Ham Question: SAR guys what are you using?

irish_11

irish_11

Explorer
So here is the deal. I don't have my license yet, but I am looking at taking a class with my local club next month. I am looking through options on radios and equipment. Ideally I would like to volunteer for my County's 4x4 Search and Rescue club. I have taken all my FEMA courses, have my CPR/First Aid certs, and the Technicians license is the last thing on my list before I want to apply.

I have been doing some research. I am looking for a mobile rig to put in my FJ62. I know the FT-2900 is a great starter radio, but with what I am looking at doing with it I am thinking the FT-7900 or FT-8800 might be more useful. Thoughts?

I am thinking of using a Comet SBB-5NMO on a Diamond K400 or Comet CP-5 mount. This setup seems like it will work for the cruiser and will not lead to me having to drill any holes.

I am looking for opinions. Go easy on me I am just starting to learn all this stuff. I have my AARL License Manual and have been studying up, but I think the class will help me more.

Thanks,
-Irish
 
S

srch4me

Adventurer
irish_11 said:
So here is the deal. I don't have my license yet, but I am looking at taking a class with my local club next month. I am looking through options on radios and equipment. Ideally I would like to volunteer for my County's 4x4 Search and Rescue club. I have taken all my FEMA courses, have my CPR/First Aid certs, and the Technicians license is the last thing on my list before I want to apply.

I have been doing some research. I am looking for a mobile rig to put in my FJ62. I know the FT-2900 is a great starter radio, but with what I am looking at doing with it I am thinking the FT-7900 or FT-8800 might be more useful. Thoughts?

I am thinking of using a Comet SBB-5NMO on a Diamond K400 or Comet CP-5 mount. This setup seems like it will work for the cruiser and will not lead to me having to drill any holes.

I am looking for opinions. Go easy on me I am just starting to learn all this stuff. I have my AARL License Manual and have been studying up, but I think the class will help me more.

Thanks,
-Irish
Click to expand...

I just took the tech test today and passed it after two Weeks studying. Are you on a budget for your radio? I like the 8800 for a starter radio. Eventually I want something with aprs in it though. The 8800 if I remember right can take your handheld signal and boost it. Acting like a repeater.

Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk 2
 
K5adt

K5adt

New member
Congratulations, yes the 8800 will act as a crossband repeater if you need it too. I have a 7900, I like it, good radio, I also have a VX8DR. For a mobile antenna, I have a Diamond SH7900A, awesome antenna.
 
L

LandCruiserPhil

Expedition Leader
K5adt said:
Congratulations, yes the 8800 will act as a crossband repeater if you need it too. I have a 7900, I like it, good radio, I also have a VX8DR. For a mobile antenna, I have a Diamond SH7900A, awesome antenna.
Click to expand...

Are you sure Diamond SH7900A is a good number??? I was curious and Googled it and lets just say no antenna came up. Eek!
 
1911

1911

Expedition Leader
irish_11 said:
So here is the deal. I don't have my license yet, but I am looking at taking a class with my local club next month. I am looking through options on radios and equipment. Ideally I would like to volunteer for my County's 4x4 Search and Rescue club. I have taken all my FEMA courses, have my CPR/First Aid certs, and the Technicians license is the last thing on my list before I want to apply.

I have been doing some research. I am looking for a mobile rig to put in my FJ62. I know the FT-2900 is a great starter radio, but with what I am looking at doing with it I am thinking the FT-7900 or FT-8800 might be more useful. Thoughts?

I am thinking of using a Comet SBB-5NMO on a Diamond K400 or Comet CP-5 mount. This setup seems like it will work for the cruiser and will not lead to me having to drill any holes.

I am looking for opinions. Go easy on me I am just starting to learn all this stuff. I have my AARL License Manual and have been studying up, but I think the class will help me more.

Thanks,
-Irish
Click to expand...

For SAR, you need to ask your county what frequencies they use. The county where I live is small, not very populous and hence cheap, so they use 2 meters pretty much exclusively for everything from storm spotting on up to SAR. There is also good repeater coverage here so with a decent antenna you are never out of range. The one exception is when we (ARES/RACES that is) get called up to work either wildfires or the county Emergency Operations Center; in that case they want you to have a General Class license or higher so that you can operate an HF radio but they have the radios they want you to use. Lots of larger counties/larger SAR organizations use commercial frequency radios for which they have a license, that you will need a special radio for.

