Radio Shack Scanner PRO 29 User Guide

Cat. No. 20-509  
OWNER’S MANUAL  
PRO-29  
60-Channel  
Direct Entry Programmable Scanner  
Please read before using this equipment.  
 
Your scanner can receive all of these bands:  
29–29.7 MHz (10-Meter Amateur Radio)  
29.7–50 MHz (VHF Lo)  
50–54 MHz (6-Meter Amateur Radio)  
108–136.975 MHz (Aircraft)  
137–144 MHz (Government)  
144–148 MHz (2-Meter Amateur Radio)  
148–174 MHz (VHF Hi)  
406–420 MHz (Government)  
420–450 (70-cm Amateur Radio)  
450–470 MHz (UHF Standard)  
470–512 MHz (UHF “T” Band)  
806–823.9375 MHz (Public Service)  
851–868.9375 MHz (UHF Hi)  
896.1125–956 MHz (UHF Hi)  
In addition, your scanner is preprogrammed with the following weather  
service channels:  
162.400 MHz (NFM)  
162.425 MHz (NFM)  
162.450 MHz (NFM)  
162.475 MHz (NFM)  
162.500 MHz (NFM)  
162.525 MHz (NFM)  
162.550 MHz (NFM)  
This owner’s manual also includes the section “A Guide to the Action  
Bands,” which lets you target services in your area by giving you fre-  
quency ranges to search. You can then store any of these frequencies  
into memory for easy scanning.  
For your records, we recommend you record your scanner’s serial num-  
ber in the space provided. The serial number is on the scanner’s back  
panel.  
Serial Number __________________  
3
 
FCC NOTICE  
Your scanner might cause TV or radio interference even when it is op-  
erating properly. To determine whether your scanner is causing the in-  
terference, turn off your scanner. If the interference goes away, your  
scanner is causing the interference. Try the following methods to elimi-  
nate the interference.  
Move your scanner away from the receiver  
Connect your scanner to an outlet that is on a different electrical  
circuit from the receiver  
Contact your local Radio Shack store for help  
If you cannot eliminate the interference, the FCC requires that you stop  
using your scanner.  
Note:  
Mobile use of this scanner is unlawful or requires a permit in some  
areas. Check the laws in your area.  
SCANNING LEGALLY  
Your scanner covers frequencies used by many different groups includ-  
ing police and fire departments, ambulance services, government agen-  
cies, private companies, amateur radio services, military operations,  
pager services, and wireline (telephone and telegraph) service provid-  
ers. It is legal to listen to almost every transmission your scanner can  
receive. However, there are some transmissions you should never in-  
tentionally listen to. These include:  
Telephone conversations (either cellular, cordless, or other private  
means of telephone signal transmission)  
Pager transmissions  
Any scrambled or encrypted transmissions  
According to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), you  
are subject to fines and possible imprisonment for intentionally listening  
to, using, or divulging the contents of such a transmission unless you  
have the consent of a party to the conversation (unless such activity is  
otherwise illegal). Radio Shack encourages responsible, legal scanner  
use.  
4
 
CONTENTS  
Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6  
Power Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6  
Using Internal Batteries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6  
Important Information About the External Power Jacks . . . . . . 7  
Using Standard AC Power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8  
Using Vehicle Battery Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9  
Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10  
Connecting the Antenna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11  
Connecting an Earphone/Headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12  
Connecting an Extension Speaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13  
Using the Belt Clip. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13  
Understanding Your Scanner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14  
A Look at the Keypad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14  
A Look at the Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15  
Banks and Memories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17  
Channel-Storage Banks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17  
Monitor Memories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17  
Operation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18  
Turning on the Scanner and Setting Squelch . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18  
Storing Frequencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18  
Searching For and Temporarily Storing Active Frequencies . . 19  
Listening to Monitor Memories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22  
Moving a Frequency from a Monitor Memory to a Channel . . 22  
Manually Selecting a Channel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23  
Special Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24  
Using the Keylock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24  
Locking Out Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24  
Turning Channel-Storage Banks On and Off. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25  
Search Skip Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25  
Priority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26  
Using the Display Backlight. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27  
Listening to the Weather Band . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27  
A General Guide to Scanning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28  
Guide to Frequencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28  
Guide to the Action Bands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30  
Band Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32  
Avoiding Image Frequencies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36  
Frequency Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36  
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37  
Resetting the Scanner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37  
Care and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38  
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39  
5
 
