Great video Danny. For handhelds I can attest to how good the Diamond antennas are - at least 10 miles of range with them. I remember hearing trains at Plant City and Auburndale from Lakeland quite well.
Thanks! This should be really helpful when I move to the Detroit area. I'm too young to drive right now so it's really rare that I can actually railfan.
Look into glass mount antennas. Any 2m ham band antenna should be a good enough match to RX everything from airband to the rail band. Run between $20-30, removable if you decide you're done with for good.
I use a Railcomm magnet mount antenna when I'm out and about. It's one of those tall antennas and kinda expensive ($75). Most days when I have my antenna up I can hear trains calling signals from about 10 miles out in either direction, which is helpful when trying to get to that one photo spot. Some days it's even further than that, some days less. I used to bring it inside my house and set it up. I live in Kentucky near Louisville and once heard it pick up a CSX dispatcher calling a coal train in West Virginia and I heard the train respond too, that was pretty neat. You may want to address the laws of scanners in different states, some require you to have a ham radio license (?) in order to travel with a scanner. Thanks again for your awesome videos, hope to make a railfan trip down to Florida some day.
That's quite insane listening distance to hear a train calling out in WV when you're listening from central KY. What do you mount it on when you setup from your house?
BC125AT with an RH77CA is amazing! It can't tell me about a train before the signals, but it's got a high cool factor, and it helps me make accurate and high quality videos! I watched your more recent video, and bought the rig right away and it worked flawlessly.
I highly recommend the Yaesu FT 270R with a Diamond SRH77CA, or RH77CA if you get a SMA to BNC adapter, which I highly recommend since it's only amount $5 and BNC connectors are much better than the screw in SMA, it will also allow you to connect to other popular antennas like the Traintenna magnet car mount, which picks up incredible range. Keep in mind if you get a Yaesu, it is a ham radio, but you don't need a ham license to operate it as a scanner, but there is an incredible learning curve to first-time users, since the programming is not straight-forward or simple, like with most scanner radios. You will probably need to take a day or two to familiarize yourself with the manual and mess around with the program settings. Also, another critical factor to consider is resistance to the elements and battery life: if you get a Yaesu, it is waterproof (even submersible) and shock resistant, so you can have it out in all types of weather and if you drop it off a cliff or something it will still work. It comes with a rechargeable battery pack built in, that lasts around ~300-350 charges before decaying, so in theory that will last several years, because it takes a day or two straight of use to deplete the battery before being recharged. So even if you use it every day you'll get a long life out of it! (But as always with rechargeable batteries, try not to charge with more than 1/2 power remaining as that reduces the life faster). That being said, this is a very informative and great video!
If you really want a great antenna for the car for the same price of a Traintenna get a Motorola Railcom it is made very well about $79 very well built. I use to use Larsens 58, then Antenna Specialists Masonic's the railroad here use to use those back in the day then they went to Maxrad now on BNSF here I have seen meany of there new MOW trucks have Railcom antennas on them. This is to each there own opinion I have been into ham radio since 1972 I was into CB to made a lot of ant. over the years from window screens to 9" piece of wire out of the back of a MFJ tuner just to see what MFJ was right it can make most everything a ant. it did on CB band I made it for a friend he talked 7 miles with it on 5w inside. But I use to use a 1/4 wave whip then I went to the 5/8s it did make is better it also how & were it is mounted putting a hole in the car in the center is the best way u can do it that is the best ground u can get ground is a big thing the car acts as a ground plane now mag mounts they work but they dont make that good of a ground now u can get around that not good to do on a new car take scrap a little paint off were the mag mount is going to be make sure on the bottom I tale stick a piece of wire inside the foil then make sure it is touching the bare pain. Now my buddy he took a lighting in line coax it has a screw on it for the ground then he takes screws a wire inside his truck to a grounding point on his car u want your ground as long as the wave size u are using. Now another point height the higher the better but on cars it is hard to do now