FJ Cruisers of Northern California

What kind of radio (communication) do you use?

I noticed many people on the trail had radios. What type do most people use? CB or the two way handheld? I am trying to decide what to get to be compatible with the most people.

I have Motorola T5200 two way radios already, but I was thinking about getting a handheld CB. Maybe a Midland 75 822.

Let me know what would be best.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by daPitbull on December 22, 2008 at 8:09am

It's a good idea to have both. I typically use a cb. Not everyone has a cb, espicially on the larger runs.

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Permalink Reply by 5AND5TORM on December 22, 2008 at 9:11am

I to am curious to know what others have, and what they think of it.
All I have right now are some crappy Cobra FRS/GMRS radios. I plan to get a CB some time soon. I think I might get the Cobra 75 WX ST, for it's compact size.

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Permalink Reply by potatomutato on December 22, 2008 at 10:26am

a couple folks run the Cobras and like them. i will eventually get either CB or ham radio, but will keep my FRS/GMRS radios for convenience. i always like to have radio contact when i get out of the rig, so i may look into getting a handheld CB too.

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Permalink Reply by cypilk on December 22, 2008 at 2:08pm

I have a cb.. and sometimes a frs

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Permalink Reply by PBn'FJ on December 22, 2008 at 3:26pm

I have both an FRS and CB radio. The FRS gets more use since only 6 or 7 of us have CB's right now. A CB will have a longer range than your T5200 Motorola but the convenience of the FRS is great when hopping in and out of the rig.

Boss and I both have the Midland 75-822 and I am happy with mine. The form factor/size and features are very close to the Cobra 75 WXST with the added benefit of being able to turn it into a battery powered handheld. Keep an eye out for a CB set up and you can get everything you need for $150 to $200, installation of a CB is easy.

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Permalink Reply by GRM on December 22, 2008 at 8:35pm

This has been my experience, and a large generalization.

Newcomers to the offroading world use FRS radios.

1+ years experience use CB's.

Anyone doing any kind of expedition wheeling use Ham radios.

I also think the 75 WX ST is junk. It has very little transmitting power. If every person in your group has one, you would never notice it. Although, when someone shows up with a CB like the 29 LTD, they will overpower your CB, and be more clear.

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Permalink Reply by cypilk on December 23, 2008 at 1:26am

I have a 29 LTD, and it seems as though it doesn't work as well close range as it does far. C4B was testing this out with me and we noticed that when we were far away, it was fine. Once we got closer at at stoplight or something, my voice became choppy. Have you ever heard of this?

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Permalink Reply by opg4759 on December 23, 2008 at 8:58am

this is due to the front end of the radio being overdriven. CB's have a hard time with close communications since the receiver front ends are really sensitive to try and draw in transmissions from distance.

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Permalink Reply by cypilk on December 24, 2008 at 7:52pm

So, how do I fix it?

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Permalink Reply by opg4759 on December 25, 2008 at 1:24am

you really can't you just have to give some distance. It's part of the design of the radio. Some radios have switchable attunator (sp?) that allows you to decrees the sensitivity of the front end of the radio. However the 29 LTD does not have this option.

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Permalink Reply by opg4759 on December 23, 2008 at 8:57am

SInce I'm the radio guru let me elaborate.

CB Is a Low Band AM form of communication 11meters to be exact. All legal CB radios are the same power 4.5 watts doesn't matter is it's a all in one unit like the cobra 75 or a monster 29lt, what you are getting in the larger form factor tends to be a bit better receiver (front end), but since CB is the lowest common dominator of communications these days they radios over all no matter what you get tend not to be the greatest quality. Also antenna match and grounding are key with CB. You cab have a $500 radio and if your antenna isn't matched right it's not going to work well if at all. THings of note with CB( any radio install for that matter) your coax length is critical for a good match and if you have extra you do not coil it. Coiling coax while looking clean acts as a RF choke and will play holy hell on your match. I only run CB on larger outings just to make sure that I can talk to everyone if need be, but I really don't like listening to it all day long since the AM static and overall audio quality get annoying after awhile.