PREPARATION  
POWER SOURCES  
You can power your scanner from any of three sources:  
Internal batteries  
Standard AC power (using an optional AC adapter)  
Vehicle battery power (using an optional DC adapter)  
USING INTERNAL BATTERIES  
You can power your scanner with four AA batteries. For the longest op-  
eration and best performance, we recommend alkaline batteries (Radio  
Shack Cat. No. 23-552). Or, you can use rechargeable nickel-cadmium  
batteries (Cat. No. 23-125).  
Warning:  
The scanner has a built-in circuit that lets you recharge nick-  
el-cadmium batteries inside the battery compartment. However, you  
must never use this circuit when you have installed non-rechargeable  
batteries in the scanner. Be sure to read “Important Information about  
the External Power Jacks” and “Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries.”  
Follow these steps to install or replace batteries.  
1. Press down the tab on the battery compartment cover, and lift  
open the compartment.  
2. Remove any old batteries from the compartment and cover.  
Caution:  
Always dispose of old non-rechargeable batteries  
promptly and properly. Do not bury or burn them.  
6
 
3. Install two batteries in the compartment and two in the cover as  
indicated by the polarity symbols (+ and –) marked inside.  
Caution: Use only fresh, AA alkaline, nickel-cadmium, or general  
purpose batteries of the required size. Never mix fresh and old  
batteries or different types of batteries.  
4. Replace the cover.  
If BATT.Lo flashes on the display and the scanner beeps every 15  
seconds, immediately replace or recharge all four batteries.  
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE  
EXTERNAL POWER JACKS  
The scanner has two external power jacks — POWER and CHARGE. It  
is important that you understand the purpose of each jack before you  
connect any adapter to the scanner.  
POWER  
CHARGE  
The POWER jack powers the scanner and disconnects the internal bat-  
teries. You can use this jack to connect an external power source (AC  
or DC adapter) regardless of the type of batteries you install.  
7
 
The CHARGE jack supplies power to operate the scanner and also  
charges the internal batteries. Use the CHARGE jack only when you in-  
stall rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries.  
Warning: Never use the CHARGE jack with non-rechargeable batteries.  
If you try to recharge non-rechargeable batteries, they become very hot  
and could explode.  
USING STANDARD AC POWER  
To power the scanner from AC power, you need an AC adapter such as  
Radio Shack Cat. No. 20-188. Plug the adapter’s barrel plug into the  
scanner’s DC 9V POWER jack. Then plug the adapter’s power module  
into a standard AC outlet.  
POWER  
Warning: Do not use an AC adapter’s polarized plug with an extension  
cord, receptacle, or other outlet unless the blades can be fully inserted  
to prevent blade exposure.  
Cautions:  
You must use an AC adapter that supplies 9 volts and delivers at  
least 300 milliamps. Its center tip must be set to negative, and its  
plug must correctly fit the scanner’s DC 9V POWER jack. The rec-  
ommended adapter meets these specifications. Using an adapter  
that does not meet these specifications could seriously damage  
the scanner or the adapter.  
When you finish using the AC adapter, disconnect it from the AC  
outlet first. Then disconnect it from the scanner.  
Note: If you installed rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries in the  
scanner, remove the cap from the CHARGE jack and connect the AC  
adapter to it. This powers the scanner and recharges the batteries at the  
same time. See “Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries.”  
8
 
