39.400mhz Who could it be...

[digitalanalog]

I have just recently been getting this freq coming in on my scanners.
It's normally my local PD channel,and has been for years, but now all the sudden (last couple months or so)
i am getting some distant reception on what sounds like another PD.

I live at the border of Columbiana and Mahoning County in Northeast Ohio.

I have scanned (limit searched) this freq and some times it's clear but mostly its hit and miss, it also at times sounds like it's off freq but limit searches up and down find nothing.

No call signes have ever been herd, but clearly dispatch and unit's are responding and some times i can clearly hear both dispatch and responding cars.

The best I can GUESS is Lakewood ohio but that is Well out of my scan area (or i would certainly think so) i do not have any ctcss capable scanners at this time so that information is not available to me.

Anyone in the Columbiana county,Mahoning county or even trumbull county area able to pick this up and maybe tell me WHO this is?
Thanks
Jim

 

[SCPD]

Lakewood Ohio is on a 460 MHz system. I don't think they would be on low-band. Probably skip from somewhere else.

 

[SCPD]

Searching the FCC database show a few 39.4's in OH near you and lots in California.

Site / Frequency / Market Search Results

 

[digitalanalog]

After monitoring all afternoon, I have found it to be several (up to 6) agencies out of California.

the transmissions are very clear at times and after plotting on google earth some of there cross road locations and state route numbers, it is certain it is coming out of California.

Now the problem is How to Block out the Massive Skip without blocking out my local PD's extremely low powered and OLD system on the same frequency.........

 

[Bucko]

Does your scanner do PL tones? If so there is your answer providing your local PD use's a tone. I have the same problem here on UHF, WVIRP hammers my local Fire and SO freqs and have to use the PL tones.

 

[digitalanalog]

No, none of my scanners have any of those type capabilities, I only use old school analog scanners, they sound a whole lot better and do everything i need them to do, Plus the area i am in is about 98% analog systems, not worth buying a digital scanner just to listen to that 2 % .

 

[LZ56]

Such long distance skip should be only sporadic and temporary. If it becomes a real nuisance, a beam or log-periodic antenna pointed at your local PD should help, unless it's in the same direction as California. But such antennas can be physically large and a pain to erect. See:

VHF/UHF Antennas

 

[BCFlash]

I remember years ago it seemed like every sheriff's dept. in the midwest and south was on 39.5; when the skip was rolling in you could hear depts. from all over. It was interesting at times, but covered up the local traffic more than you wanted it to.

 

[Maxwell21]

Im having the same issue but on 39.36. This is my local SO's lowband they used as well, now all of a sudden im getting mass amounts of other CLEAR traffic. But yet no call signs my way as well

 

[monitor142]

39.36 is used by CA Highway Patrol; Green-1 which is for Southern Orange County in Southern California.

CHP San Juan Capistrano office. PL is 162.2 if you can scan PL tones.

-M142

 

[GTR8000]

Now the problem is How to Block out the Massive Skip without blocking out my local PD's extremely low powered and OLD system on the same frequency.........

Well, the good news is that it looks like Leetonia PD uses a PL of 156.7 on 39.40, so if you were so inclined you could acquire a scanner that features CTCSS and block out the skip. The not so good news is that, if the skip is coming in clear enough that it's actually overwhelming the local PD's signal, the PL isn't going to make much difference if their signal never makes it to your scanner clearly.

For what it's worth, you don't need to spend $500 on a digital scanner just to get CTCSS capabilities. There are a few low cost analog scanners that have that feature, and you can also find some decent used ones on eBay for even less, or refurbished models from Radio Shack.

The GRE PSR-200U is a 200 channel desktop model with CTCSS that's $78 brand new, by far the most affordable new scanner with CTCSS. Or the full featured GRE PSR-310 (handheld) and PSR-410 (base/mobile) can be had for $150 brand new.

 

[Maxwell21]

39.36 is used by CA Highway Patrol; Green-1 which is for Southern Orange County in Southern California.

CHP San Juan Capistrano office. PL is 162.2 if you can scan PL tones.

-M142

I have been listening to the same area on my scanner for years. It still just amazes me that I can hear CA highway Patrol on a lowband freq, but yet I cant hear my own county mobile units on lowband.

 

[Eznuff575]

I can remember hearing OCD (Orange County Dispatch, California) on a low band freq. Took a while to figure out it was skip by the time they said when dispatching... this was in the late 80's early 90's

 

[W8UU]

California is unique in their use of fixed low band repeaters. You don't see a lot of these in use for a number of technical and logistical reasons in most places, but California seems to have them everywhere. The pairing is usually 39 MHz / 42MHz on output vs. input. This is why mobiles are so easy to hear. You're actually hearing the mobile's audio retransmitted by a mountaintop base station.

Rick, W8UU