HF Radio
Submitted: Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 13:37
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Andrew f5
Hi Folks,
Been thinking of putting in a
HF radio into my vehicle (based in
the desert) mainly for the versitility and lack of ongoing costs.
Just wondering how many people are still using them and if there is still a an active community? Would probably get a Codan Envoy if anyone here has experience of them?
Cheers
(not looking for a debate on sat phone vs hf)
Reply By: Member - Wooly - Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 14:15
Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 14:15
There is an active community all right.
I am a member of VKS737 and they provide very good coverage on all of our trips outback.
Listen to the skeds in the morning while packing up
camp and hear people call in from all over Australia can be most informative, especially if your headed that way. Weather reports etc always available.
There are another couple of networks which I don't really know much about but do offer
services.
HF radios these days are quite robust and reliable and will work
well as long as they are earthed properly. We have a Barrett 2050 with a 910 auto tune antenna which we bought new around 15 yrs ago and its been in 3 vehicles now, still going strong.
I enjoy using ours on our trips and so do quite a few others as far as I can tell.
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Follow Up By: Andrew f5 - Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 14:18
Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 14:18
Thanks. I have seen skeds mentioned a few times, i'm not sure what they are exactly though?
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Follow Up By: Member - Wooly - Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 15:17
Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 15:17
Skeds are regular morning or afternoon sessions where one of the base stations will broadcast for 30 mins or so giving anyone a chance to call in and have a chat.
Have a look at VKS737 website, it will give you a much better run down than
mine.
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Follow Up By: B1B2 - Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 20:27
Monday, Jan 04, 2021 at 20:27
(SKEDS) Short for 'Scheduled Broadcasts' from base stations morning and afternoon. The base stations open every sked by asking for any emergency calls before changing to routine log ins.
You will be asked where you are and where you are headed to. It can be time consuming but very informative. I plug in an extension speaker to hear what is happening weather and fire wise.
VKS-737 Mobile 0967
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Reply By: Nifty07 - Thursday, Jan 21, 2021 at 10:47
Thursday, Jan 21, 2021 at 10:47
Definitely the right choice. I am using the Codan Envoy and subscribe to the
HF Radio Club. They are the only provider who have a fully compliant ALE/CALM network and smart server. Click on the link and have a look at the map showing their area of coverage
https://hfradioclub.com.au/ .
Then have a look at what they offer. Using their network I can send a message to any mobile phone and when the mobile phone sends a reply this gets delivered to the Envoy. No apps needed as its all done at their end.
The ALE/CALM means all I have to do is press the send GPS and the radio works out the best channel/base. Next thing I get a message saying my GPS position has been emailed to my pre-defined email addresses. Its simply smarter and so easy to use. That is once you get used to using the radio. The ALE/CALM makes it so much better as you dont need to "beacon" heaps of bases / channels to work out the best one to use.
Then after your trip you send a message via the radio and all my GPS positions are emailed to me. When I open the email attachment it auto opens my mapping software (google earth - free).
On the Canning in 2018 I got a message from my brother (sisters friend passed) so I sent my sister a SMS message to her mobile phone and the next day made a phone call to her. All with the Envoy.
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