BTECH UV-50X2 (Second Gen.) Mobile 50 Watt Dual Band Base, Mobile Radio: VHF, UHF Amateur (Ham) available on Amazon

Baofeng UV-5R Two Way Radio Dual Band 144-148/420-450Mhz Walkie Talkie 1800mAh Li-ion Battery(Black) available on Amazon

BAOFENG BF-F8HP PRO (UV-5R 7th Gen) 8W Tri Band Two-Way Radio – VHF/1.25M/UHF, IP54, 1000 Channels, GPS, Aviation Band Scanner, NOAA Weather Mode, USB-C Rechargeable Battery available on Amazon

This is the quickest/ easiest way to increase your capability. Having a handheld radio in your pack and knowing how to use it could save your life or the life of a loved one. Make sure you standardize and decide on what frequencies/ channels you are going to be using with your people before you actually need them. Also make sure you get some practice reps in, because you will most likely discover some holes in your plan when you first try them.

I recommend keeping these radios in your hiking packs, vehicles and having a few spares around the house.

BaoFeng UV-5R Dual Band Two Way Radio

This is a Ham radio, it is more capable than any of the other listed handheld radios, but requires a license to transmit on. You can pair this radio with an aftermarket handheld antenna to increase the range a small amount, or pair the radio with a magnet mounted roof antenna to increase your range significantly. Ham license required.

BTECH MURS-V1 MURS Two-Way Radio

 If you are going to standardize on the MURS system this is the radio to get. Another good thing about this radio and MURS in general is that you are allowed to use external antennas. This is one of the best things you can do to increase your transmission/ reception range. No license required.

BTECH GMRS-V1 GMRS Two-Way Radio, GMRS Repeater Capable, with Dual Band Scanning Receiver (136-174.99mhz (VHF) 400-520.99mhz (UHF))

 This is the best option if you are going to go the GMRS route. With GMRS you get a little bit more power (5 watts for GMRS vs 2 watts for FRS and 2 watts for MURS), the downside is that you need a license and it is commonly used platform which means you will most likely have interference from other users. GMRS license required.

Retevis RT27 Two-Way Radios Rechargeable 2 Way Radio for Adults UHF FRS 22 Ch

 This is an inexpensive option that is very simple to use. Think hand out radio. No license required

Retevis RT22 Two Way Radios Rechargeable Walkie Talkies 16 CH

 This is an inexpensive option, and it is small and charges from a USB cable. Also another good hand out option. No license required.

BTECH Mini UV-25X4 25 Watt Tri-Band Base, Mobile Radio: 136-174mhz (VHF), 220-230mhz (1.25M), 400-520mhz (UHF) Amateur (Ham)

Requires a Ham license.

Radioddity DB25 Pro Dual Band Quad-standby Mini Mobile Car Truck Radio, VHF UHF 4 Color Display, 25W Vehicle Transceiver with Cable + 50W High Gain Quad Band Antenna

Requires a Ham license.

LEIXEN VV-898S Dual Band VHF/UHF 5W/10W/25W 136-174/400-470MHz Two Way Radio Car Mobile Radio Tranceiver Amateur Ham with USB Programming Cable

Requires a Ham license.

Authentic Genuine Nagoya UT-72 Super Loading Coil 19-Inch Magnetic Mount VHF/UHF (144/430Mhz) Antenna PL-259

This antenna uses a magnet to attach to your vehicle roof, it will work with the UV-5R, MURS V1, as well as any of the mobile radios listed. Having this antenna on the roof of your vehicle will dramatically increase your transmit and receive distances.

MPD Digital Cablesonline 100ft RG8x Coax Uhf (PL259) Male to Male 50 Ohm Antenna Cable – R-U100 – Coax cable

 This is for setting up a mobile radio in your house or running a HF antenna.

Battery Tender 6V/12V, 4A Selectable Lead Acid & Lithium Battery Charger

 This battery charger can be used to keep your 12v battery charged that you use to run your mobile radio in your house. Sometimes the charger will add radio noise, if that is the case, unplug before transmitting.

