Is there much activity in Ireland that can be picked up by bearcat scanners?

Greyham

I'm thinking of getting a bearcat scanner but was wondering how much activity I might hear on it on a daily basis?

Anyone with any expertise care to enlighten me?

martinedwards

depends where you are and if you want to stick up an external antenna.

google for radio frequencies in your area.

A lot of police fire etc have gone digital & encrypted (rightly so TBH), but up here I can listen to the Belfast shopwatch, airport weather beacons, and best for me, the local busses which is great when the mindless buffoons are rioting, as the busses are the first to know, and the first to shout back to base about it!

around Monaghan there will be store security, builders on big sites, cinema security, trucks, as well as taxis, and hams tinkering around on 2m.

and busses!

Greyham

martinedwards wrote: »

depends where you are and if you want to stick up an external antenna.

google for radio frequencies in your area.

A lot of police fire etc have gone digital & encrypted (rightly so TBH), but up here I can listen to the Belfast shopwatch, airport weather beacons, and best for me, the local busses which is great when the mindless buffoons are rioting, as the busses are the first to know, and the first to shout back to base about it!

around Monaghan there will be store security, builders on big sites, cinema security, trucks, as well as taxis, and hams tinkering around on 2m.

and busses!

Brilliant! Thanks for the reply , you even tailored it to where I am in the world. Now that's service!

Was thinking of this one with no additional antennas

http://www.uniden.com/scanners/bearcat-handheld-scanner/invt/bc125atg

martinedwards

cant really comment as I haven't used them, but they have a good rep on the net.

My VHF listening is all done on a Baofeng Hand held so the bearcat SHOULD be better......

martinsvi

with no external antenna you will get nothing, you don't need anything fancy, even a 2m piece of wire will do good

Greyham

martinsvi wrote: »

with no external antenna you will get nothing, you don't need anything fancy, even a 2m piece of wire will do good

Ah ok, thanks for the help. So I have to run it into the scanner and then along the roof or? What exactly do you mean?

EDIT: By no external antenna I meant no antenna mounted outside. I'll be using the antenna attached to it in the above photo.

martinsvi

Greyham wrote: »

Ah ok, thanks for the help. So I have to run it into the scanner and then along the roof or? What exactly do you mean?

EDIT: By no external antenna I meant no antenna mounted outside. I'll be using the antenna attached to it in the above photo.

well there's always two paths people go in this hobby - either you go DIY or commercial. If you like doing things yourself, google DIY scanner antenna. All you need is a BNC connector, some coax cable and something made from metal.

you can also buy a commercially made antenna. If you don't want it to be on the top of your roof, maybe this will work well - http://www.nevadaradio.co.uk/radio-scanners/scanner-antennas/scanner-base-antennas/scanmaster-desktop

the antenna that comes with the scanner (people call it rubber duck) is only good for picking up very strong signals. If you do some plane or ship spotting at airports or ports, it will be good enough to pick up the signal.

I'm about 20km South from Dublin airport and difference between rubber duck and a DIY antenna is hearing nothing and hearing everything perfectly. I can even pick up Belfast

Greyham

martinsvi wrote: »

well there's always two paths people go in this hobby - either you go DIY or commercial. If you like doing things yourself, google DIY scanner antenna. All you need is a BNC connector, some coax cable and something made from metal.

you can also buy a commercially made antenna. If you don't want it to be on the top of your roof, maybe this will work well - http://www.nevadaradio.co.uk/radio-scanners/scanner-antennas/scanner-base-antennas/scanmaster-desktop

the antenna that comes with the scanner (people call it rubber duck) is only good for picking up very strong signals. If you do some plane or ship spotting at airports or ports, it will be good enough to pick up the signal.

I'm about 20km South from Dublin airport and difference between rubber duck and a DIY antenna is hearing nothing and hearing everything perfectly. I can even pick up Belfast

Brilliant, thanks for your reply, I guess I'll need a little bit more than ol Rubber Duck!

humaxf1

The close-call feature of that scanner is very useful.

Basically, if you are within a certain distance of a transmission, the frequency will pop up on the screen (minimum distance depends on the strength of the transmission). Takes the guess work out of tracking down a frequency.

A rubber duck will work to a point, but an external antenna is a must for picking so much more. For added reception indoors, you could try a telescopic antenna http://ebay.eu/14M0y29 which will resonate a whole lot better than the "compromise" supplied rubber duck.

fox99

hi guys has anyone got codes for a scannes interested in planes in dublin area thanks a mill

telecinesk

Hi,

all over the net but to save you time, try this lot.

http://www.flyinginireland.com/airband-frequencies.html

All clear AM of course.

Welcome to forum .)