2-Way Radio recommendations for Gun Range?

[mroper3]

Nothing works better than your cell phone!!!

 

[Brians356]

Line of sight vs the 30ft thick berm at the target pits though?

You need to learn something about radio waves as opposed to light beams. In particular "ground wave propagation". Think of radio waves as sound waves and a light may dawn.
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[Brians356]

Nothing works better than your cell phone!!!

Not as a "two-way radio". If you stop paying the phone bill, transmission fails. If you or your buddy are out of cell coverage, ditto. My cell phone will fail soon because of network upgrades. A power outage can take down a cell network.
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[dgeesaman]

Nothing works better than your cell phone!!!

At many ranges there is no cell service.

 

[dgeesaman]

You need to learn something about radio waves as opposed to light beams. In particular "ground wave propagation". Think of radio waves as sound waves and a light may dawn.
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My understanding of radio wave transmission, reflection, refraction, and diffusion is not the problem. I also understand that true line-of-sight is about the best case for signal strength.

Your post refers to "line-of-sight" twice without any specifics. I was asking if you would confirm how your experiences were sufficiently similar to a 1000-yard range target pit. Maybe they were, and by asking for more details I was tossing you a big softball.

David

 

[rkittine]

During the Space Shuttle Flights, there was almost always a HAM on board. I worked the Space Shuttle at least 6 times with a Hand Help 5 Watt Radio. Line of Sight is just that. At this higher frequencies there is no Bounce off the ionisphere and ground wave is close to useless. Not that there can not be anything in between each of you, but if you can see each other even as a speck, you should be able to talk to each other with a Personal Band Radio. May or may not work with you down in a pit behind dirt, concrete and steel.

Bob

 

[Brians356]

Your post refers to "line-of-sight" twice without any specifics. I was asking if you would confirm how your experiences were sufficiently similar to a 1000-yard range target pit. Maybe they were, and by asking for more details I was tossing you a big softball.

David

In the rugged treeless terrain I typically hunt in, I've often had a big hill or ridge, a hundred or more feet tall, solid granite, between me and a partner's FRS handheld. The only reason we even carry radios is the liklihood of interceding terrain.
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[Nick Caprinolo]

This is not brain surgery. You don't need a Rolls Royce type of radio. UHF radios can be bought for pennies today. At the range, there are few situations where you need radios that will go thru walls and other obstructions.

UHF is not entirely restricted to Ham Radio and not all frequencies require a licenses to operate.

These would probably work fine for your purpose. If not they are returnable.

Amazon.com: Case of 10,Retevis RT21 Two Way Radios Long Range Rechargeable, Heavy Duty Walkie Talkies for Adults, VOX Security Handfree 2 Way Radios with Earpiece, for Commercial Organization

Amazon.com: Case of 10,Retevis RT21 Two Way Radios Long Range Rechargeable, Heavy Duty Walkie Talkies for Adults, VOX Security Handfree 2 Way Radios with Earpiece, for Commercial Organization

www.amazon.com

 

[Racebannon3855]

During the Space Shuttle Flights, there was almost always a HAM on board. I worked the Space Shuttle at least 6 times with a Hand Help 5 Watt Radio. Line of Sight is just that. At this higher frequencies there is no Bounce off the ionisphere and ground wave is close to useless. Not that there can not be anything in between each of you, but if you can see each other even as a speck, you should be able to talk to each other with a Personal Band Radio. May or may not work with you down in a pit behind dirt, concrete and steel.

Bob

Agreed. I listen to the Space Shuttle with a home made antenna and radios I have bought at yard sales and repaired. It is really easy to build an antenna and then use an adapter to hook it to a hand held. When we do weather balloon launches we use Kenwood TH-74s and APRS to track the balloon. It is amazing what can be done with a hand held. The ISS got a new radio last fall, I have not listened to them talk on it but I have pinged it on APRS.

The other brands also work well, they seem to be a little trickier to program. If you are not programming you have nothing to worry about. Several of the kids that have gotten their licenses with us have the Baofeng radios and they work great for talking. I have not tried them on unlicensed frequencies, no reason to think they would not work well. You might just need to add a taller antenna.

 

[CaptainMal]

Just bought a box of Retevis RB18's for the Manatee 600 range. They are FRS radios. Each is simple, simple to use with lithium ion batteries and pre-programmed and varied codes for each channel. I had to figure out the access codes and program some of my other FRS radios to "talk" with them.

There should be no interference from other radios in the area, though doubt there even are other radios in the area. Line of sight is not an issue. I drove way over 1,000 yards in testing and had perfect coverage through trees and a couple houses to a radio inside my house. These are a simple on-off model with charging done by a single and common usb line to any normal charger or outlet on a power strip. Best thing is they are waterproof and cost me about $18 each on Ebay.

No license for FRS, usable (not sure about the 30 ft. berm though so test first) and SIMPLE for the shooters and staff given one to use. Don't discount that KISS principal. If it is not simple to use you will always be dealing with issues.