Scanner Radio users.

[Anonymous]

What type of Scanner Radio do you use when you go Railfanning?
I use my Pro93 for my Railroad hunt and I like it alot. What is your Best Scanner? BNSFrailfan.

[eolafan]

I also use a Pro93 and also like it, but wish I had a better antenna without using my rooftop antenna which I kind of dislike as it gets more static not to mention scratches my car some times.

[Anonymous]

Try www.smileyantenna.com
BNSFrailfan.

[richardy]

QUOTE: Originally posted by eolafan

I also use a Pro93 and also like it, but wish I had a better antenna without using my rooftop antenna which I kind of dislike as it gets more static not to mention scratches my car some times.

Are you getting static or intermodulation? I use a tuned cavity, not cheap but very effective in urban areas. Also I use a very thin (aka cheap) paper towel cut slightly larger than my magnetic, works great and the antenna stays attached at 75 MPH.

I use a PRO89 and a Bearcat 100XL.

Richard

[miniwyo]

How Helpful are scanners while trackside? And where can I get a fairly cheap one?

[athelney]

QUOTE: Originally posted by miniwyo

How Helpful are scanners while trackside? And where can I get a fairly cheap one?

How do you survive without one? - What convinced me was sitting at the lineside back in 1987 - with no trains going by - only to find the track up 2 miles down the road - and I did'nt know about it . So I got myself one soon after and now I don't go railfanning without it . I use a Uniden Bearcat 100 channel - does great for me - cost around $375.00 Can - a couple of years ago .
Only last Sunday did i pick up 2 incidents while out at lineside , one-a window broken on a westbound CP & the other a short time later of an eastbound CN running over a sign placed on the track . Without a scanner I would have had no knowledge of either incident - suggest you get one .

[miniwyo]

I guess i just survive by just being along the UPRR Main line, some days are busy sone days are dead, if i sit in downtown Rock Springs for 15 minutes and not see a thing its a slow day and will probably be a waist of time and will only see a few trains at that spot allowing me to move accordingly, where on a day where I sit for another 15 minutes and see more than 3, it will be a good day and will wait.

[spbed]

To date I have not used one in my rail fan adventures. If you go to busy spots their is so much action you really may not need one. [:o)][:o)]

QUOTE: Originally posted by athelney

QUOTE: Originally posted by miniwyo

How Helpful are scanners while trackside? And where can I get a fairly cheap one?

How do you survive without one? - What convinced me was sitting at the lineside back in 1987 - with no trains going by - only to find the track up 2 miles down the road - and I did'nt know about it . So I got myself one soon after and now I don't go railfanning without it . I use a Uniden Bearcat 100 channel - does great for me - cost around $375.00 Can - a couple of years ago .
Only last Sunday did i pick up 2 incidents while out at lineside , one-a window broken on a westbound CP & the other a short time later of an eastbound CN running over a sign placed on the track . Without a scanner I would have had no knowledge of either incident - suggest you get one .

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by spbed

To date I have not used one in my rail fan adventures. If you go to busy spots their is so much action you really may not need one. [:o)][:o)]

QUOTE: Originally posted by athelney

QUOTE: Originally posted by miniwyo

How Helpful are scanners while trackside? And where can I get a fairly cheap one?

How do you survive without one? - What convinced me was sitting at the lineside back in 1987 - with no trains going by - only to find the track up 2 miles down the road - and I did'nt know about it . So I got myself one soon after and now I don't go railfanning without it . I use a Uniden Bearcat 100 channel - does great for me - cost around $375.00 Can - a couple of years ago .
Only last Sunday did i pick up 2 incidents while out at lineside , one-a window broken on a westbound CP & the other a short time later of an eastbound CN running over a sign placed on the track . Without a scanner I would have had no knowledge of either incident - suggest you get one .

You never know,I mean the UP has a tendency to call out the "S" Word every once in a while. You know what that means don't you?
I can't wait till get my Radio Chack Pro95.
BNSFrailfan.

[Jack_S]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSF railfan.

What type of Scanner Radio do you use when you go Railfanning?
I use my Pro93 for my Railroad hunt and I like it alot. What is your Best Scanner? BNSFrailfan.

