If shtf what band on ham radio land would you be on?

If shtf, what band on ham radio land would you be on?Pick one or top three.

Hello

This is my first post here and saw a Ham related question and thought I might answer it, sort of. Being a Army MARS OP I personally would be on a military freq. But to answer your question there are portions of each band that are "calling freqs" so It would make a difference whether it was local or Inter-national you were needing. You would have the option of using any band/freq combination. I know that danced around the question more than answered it but yes this would be something that should be determined before the shtf. Locally you might be using the 2 meter band and long range you might need the 80 meter band for an example. No answer here but your individual needs should be addressed prior to the actual needs, you are on the right track. Did I muddy up the water even further? Sorry if I did.

The ARES and other groups are there for Emergency OPs. If you aren't a member of a local/state/national group it might be a good place to start.

I would use 2 Meter (144Mhz-148Mhz) since it appears to be popular in the Front Range Region.

666 or 911. Of course this is coming from a guy who knows nothing about HAM. But I figure a SHTF scenario, How could it hurt :)

This is mostly a tag for ideas, but I think I'd start with the ARRL and RMRL repeaters for general info, with the El Jebel Shrine as #3

Sorry I don't have actual frequencies, I've been kind of lax for a long time and would have to dig out my old vx110 (which I should do anyway, it's due for battery maintenance).

If there's a COAR15 approved band, I'd add that near the top of the list to cut through 95% of the BS the others would be full of.
Why doesn't someone set up a 2meter repeater and coordinate all that? Thanks. ;)

146.520 Mhz

arfcom has a freq picked out 145.560 Mhz

quite a few repeaters up and down the front range, both 2M and 70cm.

Check the local repeater of choice, wide area coverage if possible, and if they aren't running for some reason... 2 meter simplex: 146.520, 146.550, 146.580, etc. same with 70cm/440: 446.100, 446.200, and since I don't have any capability of HF it wouldn't much matter for a local event unless needing to talk outside the area.

There's all sorts of modes of communications you could use. For voice, there's nothing wrong with 2m and 70cm for local communication. As had been stated earlier, there's repeaters out the wazoo here in Colorado. The advantage is that it only takes an entry level license to use them (though one can do anything they please in emergency situations).

For longer range regional and international com, HF would work very nicely.These days the 20, 40 and 80 meter bands should work nicely. With a very simple wire antenna (stretched out at six feet in height) you can work NVIS (Near Vertical Incident Skywave). It's a mouthful, but sends your signal straight up and bounces it off ionized layers in the upper atmosphere. You should get up to a 300 mile radius of communication which may be all you need. 40 meters is a reasonably reliable band for that type of operation.

If you prefer longer range, that same wire antenna can be elevated to 30-50 feet and you should be able to hit Europe if you have to, though the lower 48 is a better bet on a consistent basis. 80/40/20 meters are good for this as well depending on the time of day. Again, a simple wire antenna is plenty for what we're talking about. You can make it yourself for under $10 if your handy.

Digital ops are available if you want to get into it further. It'll take a computer to do it, but even an old laptop is sufficient. You can even use it on HF for continental coverage, though the VHF digital capability locally may be enough.

I really need to get my license. What's a good starter hand held 2m radio?

H.

If they are still making it, I think the VX150 is about the best 10 year old HT around.
I passed through the VX-5R "more is better" phase and can't get over how rugged & dependable the 150 is. Buddy of mine dropped his in a hot tub and it didn't even miss a beat.
Mine has been knocked off of more car roofs and window ledges than I can count.
But I haven't bought a new radio since the VX-7 came out, so maybe someone else has an affordable mil grade single band. Or maybe Yaesu is crap now, I don't know.



And am I correct in assuming that no one has got that CoAR15 repeater operating yet?

Jeez, dang slackers...

I have an FT-50 (actually 2 of them) and an FT-60. Both are great.

Definitely work out a number of repeaters, at different physical locations. Radio sites are generally reliable, but not immune to power outages. Some have battery and generator backups, some are per-transmitter and others power the whole building, it's really dependent on the site. Those resources are finite however, and if the SHTF for real, a tech is not going to be hauling ass up the hill to fix it (assuming the radio site isn't destroyed to begin with).