Jim:
I recently went for a drive with both my Uniden GMR 1058 handheld radio (GMRS [1]/FRS [2] [band, and according the manufacturer’s literature] boasting a 10 mile range) and my newly-acquired ICOM IC-V85 FM [3] [2 Meter [4] band] Transceiver. I had my wife (with one of each as well) on our porch and here are my results. As I drove though the hilly and wooded terrain, immediately the GMR radio was picking up other kids and families and taxi drivers also talking. At 1/4 a mile the sound quality became unintelligible and communication was impossible. If no one else was on the line, morse code might have worked. I called her on my cell and told her to turn off the Uniden and to switch on the ICOM. I was able to speak and hear clearly for about 3.5 miles. Remember, none of this was line of sight. At about 3.5 miles communications became sketchy and I had her put on a collapsible antenna and stretch it out. It was a 2 Meter 5/8ths wave Super Stick II manufactured by Smiley Antenna Company. [5] She stretched it out and communication was clear again for a few more miles. When communication became weak again, I put the longer antenna on mine and stretched it out inside my car and went out to about 10 miles. At that point it got weak again and I got out of my car and put the antenna vertical and was able to hear her with better quality than my cell phone. I went a mile further and parked in an industrial complex with metal buildings surrounding me and heard her with perfect clarity. So IMHO [6] the FRS/GMRS radios are toys only good for short range direct line of sight. For serious communications, get a FM transceiver and you must have a detachable antenna so you an mount a longer antenna to it. You might also consider the ICOM IC-V8000 [7] with 75 watts of power (or something similar) and a decent antenna for base operations. Being designed for a car it would operate off a car battery. The greater power would allow you to transmit signals to a greater distance (although I wouldn’t want to be more than a day’s walk from my base anyway) and the bigger antenna (A Diamond antenna X200 is 8.3 feet and an X510 is 17 feet) should also allow you for reception from a greater distance as well. – SF in Hawaii
JWR Replies: Thanks for taking the time to do those test.they confirm my previous finding on FRS and GMRS radios. The term “toys” is a good description! In between the power if FRS and 2 Meter radios are most MURS band radios [8]. Unlike 2 Meter ham hand-talkies, these do not require a license in the US. That is what we uses here at the Rawles Ranch [9]. The band is also much less crowded than the CB [10] radio band. In fact, the MURS [11] band is virtually unused in many parts of the country. These transceivers typically transmit 2 watts. (Four time the power of FRS radios.) With a good antenna, MURS hand-helds can achieve commendable range–far better than FRS radios.