During the solar maximum in the late 70's I picked up an ambulance running code 3 in Portland, Maine. I was in western New Mexico and using the whip antenna on my BC-210. It was not the output of a repeater as both the ambulance and hospital were using simplex. Something to look forward to as we build towards another solar maximum!
Low Band PD'
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daleduke17
Member
Illinois State Police still use it. Districts 6 and 9 for sure. I heard District 6 running license plates last night, and last time I was near Springfield they were using it in District 9.
PhilJSmith67
Member
Most of the Illinois State Police districts are still on 42 and 45 MHz, but some (and eventually all) have moved to the new "STARCOM21" APCO25 system, in the 700 and 800 MHz segments.
ESDA and IEMA are still on 45.44 and various other 45 MHz frequencies. The only other local traffic I hear on VHF-Low south of Chicago is one of the trash disposal companies, one ambulance / medical supply company, a state prison transport around 37 MHz, and several rural fire departments from Kankakee and farther south around 33 MHz.
When I use the mobile scanner antenna on the car, the receiving range is phenomenal. I pick up State PD base systems from 80+ miles away, and the mobiles from 20 miles or so.
ESDA and IEMA are still on 45.44 and various other 45 MHz frequencies. The only other local traffic I hear on VHF-Low south of Chicago is one of the trash disposal companies, one ambulance / medical supply company, a state prison transport around 37 MHz, and several rural fire departments from Kankakee and farther south around 33 MHz.
When I use the mobile scanner antenna on the car, the receiving range is phenomenal. I pick up State PD base systems from 80+ miles away, and the mobiles from 20 miles or so.
Low band and skip
When LAFD was on 33 mHz, until the mid-1980s, they would occasionally get clobbered on their 33.90 San Fernando Valley ("Coldwater") dispatch frequency. It was either Cleveland or Cincinnati FD, I can never remember which. When skip became really bad they finally moved Valley dispatching to 33.82, and 33.90 became a secondary freq.
And when I dispatched for Grass Valley CA police we also handled public works in the off hours, on 45.08 mHz. At times I could hear base and mobile units from somewhere in Colorado as loud/clear as our own units. Or louder.
When LAFD was on 33 mHz, until the mid-1980s, they would occasionally get clobbered on their 33.90 San Fernando Valley ("Coldwater") dispatch frequency. It was either Cleveland or Cincinnati FD, I can never remember which. When skip became really bad they finally moved Valley dispatching to 33.82, and 33.90 became a secondary freq.
And when I dispatched for Grass Valley CA police we also handled public works in the off hours, on 45.08 mHz. At times I could hear base and mobile units from somewhere in Colorado as loud/clear as our own units. Or louder.
nexus
Member
Exsmokey said:
which won't happen until around 2011 or so.
daleduke17
Member
PhilJSmith67 said:
Didn't Ford County just switch over to VHF for the Sheriff's Department very recently? Something like the last five years from what I've heard.
The American Red Cross is still on Low Band for their national response to disasters and will continue to build out their chapters, including cross-connects to UHF.
Ed K.
Ed K.
N4UYV_Al
Member
nexus said:which won't happen until around 2011 or so.
Really? that far away??
w8mkh
Member
West Virginia State Police still uses 42.10 42.12 45.26
hills and hollors and more hills .......
hills and hollors and more hills .......
rpoole23
Member
Lo Band
Down in So. MD my old dept used 39.460 for years and years until switching to 800 mhz a year or so ago. Many times I would have to wait until the CHP would stop transmitting before I could call out something! Interesting how an agency 3000 miles away would completely cover a tower a few miles away! Now out here on the West Coast, we use the 155 range for communications!!
Down in So. MD my old dept used 39.460 for years and years until switching to 800 mhz a year or so ago. Many times I would have to wait until the CHP would stop transmitting before I could call out something! Interesting how an agency 3000 miles away would completely cover a tower a few miles away! Now out here on the West Coast, we use the 155 range for communications!!
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
Yes, in fact much of the MSP still uses the 39 Mhz band.. The antennas on their older cruisers look like 108 inch CB whips (I'm sure they're recut) but not all - some of the Ford vehicles have loaded verticals for that band.
They're beginning to get licenses for the VTAC/UTAC freqs, tho - and some barracks are getting 800 Mhz portables so they can work on their county's system. But I'm willing to bet a few years ago the skip we enjoyed drove them nuts. 73s Mike
They're beginning to get licenses for the VTAC/UTAC freqs, tho - and some barracks are getting 800 Mhz portables so they can work on their county's system. But I'm willing to bet a few years ago the skip we enjoyed drove them nuts. 73s Mike
countywacker
Member
Ahh low band my favorite there is just something about it. Any way here in monroe county PA we still use 33.980 and 33.920 and for 1 FD. While im at work dispatching i still here a dispatches on 33.980 down in louisina clear as day also the mexican skip comes im also. The skip is kind of fading away as the years go by I have great memories of hanging out on the firehouse when i was younger and hearing skip from all over the us and other countries over low band.
PhilJSmith67
Member
Yes, they have a pretty potent signal on VHF-High but I haven't heard anything other than E-Skip on 39.5 for years.daleduke17 said:
ButchGone
Member
RE:low band
Listen for the Tennessee Highway Patrol on 42.26/42.28 mobiles, and 42.36, 42.42 and 42.56 base stations. They also use repeaters on 45.58, 45.62, 45.66 and 45.700. They do use various PL tones depending on posts/districts. This band works very well in the mountainous terrain, I can't imagine any other band working as well without dozens more towers.
