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Mobile/Disaster communication

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Indalecio

Newbie
Joined
Jan 26, 2012
Messages
1
Hello,

My situation is this. I have a son who currently lives with his mother some 20-30 miles away. However we are not on friendly terms and in an emergency, she has informed me that I would be able to come and get my son, and protect him in the way that I see fit. So it started me thinking. With the way the world is going, who knows when all hell will break loose, or even something like a Katrina event, I need a way to communicate with her if cell towers and phones aren't working.

I prepared a bug out bag, or a "emergency" bag, for in case I had to relocate in a hurry, forced out of my home, or needed to head for the hills. For this I need a mobile solution.

I've been hearing great things about the Song sw7600 as a receiver... and its portable but my question is this...

1.)Can I get equal or better reception with a handheld like the I-com r-20, which can also do MORE things, than if I just went with a receiver? Is the synchronus detection of the sony really something that will allow far better reception?

2.) I want something that will monitor situations like Road blocks, military stop points,car accidents. Will the I-com r-20 and the sony sw7600 do both of these? If so, which would do it better?

3.)If the phones were down, and I needed to communicate with my ex, some 20 miles away, if i bought her a CB radio, you think CB would be enough to do emergency transmission?

4.)What solution would allow me to be mobile and STILL have great reception. I already know that I want a Uniden or radioshack scanner for scanning close proximity transmissions, but I am torn on the SECOND choice, for listening to shortwave/amateur radio

5.) Is there a handheld that can get equal or better SW/SSB reception as the sony sw7600.

Thanks all.
 

KC9AAQ

Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2007
Messages
24
Location
SE INDY AREA, Indiana
Get a Ham License!

`Depending on his age you both could get a Ham license Go To ARRL.ORG for info. Kid 6Yrs. old has passed basic test.


Greg KC9AAQ
 

LtDoc

Member
Joined
Dec 4, 2006
Messages
2,145
Location
Oklahoma
There are no "all in one" sort of radios that will do all that you seem to expect. When you further limit it by the size of that radio, hand-held, portable, whatever, you also limit the expectations you can have. I certainly wish you luck, but won't hold my breath till you achieve your goals.
Sorry 'bout that.
- 'Doc

PS - No, amateur/ham radio isn't the answer either. Wish it was...
 

ScannerWayne

Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
187
Location
Mobile AL
1.)Can I get equal or better reception with a handheld like the I-com r-20, which can also do MORE things, than if I just went with a receiver? Is the synchronus detection of the sony really something that will allow far better reception?

Reception is going to depend more on the antenna used. An outside antenna will pull in signals that the whip won't. So really it doesn't matter which radio you chose if you keep a long wire handy to throw into the trees. As for the Synchronus detection, while it's nice it's not really needed for the type of conditions you anticipate.

2.) I want something that will monitor situations like Road blocks, military stop points,car accidents. Will the I-com r-20 and the sony sw7600 do both of these? If so, which would do it better?

Here is where you need to do some investigative work. What type of systems are being used in your area? Have public safety services moved to protocols that scanners won't receive? How much time and effort are you willing to put into learning to use a state of the art DMA scanner that will pick up the systems being used in your area? The R-20 isn't going to be able to follow the conversations taking place on any trunked system. Yet it does offer very near 0 to light reception (lol).

3.)If the phones were down, and I needed to communicate with my ex, some 20 miles away, if i bought her a CB radio, you think CB would be enough to do emergency transmission?

CB? No. Amature? Yes. Portable to portable would be easy to setup with external antennas. If power is out and the radios are moved to the cars; then most likely. Small 2 meter rigs can be had cheaply and are easy to setup. Getting licensed is not that hard anymore.

4.)What solution would allow me to be mobile and STILL have great reception. I already know that I want a Uniden or radioshack scanner for scanning close proximity transmissions, but I am torn on the SECOND choice, for listening to shortwave/amateur radio

Here again it comes down to the type of antenna you use. As for the type of radio; it comes down to your preference and budget. Personally I'm seriously thinking about getting the r-20 for myself. I like the small size and the feature set it has. I can take it anywhere at a moments notice and it will fit in my pocket.

5.) Is there a handheld that can get equal or better SW/SSB reception as the sony sw7600.

Haven't done the research to say for sure, but my guess is that there are probably hotter radios out there: they just cost a lot more. Once again it comes down to your budget and preferences.

There are a number of things you'll want to consider in your preporations; size, weight, batteries, coverage, ease of use. For ideas on things you might not have considered you might want to google some survival guide sites and look at how others have prepared.

Wayne...
 
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