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mugwump · 09-30-2013, 15:34

I've also purchased 10 of the Baofeng "BF-888S UHF FM Transceiver Walkie Talkie Two-way Radio CTCSS/DCS" tranceivers, with chargers, for $160. (That's the total cost--$16 a pop for a single-band FM UHF handheld tranceiver.) At first flush they all seem to work. They're quite simple with only 16 channel presets, which I see as a big plus given their intended use. There's an amazingly well-written review on Amazon.

They are pre-loaded with GMS, MURS, FRS, and Marine frequencies out of the box but they are illegal for anything other than the 2M band operated by someone with a technician ham ticket. (They transmit at 5W and aren't FCC hardware-certified for GMS, MURS, FRS, Marine.) The plan is they won't be used in anything other than extraordinary circumstances (grid down, WROL, etc.) when they'd be handed out to neighbors to create a cheap "AGRIC Alert" system as used by Rhodesian farmers during the troubles there.

They're kind of a pain to program but a guy has figured out the proper incantations for computer interfacing HERE. See the RollingJ post, #10 in the thread. Once you set one up the rest should be easy to clone. Haven't done it myself with the 888 yet.

One BF-888 ($16) with an add-on j pole antenna and one Argent ADS-SR1 simplex repeater ($80), along with a cheap 10W mono-crystalline solar trickle-charger (charger should be sub $100 w battery and charge controller from what I can see--should all fit, less the panel, into a 30 cal ammo can) placed on a 1100 foot hill near my place should make all of the local farms accessible. The ADS-SR1 has a pretty amazing feature set that opens a world of possibilities for creating a cheap, medium-range comm net in even hilly, wooded terrain.

I'll post an update when I have the repeater assembled and tested.

09-30-2013, 15:34	#788
mugwump Area Commander Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,403	I've also purchased 10 of the Baofeng "BF-888S UHF FM Transceiver Walkie Talkie Two-way Radio CTCSS/DCS" tranceivers, with chargers, for $160. (That's the total cost--$16 a pop for a single-band FM UHF handheld tranceiver.) At first flush they all seem to work. They're quite simple with only 16 channel presets, which I see as a big plus given their intended use. There's an amazingly well-written review on Amazon. They are pre-loaded with GMS, MURS, FRS, and Marine frequencies out of the box but they are illegal for anything other than the 2M band operated by someone with a technician ham ticket. (They transmit at 5W and aren't FCC hardware-certified for GMS, MURS, FRS, Marine.) The plan is they won't be used in anything other than extraordinary circumstances (grid down, WROL, etc.) when they'd be handed out to neighbors to create a cheap "AGRIC Alert" system as used by Rhodesian farmers during the troubles there. They're kind of a pain to program but a guy has figured out the proper incantations for computer interfacing HERE. See the RollingJ post, #10 in the thread. Once you set one up the rest should be easy to clone. Haven't done it myself with the 888 yet. One BF-888 ($16) with an add-on j pole antenna and one Argent ADS-SR1 simplex repeater ($80), along with a cheap 10W mono-crystalline solar trickle-charger (charger should be sub $100 w battery and charge controller from what I can see--should all fit, less the panel, into a 30 cal ammo can) placed on a 1100 foot hill near my place should make all of the local farms accessible. The ADS-SR1 has a pretty amazing feature set that opens a world of possibilities for creating a cheap, medium-range comm net in even hilly, wooded terrain. I'll post an update when I have the repeater assembled and tested. __________________ mugwump “Klaatu barada nikto”
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