BG
Listen for the Tennessee Highway Patrol on 42.26/42.28 mobiles, and 42.36, 42.42 and 42.56 base stations. They also use repeaters on 45.58, 45.62, 45.66 and 45.700. They do use various PL tones depending on posts/districts. This band works very well in the mountainous terrain, I can't imagine any other band working as well without dozens more towers.
BG
N4UYV_Al
Member
We got a band opening tonight up here in Mass, 6 meter ham (50-54) Mhz open to Tennessee & Alabama...
Hi all,
Richard, Californucation to Sydney AU is quite a long haul for sporadic E. Maybe you're talking about that rare F double hop wnen the MUF rises into the 50MHz range at the sunspot maximum? Anyway, that's why we have the 6M Pacific DX window.
Ex, I'm surprised you can hear outside your back yard on a BC-210 if and when it's not being clobbered with intermod. Bearcat's biggest mistake was producing a watered down version of the BC-250 which was the microprocessor controlled version of the BC-101 with the best receiver of the time.
Ed, the Red Cross on Lo Band is a rare bird, they've abandoned it for the most part for Nextel. Then they probably do things a bit different in Mayberry(ville).
Al, as a ham you should know the cycle is 11 years, but which year actually is the peak is a variable. Since the last was in 2000 the next should be 2011 or 2012 since they have been delayed the last couple of times. Yup, heard that rather brief 6M opening, hopefully next month will give us some TA propagation. It has been lacking the last couple of years, the last I only worked one station in France. BTW, I like your Skyporn avitar, even Hamsexy noticed it looks like a butt. (;->)
JJZ, you won't hear anything on those TAC frequencies unless a really big load of poop hits the fan. They're for multi-agency interop, not the usual tactical use.
Here's an interesting note, some of you seem to think that Lo Band propagation has something to do with sunspots. It doesn't unless like I said the sun practically explodes and the MUF goes sky high. That's F layer propagation and is rare while what you hear mostly is sporadic E. That's caused by ionized clouds in the E layer being formed by UV radiation which in northern latitudes is most intense in summer when the sun is overhead. It's sporadic because those clouds come and go and move just like water vapor clouds in the troposphere. This causes the paths to constantly change, during particularly intense band openings I have tracked them as stations fade in and out across North America. Once in a while tropospheric ducting takes place which can propagate signals from 10M to microwaves but not always at the same time. Most often it's band selective, mostly VHF Hi but recently it has affected UHF and 800MHz and not lower frequencies. Tropo is like a box of chocolates, you never know where Forest Gump may show up.
Richard, Californucation to Sydney AU is quite a long haul for sporadic E. Maybe you're talking about that rare F double hop wnen the MUF rises into the 50MHz range at the sunspot maximum? Anyway, that's why we have the 6M Pacific DX window.
Ex, I'm surprised you can hear outside your back yard on a BC-210 if and when it's not being clobbered with intermod. Bearcat's biggest mistake was producing a watered down version of the BC-250 which was the microprocessor controlled version of the BC-101 with the best receiver of the time.
Ed, the Red Cross on Lo Band is a rare bird, they've abandoned it for the most part for Nextel. Then they probably do things a bit different in Mayberry(ville).
Al, as a ham you should know the cycle is 11 years, but which year actually is the peak is a variable. Since the last was in 2000 the next should be 2011 or 2012 since they have been delayed the last couple of times. Yup, heard that rather brief 6M opening, hopefully next month will give us some TA propagation. It has been lacking the last couple of years, the last I only worked one station in France. BTW, I like your Skyporn avitar, even Hamsexy noticed it looks like a butt. (;->)
JJZ, you won't hear anything on those TAC frequencies unless a really big load of poop hits the fan. They're for multi-agency interop, not the usual tactical use.
Here's an interesting note, some of you seem to think that Lo Band propagation has something to do with sunspots. It doesn't unless like I said the sun practically explodes and the MUF goes sky high. That's F layer propagation and is rare while what you hear mostly is sporadic E. That's caused by ionized clouds in the E layer being formed by UV radiation which in northern latitudes is most intense in summer when the sun is overhead. It's sporadic because those clouds come and go and move just like water vapor clouds in the troposphere. This causes the paths to constantly change, during particularly intense band openings I have tracked them as stations fade in and out across North America. Once in a while tropospheric ducting takes place which can propagate signals from 10M to microwaves but not always at the same time. Most often it's band selective, mostly VHF Hi but recently it has affected UHF and 800MHz and not lower frequencies. Tropo is like a box of chocolates, you never know where Forest Gump may show up.
PhilJSmith67
Member
I had an old BC-210 a while back and I picked up E all the time on VHF-Low. Many times I picked up a PD from Mexico on 39.62.
prtzel
Member
Ah yes......... back around the late 70's or early 80's I used to hear all sorts of stuff coming in on 37.180 which used to be the local county fire channel. Also used to hear stuff out of Illinois, Indiana and Ohio on 42.74 & 42.90. All of this was on a good old Bearcat IV using the telescoping antenna coming out of the top of the scanner. Gosh, I sure do miss that Bearcat IV, it still had the best audio quality of any scanner I've ever had.
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