Reddit reviews Uniden Bearcat BC125AT Handheld Scanner. 500 Alpha-Tagged channels. Public Safety, Police, Fire, Emergency, Marine, Military Aircraft, and Auto Racing Scanner. Lightweight, Portable Design.

I use a Uniden BC125AT, others have mentioned it. I used it at the race track (Portland) with the stock antenna & the Koss QZ99 others have also mentioned.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000051SD1

https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC125AT-Alpha-Tagged-channels-Lightweight/dp/B00772MR0K

I program the known scanner frequencies before I head to the racetrack from the spotter guide, using the free software scan125. (PC only unfortunately, I used parallels on my mac to get it to run.)

From what I can tell, the driver coms, race control & indycar radio network don't change much during a season.

The same is not true for tv, at least in my first two years of scanning the races. I use the racing scan mode to figure out the tv broadcast frequencies, there will be one "clear one" and the the others you find will be interrupted with comments such as camera direction, etc. With NBCGold this year, I was able to easily lock down the good frequency the first practice session to listen to the tv broadcast.

Indylights used the same frequencies as the main event, (TV/radio/race control) They had other frequencies for the drivers, but I didn't investigate if a list was available online somewhere. Other series I couldn't find any coms, but they may have not had radios.

I have some other thoughts. If you share the scanner with two people, you may find the volume is too low. I purchased an amplified splitter, but didn't need at the racetrack.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EIWCFE

I would go with the 125 vs the cheaper model, due to being able to set an alphanumeric id instead of only looking at a frequency number on the scanner channel.

Like i mentioned before, I preprogrammed what I could before I arrived at the track on Friday, I then programmed the tv stations at the track, but it is a pain to label everything and get a logical order into the scanner banks that way. When I got home the first day I was able to use the scan125 software to "clean up" the order and get everything labeled properly, to make it easy to switch from tv/radio/pa & race control as I cared to.

I put a fresh set of AA batteries in the start of the weekend, and replaced the batteries again before the main race. I would carry at least 4 AA batteries to the track each day, just in case.

My area is up two 4-6 hour wait times for assault and about 30 minute - 1 hour wait times for armed robbery.

Useful skills/Tips for Public Safety.

• Get First Aid Training,Basic Life Support,CPR and AED-Defibrillator Training.
  
  
• Learn to use Naloxone, You might find yourself in a situation where you may have to administer the drug to someone that potential overdosed.
  
  
• Get a Public Safety Scanner or Police Scanner.
  
  
• Keep a EMS grade/large first aid kit in your vehicle/home.
  
  
• Keep a safety helmet or hard hat in your vehicle/home.
  
  
• Keep a seat-belt cutter on your person/vehicle.
  
  
• Help clean up your local parks or recreational areas with a sharps container.
  
  Feel free to add to this list. :)

Any scanner will do this. You can get a decent one for under a hundred bucks.

Here's a good one

If you are planning to attend races even semi regularly, consider buying a scanner and programming it yourself. I now own a BC125AT for $93. Works flawlessly.

[Yes.] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_xFBXAb36JX3WZ) They get more expensive if you want more programming features.

While there are online resources for listening to police radio frequencies, you can pick up public safety wideband scanners for pretty cheap, and if you flip through your local channels when you hear the helicopter or sirens, you can usually get the scoop before the media finds out.

http://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Bearcat-Channel-Numeric-BC125AT/dp/B00772MR0K/

The Uniden and RadioShack Branded PRO model scanners can be fetched on Ebay for cheap as well.

Here are your local frequencies:

http://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?ctid=225

Or, because Amazon entirely ignores the first section of the URL...

https://www.amazon.com/Inflatable-Windup-Albatross-with-glowing-LED-eyes/dp/B00772MR0K/

You would have to look up the laws in your area/country. Though I have never really though about the legality of it in other states etc. We have a few scanners and run a piaware adsb feeder. Most scanners are fine for picking up air traffic.
I have one of these bc125AT that we use out on the road. Is quite small and works great. have probably had it over 10 years. Fairly cheap for a analog scanner. Most important is the antenna. Here we have a large 30 foot antenna but in our old apartment we used to use a glass mount on the window. Scanning is a huge hobby and can be as cheap or expensive as you want.
Let me know if you need more info.

A simpler alternative to a SDR plus computer (wonderful toy) to consider would be a handheld scanner/receiver. A good example that includes alpha tagging (ability to store names along with frequencies) and the ability to listen to both civilian and military air frequencies is the Uniden BC125AT.

https://www.uniden.com/shop/communication/radio-scanners/500-channel-handheld-scanner-with-alpha-tagging/

https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC125AT-Alpha-Tagged-Emergency-Lightweight/dp/B00772MR0K

Thanks for the reply. I checked that site out earlier and unfortunately they do not cover the airport I am stationed at.
I found this one on Amazon and it looks like it should do the trick. Opinions?

http://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Bearcat-Channel-Numeric-BC125AT/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408849864&sr=8-1&keywords=aviation+scanner#cm_cr_dpwidget

Please use clean amazon links. https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC125AT-Alpha-Tagged-channels-Lightweight/dp/B00772MR0K/

"A scanner (also referred to a police scanner, police scanner radio or radio scanner) is a radio receiver that can automatically tune, or scan, two or more discrete frequencies, stopping when it finds a signal on one of them and then continuing to scan other frequencies when the initial transmission ceases. The terms radio scanner or police scanner generally refer to a communications receiver that is primarily intended for monitoring VHF and UHF landmobile radio systems, as opposed to, for instance, a receiver used to monitor international shortwave transmissions."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_scanner

Example: Bearcat Handheld Scanner

A key difference is that scanners are receive-only, where other types of radios can receive and transmit on public safety frequencies. And other types, like the cheap Baofengs, can receive but not transmit on public safety frequencies, even though they can transmit on amateur radio frequencies.