12v 18ah AGM Rechargeable Deep Cycle Replacement Battery for CB19-12 by Casil

 Use this battery to power your mobile radio in your house and use the above listed battery tender (charger) to keep the battery charged.

Tram 1410 Broad Band Discone/Scanner Base Antenna

 This is the antenna to use for your home. Put it on as high up as you can/ either external to your house on a pipe (make sure you ground it) or in your attic if you have an asphalt roof. Use the above listed 50 ohm coax cable to connect the antenna to the radio. I picked this antenna because it has the one of the widest coverages to transmit and receive on.

Authentic Genuine Nagoya NA-771 15.6-Inch Whip VHF/UHF (144/430Mhz) Antenna SMA-Female for BTECH and BaoFeng Radios

This is an improved antenna for the UV-5R or for the MURS V1, it will increase your range at a cost of being bigger/ bulkier.

Authentic Genuine Nagoya UT-72 Super Loading Coil 19-Inch Magnetic Mount VHF/UHF (144/430Mhz) Antenna PL-259

This antenna uses a magnet to attach to your vehicle roof, it will work with the UV-5R, MURS V1, as well as any of the mobile radios listed. Having this antenna on the roof of your vehicle will dramatically increase your transmit and receive distances.

BTECH, BaoFeng BL-5 Battery Eliminator for for BF-F8HP, UV-5X3, and UV-5R Radios

This allows you to power your UV-5R from a 12v cigarette lighter. This is a great addition to have in your vehicle, especially if you are not going to run a mobile radio.

Baofeng BL-5L 3800mAh Extended Battery Compatible with UV-5R RD-5R UV-5RTP UV-5R Plus, Original Pack, Black

This replacement battery for the UV-5R has over twice the capacity of the original battery.

If you need driveway or zone alarms, this is the system that I recommend. The main reason to use the Dakota Alert brand is that they use MURS frequencies, which means that you can listen to your driveway or zone alarms with any MURS radio.

Dakota Alert PIR Driveway Alarm

You can use this for driveways or any zone that you want to monitor.

Dakota Alert Vehicle Alarm

This device gets buried in your driveway and will only alert if a vehicle drives over it. This is a good option if you get a lot of false alarms with your PIR device.

Dakota Alert Base Station

If you are not going to use a mobile radio or handheld radio to monitor your driveway/ zone alarms then you will need this. A better option is getting any of the above listed mobile radios and using it to monitor the MURS driveway alarm frequency.

HF radios allow us to communicate over long distances, hundreds or even thousands of miles with no infrastructure. This is done by bouncing the radio waves off of the ionosphere. The downside is that it requires more training and equipment to make it happen.

If you are interested in learning HF communications I would recommend that you get your Ham license, otherwise there is no legal way to train and become proficient.

FT-891 FT891 Yaesu Original FT-891 HF/50 MHz All Mode Analog Ultra Compact Mobile/Base Transceiver – 100 Watts

 This is a solid choice for HF comms. It is relatively inexpensive and very compact, the downside is that a lot of features are buried in different layers of menus. Requires a Ham license.

Yaesu FT-818ND FT-818 6W HF/VHF/UHF All Mode Mobile Transceiver

 This radio is very similar to the FT891. The differences are this radio is smaller, will only put out 6 watts, and will also do VHF/UHF. Unless you plan on mostly using your radio while backpacking I would recommend getting the more powerful radio. Requires a Ham license.

LDG Electronics Z-100PLUS Automatic Antenna Tuner 1.8-54 MHz, 0.1-125 Watts, 2 Year Warranty

While not technically mandatory to have an antenna tuner, it will make your life much easier. You will use this to tune your dipole antenna.

For the most reliable regional communication I recommend setting up your dipole antenna in a NVIS configuration (the practical explanation for a NVIS antenna that it is a dipole antenna hung 10-15 ft above ground). You can do a little research and build a dipole antenna pretty easily or you can purchase something like this.

I could spend many more weeks writing this article, but I want to get the information out there. Feel free to hit me up if you have any questions.