# Ham Radio Question - Effective Range/Distance



## Sir Publius (Nov 5, 2016)

I was thinking of purchasing some sort of transceivers, be they CB's or a Ham's, or whatever, to have in order to be able to hopefully communicate with family if it ever went bad, but I'm having difficulty finding out, generally speaking, the effective ranges/distances for various transceivers. I know the range depends on a LOT of things having to do with the radio and the line of sight etc, so I'm not asking for guarantees...just more generally. 

FOR EXAMPLE, he hem, if say, one were to live in the Sioux City Iowa area and wanted to be able to receive and send transmissions to the Kansas City area, roughly 300 miles away...what is the type of transceiver that would be required for that, and is it gonna cost me an arm or a leg, or will some $50 or $100 Ham radio work? I was thinking of buying a few for a Christmas present, but I obviously don't want to buy one that won't reach that distance and won't work! I was hoping something could be had relatively cheaply, but for that distance, maybe that is a pipe dream. I dunno. Any help would be great. Thanks.


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

It has less to do with the transceiver than it does with the antenna.

But to test any set up for ham, you'll need a general class license.


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## 6811 (Jan 2, 2013)

I'm not an expert on HAM radio, I barely got my technicians license last year. But I believe you will need a 10 meters or a 40 meters HF radio. That should get you plenty of range provided you have a good antenna. I have a Yaesu 857 D. That radio can do all the band's available to HAM. It is about $800 brand new. I'm sure you can get it cheaper used on Ebay...
HAM radio is a must in prepping and it is a fun hobby as well.


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## SGT E (Feb 25, 2015)

General class do-able just fine.....Go extra if you can

80 and 40 meters.....80 at night...40 during days......300 miles is always do-able!....Just a simple dipole at least on each band.....Wish to hell you were near Eastern Ky...would come by and give you a class and then some!


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

SGT E said:


> General class do-able just fine.....Go extra if you can


Got my extra. It made by brain hurt the 1st time but passed it the 2nd.


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## paraquack (Mar 1, 2013)

Is Extra really worth it? Or is it just for bragging rights? I'm a General and agree with SGT E.


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

paraquack said:


> Is Extra really worth it? Or is it just for bragging rights? I'm a General and agree with SGT E.


Bragging rights and a little extra bandwidth.

Have had a general for over 55 years. drifted in and out of it over the years.


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

SOCOM42 said:


> Bragging rights and a little extra bandwidth.
> 
> Have had a general for over 55 years. drifted in and out of it over the years.


Mostly bragging rights but it's also nice to have access to all the bands. :tango_face_grin:


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Wife has the first license, I think that is Technician?
She belongs to a ham club and is working toward the next higher license.
She has a hand held, I believe it is a Baofung. And also a truck mounted unit about the size of a CB that still needs to be permenently installed.
I am Security, she is Comm Chief.


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## AnotherSOFSurvivor (Sep 7, 2016)

In HF it is more about antenna structure and to some extent amplification versus the actual radio...I am not privvy to what civilian radios do what or their effectiveness

Antenna structure and length as well as day time/night time operating construction based on ionization is the key to long distance HF comms

Sent from my SM-G920T using Tapatalk


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## SOCOM42 (Nov 9, 2012)

Most of my equipment is older stuff, but it still works.

What I have added is DSP to clear out the QRM, works real well but pricy for what it is.

The antennas are wire dipoles cut for specific bands and multi band verticals.

No place to put a beam for anything lower than 2 meters.


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## Will2 (Mar 20, 2013)

> I was thinking of purchasing some sort of transceivers, be they CB's or a Ham's, or whatever, to have in order to be able to hopefully communicate with family if it ever went bad, but I'm having difficulty finding out, generally speaking, the effective ranges/distances for various transceivers. I know the range depends on a LOT of things having to do with the radio and the line of sight etc, so I'm not asking for guarantees...just more generally.


First off, this sort of question shows you havn't studied all too much on HAM Radio because what you are asking is like a massive part of the technical aspect of HAMing. That said, the range depends on a lot of factors, such as Antenna, antenna alignment, FREQUENCY, atmospheric conditions, solar conditions, interference, and obstructive density/reflection loss, amongst other factors.

UHF/VHF can sometimes bounce signals through repeaters. Other types of repeaters are less common but experienced hams can bounce signals off the moon.

None the less you can focus your energy in one direction with a reflector.

HF Ionospheric Radio Signal Propagation :: Radio-Electronics.Com

Don't go on air until you understand this stuff. UHF/VHF shouldn't be a big deal if you understand LOS communications, however before you go to any appreciable wattage (i.e. 40watts or higher) I would suggest you understand concepts like sky wave.



> 300 mileswhat is the type of transceiver that would be required for that, and is it gonna cost me an arm or a leg, or will some $50 or $100 Ham radio work?


Unlikely, but you may be looking at about a 300$ price point unless used.But as said it will depend how you are sending out your ERP and what you are sending it out inot, and what is recieving it. 300 miles is Dxing though.You are not likely to get 300 miles on a UHF/VHF radio. If you are in the air you might get good range.
http://www.airliners.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=749085

Any radio if used correctly could end up in Asia. Different bands will have different skip success based upon the geometric form of their transmission as it mingles with the conditions of the medium of transmission.

http://www.hamuniverse.com/hfbands.html

http://www.k4lrg.org/Projects/K4MSG_EME/

How far is your family from you and where are you located.