I have a van my rail buddy he has a car when dosent always hear everything I do he sits lower then I do we sit side by side. Now remember when u mount the ant. in the center of ur car were ever your car is pointed is going to be the Dir it is going to pick up the best cause the wave pattern on most cases you RX off the ground side that will be your car. I want to reminded all this guy is not wrong he has good points now I have even used a 2 meter beam really it was a 2metter 440 it was bought to do Satlite work but no longer used on that freq. so I use it inside turned it to my home town 69 miles away it is a huge rail hub I set it up on a tripod inside my apt. turn it to there I also live down in the bluff on the Miss river in Ia. here is a good thing to have fun with if you live near water water is a great ant. take were ur ant goes in strip a piece of wire warp it were the base of the ant is stick ur ant back on see how much more u can here. I did this with 10 meters stuck a piece of wire in the river with a rubber duck ant heard 10 times more then I did with a rubber ant also made more contacts. ! easy ant to make take a piece of 14 gauge bare copper wire solder it to the kiond of connter u have cut it to RR freqs I think it is like 17. some " for center Freq. u can find out on the net they have calcolaters for this stuff put a vinal cap in the end get them at the hardware store for about $0.10 that bare wire will work a lot better then the rubber duck for sure if u r rich enough coat it in silver or gold use silver solder I heard gold works the best but anyone rich enough to do this 1? Same thing to make ur scanner RX better is take a think piece of wire make a ground plan have it hanging down from the connector just tape it so it dont get caught in any thing. The best thing to ever have before 911 is a buddy or family that works for the RR that can give you the line up for the day that is no more 911 hurt everyone. Sorry if I stepped on your toes by adding this.
I just bought a Yaesu FT-270R myself. I've only taken it railfanning once and I haven't gotten an aftermarket antenna for it yet, but I plan to slap a Smiley 5/8 Slim Duck 155-165mHz railroad tuned antenna on it and hope for better performance. It's already doing really well, I was at my grandparent's place the other night and brought my radio with me, they live about 4.5 to 5 miles from a rail yard and I got a LOT more clarity on a 144mHz stock rubber ducky antenna than I thought I would. I guess you get what you pay for. Yaesu is definitely a good radio and I think it could be even further improved with a railroad tuned antenna.
Just a quick thank you for this again. I bought a 15 inch antenna for my scanner and I can already tell a big improvement. I never would have thought of doing it without this video.
Thanks Danny. I am a licensed ham, so I understand what you are saying about the antenna. I used the better one for a while, but later replaced it with the factory job. I do not need nor want to hear whats going on six or seven blocks down the line. The factory antenna allows me to hear all trains within three blocks. Anything more is just clutter. Also, you might want to tell folks to program in the dispatcher's channel. He, or she in our case, often tells the conductor to switch channels for further instructions. Like you, I railfan CSX but in Maryland. I do so at the Riverdale light, which is set by the dispatcher, and that more or less tells me all I need to know.
Excellent video as always! As a ham, I must say you were spot on with the descriptions of those antennas! I also have all of my radioes programmed with the railroad frequencies. I also must ask this..... are you a ham or have you ever considered getting your technician licence?
Anyone who wants a really good mobile antenna, take a look at the COMPACTenna. Only 11" tall and delivers much bigger performance than its size would indicate. Works better at the edge of the roof/trunk lid/fender than in the middle. The Comet HT55 is another great handheld antenna but it's (currently) only available with an SMA connector.
Check your area, but sometimes you can use a marine radio for the purposes as well. In CFRC territory, the road frequency is 160.725, the exact same as the RX freq for International channel 62. There's a handfull of other AAR channel frequencies that correspond with marine RX freqs. The radio has to have a UIC switch on it for this to work.
I like your videos above all other railfan videos on youtube. Please though, tell us more about scanners and trains and how to use them to chase trains. I live near a former D&H line in northern NYS, it's now owned by CN (in case you were interested.
Great video. It's got me looking into scanners and antennas. Quick question though. The antenna mounted on your vehicle, is it a wide band or narrow band? Does it even make a difference?
