Spaniel Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 Hi I was thinking about getting myself a walkie talkie, and i dont know much about them. I know Motorola seems to be a good make but I noticed some saying that they need to be programmed etc, i thought it was just a case of setting them to the same channel and off you go. I would want something to cover a good diatnace due to hills etc where we shoot any advise welcomed please, Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfletch Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 These two options PMR446 free to use or licensed £75 for 5 years The later is 10X more powerful than the free to use ones Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imperfection Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 A company i once worked for issued us supervisors with Motorola walkie talkies (the free licence ones) and the range we used to get was really impressive.One lunch time i nipped to a DIY shop in nearby town and was still hearing them chat away at a distance of atleast 3 miles.I think you've got to look at the terrain you'll be using them though because here in Cambridgeshire its mostly flat as the moon,but hills etc would likely reduce the range considerably. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotland rifles Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 These two options PMR446 free to use or licensed £75 for 5 years The later is 10X more powerful than the free to use ones the licence free ones are so popular nowadays that you will have loads of people on the same frequency, but this can be sorted if you know how to program them, (and if they have that facility) licenced radios have 2 to 5 watts output depending on what you are using the radios for, also if you have a base station with a antenna up on a mast you will get further etc etc, now terrain makes a massive difference when it comes to radio waves, but lets not go there, bob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaniel Posted December 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 I think it will be an unlicensed one to be honest, so i guess the programming thing is only with the license units then, so you can have multiple units communicating with one another without any outside interferance from another unit I do have a couple of cheap Binatone ek1000 units which i brought a few years back for fishing with a mate, so we could have a chat when on the lake, but i dont think there would be much good when i am walking around hills etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salop Matt Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 PMR 446 radios aka walkie talkies that you buy from anywhere license free are 5Watt output max anyway so there will be little benifit in getting a licensed handset if its only putting out 5watt also if you have signal problems with a 446 handset. You really need to work on line of sight aslong at the atmospherics are in your favour ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickP Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 I just picked up some Oregon Scientific one at my sons Christmas school fair, one of the parents had handed them in to sell, I thought they were just toy ones at the £1.50 cost, but closer examination after I bought them, they were proper entry level PMR's ideal for when the kids are running around the campsites to keep track of them, seems to work fine too, not bad purchase as they were £50 new according to the invoice in the box Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfletch Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 PMR 446 radios aka walkie talkies that you buy from anywhere license free are 5Watt output max anyway so there will be little benifit in getting a licensed handset if its only putting out 5watt also if you have signal problems with a 446 handset. You really need to work on line of sight aslong at the atmospherics are in your favour ! No sorry your wrong the free license 446 are 0.5 watts not 5 watts The free 446 have 8 channels and can be set with a security code [but anyone with a radio can listen in] I have the paid for ones there Kenwood and the license is £75 for 5 years BUT you can have as many sets as you like and use them anywere in the UK You can also have one fitted in your car or multiple cars BUT you cannot have a base station. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salop Matt Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 and what sort of cost are the hand sets and how do you get them programed and at what cost ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfletch Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 and what sort of cost are the hand sets and how do you get them programed and at what cost ? It all depends on how up the ladder you want to go, The Kenwood ones I have was £250 each with a fast charger but you can get cheaper ones I can use my handheld one to speak to my mate in his landrover over 10 miles away but hills drop that dramatically The shop where I got them from programed them to how I wanted them for free like a voice scrambler Some you can but and the computer software is included Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RC45 Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 I and a few friends use CB radios and the Midland 42 is excellent for staying in touch. Not sure if your allowed to use them for lengthy conversations though!! Linky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotland rifles Posted December 7, 2011 Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 I and a few friends use CB radios and the Midland 42 is excellent for staying in touch. Not sure if your allowed to use them for lengthy conversations though!! Linky its ok but if its deemed you are using them for a business your in trouble, had a local guy here when he seen my massive antenna system at my old house for ham radio he called in to ask if i could help him out with programing his new taxi radios as he had just got a £500 fine and court costs, needless to say hes gone the licensed route now, bob. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busdennis Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 been looking into a "walkie talkie" my self can anybody recommend a pmr446 system for £20 to £30 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul041075 Posted December 9, 2011 Report Share Posted December 9, 2011 Ebay! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unapalomablanca Posted December 9, 2011 Report Share Posted December 9, 2011 (edited) Dont mess about with licence free ones. Go to maplins and get the 5 watt UHF ones for just under £154.99 by MITEX. Edited December 9, 2011 by unapalomablanca Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marine1980 Posted December 10, 2011 Report Share Posted December 10, 2011 Like most things in life you get what you pay for! I shoot in a deer syndicate and there is about 12 of us! The make of the radios the guys have depended on what was going cheap on eBay at the time but I use the kenwood ones and have the software and leads to programme them! Between the 12 of us the £75 is more than manageable and there great bits of kit but buy UHF and not VHF as UHF seems to work better in hilly terrain, something to do with how the radio waves bounce or travel etc..... Cheers Royal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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