I was going to pass on a scanner, mainly due to the cost. Good ones were quoted at about $300 by another railfan. But, the day after last Thanksgiving, Radio Shack had a sale on Pro-83 scanners: $69.99. So I got one. 200 channels with lots of programming options. Pre-programmed for Fire/Police, Air, Marine, weather, and some Ham frequencies. Runs on AA batteries and takes rechargables. Uniden makes the Radio Shack units, but I don't remember the Uniden model number.

I set the first 100 channels (5 banks of 20) for the 97 AAR Channels. plus the Head of Train and End of Train frequencies, and set Bank 6 for the Family Radio System channels that, I am told, are sometimes used for AmTrak on-board communications. I haven't heard any in action so I may change that.

Bank 7 is for when I am watching SoCal UP/SP operations and are copies of the correct channels from Banks 1 thru 5. Bank 8 is for BNSF SoCal operations. Bank 9 is a catchall for listening to road channels in the San Bernardino-Riverside-Cajon area where both systems come together and share some common routes.

In each of these last banks I include the End of Train unit frequency as the highest channel number in the bank and set it as a Priority channel so I can be warned when a train gets within 2 miles or so of my location. In a busy yard or multiple route area I lock out the EOT frequency to avoid being overwhelmed by the electronic squeals from them.

At the Fullerton station the EOT frequencies allow me to warn the other fans of a train's approach so they can get their cameras and VCRs ready if they need ito

An observation: BNSF operations seem pretty efficient, since they show a minimal use of the radio. They seem to operate as if they all know what is going on. UP/SP fills the air with calls, and I take this as an indication that they need to do so keep things moving.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Jack_S

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSF railfan.

What type of Scanner Radio do you use when you go Railfanning?
I use my Pro93 for my Railroad hunt and I like it alot. What is your Best Scanner? BNSFrailfan.

I was going to pass on a scanner, mainly due to the cost. Good ones were quoted at about $300 by another railfan. But, the day after last Thanksgiving, Radio Shack had a sale on Pro-83 scanners: $69.99. So I got one. 200 channels with lots of programming options. Pre-programmed for Fire/Police, Air, Marine, weather, and some Ham frequencies. Runs on AA batteries and takes rechargables. Uniden makes the Radio Shack units, but I don't remember the Uniden model number.

I set the first 100 channels (5 banks of 20) for the 97 AAR Channels. plus the Head of Train and End of Train frequencies, and set Bank 6 for the Family Radio System channels that, I am told, are sometimes used for AmTrak on-board communications. I haven't heard any in action so I may change that.

Bank 7 is for when I am watching SoCal UP/SP operations and are copies of the correct channels from Banks 1 thru 5. Bank 8 is for BNSF SoCal operations. Bank 9 is a catchall for listening to road channels in the San Bernardino-Riverside-Cajon area where both systems come together and share some common routes.

In each of these last banks I include the End of Train unit frequency as the highest channel number in the bank and set it as a Priority channel so I can be warned when a train gets within 2 miles or so of my location. In a busy yard or multiple route area I lock out the EOT frequency to avoid being overwhelmed by the electronic squeals from them.

At the Fullerton station the EOT frequencies allow me to warn the other fans of a train's approach so they can get their cameras and VCRs ready if they need ito

An observation: BNSF operations seem pretty efficient, since they show a minimal use of the radio. They seem to operate as if they all know what is going on. UP/SP fills the air with calls, and I take this as an indication that they need to do so keep things moving.

My friend has one too,That is a very good Radio!
But from what I understand the much pricer Scanners do much better that the cheaper one's. I don't know why but thats my understanding.
BNSFrailfan.

[Willy2]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Jack_S

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSF railfan.

What type of Scanner Radio do you use when you go Railfanning?
I use my Pro93 for my Railroad hunt and I like it alot. What is your Best Scanner? BNSFrailfan.

