Comms and Signal · Rocky Talkie
Rocky Talkie Expedition Radio (5 W GMRS)
My GMRS pick: 5 watts, repeater capable, 4 to 6 days on a charge
Options at rockytalkie.com
- Hi-Vis Orange$195
- Sage Green$195
Worth the upgrade
Why it's on my list
My GMRS pick. The full 5 watts, repeater capable, a removable antenna, and 4 to 6 days on a charge in normal use. The carabiner and leash mean it stays on the person, and the controls are channel up, channel down and push to talk: a ten year old runs it in a minute. GMRS needs the FCC license: no test, ten years, covers the whole family.
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What it is
5 watt GMRS handheld, the most power a handheld GMRS is allowed. IP67: a meter under water and still working. 1800 mAh battery, 4 to 6 days on a charge in the cold. Rubber armor and a shatterproof screen. Over 35 miles line of sight, 2 to 8 miles typical in broken country. Talks to the FRS Mountain Radio. Built and tested in the Colorado Rockies. GMRS needs the $35 FCC license, no test.
What it is
A five watt GMRS handheld, waterproof to a meter, that runs four to six days on a charge
This is the radio in my overnight loadout and on my bug-out bag page. GMRS is the backbone of my own communication plan, as my off-grid communication page says: two radios on a channel talk with no towers and no middleman, and a repeater turns a handheld's few miles into a county. The Expedition has the full five watts a handheld GMRS is allowed, the repeater channels, and a battery life that is real, not ideal-conditions marketing.
The radio
Built and tested in the Colorado Rockies
Why it matters
Rubber armor, a shatterproof screen and an IP67 seal are what let it ride on the outside of a pack in weather. The 1,800 mAh battery holds four to six days in the cold, which matters because a radio that needs charging every night is a radio that is dead on the third day of an outage.
The numbers
- 5 watts on GMRS
- IP67: waterproof to 1 meter
- 1,800 mAh battery, 4 to 6 days on a charge
- Shatterproof LED screen, rubber armor
- Hi-Vis Orange or Sage Green
Channels, repeaters and weather
22 channels, 8 repeater channels, NOAA alerts
Why it matters
The repeater channels are the reason to buy GMRS over FRS: there are more than 1,700 public repeaters in the US, free to use with the license, and with your own repeater on a hill a five watt handheld reaches 10, 15 or 20-plus miles. The NOAA alert channel is how you hear the weather when the phone has nothing. Dual-channel monitoring means you can hold the family channel and the repeater at once.
The numbers
- 22 channels
- 8 GMRS repeater channels
- NOAA weather alerts
- Dual-channel monitoring
- Talks to the Mountain Radio and any FRS or GMRS radio on the shared channels
Range
Line of sight versus broken country
Why it matters
Rocky Talkie publishes both numbers and so do I: 35-plus miles line of sight is a mountaintop to a valley; two to eight miles is what a handheld gets through trees and ridges. For more than that, a mobile unit in the truck runs up to 50 watts, or a repeater; both are on my communication page.
The numbers
- Over 35 miles tested, line of sight
- 2 to 8 miles typical in broken terrain
The license
$35, no exam, ten years, the whole family
Why it matters
GMRS needs an FCC license, and getting it is a form and a fee: no test, ten years, and one license covers your immediate family. My GMRS license page walks through the form; the difference from FRS, and why the license is worth it, is on GMRS versus FRS.
What it takes
- $35 FCC fee
- No examination
- Ten years
- Covers you and your immediate family
The radios on my list
Where it earns its place
- How to Communicate with No Cell Service or Internet: GMRS Radios, the Plan, and the Range You Can ExpectThe simplest way for a family to talk when the phones are down: GMRS handheld radios. What they reach in real terrain, the ten-minute licens…
- GMRS vs FRS: Same Channels, Different Power, and Which Radio to BuyFRS and GMRS share the same 22 channels, so the radios talk to each other. The difference is what the rules let each one do: FRS is capped a…
- The Bug-Out Bag: What Goes in It, How to Build One, and the Packs I CarryOne bag per person, ready by the door, built to carry a family away from the house for three days. What is in a bug-out bag by the job each …
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