Axys and BCA Link Radio

[MountainRider05]

My whole group is axys and pros some doos no problems at all. Only prob i hav had was snow getting stuck in the mic. Might try and whipe it down or qucik spray it with some kind of water repellent!

 

[Thurel]

Interference

We have two identical axys with basic displays, mine has the issue but my dads does not. We where able to switch channels, and we found one with no interference. We made sure not to pick a .5 watt channel (channels 8-14).

 

[Jreng87]

I've had static interference issues with my BCA and Axys. Doesn't affect the actual use of the radio, but will get interference when not using it.

 

[Cooksend]

We had a large group of 4 axys' 2 pros and 1 summit for 8 days with no issues. Money well spent.

Almost no issue. I have had interference in my radio since new. Actually had BCA send me a new radio under warranty. Great company. I hope to find the issue this year!

 

[GreenState]

My BCA starts squawking when my Axys goes above idle. To the point that I need to turn down the speaker because it's so annoying.

Sometimes changing the channel helps, but then you're not on the same as everyone else...

I've never had an issue with my Garmin Rino.

 

[tdorval]

The BCA link squawks when I use it with my Axys as well. Standard display, above idle and it will drive you nuts. I've tried different channels but haven't messed with it enough to find one that works well for me yet. It wasn't my radio, but the owner of the radio contacted BCA and I believe they were told this was just an ongoing issue and that was it.

 

[AndrettiDog]

Our group will be using those this winter. $100 cheaper than BCA & we all run Axys sleds.

The Baofeng's are made in China. I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that the BCA Links are made in the US. Although I couldn't find it on the website so I could be wrong. Anyway, I have a Baofeng ham radio. They are cheap but seem to work well.

One reason I want the BCA Link is that it integrates well into my BCA vest. I also like supporting a company that supports sledders. Their products are even developed for us as well as back country skiers. I also have a Rino, but it's always tucked away, so I don't use it unless I'm in a bind. I'll try the Link and see what I think. Appreciate all the comments!

 

[Sage Crusher]

I have never had any issues running with our group of Axys some with and without the PIDD- we all use Collect communicators.
Flawless and no worries of having a radio on your shoulder..

 

[dboivin]

If you buddies have BCA radios and you don't want to spend the money to buy one but still want a radio that is compatible, consider a Baofeng UV5r which is about $25 on Ebay.

It has more power, can upgrade antenna for more range, can program SAR, sheriffs, EMS, and other frequencies, and also has FM radio that you can listen to when riding. Works great with a $25 helmet mounted mic/speaker system.

Been using mine for sleds and ATVs in summer for past 3 years with no issues.

I couldn't justify the cost of a BCA radio.

have 6 of these. we used them no problem last year out at tog.

 

[inspector01]

BCA radio uses FRS and GMRS frequencies. BCA advertises "subchannels" or privacy codes but those basically are tone squelch signals sent so only persons with same tone squelch sent hear the transmission.

If you can determine the type/frequency of tone squelch you should be able to talk folks with BCA radios using other radios. Best thing to do is have the BCA radio users not use a "subchannel' or privacy code meaning no tone squelch to make it easier for everyone with non BCA raidos to link up and communicate with each other.

I have about 6 Baofeng radios with speaker microphones and 4 helmets with built in speaker/microphones. I pass them out to my ATV riding buddies and they love them. Most can't believe they rode all of these years without radio communications.

The BCAs just use standard ctcss "privacy codes" so as long as you program the baofeng correctly, you can talk to Bca links no problem.

I also really like having 2 channels on so I can communicate/monitor with 2 different groups. I have one channel on the group im riding with, other channel on another group of friends so we can meet up if needed for an emergency, lunch, etc.

 

[fastrack0]

You mean they talk to quick and the radio cuts off the first part of the conversation? That's typical of people that don't use radios a lot. I'm not saying that is your case, just experience.

I also heard of people using rubber bands to keep the channels from changing. Something about the channel selector moving to easily.

I don't have gps and I have the issue. Extremely annoying. I keep the radio off while riding. I turn it on when I stop... I was told by bca to try my buddies radio to see if that one is ok. According to them some radio are doing it some aren't ....

 

[jeremyp111]

If you buddies have BCA radios and you don't want to spend the money to buy one but still want a radio that is compatible, consider a Baofeng UV5r which is about $25 on Ebay.

It has more power, can upgrade antenna for more range, can program SAR, sheriffs, EMS, and other frequencies, and also has FM radio that you can listen to when riding. Works great with a $25 helmet mounted mic/speaker system.

Been using mine for sleds and ATVs in summer for past 3 years with no issues.

I couldn't justify the cost of a BCA radio.

Hey Drewd, I have a couple Baofeng handheld radios and have been looking for helmet mounted speaker / mic setups. Can you tell me which ones you went with and how they've worked for you? I'm concerned about sound quality and durability and it seems that there is a lot of China made junk out there. It's been challenging to find quality units for sure.

Thanks

JP

 

[Nytroty]

It's been a problem with Polaris sleds for a while. Since 09 my dad had a 700 RMK and it would make all of our Rino's squelch when he pulled up. Several other pro's have done the same thing when riding with them. I rode my buddies Axys last year with my BCA Link and instantly noticed the squelch and it is only at a certain RPM range like 4500-5000 rpm.... I was so ready to get back on my Skidoo just so i didn't have to hear it anymore.

 

[trestlecreek]

Just so I understand correctly,,, the BaoFeng radio can utilize the Garmin family band channels? and vise-versa?

 

[jeremyp111]

Just so I understand correctly,,, the BaoFeng radio can utilize the Garmin family band channels? and vise-versa?

The Baofeng is a true Ham radio that operates on many frequencies over two bands, including the FRS and GMRS frequencies. It can be used with any other FRS/GMRS radio only on those frequencies. The FRS/GMRS radios are limited to only those frequencies in the FRS/GMRS spectrum. I hope this helps.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[Pickin’ Boogers]

License required on non-FRS channels, and if you operate with more than 0.5 watts on the FRS channels, technically illegal

 

[Thurel]

I have noticed my sled also severely interferes with my beacon. Away from who has the issue and who doesn't. Does anyone have a theory of what to do. Change spark plugs maybe? My issue is clearly the snowmobile itself. I have traded radios and sleds to test this theory.

 

[Duraslut]

Last seaon I had issues with the interference. This year I got another bca link under warranty. Also changed my spark plugs and still get the interference

 

[nodak540]

This has nothing to do with spark plugs, GPS, display, 2-way radio, etc. The fact of the matter is the Axys is EMC "loud" and unless you wrap it in tinfoil, this issue isn't going away until the Polaris engineers fix it. I work for a company that designs and manufactures electronics controllers for Ag and on-highway vehicles and we battle these issues all of the time. I'm a little surprised Polaris released the sled this noisy but they must have passed the the standard testing somehow. Realistically, if you somehow pinpointed the noise to a specific electronic module, you could shield that area with foil, but most likely the noise would find another "hole" and a way out. You'd be surprised how just harness routing or any other change (mods) could impact this. Just the way it is. Some radios and other electronics are more immune to interference, which is likely why some see more of an issue than others. There's a reason that Mike Duffy says that you can not operate your beacon in search mode within 6 ft of your Axys if it's running, while the standard for Cat, Doo, Yammy, and the Pro are all 3 ft. The Axys is very noisy from an EMC standpoint.

The bottom line is this needs to be fixed at a component level and not the sled level.

 

[NEDitchbanger]

Rode with 2 new 2017 axys sleds and my 2016 axys this weekend. BCA interference problem was not present on the 2017. So Polaris, what was changed? It should be a warranty fix.