Do most runs use the MURS bands? Are you guys putting the HAM radios (by HAM I mean the frequency ranges that require a technician or higher) for more solo overlanding stuff or are there runs that require the HAM stuff?
I kind of want to put an ICOM 4100 in but wondering if it is complete overkill??
Most people put in a ham radio so they only need one radio and ham radios can be lower costs.
A modified ham radio, if you select the right one and perform an extremely minor modification, will work on business band, MURS, GMRS, FRS, ham, etc, so you can have one radio that does it all. Yes, it is not legal to do so in the US. But the use of non-type certificated radios on other services is a fairly common one.
I would never suggest anyone operate in such a fashion that is contrary to regulations. However, I also believe that is a personnel choice. Your chances of actually being prosecuted for such actions, assuming you are not using the radio in such a way that you would not get in trouble if the radio were otherwise legal, is infinitesimally small.
Where you have to be careful is talking to people about what you have. Some hams can get pretty persnickity about modified radios, and you have to keep in mind you are doing something that is technically illegal. Most don't care, but a few are very vocal.
Also, keep in mind that MANY of the "legal" race radios out there are not legal the way they are used. For example even if the frequency and radio are legal, is the operator authorized under a specific license? If you transmit on Weatherman using any radio at all, is that legal?
A valid concern (and why licensing and type certification exists in the first place) is that using a less than legal radio does require a specific level of knowledge. You (or someone) have to program in the frequencies and tones. You have to make sure you are not using a frequency that might cause interference to legal users. In other words, you don’t just dial up whatever freq you want and start gabbing. Doing so on the local police dispatch frequency, ambulance frequency, or aviation frequency, is certainly a good way to get noticed and quick. Causing interference to those services because you have selected a frequency not on them but too close will also get you noticed.
With that all said, I use three radios in my truck. A Yaesu FT8900R (VHF / UHF), the body is under the back seat and the control head is in the overhead sunglasses holder. A Kenwood TS-480SAT (HF / 6M), the body is under the back seat and the control head is on the front dashboard. And a Uniden BCD536HP scanner, the radio is in the center console and I sue a repurposed old cell phone for a control head on the overhead, near the AUX switches.
T!