I have a radioshack weather alert scanner that has fairly good reception.. Not always. I like the extension antenna you showed first for my scanner, that would work fine.
danny, what scanner would you recommend buying along with the maxrad1\4 wave antenna. is that antenna a magnetic mount or will it attach to the scanner. i appreciate any help. i want to buy one as soon as i hear from you. thanks a million.
Well it depends on what you use your scanner for. If 50 is enough for you, that's perfect. I like to use the banks to program frequencies for different areas. Plus I put weather and aircraft in there too.
Does the antenna length really have a whole lot to do with the range. I had a 14 inch antenna on my Uniden BC75XLT. I'm now looking into an 18 inch if that will get transmissions from further away.
+Clear Signal Productions You're not going to notice much of a difference in 14" and 18". 17" is the correct 1/4 wave length for 161MHz. Correct is what you're looking for. Not just longer.
Ok, this video is gold! I've looked up the two antennas you mentioned in this video and they are relatively cheap. The most expensive part of the external is the magnetic base. Question though. I need the 150 to 162 MHz range for the 1/4 wave, correct?
Thank you! I am located up on the South End of the old Rathole District on the CNO&TP up here in TN. Lots of mountains. I feel like that antenna would do well regardless of terrain.
+Aaron Beaubien Hi Aaron. The mountains will restrict your range no matter what kind of radio or antenna. But, adding an external antenna will extend the range of the radio in any case. Thanks!
Danny yes a quarter wave antenna is better that a rubber duck on a hand held and for the money you can't go wrong. with that said a 5/8 wave will give you 3db of gain. I know what people will say that is for transmitting and for the most part they would be right however it does give you better reception as a ham radio operator I have used both and pick up distant signals (radio that is) better with the 5/8 wave antenna. I think it would depend on the location a person is chasing in as to which antenna would be better. Flat open country I would think the 1/4 wave would be fine but in hilly or even mountainous areas the 5/8 would give an advantage. just my thoughts enjoy you videos 73 N0TLC
+DS75921 Thanks for the reply! Yes, I've tried the 5/8 wave "Railcom" antennas and the Maxrad 5/8 waves (which I think are made by the same company) I've done A-B tests with them on the same radio and can find no improvement with the 5/8. I could be my situation and conditions.
Hi Danny I am not familiar with those brands of antennas but I am sure that is a marketing name geared to the rail fan I use either Cushcraft, Larsen or MFJ antennas and I cut them to the frequency in use to maximize performance. Conditions have everything to do with how an antenna performs where you are in Fl. Mostly flat you are correct it doesn’t make much difference I live in the Mo. Ozarks and need every advantage I can get in them thar hills
I have been a ham for 30 years and I totally agree that the 5/8 wave length antenna is better, granted the most improvement is in the transmitt but if you watch the s-meter when doing test you will see an improvement in the receive also.
Another tip, any antenna you buy new is going to be cut to the lower end of the freq. range, a 1/4 wave should be cut to 17.5 inches to get best preformance on the rail freqs of 160.0 mhz
In kentucky and other states where scanners are banned the police look for exterior antennas for scanners. So I use a three foot CB antenna with magnetic base quick release and a spring. It works very well and is inexpensive. I can hear hand held radios for at least 1/2 a mile away. You can get a convter plug from the cb cable to bnc connector at any truck stop.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but if you have your HAM license you are all set. I would love to get mine...wish there was someone else in my area wanting the same so we could work together on them.
+Tim Daugherty Hi Tim. I shoot mostly with a Sony CX900. It's a great mid-priced camcorder has full manual controls or will go full automatic. The 4K version is selling for about $1200 right now.
