Two Way Radios Radio Shack

I am a pilot looking for a way to communicate legally with a person on the ground (close range/line of sight). A portable aviation radio is not an option as it requires a ground station license when used outside of an aircraft. Would like to avoid 2 meter because of its license requirement as well. Do two-way FRS/GMRS radios like those sold at Radio Shack work for this application? Is there another technology?
John, thank you for your answer. I am aware of the GMRS license and would happily pay the fee if I knew the radio would work for my purpose. I will check out the links you provided. Thanks for your help.
Just for reference, I came across a post by Bob Gardner (author of Say Again, Please) on Usenet:

Unicom and multicom stations are licensed to use those frequencies. There are no aviation frequencies for the kind of use you propose. Go buy a couple of those walkie-talkies they sell just about everywhere and use them.

I gather from the suggestion that he feels the radios could work, technically, I will give them a try.

Don't forget your cellphone, if you're close enough to a repeater station that is...

I've seen cellphone adapters for sale at Sporty's for GA

2005-12-29 13:04:03 by Dave

Today I am reviewing the Midland 2 Way Radio#39;s. They cost about 40.00 at The Source in Canada and Radio Shack in the States.

neither lap top would regester a valid serial number please advise

Was it a display model?
Sometimes stores will register the serials to make sure they dont miss the extended warranty deadlines and rebates when they use it for store use. I would double check with radio shack if it is a display model they had out.

Also, when registering with Acer, there should be a little "How do i locate my serial number?" on the page you are using to register. Click this and double check it b/c sometimes they want you to exclude the last few digits or anything after parenthesis when typing this in their webpage :)

2007-02-19 19:08:28 by Loretta S

Price: $9.99

Allows bidirectional communication for pay-per-view and interactive TV and Internet
Splits VHF and UHF signals to feed 2 devices, such as TV, VCR or PVR

I have worked at Radio Shack for two years, and had some questions about the company's 401K plans for employees: Of your contributions, what percentage, if any, does RS match?

You have to ask the 401k provider. They should be telling you this as its in their best interest to have you contribute. However, even if they dont match your contributions you should still contribute as it reduces your taxable income. When you leave you can roll it into an IRA that will keep it growing tax deferred- which means you don't pay taxes until you draw from it. However if you draw from it before 59 you will be taxed and penalized. So whatever you contribute make sure u can do without for some time.

2007-04-27 13:38:53 by Brian The Librarian

Price: $19.99 $18.36

Up to a 10 mile range.
Features Include: Up to a 10 mile range-22 channels and a standard scan-15 levels of digital volume-Featherweight design
15 levels of digital volume.
Featherweight design and rugged structure makes it perfect for campers and hikers. 32 hour battery life
With 22 channels and a standard scan feature you can stay in touch wile you are out and about.

The PA amp's brand is Grommes Precision Electronics, model PST60. Its output is a single 60 watts RMS. Two homemade "PA speakers", with full-range 15-inch drivers that seem to have been made for guitar amplification (specs unknown but they look at least 30 years old), are connected in parallel to the amp. These speakers sound lousy while projecting voice (though they sound okay projecting acoustic guitar music, which makes me think they are guitar amp drivers), so I'm thinking of getting a smaller pair of actual modern PA speakers.
The impedance load for the PA amp is rated at 4 - 8 ohms (I imagine using two speakers wired in parallel vs. using one speaker, correct?). If I bought two PA speakers whose impedance are 8 ohms, would the in-parallel 4 ohm load be okay? This drop in impedance would cause the wattage of the amp to increase by how much?
I'm considering two Radio Shack 10" PA cabs, with an RMS rating of 75 watts/160 watts peak.

Thanks in advance for any help!
James T.

Lowering the impedance to half will increase the output by 3 dB. (this comes at the cost of a little more distortion).

Also keep in mind that not all speakers are created equal, as some are more efficient than others, so if you are replacing a single more efficient driver with two less efficient ones, you may not notice any difference, other than some added distortion. If the cabinets are smaller, its probable they are less efficient. (Most speakers have an efficiency rating i.e. 88dB, so you can use that for comparison).

Buy from some place with a liberal return policy, and try it out. You can always bring them back if you don't like the sound.

2008-01-25 19:44:16 by James T

About a hundred a week

2009-03-20 11:37:28 by cr1s820