Currently I only listen. I want to hook up with some of the local ham guys but I can't remember how to find them. I commented on one of their youtube pages 2 years ago and no way I could find it again.

If I could find a legit setup for a reasonable cost I'd bite the bullet and give it a go.

Spez - here is the one I own. Its just a portable Uniden but it has served me well. It actually spent the winter under snow in the backyard. My daughter took it out last fall and lost it. Still works like a charm though I did take it apart and dry it out. I see they have a used option for $56.26 with free shipping

You could always try calling the owner of the airport (should be public information) to see if they can pass the information along.

Alternately, you could buy a hand-held aviation radio and tune it to the CTAF (common traffic advisory frequency) for the airport. Most pilots will announce on the radio what they are doing at a uncontrolled airport. They are not required to, but it is safer to. This would potentially give you more warning about activity in the area allowing you to get your kite down before it is an issue. You can find the CTAF by looking up the airport in the AF/D (airport facility directory). Lookup the airport and it should have it listed.

How long ago are you asking about?

It's hard to say without knowing the exact model of walkie-talkie you saw used. Some of the old CB walkie-talkies from the 60s-70s had extended AM mode that could pick up some aircraft traffic that was in the AM band. Most aircraft now that are talking to an airport or control center are using FM band. Getting more into the 90s and later, very few FRS or GMRS radios had the ability to monitor air band and weather radio frequencies.

What you may be remembering as a walkie-talkie might actually have just been a scanner. Something that looks a lot like a walkie-talkie but can't transmit to anyone, only listen (Amazon example) if you were around people that liked listening to that kind of stuff, thats the more likely answer.

These are the earmuffs I use:

https://www.amazon.com/3M-WorkTunes-Protector-Compatible-90541-4DC/dp/B0013092CS

My scanner is a Uniden BearCat BC125AT:

https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Bearcat-Channel-Numeric-BC125AT/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1484609834&sr=8-1&keywords=BC125AT

The earmuffs have an aux in and the scanner has a headphone jack, so they work well together. In addition to 454.000 for the race call, with a little Googling you can also find the IMSA race control frequency and plug that in, and also some of the team radio channels. I know you can find the Corvette channels on the Corvette Racing Fans Facebook page before every race.

Interesting side note, IndyCar also had their commentary broadcast on 454.000 at Watkins Glen last year.

This is the particular one I have. They're quite fun if you're frequently bored.

https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC125AT-Military-Aircraft-Channels/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=sr_1_5?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1503030699&sr=1-5&keywords=police+scanner

Buy a scanner on Amazon and bring headphones. The Racing Radios kiosks have handouts on frequencies, or you can commonly find them online.

This is the one I took to Talladega last year and it worked great.

http://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Bearcat-Channel-Numeric-BC125AT/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1457803937&sr=8-2&keywords=bearcat+scanner

It scans slower than a dedicated scanner does, but it's reasonably fast. I haven't been in the scanner market for awhile now, so I don't have any suggestions based on personal use, but here are a few from some quick searching:

Uniden BC75XLT will do VHF/UHF and airband, Uniden Bearcat 500 does the same plus military aircraft, and the Uniden BD396XT does the same, plus trunk tracking.

this is so very helpful thank you very much for your detailed answer. i guess i mispoke, to clarify, i want to listen to the entire san gabriel valley dispatch (going from pasadena to duarte). i live in pasadena specifically. so to simplify all this in my mind, i can buy:

https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-Bearcat-Channel-Numeric-BC125AT/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465509830&sr=8-1&keywords=Uniden+BC125AT

Which is the Uniden BC125AT.

and listen to both pasadena and los angeles county police stations? i'm just trying to wrap my head around all of this. once again thanks

This is exactly what I used for a long time. The only hiccup is that Baofeng can be complicated to program if you're not used to ham radios or scanners.

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Now I use a Uniden Bearcat125AT. I like it because it's easy to program either manually or via your computer, it has alpha tags and there's a weather (WRX) pre-programmed that is always useful to have when the gray clouds are looming.

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https://www.amazon.com/Uniden-BC125AT-Alpha-Tagged-Emergency-Lightweight/dp/B00772MR0K/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3DGMTQC0YES0L&keywords=uniden+bearcat+scanner&qid=1563205158&s=gateway&sprefix=uniden+bearcat%2Caps%2C128&sr=8-3

uniden bc-125at, can't recommend enough for the price point