FRS/GMRSFRS/GMRS is a relatively new form of communications in the last 12 years, FRS is a splinter of the GMRS(General Mobile Radio Service) It runs in FM mode in the 462 &467 mhz UHF band. Now a simple FRS handheld vs a correctly setup CB won't have the same overall range since it's limited to 500milliwats compared to 4.5 watts., however I feel FRS has some advantages 1. form factor a FRS hand held is 100x better then a CB handheld when it comes to form factor and battery consumption. 2. As mentioned before they are great spotter radios since your spotter can have one with him to communicate in low visibility situations. 3. FM - just like your car stereo if easier to listen to people on FM over AM for long periods of time. 4. Can be used for other activities outside the truck around camp, on the slopes, at sporting events to find out where the best tailgate to crash is, etc. 5. You can upgrade to GMRS. 6. CTCSS squelch. the NorCal FJs run channel 7 code 31. Code 31 is a sub-audio tone at 192.8hz that once your radio hears that tone will open up the squelch, it helps reduce random chatter from other users that our not in the same group.
GMRS I have this as part of FRS because FRS is based on the talk around or simplex channels that GMRS had as part of it's band plan for years. NOw what makes it different is that GMRS is a licensed service meaning you have to fill out a form and submit it to the FCC with a check for $85 this does cover your household(so for example if Bossquatch got a GMRS license it would not only cover him but his wife and little bossquatch and the future bossguatch). Now what does this get you. You can now run up to 5 watts on the FRS channels 1-7 channels 8-14 are reserved for low power FRS. Another cool thing is you can now use repeaters and mobile radios and have external antennas and run up to 50 watts of power. Repeaters are great since it will extend your range greatly. You do have to check with the repeater owners to see if they will allow you access though. Here in the Bay Area I have access to a few GMRS machines and have been asked to bring more traffic on a couple of them.

Ham Radio As most of you know I am a Ham operator and have promoted the use and licensing of new Ham on the blue room from time to time. Ham is the most versatile of the 3 mentioned prior. You can get a ham rig that will operate from all modes AM/FM/SSB/CW/RTTY 160 meter(just above your am broadcast band) to 10 meters that also has 6 meters, 2 meters, and 440 cm. (did your head explode yet). For most practical purposes most people in the off-road world run a mobile(fixed installation dual band(2m/440), tri-band (6m,2m,440) or even quad band radios (10m,6m,2m,440). It just depends on what you want to spend. If you didn't want to go the mobile route the HT(Handy Talkie) radios are just as full featured but with a bit less power 5 watts compared to 50 watts. The ability to use repeaters in Ham Radio is a driving factor for a lot of people. On a 23 repeater system I'm on I can be in San Jose and talk to people in Fernly ,NV or down to San Louis Obispo or up to Shasta as well as folks in the Bay and Santa Cruz. Like FRS these radios run on FM mostly, but due to the larger wave length have a longer range and better penetration even 440 which is a slightly larger wave length then 462mhz. As far as use you have to have a Ham license to use these radios, this license requires a test and a 6 -10 dollar testing fee and the license is good for 10 years and just has to be renewed with no further tests or money. Now I know a lot of you are saying I don't know morse code and I can't learn it. Well cheer up Bucky morse code is no longer required for any of the 3 license levels (Tech,General,Extra) different classes gain you more privileges for example a tech can't operate below 6 meters, where as a General and Extra can, I've been a Tech class ham for 15 years and I don't miss talking on HF I spend most of my time on 440.

So the moral to the story.
We encourage most people to come out to runs with at least a FRS/GMRS handheld, this will allow communications for everyone in a convoy. This is the least intrusive way to have comms and generally the cheapest these days as well as useful outside the rig.

CB radio is a nice to have but understand most people in the group haven't spent the time to install a radio and antenna. Great for longer trips or really large gatherings like Ouray or Surf and Turf.

Ham Radio - there is a little bit of commitment required to get in but once your in the radio choices are amazing. There are a few features I haven't mentioned in print that I will bring up at a meeting and great about ham radio.

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Permalink Reply by CA Annie on December 23, 2008 at 10:53am

We've got both. We've got that Midland handheld CB, plugs into the cig lighter, and the sound is almost always better with that.

On a SoCal Mojave Desert run, it was strictly CB's, they told us right up front. The guys in the front and end of the groups had HAM.

Mark and I like the Motorola's, too, because we do some photo set-ups where we both need a radio. He'll drive up and around to a point, and I'll tell him just how to line up for the shot. Also hiking, in case we get separated (I've gotten turned around in the woods on a potty break, once) :)