In my FRS radio post I talked about how the different radio channels have different power limitations. What I did not touch on is radio frequency propagation. In this post I am going to make a pitch for using VHF as a supplement to FRS.

After reading a bit, and watching some videos about RF propagation, I have arrived at the conclusion that UHF radio signals bounce a a bit better in urban areas, and that VHF can deal a bit better with trees.

Why VHF matters

When I think of a protest, I imagine a march through a city center. Based on my experience, at least half of the protests I have been to have been stationary at parks. In the case of some Pride events, (looking at you, Sawyer Point) the parks have been pretty big.

I get that FRS radios are cheap and easy to get. You can buy them at pretty much any big box retailer. If you’re going to buy one radio for work in the protest space, it should probably be an FRS. BUT, if you are going to do a lot of work in the space, or if you are a leader or an organizer, you might also want to look into a VHF radio as well.

Licensing for VHF

There is a little-known and not often used radio service called the Multi Use Radio Service. Like FRS, MURS is limited to a maximum of 2w of transmit power. There are only 5 channels available:

| CH | Frequency | Pwr | Name

| 01 | 151.82 MHz| 2w | MURS 1

| 02 | 151.88 MHz| 2w | MURS 2

| 03 | 151.94 MHz| 2w | MURS 3

| 04 | 154.57 MHz| 2w | Blue Dot*

y| 05 | 154.60 MHz| 2w | Green Dot*

  • Channels 04 and 05 are sometimes used by bigbox stores for employee coms. Best to avoid them.

MURS radio are more expensive than FRS radios, and you probably have to shop for them online. Radioddity has one for about $35.

An opportunity for hams

I have seen a few organizers use Baofeng radios. A better option would be to get some amateur radio operators involved since they have access to 5-10W VHF handhelds on the 2m band. Yes, that would involve putting a government assigned identifier, in the form of your FCC callsign, on the air at a protest. I know that might not jive with the security culture of some folks, but I would imagine that most hams are not anarchists.

If you are a ham, consider getting involved in your local protest movement. If you are a protestor, consider getting your amateur radio technician license. In either case, you can reach out to me and I will try my best to assist you.