Unchained Preppers
Communications => Radio => Topic started by: JohnyMac on October 24, 2018, 10:20:53 AM
-
Well I am off Friday to Brushbeater's Advanced RTO (Radio Telephone Operator) class this weekend. I will be taking I-81 south from my AO to Roanoke, VA. then SE on Route 58 into NW, North Carolina for the class.
I have plugged in the following repeaters for my trip along the route:
Harrisburg, 147.375
Chambersburg 146.415
Winchester 146.820
Waynesboro 145.290
Roanoke/Salem 146.880
Danville 146.700
None are "linked" nor part of the ECHOLINK system.
If you are located in the area of one of these repeaters, PM me and share your call sign. I will try to raise you when I within the repeater coverage.
I will try to make a few posts while in NC at the class. A full report when I get back home.
-
enjoy the class!
-
Thx Kbop...I am sure I will.
It's as cold down there as up here in NE PA though. I will not pack the shorts.
-
It's definitely not summer. I didn't wear any shorts last week when I was down in TN, though it was warmer than where I am now. We've had snow flurries all day. Be safe on I-81, especially in Virginia. Enjoy the class, and I'll be looking forward to your posts regarding the class.
-
A friend of mine went to the previous one he said it was quite good.
-
This class is on my list of things to get to... glad you are getting out to it!
-
Well I am back from N.Carolina. Boy is that one L.O.N.G. drive! The Adv. TRO class is/was totally different that the basic class.
I will do a AAR when I get a chance later this week. For the mean time, good folks (from MA., RI., PA., WV., NC., SC., VA., & TN.), good NC barbecue which I was told was better than South Carolina barbecue. I don't know ;)
Till later in the week.
-
Well I am back from N.Carolina. Boy is that one L.O.N.G. drive! The Adv. TRO class is/was totally different that the basic class.
I will do a AAR when I get a chance later this week. For the mean time, good folks (from MA., RI., PA., WV., NC., SC., VA., & TN.), good NC barbecue which I was told was better than South Carolina barbecue. I don't know ;)
Till later in the week.
looking forward to hearing all about it!
-
Well I am back from N.Carolina. Boy is that one L.O.N.G. drive! The Adv. TRO class is/was totally different that the basic class.
I will do a AAR when I get a chance later this week. For the mean time, good folks (from MA., RI., PA., WV., NC., SC., VA., & TN.), good NC barbecue which I was told was better than South Carolina barbecue. I don't know ;)
Till later in the week.
I can talk about BBQ. North Carolina BBQ is Vinegar based and most others are tomato sauce based. I live about 33 miles from NC and I prefer the Tomato Sauce based BBQ because its not so sour.
-
Well I am back from N.Carolina. Boy is that one L.O.N.G. drive!
If I had caught the OP I would have told you to exit 81 at 150 E in Va and go 4.5 miles to 460 turn left and go 35 miles. A turn or 2 at about the far end and I would have bought dinner. Or lunch or whatever considering time of day.
Nemo
-
Glad to hear you made it back safely. Yes, it is a loooong drive. I'll be making the trip many times next year.
-
Thx PK and Nemo. Jackalope, yes it is a loooong drive especially when it is raining and their seems to be a back-up every 20-miles or so due to accidents. Add to that the "snow birds" heading south to Florida from Canada and parts much colder and 18-wheelers you really have to pay attention. :suicide:
Soon, AAR will be coming.
-
AAR of this class can be found here (http://unchainedpreppers.com/forum/radio/aar-rto-advance-class-review/new/#new)
-
Well I am back from N.Carolina. Boy is that one L.O.N.G. drive! The Adv. TRO class is/was totally different that the basic class.
I will do a AAR when I get a chance later this week. For the mean time, good folks (from MA., RI., PA., WV., NC., SC., VA., & TN.), good NC barbecue which I was told was better than South Carolina barbecue. I don't know ;)
Till later in the week.
Way to leave me off the list. I knew no one liked New Jersey :P
Drive was incredibly long, and one of my rear rotors had an issue starting on I-95 in Baltimore so for four hours of driving it was as if I was driving on rumble strips. Took it back to the shop (just had new ones put on two weeks ago) and they said it was a machining defect so they fixed it for free. Thank God for small mercies....
-
LOL patriotman...Sorry about that one. ;-)
-
:chuky: :chuky: :chuky:
All good :D
-
CTR I81
Continuing Travel Report Interstate 81.
