The BEST Walkie-Talkie To Take Off-Roading is...

[BuckYeah]

Hey folks, I'm willing to spend a decent amount on a reliable pair of walkie-talkies, but I don't want to overbuy. Everyone should have walkie-talkies or a built-in radio on the trail, especially if they find themselves out of visual contact with their party. Are there brands I should avoid? Are there features I should insist upon?

I found these on Amazon and they seem reasonably priced. Does anyone have this model? All feedback is welcome since my experience using these is limited. Thanks!

[TechnicalDisaster]

I am outfitted with Midland USA GMRS radios and they work great. However, the one you pictured is an FRS radio. While FRS and GMRS can share the same channels, FRS is limited to 2 watts, and the GMRS handhelds start at 5 watts and go up to 50watts for a hard mounted radio.

When I was at Super Celebration West 2022, I had a 5 Watt Midlands GXT1000 and it struggled to clearly pick up comms coming from the back of a 20 rig convoy. I moved up to a 15 watt hard mounted unit and I could hear everything.

I know we are going to limit the groups to smaller 8-10 rigs, but I highly recommend you go with at least the 5 watt GMRS over the 2 watt FRS:

https://midlandusa.com/collections/lxtgxt/products/gxt1000vp4

Also, I don't believe for a second the 2 watt radios can reach 38 miles. That is quite theoretical and probably limited to in-coming signals, like national weather stations or something like that.

I currently have a hard mounted MXT275, 15 watt, GMRS radio for the bronco, and then I carry my two extra GXT1000 handhelds when I exit the Bronco. That also makes it easy for wifey to call me on the radio if she needs me to come back from spotting others.

[bluestreak57]

Chris, after researching these I decided to go with Baefang GM-15 pros… we’ll see in Moab how they work, but lots of folks in BN seem to have them

[TechnicalDisaster]

Chris, after researching these I decided to go with Baefang GM-15 pros… we’ll see in Moab how they work, but lots of folks in BN seem to have them

They’re a pretty good price. I went ahead and bought one just to try out and compare to a midland.

[BuckYeah]

Thanks, guys. Food for thought. I went ahead and ordered the walkie-talkies, then canceled the order. I've got some money to blow since I got an Amazon gift card, so no matter how you look at it, whatever I buy is cheap! LOL

I am more inclined to get a hard-wired radio now. Brian from BN said his walkie-talkies kept dying, requiring constant recharging while on extended off-road excursions.

[bluestreak57]

I’m thinking once I’m out more I will likely also hard wire and hide a radio

[BuckYeah]

I’m thinking once I’m out more I will likely also hard wire and hide a radio

It's great that you already have something to try out.

I just ordered a Midland MXT275, like the one TechnicalDisaster purchased for his Bronco. I watched a video where a guy installed this radio and chose to power it using upfitter switch 6. Brian wired his radio directly to the battery. Why would anyone use an upfitter switch for this?

[TechnicalDisaster]

I'm worried about parasitic battery drain if the head unit goes direct to the battery.

[TechnicalDisaster]

Thanks, guys. Food for thought. I went ahead and ordered the walkie-talkies, then canceled the order. I've got some money to blow since I got an Amazon gift card, so no matter how you look at it, whatever I buy is cheap! LOL

I am more inclined to get a hard-wired radio now. Brian from BN said his walkie-talkies kept dying, requiring constant recharging while on extended off-road excursions.

I have had a completely different experience with my hand helds. The battery on mine last forever. Take for instance Super Celebration 2023. I use my hard mount radio while I'm in the Bronco, and take my hand held out when I'm spotting others. I almost always let someone borrow my spare radio. At Celebration in September I loaned out my spare handheld on two different days. I also used my backup to help spot on a bunch of occasions. The handhelds have been sitting in my closet since September, and I just checked them. They are both at 100% battery still.

I'm not sure how Brian is burning through his battery so fast, maybe he is pretty chatty throughout the day? While I ultimately prefer a hard mounted unit, I feel like the batteries in these units are pretty freaking good.

[BuckYeah]

That's cool. I plan on getting a couple of hand-helds as well. Yeah, it's a mystery as to why Brian's batteries don't hold a charge. I think the guy on Trail Recon said they should last a day before requiring recharging. So I guess there's a little luck involved. I'm still learning and trying to adjust my expectations. I watched a video of someone explaining repeater channels and I was left with more questions than when I began! LOL

Insofar as the choice to use upfitter switches, I guess it's an option. Perhaps it does avoid parasitic power loss. I'm embarrassed to admit that I can go days without driving my Bronco because I can walk most places I go in Seattle. (I've got less than 6K on my odometer after nearly a year of ownership.) If there is even a remote possibility of a parasitic power drain, having it hooked directly to the battery may not be the wisest option for me.

[BroncOitis]

I just thought I would throw this out there, you and I are at about the same mileage, I too just turned 6,000 at my 1 year anniversary!!! 🙂

[BroncOitis]

I bought these about a year and half ago, and I’ve been real happy with them.
The battery easily lasts all day, actually they could last longer, but I always recharge them when I’m done and the indicator still shows full at the end of the day.
These radios are very user friendly and come with a flashlight, NOAA alerts and weather, FM radio, 128 channels, and 24x DIY Repeater Channels
If you do not want anything complicated these are a perfect radio.
Baofeng G11S GMRS Radio Handheld, Rechargeable Walkie Talkies Long Range NOAA 2 Way Radio, GMRS Repeater Capable, with Earpiece (2 Pack) https://a.co/d/7d4VbXE

[TechnicalDisaster]

That's cool. I plan on getting a couple of hand-helds as well. Yeah, it's a mystery as to why Brian's batteries don't hold a charge. I think the guy on Trail Recon said they should last a day before requiring recharging. So I guess there's a little luck involved. I'm still learning and trying to adjust my expectations. I watched a video of someone explaining repeater channels and I was left with more questions than when I began! LOL

Insofar as the choice to use upfitter switches, I guess it's an option. Perhaps it does avoid parasitic power loss. I'm embarrassed to admit that I can go days without driving my Bronco because I can walk most places I go in Seattle. (I've got less than 6K on my odometer after nearly a year of ownership.) If there is even a remote possibility of a parasitic power drain, having it hooked directly to the battery may not be the wisest option for me.

I have a winch and Rock Slide Engineering power steps hooked up directly to the battery already. My Bronco goes into battery save mode every 5 days. I work from home and we take wifeys car during the week.

[Deano Bronc]

That's cool. I plan on getting a couple of hand-helds as well. Yeah, it's a mystery as to why Brian's batteries don't hold a charge. I think the guy on Trail Recon said they should last a day before requiring recharging. So I guess there's a little luck involved. I'm still learning and trying to adjust my expectations. I watched a video of someone explaining repeater channels and I was left with more questions than when I began! LOL

Insofar as the choice to use upfitter switches, I guess it's an option. Perhaps it does avoid parasitic power loss. I'm embarrassed to admit that I can go days without driving my Bronco because I can walk most places I go in Seattle. (I've got less than 6K on my odometer after nearly a year of ownership.) If there is even a remote possibility of a parasitic power drain, having it hooked directly to the battery may not be the wisest option for me.

I think it is luck of the draw on the Midlands. SlashRacer and I have the same units yet mine last all day and Mike's lose power much quicker. Really strange how much difference there is.

[SVEN]

I have a MTX400 hard wired and a pair of midland hanhelds. The batteries will make it all day.