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Talk-About Radios, Who uses them?


Big Dubya

Two-way radios on the water  

71 members have voted

  1. 1. Do you have/use two-way (Talk-About) radios?

    • Yes, we use them
      29
    • We have them, but don't use them
      21
    • Don't have them
      19
    • What are you talking-about?
      2


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I'm curious if folks on this board use the two-way handheld radios when boating.

we use them for launch & load:

"Hang, on i'm getting the kid's life-vests on"

"go ahead, we're clear"

"trailer's too deep, bring 'er up a foot"

or: "hey babe, i forgot the CD case in the rig, can you remember to grab it after you park?" :blush:

we also use them when we've got other friends w/ boats on the water to see where/what the other's are doing, plan lunch, etc...

so, anyone else?

by the way, we're always on channel 13, subchannel 31 (in case you were interested)

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I've found that those things are only useful if you and the other person you're talking to are within shouting distance. I use 5W marine hand helds.

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We use them when there is more than one boat on the lake sometimes. When we go out on the bay or ocean here in NJ, we carry cell phones. There is no cell service on one of the lakes we use in upstate NY, that is when we use frs radios.

Edited by electricjohn
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We just stick to the cell phones. The lakes we ski on are fully covered.

Same here. We tried using them once on a car trip to the beach with my sister-in-law and her family. They worked okay but there were so many other people using them, there was too much radio traffic. Cell phones make them a little obsolete.

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We used to use them for skiing, but they have such good cell coverage now on our slopes that the cells work better.

Some friends borrowed our motorhome last fall and towed one of our cars behind for a 2 month tour of national parks in the southwest. They told us how they used their radios to communicate when manuevering in campgrounds. I will probably try that. They said they felt pretty smug when they could quietly and efficiently communicate when parking or hooking up as opposed to the others pulling rigs. They got some perverse enjoyment in watching other couples yelling at each other, usually with the wife on the ground and the husband driving, and jumping in and out of the motorhome.

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We use them when one of us is on the boat and one at the house, or one on the boat and one at the beach etc. We also use them when we have to take 2 cars to the lake for a convoy. They work pretty well for those uses. We originally bought them to use in DisneyWorld, but as you can imagine, that was a disaster.

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Ours sit around charged, never used.

Same here.... most of the time we forget it. About the only time we use them religously is on hunting trips. Other than that, cell phones.

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I use them to pick up on hot chicks.

OK, you're going to have to explain this one.

Dude...If I have to explain it to you then you're not qualified to use this highly effective romance technique Tongue.gif

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We use cell phones mainly. I do have a pair of the mororola hand held walkie talkies which have a decsnt range to them. They are good for backing the rig up/down ramps to adjust etc., and if the wife is parking and i need to let her know to bring or leave something. I do not have a "marine" handheld. Should I?

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I use them to pick up on hot chicks.

OK, you're going to have to explain this one.

Dude...If I have to explain it to you then you're not qualified to use this highly effective romance technique Tongue.gif

I've been happily married for 26 years and have no idea what you are talking about. You could be serious or you could be blowing smoke and I wouldn't know the difference.

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I do not have a "marine" handheld. Should I?

Not if you've got good, reliable cell phone coverage where you boat.

If you don't have good coverage, then you'd need a handheld marine radio for emergencies, in my opinion.

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I use them to pick up on hot chicks.

OK, you're going to have to explain this one.

Dude...If I have to explain it to you then you're not qualified to use this highly effective romance technique Tongue.gif

I've been happily married for 26 years and have no idea what you are talking about. You could be serious or you could be blowing smoke and I wouldn't know the difference.

I've been married 8 years, I'm just blowing smoke up your yooohooo ;)

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I have the costco hand held... theyre pretty much only good if theyre are in the line of site... if in a cove forget it .... have a buddy that went with us on a few trips with a marine radios (couple hand held and one in the moho) one trip at Powell... they worked good to comunicate over fair distances , another trip to San Antonio his boat was hit by a jet ski ... he radioed back to the moho ( miles away ) and we came and got the kids while dealt with it

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I have the costco hand held... theyre pretty much only good if theyre are in the line of site... if in a cove forget it .... have a buddy that went with us on a few trips with a marine radios (couple hand held and one in the moho) one trip at Powell... they worked good to comunicate over fair distances , another trip to San Antonio his boat was hit by a jet ski ... he radioed back to the moho ( miles away ) and we came and got the kids while dealt with it

I thought it was against FCC regs to communicate with anyone on land with a marine radio (except for local authorities or Coast Guard). Also, do you need a license to use the marine radios? I think that's why so many people use the family service radios, since there is no license required to use them.

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Have em: Yes.

Use 'em: Yes, not often.... but yes. But when we use them, I'm glad we have them.

What kind: Not marine radio, not UHF..... just several sets of the FRS (Family Radio Service = cheap ones) that you can pick up anywhere. However, the ones that are supposed to be good for 2 miles are NOT good for 2 miles..... so I now have ones that are suposed to be good for up to 4-5 miles. They are ok up to a 1-2 miles. (Also, I suggest getting the kind with 500 plus sub-channels to avoid other folks' chatter.)

Uses: (I have actually used for each of these.)

1/ Launching Ramp. Once had a buddy backing his rig down our long winding drive to the lake. I used the radios to help guide him. (Me at the lake.... him in his truck.

2/ Boat to Beach: Some times folks just want to sit on the beach while the rest of us are in the boat skiing. So, the beach gets one radio, the boat the other. That way, when the lazy beach folks get too cranky, they call us in

3/ Dual Road Trips: Sometimes, my wife and I each take our vehicles and 1 kid each on the way to/from the lake (2 hour trip). My kids get a kick out of yapping all the way home to each other. (As long as we stay within 1-2 miles of each other all is ok. Also, we don't feel obligated to stay exactly together one behind each other. Allows normal traffic flow around us, yet we're still in touch.) Also, if 1 vehicle needs to take a washroom break or pit stop..... makes it much easier to coordinate. Also, the lead vehicle is responsible for radar traps and road hazard reporting etc. Keeps us all sane.

4/ Disney Park: At Disney, sometimes we split up..... me to get food, my wife and kids to find a spot on the parade route. I don't get lost returning with food. Or I take the older kid to one ride.... her to another. Lets us hook up more easily afterwards.

5/ Hotels: If I want to sit by the pool, and my wife wants to stay in the room..... I don't feel guilty re how long I'm away. If she wants me.... she calls me. Both are happy.

6/ Around the House: Electrical Work. If I'm doing a household repair, I need to shut down a circuit on the second floor..... I have my wife at the outlet upstairs..... I go to the circuit breaker in the basement and shut them down 1 at a time. Instead of yelling through 3 floors, she simply tells me on the FRS radio. Really. Matrimonial harmony.

So..... very useful for multi reasons.

Then again, I love gadgets!

Edited by doughickey
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I'm with you, Doug.

all of the listed uses, including... getting in the attic to retrieve stuff (christmas, baby clothes, etc)

i can talk to her w/out yelling or having to run back to the entry.

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