Outdoor Adventure USA

hey all,

Im going to be holding an exploration meet at the end of the month, and i need to buy a couple of pairs of FRS radios to hand out so our group can split up and keep communications. We are going to be in a large complex down in the Port of Los Angeles where Brotherhood Raceway used to be, MCAS El Toro, and MCAS Tustin. What is a nice FRS radio i can buy for under $30 a pair? They need to work in hangars and large structures with lots of metal and concrete, and have nice distance capability in the wide open.

I've never had a bubblepack FRS that worked very well. The sound quality even at short ranges is not very good. The bubblepack GMRS is a little better sound quality and gives more range, but still not really good.

I have not seen FRS-only units for quite a while, except in the toy section. Most units now include GMRS with the warning on the package that you need a license to use the GMRS frequencies. Getting them for less than $30/pair is going to be a challenge.

A good place for reviews of FRS/GMRS radios is Popular Wireless, which is a site that was started to discuss GMRS.

Thanks for that info. After i posted last night, i read a little about FRS/GMRS and decided all we really need is FRS. Wal Mart may be my best bet. Keep in mind im handing these out to individuals who i know well, and some i dont. Nothing expensive is required here

big dave wrote:hey all,

Im going to be holding an exploration meet at the end of the month, and i need to buy a couple of pairs of FRS radios to hand out so our group can split up and keep communications. We are going to be in a large complex down in the Port of Los Angeles where Brotherhood Raceway used to be, MCAS El Toro, and MCAS Tustin. What is a nice FRS radio i can buy for under $30 a pair? They need to work in hangars and large structures with lots of metal and concrete, and have nice distance capability in the wide open.

Honestly, I don't think you're going to find anything with that capacity for under $30 a pair - maybe not even $30. each. Steel and concrete will limit transmission ability and affect reception range and direction - most very inexpensive radios will not work well in this situation. The Midland GX600 series radios work reasonably well, but will cost you about $80-100. a pair. This would be a great opportunity see how well amateur radiocan work, but obviously too expensive and requires licenses...

Good luck on your search, and test the radios in a similar environment before you use them for your event...

Another option may be a MURS radio, but they are difficult to find. Amazon has a pair for under $30, but I have no knowledge of the quality.

MURS allows up to 2W and is unlicensed.

MURS is interesting, i spent an hour this morning reading about it after reading your post. I think im going to go with cheap FRS radios from a cheap store like Wal Mart, and hope for the best. Something is better than nothing. I think we will be fine in the open hangars.

PS, if anyone from OAUSA would like to come, you are welcome if you are adventurey and feel ballsy

big dave wrote:MURS is interesting, i spent an hour this morning reading about it after reading your post. I think im going to go with cheap FRS radios from a cheap store like Wal Mart, and hope for the best. Something is better than nothing. I think we will be fine in the open hangars.

PS, if anyone from OAUSA would like to come, you are welcome if you are adventurey and feel ballsy

I think you'll be fine if it's mostly inside a huge hanger area.

What is the exploration meet about ???

Steel and concrete in many circumstances will completely block your signal.

Will you have an opportunity to test before the event?

unwiredadventures wrote:Steel and concrete in many circumstances will completely block your signal.

Will you have an opportunity to test before the event?

You are right. The event was last weekend, and we had zero reception from one bunker to the other. I figured, its common sense. I wouldnt be an adventurer if i didnt try though.

big dave wrote:

unwiredadventures wrote:Steel and concrete in many circumstances will completely block your signal.

Will you have an opportunity to test before the event?

You are right. The event was last weekend, and we had zero reception from one bunker to the other. I figured, its common sense. I wouldnt be an adventurer if i didnt try though.

The problem is not using FRS, it's the power and antenna restrictions of the FRS class of radios.

FRS radios use UHF frequencies similar to that of police and fire departments, who have no trouble transmitting through buildings and structures. But their radios are licenced to allow for substantially more transmission power (usually a minimun of 10x an FRS radio), and use higher quality antennas that afford even more signal gain effectively acting like an additional amplifier.

Yet another reason to consider studying for your ham ticket - more powerful, more flexible radios that will work in situations unlicensed class radios simply cannot...