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Communicating between vehicles while driving.


Mark

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Jesus Lee ear defenders are always used in the beast, I'm already half deaf in my right ear from just generally loud motorbikes, shooting and sometimes the Ferret.

 

 

I transferred out of the cavalry after seven years on Ferrets and CVR(T)s. At my new unit everybody had a hearing test and it transpired that I was 80% deaf in my right ear at high frequencies.

 

A couple of years later, the test came around again and all was well.

 

I have put this down to the following.

 

Clansman (which we were issued about halfway through my time) allowed you to work on one set in the left ear and monitor another set in the right ear. With live I/C (no press to talk) selected (which was usually the case) the I/C also came through the right ear. On the move, the flow of air over the boom mike created a whistle, transmitted through the harness on the I/C to the right ear.

 

ISTR live I/C was available on Larkspur, but I suspect it required an RSB2 Radio Systems Box, 2 set at the heart of the harness to provide the necessary Clansman-like facilities on a Larkspur harness, and wasn't available on the simple J2, two set junction box.

 

When the Recce Regiments were due to get CVR(T) and the Army was due to get Clansman, Procurement told them they had to choose: the budget didn't stretch to both. So we got Scorpions in the Recce Regts in the early 70s and the Army didn't get Clansman until the end of the decade. Hence the hybrid harness on CVR(T) prior to the issue of Clansman.

 

I believe that the whistle over live I/C is what caused my temporary semi-deafness and evidently it was reversible ("Pardon???"), even though during that posting I spent my exercise time manning the MRG radio on account of my RAC Control Signaller skills, and even though I had taken a pay cut to transfer and forsake the ConSig qualification (which grated). Because in the MRG we never used the radio on the move, even though it was inherently noisy HF, it didn't disturb my ears.

 

If you DO go down the route of fitting a military radio, IMO you might want to consider an HF radio so that if I am right you ought to be able to tune in to medium wave broadcasts.

 

In Cyprus in 76-77, the Force Reserve Squadron command net was VHF, but we being a Recce Regt, squadron command nets were HF and only half of the vehicles had a VHF "A" set (SR C42) with an I/C circuit. Section second vehicles had a short-range B47 for their VHF "B" set, which did not have an I/C circuit.

 

So we had to equip half of our UNFICYP Ferrets with with an HF C13 "A" set to provide I/C and a B47 for comms. Since the C13 had to be switched on to provide I/C, crews tuned them to Voice of Peace (the Eastern Mediterranean's answer to Radio Caroline) and set the harness to monitor A and work I/C.

 

Of course these days there are very few stations on MW and civilian VHF does not overlap the military band, so you may not have a lot of choice.

 

And anyway, anybody whose radio skills are more current than mine might very well tell you I am talking rowlocks.

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Mark

If you use TTI (http://www.tti.uk.com/), this is the main importer of PMR 446 radios into uk. The guy who runs the company is very good at sorting things out, and will be cheaper that others for good kit.

Ask for Dean.

 

 

Andy

If enough people wanted this sort of kit, a bulk buy would cut the cost a lot. Anyone interested?

 

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