Another thing to consider if you're serious about SAR is a good APRS setup, then you will be able to see in real time on a GPS (or the internet) the location of all other APRS rigs and they will be able to see where you are too. In that case you would want a true dual-band dual-receive radio. You can get them with a TNC (essentially a modem to connect your GPS to the radio) built in for this purpose, such as the Kenwood TM-D710A or the Yaesu FTM-350R.

You can spend as much money as you want to on mobile ham radio installations and they're all fun, but you need to check with your county before you get too carried away.

Good luck with your Technician license test! It's not that hard.
 
irish_11

irish_11

Explorer
Thanks for the input. I will reach out to them and see what they use. I figured I would get a jump start on it now since the next meeting is 3 weeks away. I know there are a few members of the King County 4x4 SAR on here so I figured that couldn't hurt as well.
 
Mtn Mike

Mtn Mike

Observer
It might be worth pointing our that licensed hams can legally use part 90 approved (commercial radios) on ham frequencies. But as it was pointed out, ham radios (part 97 approved) can not legally be used on any other frequencies. Therefor, a lot of hams that have access to public frequencies use part 90 radios to do both. You may find that your local SAR group is using a band or mode that's impractical for ham use (digital, or trunked), in which case the point is mute. But if the local authorities are still on good old fashion FM VHF, you can get a radio that does both ham and commercial very well. I've been using the Icom F5021 and Icom F3021 for both ham and commercial frequencies. They're bomb proof radios and I love them. Good luck on your test!
 
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irish_11

irish_11

Explorer
I'm still waiting to hear back on what they use. I found a black Friday deal on FT-7900r with the separation kit for $305 shipped and then there is a $20 mail in rebate. Not too bad. I picked it up for my own use. I figured it would be a nice piece of kit and a good way to get into the hobby.
 
cruiseroutfit

cruiseroutfit

Supporting Sponsor: Cruiser Outfitters
irish_11 said:
I'm still waiting to hear back on what they use. I found a black Friday deal on FT-7900r with the separation kit for $305 shipped and then there is a $20 mail in rebate. Not too bad. I picked it up for my own use. I figured it would be a nice piece of kit and a good way to get into the hobby.
Click to expand...

Mind sharing where you found it? Looking at the TM-D710A as I really like the APRS capabilities but the FT7900R looks like a nice setup too.
 
1911

1911

Expedition Leader
cruiseroutfit said:
Mind sharing where you found it? Looking at the TM-D710A as I really like the APRS capabilities but the FT7900R looks like a nice setup too.
Click to expand...

Kurt, I posted about the black friday sale at Ham Radio Outlet: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/88648-Black-Friday-sale-on-at-Ham-Radio-Outlet-11-23-12 but I think the sale may have been yesterday only, call them quick and see. They were selling the TM-D710A for $30-40 less than the very best internet/hamfest price I could get for mine three or four years ago!

I love my my TM-D710A, it's a great dual-band radio and the APRS is loads of fun. My family can see where I am at all times, and I can see other stations right on my GPS.

IMG_0734.jpg


http://aprs.fi/#!mt=roadmap&z=11&call=a%2FN5MUD-9&timerange=3600
 
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cruiseroutfit

cruiseroutfit

Supporting Sponsor: Cruiser Outfitters
1911 said:
Kurt, I posted about the black friday sale at Ham Radio Outlet: http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/88648-Black-Friday-sale-on-at-Ham-Radio-Outlet-11-23-12 but I think the sale may have been yesterday only, call them quick and see. They were selling the TM-D710A for $30-40 less than the very best internet/hamfest price I could get for mine three or four years ago!
Click to expand...

Ham Outlet has it on sale through Monday @ $489 which is $80 off their normal price. Remember what you paid back then? It was your post that made me start looking :D We are running the Kenwood TM-281A for our race radios in the truck now but I like the ability to ditch my standalone APRS RTG in favor of the dual band.
 
1911

1911

Expedition Leader
cruiseroutfit said:
Ham Outlet has it on sale through Monday @ $489 which is $80 off their normal price. Remember what you paid back then?
Click to expand...

I paid $525 for mine and that was a great price at the time.

I need to call you and order a 12/79 carb rebuild kit and secondary diaphragm; are you going to be in next week?

Lee
 
cruiseroutfit

cruiseroutfit

Supporting Sponsor: Cruiser Outfitters
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