RACE RADIOS

[poolman]

What brand of radio are you using?Does your radio have to be programmed by a professional?What about a license?Where did you get it?Thanks for any help!

poolman

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[JCA]

If you are getting one for a race vehicle talk with Scott at PCI ask about the Roadmaster. I think it cost about $600-700. If it is for a chase vehicle there is a place called Hamm Radio Outlet in Kerney Mesa. The radio is a Yeasu. It is programable and it was about $200.00 for the whole setup.

J.C. Andrews
Andrews Racing
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.andrewsracing.com>www.andrewsracing.com</A>

[rdc]

We also recommend that you buy current model Yaesu radios, both for chase vehicles and for your race vehicle. You can program many of the Yaesu radios yourself, very easily, using push buttons, plus they can be less expensive than the older technology "Roadmasters". A couple of the radio resellers who make their living out of selling Roadmaster radios to race teams, have been allocating channels to the race teams themselves, and programming the radios that they sell according to a system that they have adopted. However to our knowledge none of the offroad teams have a license to use the frequencies that they are on, which are basically the same frequencies used by taxi cabs, tow trucks and other commercial users. In effect, none of the teams have a license to use the channels that they are using. So if you are using a particular channel and another team claims , "hey get off OUR channel", you can always ask to see their license. Another option is to obtain a commercial license for some channels, through your Yaesu dealer, then YOU can say, "hey, dude, get off OUR channel. WE have a license to use this channel"

If you didn't see it on TV, did it really happen?

[frankh]

I agree with everything you say except about Yaesu . Cheap yes but by no means top of the line. Second most radio need to be open up and modified to enable programming.

[JCA]

True the Yeasu does need a modification but it is a simple one and is a good cheap radio for a chase truck. I have two of them I have been using for about three years now. As for the Roadmaster, the radio works well for me and the support is awsome (PCI).

J.C. Andrews
Andrews Racing
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.andrewsracing.com>www.andrewsracing.com</A>

[mgobaja]

I have modified about 40 of the Yeasu radios for various teams and for the most part have had no problems. The one major drawback is that the ft-2600 radio has 60watts of output and unless it's wired directly to the battery it will not opperate through most cigar lighter plugs. Kenwood also makes a great radio for chase use. The biggest plus for the "roadmaster" it's actually a nuetec, is the ease of use and minimal things to screw with while in the race car. The Yeasu makes a good chase radio if wired correctly and the "ROADMASTER" makes a good in car radio. IF you want any more info the the Yeasu or the Kenwood let me know. I can also provide Handhelds for under $200 that willl outperform the PCI handhelds.

[frankh]

What I was getting at is he said that they were not licensed, But as soon as you open the radio and make modifications it is no longer FCC type accepted which is just as bad.( legally)

[frankh]

And I'm not saying it is a bad thing. Just you should know what laws you are breaking just in case you do get stop by the FCC you know what to say. ( I don't know it always worked that way, from the time I bought it at the swap meet)

[Ryno]

Frank-

I can see your point (legality wise), but has the FCC come after off-road racers/ closed circuit operators? My friends aunt now works for BFG, but for a long time did Ham radio for SCORE, and she could call just about anyone in the world. I just can't see the FCC coming down on small stuff like this.

Ryno

Build it like a Rhino, and Leave it be.

[TimHayosh]

Frank is correct.

The law is such that you CAN modify a commercial band (the band we race on) radio to work on amateur (HAM) frequencies. But, you may NOT modify a Ham radio to work on commercial frequencies. To operate (legally) on either band, you need a license.

A Ham license is pretty easy to get. You just have to pass a written test. <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/examsearch.phtml>Click here</A> to find a class near you. You will then have access (legally) to 144MHz-148Mhz as well as the 440MHz (UHF) bands [and several other bands too].

To obtain a license for a commercial band, you apply to the FCC and will then get a license for a specific frequency i.e. 151.625MHz. You may not operate (legally) on any other freq than the one you're licensed for.

In addition to PCI, <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.raceshock.com>RaceShock Co.</A> is also selling new commercial band radios. (This is Spam Sunday...right??!)

BTW, the only way the FCC would go looking for you, is if you were interfering with a licensed operator. Therefore, if you only use your radio during a race (and NOT in town), you will probably not have a problem. (Does anyone know of a racer having to deal with the FCC?)

There are also other benefits to being a licensed Ham operator. Having access to repeaters and Autopatch (a phone connection) with a radio can be priceless in some situations. I got my license a couple of months ago, and have learned much since.

As for recommendations and modifications, of modifications by manufacturer. <A target="_blank" HREF=http://home.earthlink.net/~bajascoob/images/tm261-freqmod.jpg>Here is a great picture of a modified Kenwood 261A. I use a Kenwood 261A in my chase vehicles and main pit. Easy to program, cheap, and (so far) reliable. I know there are several other readers of this board who use it too.