Make sure it is legal in your state to have a scanner in your car. In Kentucky and I believe 4 other states it is illegal to posses a scanner in a vehicle unless you have an amateur radio license, even if you are rail fanning. A good friend of mine and RU-vid railroad video poster named Jaw Tooth found this out the hard way last year in Ky. They cuffed and stuffed him and took him straight to jail, confiscated his scanner and cameras while he was rail fanning in Northern Kentucky. Long story short it took a large amount of money for a lawyer to research the laws and to find out that in Ky it is legal to have a scanner in your car, but only with a ham radio license. The thing that really sucks about that whole thing is the fact that he showed the cops at the station that by downloading a free app for his smart phone, he could turn it into a scanner in about 2 minutes. They were completely dumbfounded about that little feature available to every smart phone in America.
+1960gambit Yeah, I know about that law. I believe it's about radios capable of receiving law enforcement frequencies. None of my radios can do that. Plus I also hold an Amateur Radio license.
Distant Signal Yeah, that`s pretty much it, the cops don`t want you listening in on them. However, I have put that scanner app on my phone and I can hear every word they say, so that stupid law about scanners in cars is just that... stupid! Especially since you can make your phone into a scanner for free!
+1960gambit is it really legal to listen to railroad radio in the US? Sorry that I am asking, I am not from the US (Europe) and over here it's legally fraudulent eavesdropping if you are scanning any non-public radio transmission, which is essentially everything but the free radio stations.You can be charged and have to pay quite some fine. Assumed they catch you. Some railroads however have turned to digital radio and that is encrypted anyway. That radio is not wireless, they are using the catenary as radio line. (in Europe most mainlines are electrified)
OldSchool1500 Yes it is legal, in fact many rail fan sites publish the radio frequencies of the individual railroads in the states. Another thing that is done here is the monitoring of the ATCS system which shows the train movements in the various divisions of the Class 1 railroads like Union Pacific, BNSF, Norfolk Southern, KCS and CSX around the USA. The railroads don`t like it from what I understand, but there isn`t much done or said about it. They are more concerned with trespassers than anything else.
+OldSchool1500 In 1934 the US Congress voted that the radio airwaves of the United States belong to the public and therefore are available for anyone's use. That said, they also voted for strict regulation of the airwaves by the Federal Communications Commission. So.... there are few radio transmissions that are not legal to listen to. Some states have made the use of a scanner in a vehicle illegal and that's why I got a ham license a few years ago.
+adam ardhana0307 Many many thanks, Adam. I've been trying to put up a new video all through February but have been busy with some other stuff. Hope to get back on schedule now.
Ah, the Old Kings Road crossing - now closed to traffic. Used to watch yard activity there almost every Saturday afternoon when I was a kid. Every so often I'd see the Silver Meteor passing through enroute to the Amtrak station a few miles away.
+MrCzechers I remember the first time I found Old Kings Rd. I think there were 9 or 10 tracks in the crossing. It was incredible! I sat there several hours, marveling at the traffic through there. It's still pretty good, but a lot quieter. :-))
Distant Signal When I first "found" Grand Crossing, as it was called, it had 7 tracks. Its the north end of Moncrief Yard on the old ACL. On the first trip there in 75, a SCL train was parked on a layover. The caboose crew invited my Dad and I aboard and showed us around. Never forgot that! Meanwhile, NS (originally Southern) Simpson Yard is about a mile down Old Kings Rd.
Yes there is. Just sit by the tracks and simply wait for a train to come by. You can also try to find a local railfan or friendly railroad worker that is willing to give you a heads up on timetables of regular mainline trains and locals so you don't have to sit around simply hoping for a train. You can also listen to railroad scanner traffic on your computer or smartphone from the streams off www.railroadradio.net if it happens to have your area of track streamed. It's pretty limited in the list of places it re-broadcasts from. Mostly only stretches of track that are busy and are popular with railfans. But I'd just save up for a new scanner for around $100 (only needs to be an analog scanner that scans in the 160-161 MHz band) and buy a good magnetic car roof antenna or handheld antenna in the $20 range. You could probably find all 3 online in used condition for cheap. I recommend the Uniden BC125AT. Not only is it pretty cheap, it's about the only one in it's price range that has Alpha Tagging..... which allows you to add a custom 16-character text name to each channel (like "BNSF Road" or "BNSF Yard" so you know precisely what you are listening to) instead of just a number on the screen. It also has free, easy to use software online you can download to program the scanner when it's plugged into your computer's USB port. So much easier and quicker than programming frequencies and Alpha Tags from the scanner's keypad and knob.