It can be just fine for local communications. The further you go though the more congested the waves will be in any serious disaster.

Generally with CB it goes a bit like this unofficially, he who has the most power gets heard.

This truth can be the same with Ham too, the more power you have the more likely your signal will over power weaker signals.

Learning CB can be good to do a 10m crossover down the road

https://www.rightchannelradios.com/blogs/selection-guides/18150035-cb-antenna-range-approximations

http://www.worldwidedx.com/threads/...ld-you-bounce-cb-signals-off-the-moon.161407/


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

Will2 said:


> First off, this sort of question shows you havn't studied all too much on HAM Radio because what you are asking is like a massive part of the technical aspect of HAMing. That said, the range depends on a lot of factors, such as Antenna, antenna alignment, FREQEUENCY, atmospheric conditions, solar conditions, interference, and obstructive density/reflection loss, amongst other factors.
> 
> UHF/VHF can sometimes bounce signals through repeaters. Other types of repeaters are less common but experienced hams can bounce signals off the moon.
> 
> ...


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## KA5IVR (Jun 11, 2014)

SGT E said:


> General class do-able just fine.....Go extra if you can
> 
> 80 and 40 meters.....80 at night...40 during days......300 miles is always do-able!....Just a simple dipole at least on each band...


What he said!

I think your Budget may be about 10x too low. You have to figure in more than just a radio. Amplifier maybe, Antenna, Support, Coax, Meters, and such for HF. You may check and see if there is some linked repeater system between those 2 points that you can use a cheap Baofang with. Even if you use Dstar or Fusion on VHF or UHF, you still are looking at a much higher cost.


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## Targetshooter (Dec 4, 2015)

I have been thinking about getting a ham radio , what kind , model # should I start with , I took the on line test and past it , I am looking for a mobile / base type . Any advice will help , I am on a very small budget , $300 to $350 .


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

Targetshooter said:


> I have been thinking about getting a ham radio , what kind , model # should I start with , I took the on line test and past it , I am looking for a mobile / base type . Any advice will help , I am on a very small budget , $300 to $350 .


Find a ham club near you. You should find someone selling decent equipment in that price range. I started with used gear and have upgraded over the years.

Telling you what gear to get is hard. Me personally, most of my gear is Kenwood. Both uhf/vhf and hf. Not because I chose it for the brand name, I just happen to like the features. But I also have a Yaesu for the Fusion part but have never used it.

My friend who is also into ham is an Icom fan. His uhf/vhf are also DStar equipped. But he also has a Kenwood D-710A. I have 2 of those, 1 for the house and 1 for the vehicle.

Go to a website like Ham Radio Outlet to see what's out there. Being new, I would start with used gear. But stay away from the really cheap brands. You won't be happy with the results.

Yup, ham club or hamfest is your best bet for decent used gear. That will get you started.


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## Targetshooter (Dec 4, 2015)

@incepter Thank you very much .


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## Sir Publius (Nov 5, 2016)

Thanks for the info everyone. As I think I stated before, I don't know much of anything about Ham radio. I was initially hoping I could buy some cheap handheld or something, just to keep in the house, and if needs be, I'd be able to transmit a few hundred miles, but it seems that is unlikely on a number of fronts. Now I know. Thanks. It'd be nice to get into ham some time soon. Great skill to have I think.


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## 6811 (Jan 2, 2013)

Targetshooter said:


> I have been thinking about getting a ham radio , what kind , model # should I start with , I took the on line test and past it , I am looking for a mobile / base type . Any advice will help , I am on a very small budget , $300 to $350 .


For mobile and base, get the Yaesu 857D it's about $800 brand new but I'm sure it is cheaper used. I understand you want to keep it under $350. I say save up for now and get it later. Yaesu 857D is supposedly the radio that does everything. If you are going to have just one radio, this is it. It can do mobile, portable and base. Look it up on You tube.


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## Targetshooter (Dec 4, 2015)

6811 said:


> For mobile and base, get the Yaesu 857D it's about $800 brand new but I'm sure it is cheaper used. I understand you want to keep it under $350. I say save up for now and get it later. Yaesu 857D is supposedly the radio that does everything. If you are going to have just one radio, this is it. It can do mobile, portable and base. Look it up on You tube.


cool thank you very much.


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

6811 said:


> For mobile and base, get the Yaesu 857D it's about $800 brand new but I'm sure it is cheaper used. I understand you want to keep it under $350. I say save up for now and get it later. Yaesu 857D is supposedly the radio that does everything. If you are going to have just one radio, this is it. It can do mobile, portable and base. Look it up on You tube.


I wouldn't mind have an 857D. That's a nice radio. Right now I have a Kenwood TS-2000 as my main radio with a Kenwood TS-450S as back up. Unfortunately both are about 4x the size of an 857D. I did pick up the TS-450S for about $300 used so I couldn't complain about the price. Actually both of those were bought used.


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