Importance of Emergency Comms-good video

Hey guys,
Saw a new video on the importance of survival communications.
This is really for beginners -- or for introducing those who are not preppers to the idea of establishing and maintaining communications in an emergency.

Part 1 of 3. By the way this is not from me but from someone I follow. He said it may be a few weeks before parts 2 and 3 show up. But I will post those in this thread when I see them.

Check it out, I think you will really like part 1.

 

Hi @hitchcock4 ! This couldn't have come at a better time for me as I am sitting here thinking about comms (for whatever reason this morning), charging and testing my radios and thinking I need to purchase a tactical type external antenna and some watertight boxes to transport them among other things...and to get my finger out and study and pass the Extra class. Anyway, thanks! And, yes, make sure to post the follow-on videos. Having done communications for a living all my life I probably don't need them but one never knows what tidbit of knowledge you can pick up and the tactical radio world is rather new for me.

 

Excellent idea, and a perfect use of cheapie handheld radios.

Thanks for the tip.

 

Yes, yes you do. The toughest part of the Extra for me was the "theoretical" math. I say "theoretical" because I do NOT have a background in that stuff and it might as well have been theory. I will admit that I was running out of time before the question pool switched out and I didn't want to have to start all over again (the book was also going to rev) so I took 3 weeks and quite literally memorized well in excess of 90% of the questions and answers.

I used a couple of online and on phone testing sites and apps so that answer order wouldn't trip me up, and I passed. Don't recall how high but it was "respectable" given that I didn't learn nearly as much as I would have liked to. Since then I pull out the Extra manual at least every couple of weeks to read up on something I'm doing or answer a question. Stupid book is FULL of useful information and I keep learning.

So yes, get on the stick and get your Extra!

 

Here's the YouTube Playlist from the same author -- the rest of his current Ham radio videos. The other 2 on emergency comms will still be a few weeks out...
HAM Radio Crash Course - YouTube

EDIT: note that Josh uses the UV-5R, an excellent (cheap) radio that one can get online and is a good start if you don't have a lot of money.
Personally, I got started with the BF-F8HP (same brand and same instructions) but this IS AN 8-WATT radio. Will get your signal out there further because it is stronger. Also the antennae makes a big difference here and many people will get Nagoya (Amazon.com: Authentic Genuine Nagoya NA-771 15.6-Inch Whip VHF/UHF (144/430Mhz) Antenna SMA-Female for AnyTone, BaoFeng, and Yaesu: Cell Phones & Accessories) or other antennae for a better signal.
The antennae helps for transmitting and receiving -- the higher wattage at 8 watts only helps for transmitting.

 

As an alternative to the NA771, the Nagoya NA-24J is an extremely flexible antenna about the same length. Makes it a little easier if you need to carry the hand held around. And it's much lighter. That means it has less tendency to tip the radio over if it's sitting on a hard surface like a table or desk.
It is 1/4 wave at 2M, and 5/8 wave at 70CM.