Thanks again for your sound advice
I have to say, as you tell me these things, I realize I already know these things, I just never remembered them, which is why I really appreciate the refresher, lol.
I understand, I've forgotten stuff I haven't even thought of yet.
I guess I could rig up a nice little long wire dipole setup here if I had to, the doves in the backyard would probably appreciate a new perch anyhow, hehe.
The doves might be amused. Dipoles can work well, but check into some of the more broadband antennas. End fed antennas with a 9:1 balun and a good ground can work well. Those can be easier to install since your feed line is at one end and you can hang the far end off anything that'll support it. I've got one hooked up to a radio at work and it works pretty well considering the location.
Speaking of location, you should be in a good location for short wave listening. A good antenna looking east or south east should work well for getting Europe and Africa. There's still some interesting stuff to listen to, and it's always handy getting alternate points of view about what's going on in the world.
Done right, the antenna and a good radio should help your AM broadcast reception. You'd likely be able to pull in AM stations from all along the east coast. Some of the most fun I've had with a radio is listening in on AM broadcast band.
There are SO many factors involved in prepping, it's hard to know every scenario and be able to plan for it. Bugging out, or bugging in is a huge consideration.
I've decided the thing to do for now is choose a shortwave rig, and get a decent mobile CB setup in my vehicle.
I never got into the prepper thing, but I do live in earthquake country and do a lot of camping, so I guess I have in a way.
Around here, AM broadcast is the gold standard. So many of the FM broadcast stations are running network programming or canned stuff that they are useless in an emergency. The larger local AM stations are of much more use. In the event of a wider area disaster, a good radio and antenna can still pull in distant AM stations.
Shortwave is nice for entertainment and getting alternate view of world events, but relying on it for emergencies isn't very useful. You might be able to get some amateur radio chatter, but you'll need a shortwave radio with a BFO so you can listen in on single sideband voice traffic.
I've got a couple eton crank radios with SW feature, but they are just dead air, they only seem to receive FM radio and the NOAA broadcast, I don't think that dinky little telescopic antenna is enough to pull in any signals, unless it's being broadcast from the house nextdoor.
Yeah, those little radios are sort of useless. The shortwave reception ability is hampered by the antennas. the receivers are not high quality, so there are a lot of areas where they'll have issues pulling in weak stations. Where they are useful is for the AM/FM broadcast reception and not relying on batteries.
Speaking of batteries, none of this stuff is going to work without power. While the crank radios are useful, that gets kind of old. Whatever you choose make sure you can power it. Generators are nice, but noisy and require some upkeep. Unless they get exercised frequently, they may not work when you need them. Since most of this gear doesn't use a lot of power, having some storage batteries in a safe location you can run off of is a good option. Solar panels can keep them topped off.
If small radios are your thing, stock up on batteries and just rotate them through occasionally. Pay attention to the radios you purchase and what their battery requirements are.
That's why I was asking what SW radio you might recommend, since the ones I have are kinda useless little things. The built in flashlight is a more useful feature
Sangean ATS-803a and it's twin, the Radio Shack DX-440 is what I have. Not top of the line, but still a good radio. It's a portable, so I can take it with me when I'm camping. They were on the market back in the late 80's to early/mid 90's. They are out there on the used market for less than $100. If you get a good one, the are decent radios with a good feature set. Not overly complicated, not top of the line. There are better radios out there, but for the price, these are pretty good. As for the "better" radios, you'll chase that dog around all day, there's always a better one.
The Sangean has an external antenna jack that makes hooking up an external antenna easy. It has the beat frequency oscillator necessary for listening to single sideband. It's fairly sensitive, too. It makes for a great AM broadcast receiver.
As for more modern/current radios, I'm probably not much help there. There are some higher end receivers out there, but you'd quickly get into the "way too freakin' expensive" range rather quickly. Not sure what your budget is, but this radio stuff can get out of hand really quickly.
I think you're off to a good start. CB can be a good choice if it's used in your area. Not always a reliable long distance radio service, but sometimes it is. Not sure I'd rely on it for anything more than a few miles.
Amateur radio is a good option. You'll have repeaters in your area that will give you a lot of possibilities. As things go, having someone to talk to is one of the important parts of radio. An amateur radio license will let you use those Beofengs to they full potential. Put up an outdoor antenna, tune into the local repeaters and you'll find some like minded folks to talk to. A good repeater setup will often have a backup battery or alternate power source, so them staying up in a power outage is possible. Even without that, a good antenna will give you a few miles range easily.
GMRS is kind of limited in Canada. 2 watts is the maximum legal power you can run, and no external antennas. You won't get much range with that unless you are on top of a hill. While some preppers might be willing to run outside the legalities of the radio service, I won't recommend that.
Remember, it's all about having someone else to talk to. Your equipment needs to reflect that need. Shortwave listening is nice, but eventually you'll want to talk to someone else. CB may be good enough if it's popular in your area. If not, check into the amateur radio thing. It can be a good option. You've already got a suitable radio, so you might as well put it to use.