Danny is there any chance you can publish the frequencies for the state of Florida? Per subdivision and the beginning and end of said subdivision. I doubt anyone would deny you are the leading authority on Florida rail fanning and as such have obtained a database for such info. I frequent your state and it can be trying at times to know what frequency goes to which subdivision.
Distant Signal we can go around it by using a transceiver, like what I see you using, as well as hand held scanners that use a unit mounted antenna. And plugging a head held into your stereo system is on the edge of being illegal
Yeah it's unbelievable. Danny because of this video I finally picked up a scanner and the 77 and they've been flawless! Thinking of getting a magnetic car mount.
@@patmeaden Pat so I've got a handheld Uniden scanner w/ unit mounted antenna. Would a magmetric antenna mount plugged into it be illegal? Or not technically, only "on the edge" of illegal?
William Baker it seems like one of those laws like men not being allowed to be shirtless in Times Square, it’s against the law, but doubt any cop cares. You could get away with it, but you could get a fine if the cop actually cares
My grandfather and I built our own antennas that are designed to pick up frequencies between 160 and 162. They work great. Thanks for the great videos.
I have meany types of Radios I use for RR at home I have 5 Icom V-8000 they are cheap they have great RX great FM sound even though Iam a Yaesu fan I use these for my RR radios in the house now for the Van I use a Icom very old it is from 1994 2232h it is a dual band I have Motorola Speaker a 5/8 ant it has great FM sound when I went to my home town 1 time there is a railfan spot called Peck Park I drove up I was in my Chevy S10 at that time there was like 10 railfans there it is a great parl they all grouped up was talking 1 guy came over said we want to know if u work for the rr I said no why they said your radio sound just want they use I said in a way but theres are much much better but if I wanted to spend $6000 for a Motorola clean cab radios u see the diffence but my Hand helds are Vertex VX-150 they are very rugged not made any more but they are sought after by railfans great RX on just a rubber duck Iam going to try a Smaily ant some say they arent worth the money but hey they are cut to band 160mhz on my Vertex HT I use a rubber duck it is cut to the 160mhz band I was given 4 of them I always have 2 HTs all when I am out in the field I can tell the diffnece between the stock ant & the 160mhz I buy those Vertex vx150 ever time I can I have gotten them as cheap as $25 there were well known for the transmit to go out so hams more or less give them away but there is the Yaesu FT270 it is the same radio inside just a differnt case. I also have 2 vertex VX2200 these radios are better then Ham radios they are Bussness band radios but cheap Vertex has meany types of radios they have them up to $3000 some PD's use them I hear NS used them at 1 time in there trucks but again u get what u pay for. Go to a Hamfest look for a 2 meter radio they are much better then a scanner if all u are going to do is use it for railroads but dont transmit on it if your not a ham NOTE DONT TRANSMIT ON THE RAILROAD FREQS REALLY YOU WILL GET CAUGHT & JAILED? I had to put that in there I had a friend his dad worked on motorola radios in his radio shop well my friend use to talk to the NS crews they talk back for over 3 years but it took that 1 time he caught a train that had a big wig on it he was in jail with in 10 mins the city PD picked him up then the NS came then the Fcc was contacted the same time there he went to Fedral court his dad lost his shop contract finded big time almost went to jail himself cause the radio was a Motorola old but he knew better then to let him have a radio that transmitted. Just some helpful info I have been asked meany times what radios I use when Iam out or on my videos O I forgot I use a Motorla mic. u can by knock offs of it for $6 from China but trust me they dont sound as good as the Motorolas I have both I like to try things look the same but far from sound of a Motorola mic Motorola has a basser tone to it more like what they use well I say they did use down here they went to Kenwoods the clean cab radios is a new brand name they are very good but high $$$