DO NOT TRAVEL ON IT. Go another way. Its about the most heavily traveled interstate other than 95 (which is mostly 3-5 lanes each way) and you will run into a tie up of some reason or another every day, often withing a couple hours drive of each.
Again-- Do not travel on I-81 if you have any other route to your destination.
Nemo
-
Way to leave me off the list. I knew no one liked New Jersey :P
You are completely correct on that aspect of life. And for specificity-- its NO ONE.
Nemo
-
:'(
-
DO NOT TRAVEL ON IT. Go another way. Its about the most heavily traveled interstate other than 95 (which is mostly 3-5 lanes each way) and you will run into a tie up of some reason or another every day, often withing a couple hours drive of each.
Again-- Do not travel on I-81 if you have any other route to your destination.
Nemo
Unfortunately for me, I have to use I-81, it's the shortest and most efficient route to our other AO. However, it does give us an opportunity to visit some prepper friends, while on the way :-). Since this post is in the communications portion of the board, I'll add that it's important to have effective monitoring equipment on board when traveling the highway. I regularly use an 11 meter radio (CB for those that aren't hams) which will usually give us enough of a heads up to allow us to detour. A good scanner is helpful too. My wife has an app on her iphone which also informs us of accidents and the location of any gendarmes. A collection of maps and a GPS help when there are unplanned detours. I must say that I-81 sucks because of the bumper to bumper traffic, and there always seems to be multiple accidents when traveling in Virginia.
-
My wife has an app on her iphone which also informs us of accidents and the location of any gendarmes.
Whats that app?
Nemo
-
My wife says it's called WAZE.
-
I finally got another smartfone after years without one.
Just last week. An iphone 6S gifted by a collegue
It had a broken screen which I got fixed for 100 bucks.
The thumbprint IDer still worked even tho it was cracked.
Took a full day day to get all his old stuff off.. to get me a log i to the app store etc.
I Literally just installed WAZE just 2 min ago when this thread reminded me.
It's like having a map of the world in your hand that can be zoomed in and out almost at will but then again my vehicle outlet will charge it via USB.
Of course the thing is a bit powerhungry it goes from 100% charge to 50% charge in a day just sitting there.
Every single use of SIRI seems to use up 1% of battery charge.
BUt the iphone will recharge in my car so its not the issue it could be At least left-of-boom.
-
Erick, have you checked to see if you are in local or roaming mode. Roaming will drain the battery quickly. If you are on a provider with a tower locally you could double or triple your battery life.
Your phone could still be considering itself roaming even when using a local tower. I learned all this myself recently.
Nemo
-
I am currently deployed as a security contractor in a foreign country and have roaming enabled.
But the phone was bought here (actually a buddy gifted it since the screen was cracked and I had that fixed)
and uses a local SIM card.
So I dont know if being "local" that will help it avoid excessive roaming.
When its stationary next to the bed it holds charge pretty good.
-
I am currently deployed as a security contractor in a foreign country and have roaming enabled.
But the phone was bought here (actually a buddy gifted it since the screen was cracked and I had that fixed)
and uses a local SIM card.
So I dont know if being "local" that will help it avoid excessive roaming.
When its stationary next to the bed it holds charge pretty good.
i've done a bit of traveling - i have a bunch-o sim cards.
two things to consider.
local sims are a good way to avoid roaming charges - smart. Most airports or train stations or even the news stand near them, usually sell sim cards on the local network at a 'tourist' markup. i still get them there, its convenient. great for local coms.
the other one - when you phone authenticates through the local AuC or HAL your encryption key now goes through their system. This metadata can be persistent. Just assume that any activity on that phone during that time will be open to inspection by the owners of that encryption system - usually the local government, or baddies.
be careful - don't accept long distance calls when using the local sim - or you'll pay their pay structure for the call - just know which is best for you. be careful when you get back home - if you still have the foreign sim in your phone, you'll be roaming in your own backyard.
it is not uncommon for people who travel a lot to use phones or tablets with multiple sim carriers installed, i do.
I don't know if this will work for you - but i try and get an unlimited data sim and make all my out of country contacts via skype, facetime, GTM, hangout, etc. no charges at all - other than the initial cost of the sim - most expire in a month after your first put it into your phone.
there is some mixing and matching of transmission formats and phone capabilities - that can be figured out on chat boards, or trial and error.