I was going to pass on a scanner, mainly due to the cost. Good ones were quoted at about $300 by another railfan. But, the day after last Thanksgiving, Radio Shack had a sale on Pro-83 scanners: $69.99. So I got one. 200 channels with lots of programming options. Pre-programmed for Fire/Police, Air, Marine, weather, and some Ham frequencies. Runs on AA batteries and takes rechargables. Uniden makes the Radio Shack units, but I don't remember the Uniden model number.

I set the first 100 channels (5 banks of 20) for the 97 AAR Channels. plus the Head of Train and End of Train frequencies, and set Bank 6 for the Family Radio System channels that, I am told, are sometimes used for AmTrak on-board communications. I haven't heard any in action so I may change that.

Bank 7 is for when I am watching SoCal UP/SP operations and are copies of the correct channels from Banks 1 thru 5. Bank 8 is for BNSF SoCal operations. Bank 9 is a catchall for listening to road channels in the San Bernardino-Riverside-Cajon area where both systems come together and share some common routes.

In each of these last banks I include the End of Train unit frequency as the highest channel number in the bank and set it as a Priority channel so I can be warned when a train gets within 2 miles or so of my location. In a busy yard or multiple route area I lock out the EOT frequency to avoid being overwhelmed by the electronic squeals from them.

At the Fullerton station the EOT frequencies allow me to warn the other fans of a train's approach so they can get their cameras and VCRs ready if they need ito

An observation: BNSF operations seem pretty efficient, since they show a minimal use of the radio. They seem to operate as if they all know what is going on. UP/SP fills the air with calls, and I take this as an indication that they need to do so keep things moving.

I also got a Pro-83 scanner from Radio Shack when they were on sale right after Thanksgiving.

[Anonymous]

Another satisfied Pro-83 user. I also picked it up during the holidays on sale and programmed it just about the same. I live and work near the CSX Philly sub paralleling it for about twenty minutes each way on my commute. CSX calls all of the signals so on my way home I get advance notice of any traffic. A lot of the more expensive scanners have features such as trunk tracking that will help with fire & police but don't do any thing for railfans. I've heard all the fire & police talk at work that i'll ever need to so all I care about is listening to trains.

RH

[DPD1]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSF railfan.

What type of Scanner Radio do you use when you go Railfanning?
I use my Pro93 for my Railroad hunt and I like it alot. What is your Best Scanner? BNSFrailfan.

For train stuff, I still use my old clunky 100XLT... It's a brick, but it has great audio. They don't make them like that anymore.

Dave

-DPD Productions - Home of the TrainTenna RR Monitoring Antenna-
http://eje.railfan.net/dpdp/

[TheS.P.caboose]

I use a PRO-76 out railfanning and a PRO-2006 at home. My best being the PRO-2006. The sensitivity or db rating is 0.3, one of the better ratings out there. The PRO-76 is rated at 0.6 which is okay. The 76 allows me to hear ten miles out. Five miles in each direction.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by DPD1

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSF railfan.

What type of Scanner Radio do you use when you go Railfanning?
I use my Pro93 for my Railroad hunt and I like it alot. What is your Best Scanner? BNSFrailfan.

For train stuff, I still use my old clunky 100XLT... It's a brick, but it has great audio. They don't make them like that anymore.

Dave

-DPD Productions - Home of the TrainTenna RR Monitoring Antenna-
http://eje.railfan.net/dpdp/

Very good Scanner.
BNSFrailfan.

[RudyRockvilleMD]

I also use a Radio Shack Pro 83 Scanner which i recently received as a present. I also bought an AC adapter/ charger for it and a car cord. The scanner will run on either Alkaline, NiCad, or NiMH batteries; the NiMH batteries don't have a memory effect so you can recharge them at any time, not when they have run down.

I have been using a Bearcat BC 100XL scanner which I still have, but the problem is it takes a special NiCad battery pack. You could be out of luck if you are away from your car, one battery pack goes dead, and you don't have a spare fully charged battery pack. I use the BC 100 XL in the car now, and the Pro 83 when I am away from the car.

One helpful tip to mounting a magnetic base rooftop antenna on the roof of your car is to place a plastic grocery bag between the magnet and the roof of the car;that way you will prevent the roof from being scratched when you move the antenna on and off the roof. I mount a Max-Rad antenna to the roof of my car, and it brings the trains and the dispatchers in clearly.

