Non HAM/Non CB radios?

KM4DWS

KM4DWS

Adventurist
Have you heard of 'Rugged Radios'? They seem to be selling the cheap China imports then programming them for 'off road' use... What the ____ are they talking about?

Then they talk about 'Race Frequencies' but normally that is commercially controlled?

Are any of you using FRS? or some other non-HAM and non-CB Frequency?
 
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What do you mean by none?
FRS are the store bought walkie talkies. Then people upgrade to CB radios and start messing with antennas. Then they upgrade to a cell phone quality sounding HAM radio.
Rugged Radios will modify certain radios to be "race radios". This means they can transmit at 150+ MHz. Mostly, they preprogram channels that have been being used for a long time like BFG Pits, Baja Pits, Weatherman, and others (including your own team's choice)
It's one of those situations that you're right, it's commercially controlled, but nobody has gotten in trouble for it yet. Plus you get into the fact that your US 2m license isn't a Mexican permit...etc etc.
Not saying my Kenwood TM-281a is modified or anything though :spy
 
I believe he meant "non-ham, non-CB". Probably an auto correct.

The FCC power limitations on the FRS and CB limit legal usage for extended range comm. That is one reason why they are not as popular as ham for overland type use. But ham is limited by the requirement to get a license. Again, based on legal use.
 
I don't now anything about picking a diode off the circuit board to allow transmitting at 150Mhz and above on a HAM radio. It's a vicious rumor I say.:jollyroger
 
Rugged radios is a shit company fyi. Pci race radios is a better company to deal with if youre looking for a race radio.

2m radios work once modded, but the freq bleed when down in baja will really piss off some of the giys actually running on race channels.

I have an ft 2900 with a freq tx mod.

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I run two radios in my truck, one is a PCI Icom, the other is a modded Kenwood. The Icom has pre programmed race channels, and is my primary radio, I use the Kenwood when I need a frequency not on the Icom.

Coming from a bunch of broke ass rock crawlers, we originally used marine radios when playing in the rocks. They had better range than CB's, highly illegal. Since that is what we had, we used them when we first started racing in Jeepspeed, later going to modded 2m radios, and finally true race radios.

No experience with Rugged, I've got people in low places at PCI, so they get my business (well, not for the Kenwood, the Weatherman has a conniption fit when he hears about modded radios)
 
Dave, Thanks... That is what I meant.

So I am assuming that they are running these radios in the 'Business Bands' and it is just 'over looked' for the most part.

I will stick with my HAM and deal with CB when I am in a group for now.
 
You can "stick with your ham," but you won't be able to talk to any of the desert guys. Business band is essential in the west.


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Trophycummins,

That is the type of info I need...

I am looking for a 'single' radio that I could use for the majority of my needs but it seems that is a taller order than I thought. For now I have a little 'unlocked' china import that can get to the business bands (anyone have a link to channel/freq chart for these classically used channels as mentioned above).
 
KM4DWS said:
Trophycummins,

That is the type of info I need...

I am looking for a 'single' radio that I could use for the majority of my needs but it seems that is a taller order than I thought. For now I have a little 'unlocked' china import that can get to the business bands (anyone have a link to channel/freq chart for these classically used channels as mentioned above).
Click to expand...

Everyone in the desert is either using 2m ham or business band. If you have an unlocked 2m radio, you're set. That's why I run a yaesu ft2900.

Just don't use it on business band when spectating an actual race because it disturbs the comms of actual race teams.


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KM4DWS said:
Trophycummins,

That is the type of info I need...

I am looking for a 'single' radio that I could use for the majority of my needs but it seems that is a taller order than I thought. For now I have a little 'unlocked' china import that can get to the business bands (anyone have a link to channel/freq chart for these classically used channels as mentioned above).
Click to expand...

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There are an awful lot of good condition, retired police and fire radios out there right now. Good finds can be had on ebay among other places.

For VHF stuff like trophycummins posted above I use Kenwood professional radios. Most will do 136-174MHz (Covers 2M HAM, business, itinerant and MURS) and programming software is cheap/free and easy to work with. The professional models will take weather/abuse far better than the amateur models or china radios.

A few that I use are the TK-280, TK-290 and TK-2180. The former two can be found used for less than $100, the latter about $200-250. All are 5W transmit.

Hope this helps.
 
Remember that if you hold some sort of FCC license and are caught operating non-certified radios off-band then you could lose your license. If you aren't licensed then technically you could be fined/charged, but I don't know if that has happened as of late for this sort of thing. For instance the Baofeng and variously named clones dual band and tri band handhelds aren't cleared to operate on FRS or GMRS bands (part 90 certification). The same with modifying other radios to transmit out of band. I'm not saying that everyone doesn't do it, I'm just saying discussing doing such things in a public forum may not be the best idea if you're a licensed operator.
 
WUZombies said:
Remember that if you hold some sort of FCC license and are caught operating non-certified radios off-band then you could lose your license. If you aren't licensed then technically you could be fined/charged, but I don't know if that has happened as of late for this sort of thing. For instance the Baofeng and variously named clones dual band and tri band handhelds aren't cleared to operate on FRS or GMRS bands (part 90 certification). The same with modifying other radios to transmit out of band. I'm not saying that everyone doesn't do it, I'm just saying discussing doing such things in a public forum may not be the best idea if you're a licensed operator.
Click to expand...

FWIW, the radios I listed above are all part 90, will work on the listed VHF freqs (Not FRS/GMRS though) without modification and can be limited to 1 watt through programming.
 
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