Setting Up the Wolfpack with Radios: “I Don’t Know What To Buy” Guide, by GuerrillaLogistician
USS Razorback Radio room
Between medicine and comms, there is a lot of piss poor guidance. While I’m not an expert on these subjects and never will claim to be, I’ve seen so many people be conned into buying things or operating things they could get them killed. While the training is essential and you should attend a class to understand how to operate communications properly, everyone wants to buy things first. It could be a firearm, or it could be A $2000 radio. People tend to spend money before understanding a subject. Even worse, many people are selling things and marketing things to make a profit, such as mesh networks. Through ignorance or abject disregard, these peddlers push something to line their pocketbooks. Sometimes, it’s challenging to distinguish between an honest person selling a product that works and a snake oil salesman. I could go on for hours telling you about the expensive radios and their qualities.
Many YouTubers who operate radios tend to get gifted expensive radios that seem very useful to us, but sometimes their value is cosmetic. A well-known secret around radio sales is that many Japanese manufacturers now only put the radios together. Still, the core components are made in China, just like many of the products that claim to be made in the United States. For now, let’s focus on getting the best comms for small units in limited ranges, so we will not be going over HF radios, only the handhelds. Let’s talk about those tactical and contingency radios everyone should learn about and get accustomed to. While everyone might want these radios handy in the field, not everyone needs them on or with them so don’t feel obligated to buy radios for everyone.
Where can I find this information, and why am I not being sold a couple hundred dollar handheld?
This is all based on what you will learn from The Guerrilla’s Guide to the Baofeng Radio, found at https://brushbeater.store/products/the-guerrillas-guide-to-the-baofeng-radio-field-version, which is the field version. The bigger one is a bit cheaper: https://brushbeater.store/products/the-guerrillas-guide-to-the-baofeng-radio-authors-verison
Readers note ANY radio that can talk to another radio will work; Gucci can be worse for you than basic stuff. For instance, ICOM ID-51 stock requires lots of cash, and then you must mod it to make it work out of the bands it was designed for. A UV-5R has three buttons to open it up.
Any radio with a Kenwood plug works with this reference, but this is a limited list of radios to choose from. If you find other radios with Kenwood plugs you like, go for it. Why Kenwood plugs? Why not different designs? Because accessories for Kenwood plugs are way easier to find and cheaper. I am an ICOM Yeasu guy, and trust me, to match accessories, the cost goes up by 4x-10x sometimes. If you have a different radio, message me, and I will TRY to help.
Quick Myths
-I need high-watt/power radios to talk to people. (Negative. I have talked to Japan on 5 watts from AR)
-I need waterproof bomb-proof army gear (the Falcon III isn’t as durable as people think, and radios break. The AR-152 and UV-5R have taken heavy rain with no issues being dropped, etc. Yes, some radios are fragile. The DM-F8 isn’t super durable even though it’s an excellent radio)
-If it isn’t XXX dollars, it is shit. (Again, this is not true for our purposes. A Lambo goes fast, but when you need to haul dudes over a mountain, do you want a Lambo or Toyota Hilux?)
RADIO LIST to look for
Radios come with the capability to operate in many frequencies (bands)
GMRS/FRS/HAM bands
AR-152 (long battery life/no need for a charging base, just the wall wart)
UV-5R (cheap, easy to get, and you can buy packs of them affordably)
BF-F8HP (UV-5R with upgraded power)
CB radio
QYT CB-58 (CB with AM and FM capabilities/hiding your comms)
MULTIBAND (outside of common operation)
AR-F8 (Just like the DM-F8 in form factor and around the same price, this radio can hit a lot of different frequencies, although it is less rugged than the AR-152/UV-5R radios)
UV-5R with all you need 19$ on amazon.
AR-152
Frankly, the AR-152 is your best bang, but if you are going to do more public stuff and want a small footprint, the UV-5R is just fine. It is also cheaper, and it is good to have a backup.
https://brushbeater.store/products/ar-152-vhf-uhf-radio
Now that our radios are picked up let’s move on to accessories.
