wind up radio

reply to post by subfab


I mostly listen also. Have had some interesting qso's.

Call is AC8AI

I always have on the local repeater and 146.52 in the car. And I send cards for simplex on 2 M. I like cards.

Had a qso with a New Zealand station ( on 20 meters) at lunchtime from the car at work. Once with the ISS space station with a car full of scouts. Russia from Michigan on 30 watts (PSK31). Argentina from San Diego, on grey line propagation.

One youngster in Canada, qso on 20 meters. He had no cards or stamps so I sent him a few generic cards and some canadian stamps and he sent me a card back. I was his first qso on HF. Canadians are tight with da cards.

Most older grundig and midland equipment is pretty good. The newer brank marked as grundic/eton seems quite cheaply made.

Make sure any crank radio comes with the small ear-bud type headphones. They take less power, and the radio can run on the same crank several times longer if it doesn't have to power the external speaker.

Try to find a radio that recieves shortwave frequencies, and not just US NOAA station. If you aren't listening to shortwave now, you should be. You can pick up news from amateur broadcasters worldwide, and get a wholly different perspective on world events (and your own nation's role). If your state loses its freedom, SW may be your only outside source of news. Region-wide disasters like Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and Fukashima quake usually leave only amateur sw broadcasters in operation. In each of those disasters, key information to governments was recieved only from hams.

Its good to know there are more hams on here
I agree with the disaster communication, after the Haiti earthquake the only communication out was via the amateur bands which was received in the USA then routed via a phone patch.
This was how a lot of people got in touch with family to let them know they were ok.
A receiver with SSB is a must.

reply to post by Markive


a couple of radios that i like so far:

www.rei.com...

the manufacturer claims: 1 min. of hand cranking equals up to 30 min. of use.


also this radio:
www.amazon.com...=pd_cp_e_0/185-9810747-1295716

also this radio:
beprepared.com...
the kaito green voyager


-subfab

reply to post by subfab


I like all three.

CCrane is a good name. The one at REI just looks cool. And I like the green one also...

Let us know which one you get and how you like it.

I personally own the Freeplay FPR2S-GSW (I believe it's discontinued now). This is the one that Coast to Coast AM use to push by the CCrane Company.



My freeplay is about 6 years old and I use it on every investigation I go own (even though it's bulky). The Wind up Dynamo on these give you about an hours worth of radio after 40 winds. I have noticed that the louder you play it, the less time you have, which isn't a problem to just wind it up some more (So instead of an hour, you get like 40 minutes).

The quality of the sound because of the size of the speaker is surprisingly good.

reply to post by JohnnyAnonymous


it seems some of those older radios were very well made. i hear stories about the quality of the construction.


my wife gave me a REI gift card. so it looks like i'm going with the REI model. i plan on making the purchase this weekend.

my review will follow.

a couple of things i want to know about the radio are:

1. the claim from the manufacturer of one minute of winding equals thirty minutes of radio.
2. radio reception at my favorite camping/hiking spots.

what does everyone here at ATS want to know about an emergency radio?
i will try to address some questions when i tinker with the radio.

-subfab

well, i got it.
according to the instructions that came with the radio, one minute of winding equals thirty minutes of radio time. the manufacturer suggests a crank speed of 130cycles/minute. the radio has a small led that turns red when the crank speed is optimal. i tested the crank and it wasn't difficult to maintain the 130cycles/minute. the radio comes with a rechargeable battery already installed. i am leaving the radio on to drain the battery. i will then test the crank charge.

the reception is good. i receive the local fm radio stations pretty well. as well as my regular radio shack radio. (in the backround.)

more updates as i play with the radio.

-subfab

reply to post by subfab


the radio is still playing. a fully charged battery lasts a long time. so far it's been five hours!
i switched between am - fm - wb. (weather band). i turned the flashlight on and cranked the radio up to full blast. a full charge battery lasts a long time in this little radio.

the reception is fantastic. every station i tried to dial in has come in.

so far it's a good investment. will test the hand crank later.

-subfab

reply to post by kawika


i let the battery drain.
i cranked the handle per instructions for one minute at 130cycles/min. i had very good results.
first test the radio stayed on for 22 mins of radio time
second test the radio stayed on for 44 mins of radio time
the third test the radio stayed on for 27 mins of radio time
the fourth test the radio stayed on for 32 mins of radio time

i didn't run the flashlight or the phone charger during the tests.

the reception so far has been outstanding. in a few weeks, when i get some time from work, i plan on taking it on some day hikes. test the radio's packability and reception up in the mountains of the pacific northwest.

i really like this radio. i like it so much in fact that i plan on giving some away as gifts.

the radio:
www.amazon.com...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335970552&sr=8-1

note: amazon has it listed for $53 USD. i purchased mine from a local REI store for $40 USD.

-subfab

reply to post by subfab


The Amazon page indicates it contains a "made in USA" radio chip. Does it say on the package where it was made?

I like how it looks. Looks well made.

The radio I use is an Eton redcross hand crank and solar powered. Bought it for camping and was able to charge my android with its USB port, while listening to Pandora on it.

Mine is a MICROLINK FR160, and cost $35.00. It has weather stations preprogrammed am/fm radio and led light.

It's just a basic model, and compact enough to fit in a cargo pocket or go bag. The link above will show the many available products of the survival radio type.

I've had it a year now and it proved rugged enough. If your looking for an extreme version just look for water proofed variants. But make sure it is proofed not resistant, as one can survive under submerged conditions and the other only rain.

Originally posted by kawika
reply to post by subfab

 

The Amazon page indicates it contains a "made in USA" radio chip. Does it say on the package where it was made?

I like how it looks. Looks well made.

nothing written on the packaging or instruction sheet regarding who made the IC chip.

-subfab

reply to post by subfab


Everything is Chinese lately. Probably designed here, main chip made here, assembled in China.

I wish they still made those wind up radios in Africa. Those seem like a great product.

reply to post by kawika


i took the radio to my favorite mountain spot. it's a wildlife sanctuary located between portland oregon and the pacific coast. there isn't any cell phone service there. at least my cell had no signal. the little radio was able to receive some of the local fm stations, a couple of am stations and a weather channel.

i usually take a book, a sandwich, a root beer and some fruit when i visit this place. i'm adding this radio in my picnic basket.

during the summer i plan on taking some day hikes around mt. hood. will try out the radio up there. so far, i'm impressed by this little guy.

-subfab

Check out this radio. I bought one and LOVE it! Has 4 different power sources! And it's on sale right now!
beprepared.com...®%20Green%20Voyager™

I'm going to throw my hat for this one too...it's the one I've got in the BOBs, mostly because it has several functions, and most of the items in there have that all in common. It's a great site in general too, for other SHTF prep needs. Though you can get the superpails and lids cheaper at your local Home Depot (though not the mylar bags). They're good to order from them.

I personally think a radio is not the most ideal thing to have inless you are just useing it on a camping trip for survival.Although if SHTF if your transmitting the enemy are government can pick up your location because you are transmitting so you would need just something to pick up the transmittions

reply to post by Cyberwraith98


I agree. For the most part, if you have supplies it would be foolish to advertise that by transmitting. However, it might be good to have that as an option as you never know what might be helpful in an emergency. For myself, I would like to have radio capability so that I can communicate with my family if we become separated. In that case VHF line of site is good enough and can not be received much past the horizon.

But it also might be helpful to be able to listen on HF.