Comms

[daddio]

For those of you who sadly missed last weekend, it was awesome!

Of particular note was how effective comms units were in organising the defence and attack.

I'd like to see more use of comms during scenarios.

So, for those with comms, can we please start to bring them out and use them on a more regular basis?

I can also give training on hand signals - but will be modified for airsoft.

[Bladerunner]

Hi Dave can you give some examples of what to buy type + quality + cost.

[Manley]

Yeah some guidance on what to look for in buying comms would be great info

[ObsoleteAcey]

talk to mouse... he got comms for him and myself from a Bad Karma guy.. 5w with earpiece and throat mike (and you seem to be the only one who couldn't hear me on it daddio!). about $210 all up

[charles]

Just goto dick smith and get the 2W uniden ones. they come in pairs and sell for about $140. they work great even in the bush at tag. i was still sending/receiving from field 1-3. it works from field 1-4 but rather quiet and at times noisy.

[daddio]

I think for the small cost difference, 5Watt radios are the go. They work well in forested areas (especialty in Nelson).

.5W are only good between section members (e.g. sending a guy to out flank) - for platoon or company comms difinitely 5Watts.

re throat mics - while Acey said I was the only person not able to hear him - you cannot wisper into a throat mic. So, if you are in a dleicate (close) situation - then a PTX - push-to-talk system is better IMO.

As Acey said, see mouse, dick smith or Jaycar in Sydenham.

[Zero]

My advice on radio's - "Don't" Buy anything less than 5 watts !
You would be just wasting your money.

If you have a radio which is less than 5 watts you will not transmit a good clear signal.
You will hear the radio messages from the 5 watt radio's but they won't hear you as clear or may not Even understand what you are saying.

All PRS Radio's are line of sight. (Simplex)
That means they are only effective in that sort of distance.
If you have heaps of bush the signal will be blocked and you will have reduced coverage.
If you are out in the open then your signal will travel further as there is less obstructions to block your signal.

All PRS Radio's (Personal Radio Service) are UHF CB Radio's (Ultra High Frequency) (Citizen's Band) They operate between 476.4250 mhz to 477.4000mhz.
Channels from 1 to 40

Channels 1,3,5,8,20 are all ChCh repeater channels.
Ch 1 - Repeater Site is located at Mt Grey
Ch 3 - Repeater Site is located at The Fire Tower at Irwell Forest
Ch 5 - Repeater Site is located at Marleys Hill
Ch 8 - Repeater Site is located at Lincoln Uni
Ch 20 - Repeater is Unknown - somewhere in the City Area

Repeater - Is a device which relays your signal to a greater distance.
You transmit a message on your radio and it goes to the repeater, then it is retransmitted to the other radios further a field.
Which gives you greater coverage area / distance.
This is like the system Commercial Radio Telephone's use in Trucks, Taxis, Emergency Service's etc....But they tend to transmit 25watts.

My advice is to buy UHF Commercial Radio Telephone's.
You can pick them up off "Trade Me"

You just need to check out what type of radio they are and that they are capable of doing PRS Frequencies.
Best advice is to call the various ChCh Radio Dealers (Motorola - TL Parkers) (Tait - Bearcomm) and give them the Model Number, and they will be able to tell you if its capable of doing PRS.

[Rich]

5 watt radio with ctcss code option to limit who can break in on your comms is the way to go, some sets also offer basic encryption. must have high/low power selection as 5 watt setting kills battery real quick.

[Flame_hound]

Agreed, The game at CSG a few months ago proved that 5W radios are the way to go. I have a 2W uniden and it was severely out ranged and made me useless as a 'siglet' as I was dubbed. Messages Had to be relayed and it caused quite a bit of a break down.

If Comms are going to be made a serious go then we should invest a bit of time and effort into learning to using them effectively. A big problem on the coast was too much dependence being placed on the radios and way too much chatter.

mmm....thats my two cents

Coatesy