I've had my ham license for fifteen years, would recommend it to anyone, but...

I don't think that's going to be a great idea. 2m/70cm is going to be as limited to line-of-sight as cell phones are, and without HF you really have no good over-the-horizon option barring some great atmospheric conditions (which can't be relied upon). Even with HF, you have to be sure that someone is monitoring the frequency you're on and can summon help to where you are.