Railroad Forums 

  • Scanners-what do you use when railfanning?

  • Discussion related to railroad radio frequencies, railroad communication practices, equipment, and more.
Discussion related to railroad radio frequencies, railroad communication practices, equipment, and more.

Moderator: Aa3rt

 #381698  by Aa3rt
 
Conrail1990 wrote:Its a Uniden BC80XLT.
Well, I tried searching the Internet, I'm afraid that this is about the best I could come up with:

http://www.fixya.com/support/t29228-uninden_bc80xlt
Last edited by Aa3rt on Sun Apr 01, 2007 5:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 #381703  by Conrail1990
 
Its alright. At least I know how to program it. Thats all I need.

 #404249  by SubaruWRX
 
I brought a RS PRO-95 from ebay a few days ago now just waiting for it to ship!

 #404531  by Wisconsin Railfan
 
Right now through June 23rd at RS is the Pro97 for $150, does anyone have this scanner? I was thinking about getting it, however since I will be getting my ham license soon, I might take some advise seen here and look into something else.

 #404589  by Ken W2KB
 
Wisconsin Railfan wrote:Right now through June 23rd at RS is the Pro97 for $150, does anyone have this scanner? I was thinking about getting it, however since I will be getting my ham license soon, I might take some advise seen here and look into something else.
I've mostly used a ham HT with extended frequency coverage and find that satisfactory for field use where scanning many frequencies is not required.

 #406336  by chuckmitchell
 
Im using a Pro-82 from Radioshack. Had it about 6 months now, and its working great.

 #406354  by EMTRailfan
 
I use a Bearcat BC200XLT. I have the AAR channels in their cooresponding scanner channels, plus the EOT freq in channels 1&100. I have the 5 remaining channel banks programmed for specific areas that I railfan regularly.
Last edited by EMTRailfan on Fri Jan 11, 2008 4:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 #406377  by Wisconsin Railfan
 
I just bought the Pro97 scanner from RS, I will be picking up the programming cable and Antenna this weekend. and I scheduled to take my HAM test on June 17th, at which time I will be looking for another.

 #407730  by ATF1224
 
My setup has changed considerably also since I first posted in this thread.

I'm now using a Motorola XTS5000R trackside and when in the vehicle it goes into an adapter for mobile use.

 #407983  by keeper1616
 
ATF1224 wrote:My setup has changed considerably also since I first posted in this thread.

I'm now using a Motorola XTS5000R trackside and when in the vehicle it goes into an adapter for mobile use.
[/wiping drool from the keyboard]
Thats a little overkill for just railfanning. Said by the person who railfans with an Astro Saber III and a CDM1550. :-D

 #412275  by ATF1224
 
keeper1616 wrote:
ATF1224 wrote:My setup has changed considerably also since I first posted in this thread.

I'm now using a Motorola XTS5000R trackside and when in the vehicle it goes into an adapter for mobile use.
[/wiping drool from the keyboard]
Thats a little overkill for just railfanning. Said by the person who railfans with an Astro Saber III and a CDM1550. :-D
Trust me it's not just for railfanning. Let's just say it stays on channels strapped for P25 and DES-XL 90% of the time. The XTVA is soon to be replaced by a VHF W7 Astro Spectra though.
 #450797  by n3ddy
 
de N3DDY - I have carried many different radios over the years.... both plain scanners and amateur radio ht's that multitask. Prpbably the best and most sensitive radio I have carried is the Yaesu FT-50. Almost 10 years old now, but still great. I also have a Yaesu VR-120. Stealth scanning at it's finest. Smaller than a deck of playing cards, 640 channels in 10 banks, and best of all runs for a couple days on 2 AA cells. A little light on the audio, though. Recently I bought a RadioShack Pro-84 on sale. This is also known as Bearcat BC92xlt - same radio. It will run 12-14 hours on a pair of AA's also. AND- it has something called Signal Stalker - if you are not sure of a frequency - it will find it for you. neat, huh?

 #450980  by Conrail4evr
 
I've upgraded my system a bit since last posting. Currently, I'm using a Motorola Saber II for a portable radio with an Icom 2200H mobile unit. I'll soon have a VHF Maxtrac in my car as well for use on MURS frequencies (I know a lot of railfans in the Carolinas use these frequencies to communicate, so I'm trying to get a similar network going up here as railfans slowly ditch their scanners for commercial radios). I've got another 2200H sitting at home with a 1/2 wave base antenna waiting to be mounted.

 #451794  by NHN503
 
Currently using the iCom IV-V82. Works very well for railfanning and when I'm working on a shortline here in NH.

 #452406  by SubaruWRX
 
UGH I should of taken my scanner with me as I rode on Amtrak from CT to North Carolina... but I wanted to go light.
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