Trunk tracking may turn out to be somewaht of a blessing in disguise. I understand many police/public service agencies now use trunk tracking where radio transmission frequencies are assigned by computer according to which ones are open instead of over a fixed frequency. If a scanner doesn't have trunk tracking capability, it may not pick up the transmission. Several of us in this forum have mentioned several states require permits to use radios that can be tuned to police/public service frequencies in cars, or in public. But if your scanner doesn't have trunk tracking capability then it might not be able to pick up police/public service agency broadcasts, would that mean you could use it in your car without a permit?

[DPD1]

QUOTE: Originally posted by RudyRockvilleMD

I have been using a Bearcat BC 100XL scanner which I still have, but the problem is it takes a special NiCad battery pack. You could be out of luck if you are away from your car, one battery pack goes dead, and you don't have a spare fully charged battery pack.

If you are looking for them, these guys have them...

http://www.scannerworld.com/template.asp?viewproduct=BP200-205

You can also get a battery place to make you a new cell pack to put in the case for about $26. Assuming you take it apart yourself. The new batteries can actually give you a little more time because you can get them with a higher mA.

Dave

-DPD Productions - Home of the TrainTenna RR Monitoring Antenna-
http://eje.railfan.net/dpdp/

[tree68]

QUOTE: Originally posted by RudyRockvilleMD
But if your scanner doesn't have trunk tracking capability then it might not be able to pick up police/public service agency broadcasts, would that mean you could use it in your car without a permit?

There are many freqs in use by many agencies - in the same areas. Sometimes the local gendarmerie is using trunked, but the state police aren't, etc.

NY Law says something to the effect of "capable of receiving police broadcasts," potentially interpreted as even if you don't have a police freq programmed in your scanner, it's still a no-no.

Michigan doesn't differentiate. Unless you have a permit or are a ham, no scanners in vehicles. I've heard unsubstantiated lore that people have gotten in trouble for having a new scanner, still in the box, in their vehicle. I've also heard that you can kiss the scanner goodbye, right then and there.

Never hurts to know the law where you fan the most, and definitely if you are going to be travelling. If there hasn't already been a link posted, do a search on "scanner laws." There are several sites that cover them.

[Anonymous]

Another big win for the TERRORISTS if we Scanner users who do no harm to this stupid country can't even monitor if what is going on in the World! Scanners are a MUCH better recource of info than the Dumb news media,or the LACK of it. Oh sure let's attack the Scanner users. The problem is Scanner Radio's are just as important as the Stupid news media,You will get your news much quicker than the news,right there on a dime.

I personaly need my Scanner Radio because if some thing where to happen down at the Ft.calhoun Nuc plant,There would be no way to get out in time. If you count on the news on the Radio for the latest you might as well plan your grave right there a then.
Anything can happen in this country more than ever now,And I for one thing am NOT taking nothing as a joke anymore. Right now my Scanner "IS MY LIFE". And for the states to take away the rights of those who need a Scanner ever since 9/11 is a "BIG" mistake. Our Government would rather see thousands die than to be prepaired for what "could" happen in the future,plain and simple............
Scanners can "Save" our lives and for anyone who will or might dissagree with me is dead wrong. I think that "all" the states must take a much better look at the real problem before they start making their own judgements towards others.
Scanners are a "POWERFULL" tool ever since 9/11,And I for one thing am not going to sit back and let the state tell me that I can't use my Scanner Radio.
9/11 was a serious warning to the world and we Scanner users "must" stand up for our rights!!!!!!!!!!!!
BNSFrailfan.

[kschmidt]

I recently purchased a Vertex VX-150 radio transciever. It is a great tool for listening to the railroads. Since it is a transceiver, capable of transmitting as well as recieving it is a bit more sensitive than alot of scanners. The VX-150 does a good job of scanning, it is not as fast as most radio scanners. Also it only covers frequencies from 148-170mhz. It is setup so that you can not transmit on the railroad frequencies. However on the lower bands it could make a nice tool. Just to listen a ham license is not required, but if you want to use it as a transmitter a ham license would be necessary.

