# EMP-Vulnerability of Walkie Talkies



## Granlobo (Feb 7, 2013)

Dear Forum:

The concept of losing comms after an EMP...along with most modern vehicles...is somewhat frightening. 

Just wondering...there are a plethora of $50-$70 sets of walkie talkies that purport to have ranges up to 24 miles. 

For at least some of us...that would enable spouse-to-spouse comms concerning getting back home, getting kids, etc. 

Do these operate "truly" as radio wave transmissions that would function post-EMP if they were kept in an insulated microenvironment and survived the initial event? Is there some discreet reliance on satellites that would be likely to have been incapacitated? 

Thanks!


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## rickkyw1720pf (Nov 17, 2012)

Communication devices would probably the most vulnerable much more then modern vehicles. But if you have walkie talkies in metal boxes they should be ok especially if you remove the antenna. Now as for the 24 mile range, That must be if you are talking in outer space, In the real world I have never got near the range that some report. Just for a laugh I think I may call the manufacture some time and tell them my gps says I am just 10 miles away and can't talk to my buddy, and listen to all their reason why we are unable to communicate.


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## Lucky Jim (Sep 2, 2012)

Anything with electronics in it such as Ham, CB, walky-talkies, TV radio, car ignitions etc can be junked by EMP unless you insulate it. Simplest way is to wrap it in a plastic bag, then wrap it kitchen foil (the bag keeps the foil from touching the item).
Problem is, there's no way to know when an EMP is coming, so you'll have to run to the expense of having two of everything; one for unproofed everyday use, and one proofed in the cupboard to wheel out after your everydays have been zapped.


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## wesley762 (Oct 23, 2012)

Wouldn't something as simple as leaving the batteries out of them work? unless you are using them when it might happen?


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## Lucky Jim (Sep 2, 2012)

wesley762 said:


> Wouldn't something as simple as leaving the batteries out of them work? unless you are using them when it might happen?


No, the electronics get fried by EMP even if its switched off and has no batteries in it.
Incidentally this clip shows the effects of an EMP pretty good, blowing out car ignitions and stuff, this one is from a nuke bomb but a powerful solar flare will have the same effect-
Movie: *THE DAY AFTER*: nuke attack (EM pulse at 2:00)


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## rickkyw1720pf (Nov 17, 2012)

wesley762 said:


> Wouldn't something as simple as leaving the batteries out of them work? unless you are using them when it might happen?


No that wouldn't make a difference because what destroys the circuitry is the voltages induced from the magnetic pulse moving across the any metal especially the the wires and circuits of modern electronics where the chips or very susceptible to over voltage. For communication devices the antennae would be the perfect pickup to induce a high voltage into the delicate circuitry. Also from what I am reading on a lot of sites it seems people are getting confused between static voltages and EMP induced voltages. The closest thing that I can think of that give an Ideal of how EMP works that everyone is familiar with would be how your spark plug gets such a high voltage. The battery is temporally hooked to a coil producing a magnetic field but that is not when the spark is made, it come when the voltage is removed from the coil and the coils voltage is allowed to very rapidly collapse across a capacitor. An EMP works the same way creating a very rapid strong fast moving magnetic field.


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## wesley762 (Oct 23, 2012)

Thanks for clearing that up for me.


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## Lucky Jim (Sep 2, 2012)

Here's my EMP-proofed radio, wrapped in a plastic bag then wrapped in kitchen foil- 









Then when an EMP blows out everybody elses radios I'll be able to unwrap mine, pop in some batteries and monitor news broadcasts to plan my next move like this guy with his radio in his 'doomsday hole'-









PS- I might also buy and proof a mini-TV like this (if they're still made)-


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## Lucky Jim (Sep 2, 2012)

Clarification for noobs- the actual EMP from a nuke bomb is harmless to humans, it just blows out electronics and power grids. 
It's the blast and heat from the bomb that kills people and knocks over buildings.
A solar flare is a pussycat by comparison because it only fries electronics and grids and has no blast or heat.

Incidentally, EMP's from nuke bombs can have enormous ranges like this 'Starfish Prime' 1962 nuke test below, it fried lights and stuff in Hawaii 900 miles away even though Hawaii never felt any blast and heat.
The pic shows the detonation in the sky seen through cloud from Hawaii, it's 900 miles away at an altitude of 250 miles.

_WIKI- "Starfish Prime caused an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) which was far larger than expected, so much larger that it drove much of the instrumentation off scale, causing great difficulty in getting accurate measurements. 
The Starfish Prime electromagnetic pulse also made those effects known to the public by causing electrical damage in Hawaii, about 1,445 kilometres (898 mi) away from the detonation point, knocking out about 300 streetlights, setting off numerous burglar alarms and damaging a telephone company microwave link"_


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