USING VEHICLE BATTERY POWER  
You can power the scanner from your vehicle’s battery power, if the ve-  
hicle has a 12-volt, negative ground electrical system. To do so, you  
need a Radio Shack DC Universal Adapter, Cat. No. 270-1560.  
Cautions:  
You must use a DC adapter that supplies (regulated) 9-volt power  
and delivers at least 300 milliamps. Its center tip must be set to  
negative, and its plug must correctly fit the scanner’s DC 9V  
POWER jack. The recommended adapter meets these specifica-  
tions. Using an adapter that does not meet these specifications  
could seriously damage your scanner or the adapter.  
To protect your vehicle’s electrical system, always plug the adap-  
ter into the scanner before you plug it into your vehicle’s cigarette-  
lighter socket. Always unplug the adapter from the vehicle’s  
cigarette-lighter socket before you unplug it from the scanner.  
1. Connect the DC adapter’s orange barrel-plug to the adapter’s  
cable, with the tip set to –.  
2. Set the adapter’s voltage switch to 9V.  
3. Insert the barrel plug into the scanner’s DC 9V POWER jack.  
4. Plug the other end of the adapter into your vehicle’s cigarette-  
lighter socket.  
Notes:  
If you installed rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries in the scan-  
ner, remove the cap from the CHARGE jack and connect the AC  
adapter to it. This powers the scanner and recharges the batteries  
at the same time. See “Charging Nickel-Cadmium Batteries.”  
9
 
If the scanner does not operate properly when you use a DC  
adapter, unplug the adapter from the cigarette-lighter socket and  
clean the socket to remove ashes and other debris.  
CHARGING NICKEL-CADMIUM BATTERIES  
The scanner has a built-in charging circuit that lets you recharge nickel-  
cadmium batteries while they are in the scanner. To charge the batter-  
ies, remove the plug from the scanner’s CHARGE jack and simply con-  
nect an AC adapter or a DC Universal Adapter to the jack (see “Using  
Standard AC Power” or “Using Vehicle Battery Power”).  
Warning:  
CHARGE  
jack  
Do not connect either adapter to the scanner’s  
if you installed non-rechargeable batteries (standard, extra-life, or alka-  
line). Non-rechargeable batteries become hot and can even explode if  
you try to recharge them.  
It takes about 14 to 16 hours to recharge batteries that are fully dis-  
charged. You can operate the scanner while recharging the nickel-  
cadmium batteries, but the charging time is lengthened.  
Note:  
Nickel-cadmium batteries last longer and deliver more power if  
you occasionally let them fully discharge. To do this, simply use the  
scanner until it begins beeping every 15 seconds and BATT.LOap-  
pears on the display. Then fully charge the batteries.  
Important!  
At the end of a rechargeable battery’s useful life, it must be  
recycled or disposed of properly. Contact your local, county, or state  
hazardous waste management authorities for information on recycling  
or disposal programs in your area. Some options that might be available  
are: municipal curb-side collection, drop-off boxes at retailers, recycling  
collection centers, and mail-back programs.  
10  
 
CONNECTING THE ANTENNA  
Follow these steps to attach the supplied flexible antenna to the connec-  
tor on the top of your scanner.  
1. Align the slots around the antenna’s connector with the tabs on the  
jack.  
2. Press the antenna down over the jack and rotate the antenna’s  
base clockwise until it locks into place.  
Connecting an Optional Antenna  
The antenna connector on your scanner makes it easy to use the scan-  
ner with a variety of antennas. Instead of the supplied antenna, you can  
attach a different one, such as an external mobile antenna or outdoor  
base antenna. Your local Radio Shack store sells a variety of antennas.  
Always use 50-ohm coaxial cable, such as RG-58 or RG-8, to connect  
an outdoor antenna. For lengths over 50 feet, use RG-8 low-loss dielec-  
tric coaxial cable. If your antenna’s cable does not have a BNC connec-  
tor, you will also need a BNC adapter (available at your local Radio  
Shack store).  
Warning:  
Use extreme caution when installing or removing an outdoor  
antenna. If the antenna starts to fall, let it go! It could contact overhead  
power lines. If the antenna touches a power line, contact with the anten-  
na, mast, cable or guy wires can cause electrocution and death! Call the  
power company to remove the antenna. Do not attempt to do so your-  
self.  
11  
 