Another nice thing about the Vertex VX-150 is its size, it is quite compact, only standing about 5 inches tall, without an antenna. Also nice is the price, I got mine for about $110 online which is about the price of a radio scanner.

Keith

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by kschmidt

I recently purchased a Vertex VX-150 radio transciever. It is a great tool for listening to the railroads. Since it is a transceiver, capable of transmitting as well as recieving it is a bit more sensitive than alot of scanners. The VX-150 does a good job of scanning, it is not as fast as most radio scanners. Also it only covers frequencies from 148-170mhz. It is setup so that you can not transmit on the railroad frequencies. However on the lower bands it could make a nice tool. Just to listen a ham license is not required, but if you want to use it as a transmitter a ham license would be necessary.

Another nice thing about the Vertex VX-150 is its size, it is quite compact, only standing about 5 inches tall, without an antenna. Also nice is the price, I got mine for about $110 online which is about the price of a radio scanner.

Keith

Sounds like a good Radio.

[BNSFGP38]

Random thoughts about scanners.

1. You are a fool to pay over $80 for a scanner that does vhf/uhf and low band.

2. All scanners are picking up the same waves, it makes no difference what kind of "gizmos" the guy at the store sold you----if the waves are weak getting to you, they are weak.........and aside from putting a satilite dish on your tripod you cant magnify them.

3. The "range" and quality of the audio all depend on terrain,the transmitter, the wattage of the tranmitter and weather------not your scanner.

4. Scanners that get handeld will get broken at some point, dont invest more money than your willing to lose----also see rule 1.

5. Scanners are a great tool for finding trains, if you got a chatty crew and dispatcher. Some dispatchers just talk through signals though.

6. Remember KISS and also rule 1.



I have had a Radio Hack Pro-76 since 98 and it has served me well and has survived some pretty hard drops.

[RudyRockvilleMD]

For Dave: I am aware of Scanner World, but I had a bad experience several years ago when they refused to let me return a defective Uniden BP 205 batttery pack within two weeks after I received it. Fortunately Uniden replaced it for free. I have also gone the route of having the cells in the case replaced, but that battery pack got too hot because the circuit board in the battery pack may have been defective.

For Larry: I understand FL, NY, KY, IN, MI, and MN require permits to operate a scanner (or any radio that can be tuned to police/public safety frequencies) in a car: KN and IN also forbid using scanners in public places - streets, parks, etc. I wonder what railfans in those states do about using their scanners in their cars , or as in the case of KY and IN, trackside?

[rojanes]

My old faithful, a Regency 1000, is on its last legs. I've been looking at possible new scanners and have just about decided on a Yaesu 120, which has great sensitivity and 640 channels. It is light in weight and utilizes AAs, which are able to provide up to 20 hours of continuous listening. Anybody out there using one, and wi***o comment on it?

[richardy]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSFGP38

Random thoughts about scanners.

2. All scanners are picking up the same waves, it makes no difference what kind of "gizmos" the guy at the store sold you----if the waves are weak getting to you, they are weak.........and aside from putting a satilite dish on your tripod you cant magnify them.

I have to disagree on item 2. A satellite dish on the tripod would not help, the dish is designed for different frequencies, however, a gain type rooftop antenna tuned to the railroad band will increase your reception range. A rooftop antenna mounted in the center of a metal roof is even better, you are now taking advantage of ground plane. If your antenna is matched to the wavelength then you will receive more of the wave hence a stronger signal. At home a yagi antenna can be used if you want to listen in one direction from your home, it will greatly increase your range in the one direction. If you add a rotor, as I have, you can change that single direction; really two directions because you will receive off the back of the yagi but not with the same gain as the front. I use all of these on a daily basis, you can improve your reception through good antenna engineering.

Richard

[chad thomas]

Yes, it's all in the antennae.
I have a lot of antennae building experience. When it comes to railroad frequencys it depends on what your after. For mobile ants. your best bet is a cut freq. vertical whip like the magnetic rooftop type. Your options are kind of limited with mobile. You can improve reception in the city by using a band pass filter to reject unwanted signals. Out in the sticks you can use a pre-amp to get additional gain. Or you can use a combination of both.
For home use there are a lot more options. But when you get into elaborate antennaes you generaly have to go with a directional setup. The easiest and most accessable setup is to go to Radio Shack and get a vhf broadband(un-cut) antennae and mount it on a mast (the higher the better). But don't mount it horizontaly, mount it verticaly. A pre-amp (tv type) will help, but if you live next to any transmitters a pre-amp will likly suffer from cross modulation interferance unless you use a band pass filter in front of it. This setup will be directional to some degree, But vertical antennea are a lot less directional than there equivilant horizontals would be. I used this setup when I lived in the San Fernando Valley. I could get transmissions in the basin with that setup. With the rubber duckie I barely got reception in the valley.

The best setup I ever built was like this: I used a cut channel 5 (tv) halfwave yagi (equal to full wave @160MHz). I mounted it vertically on a 30' mast. I built my own pre-amp , but a Radio Shack type would work almost as good. Then I used high quality RG-6 coaxial cable to deliver the signal to my cheap Radio Shack scanner. With this setup I could receive trackside detectors up to 70 miles away. Vs. 10 miles tops with the rubber duckie.

[Anonymous]

All rubber duck antenna's are worthless.

[DPD1]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSFGP38

Random thoughts about scanners.

1. You are a fool to pay over $80 for a scanner that does vhf/uhf and low band.

2. All scanners are picking up the same waves, it makes no difference what kind of "gizmos" the guy at the store sold you----if the waves are weak getting to you, they are weak.........and aside from putting a satilite dish on your tripod you cant magnify them.

3. The "range" and quality of the audio all depend on terrain,the transmitter, the wattage of the tranmitter and weather------not your scanner.

4. Scanners that get handeld will get broken at some point, dont invest more money than your willing to lose----also see rule 1.

5. Scanners are a great tool for finding trains, if you got a chatty crew and dispatcher. Some dispatchers just talk through signals though.

6. Remember KISS and also rule 1.
I have had a Radio Hack Pro-76 since 98 and it has served me well and has survived some pretty hard drops.

I don't know about all that... You would be hard pressed to find any radio that does multi mode, changeable spacing, or more than a couple hundred mems, for $80. And none of those things are trivial to have, so I wouldn't consider somebody who wants them to be foolish. Radios do have a different level of receive ability as well. That's why so many guys go with the ham stuff instead of the scanners... The receive is often better.

Dave

-DPD Productions - Home of the TrainTenna RR Monitoring Antenna-
http://eje.railfan.net/dpdp/

[BNSFGP38]

QUOTE: Originally posted by DPD1

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSFGP38

Random thoughts about scanners.

1. You are a fool to pay over $80 for a scanner that does vhf/uhf and low band.

2. All scanners are picking up the same waves, it makes no difference what kind of "gizmos" the guy at the store sold you----if the waves are weak getting to you, they are weak.........and aside from putting a satilite dish on your tripod you cant magnify them.

3. The "range" and quality of the audio all depend on terrain,the transmitter, the wattage of the tranmitter and weather------not your scanner.

4. Scanners that get handeld will get broken at some point, dont invest more money than your willing to lose----also see rule 1.

5. Scanners are a great tool for finding trains, if you got a chatty crew and dispatcher. Some dispatchers just talk through signals though.

6. Remember KISS and also rule 1.
I have had a Radio Hack Pro-76 since 98 and it has served me well and has survived some pretty hard drops.

I don't know about all that... You would be hard pressed to find any radio that does multi mode, changeable spacing, or more than a couple hundred mems, for $80. And none of those things are trivial to have, so I wouldn't consider somebody who wants them to be foolish. Radios do have a different level of receive ability as well. That's why so many guys go with the ham stuff instead of the scanners... The receive is often better.

Dave

-DPD Productions - Home of the TrainTenna RR Monitoring Antenna-
http://eje.railfan.net/dpdp/

Oye vey [banghead]

Batlabs????????