CONNECTING AN EARPHONE/  
HEADPHONES  
For private listening, you can plug an earphone or mono headphones  
(such as Radio Shack Cat. No. 33-175 or 20-210) into the jack on top  
of your scanner. This automatically disconnects the internal speaker.  
Listening Safely  
To protect your hearing, follow these guidelines when you use an ear-  
phone or headphones:  
Do not listen at extremely high volume levels. Extended high-vol-  
ume listening can lead to permanent hearing loss.  
Set the volume to the lowest setting before you begin listening.  
After you begin listening, adjust the volume to a comfortable level.  
Once you set the volume, do not increase it. Over time, your ears  
adapt to the volume level, so a volume level that does not cause  
discomfort might still damage your hearing.  
12  
 
Traffic Safety  
Do not wear an earphone or headphones while you drive a vehicle or  
ride a bicycle. This can create a traffic hazard and is illegal in some ar-  
eas.  
Even though some earphones and headphones are designed to let you  
hear some outside sounds when you listen at normal levels, they still  
present a traffic hazard.  
CONNECTING AN EXTENSION SPEAKER  
In a noisy area, an extension speaker (such as Radio Shack Cat. No.  
21-549) or an amplified speaker (such as Radio Shack Cat. No. 21-  
541), positioned in the right place, might provide more comfortable lis-  
1
tening. Plug the speaker cable’s /8-inch mini-plug into your scanner’s  
jack.  
USING THE BELT CLIP  
You can attach the supplied belt clip to make the scanner easier to use  
when you are on the go. Use the two supplied screws to attach the belt  
clip to the scanner. Then slide the belt clip over your belt or waistband.  
13  
 
UNDERSTANDING YOUR SCANNER  
A LOOK AT THE KEYPAD  
Your scanner’s keys might seem confusing at first, but this information  
should help you understand each key’s function.  
HI LO AIR  
SCAN  
— scans through the programmed channels.  
MANUAL  
— stops scanning and lets you directly enter a channel num-  
ber.  
LOCKOUT/S/S  
— lets you lock out a selected channel. Skips a specified  
frequency during limit or direct search.  
PRIORITY  
— sets and turns on and off priority for a particular channel.  
CLEAR/.  
— clears an incorrect entry or enters the decimal point neces-  
sary when programming frequencies.  
MONITOR/0  
— accesses the six monitor memories. See “Moving a Fre-  
quency from a Monitor Memory to a Channel.”  
WX/E (enter)  
— scans through the preprogrammed weather channels or  
enters frequencies into channels.  
KEYLOCK/  
— locks/unlocks the keypad to prevent accidental entries  
or turns on the display light for 15 seconds. See “Using the Keylock” and  
“Using the Display Backlight.”  
PROGRAM  
— programs frequencies into channels.  
t, LIMIT, and s  
— search for active frequencies. See “Searching For and  
Temporarily Storing Active Frequencies.”  
14  
 
Number Keys — each key has a single-digit label, and keys 1-6 have  
a range of numbers printed above them. The single digits refer to the  
number of a channel or frequency entered. The number range (21-30,  
for example) show the channels that make up a memory bank. In addi-  
tion, the keypad has different functions in manual mode, scan mode,  
and program mode. See “Banks and Memories.”  
A LOOK AT THE DISPLAY  
The display has several indicators that show the scanner’s current op-  
erating mode. A quick look at the display will help you understand how  
to operate your scanner.  
MON  
KEYLOCK  
BATT.Lo  
BANK  
MHz  
CH  
MON— appears when you listen to a monitor memory. A number (1-6)  
appears to the right of MONindicating which monitor memory you are lis-  
tening to.  
BANK— shows which channel-storage banks are turned on for the scan  
mode. See “Banks and Memories.”  
KEYLOCK— appears when you lock the keypad.  
BATT.Lo— appears when the batteries are low.  
CH— digits that precede this indicator show which of the 60 channels  
the scanner is tuned to.  
P — appears when you listen to the priority channel.  
MHz — digits that precede this indicator show which frequency the  
scanner is tuned to.  
SCAN— appears when you scan channels.  
15  
 
MAN— appears when you manually select a channel.  
PGM— appears while you program frequencies into the scanner’s chan-  
nels.  
PRI— appears when you select the priority feature.  
L/O— appears when you manually select a locked-out channel, or dur-  
ing a search hold when the frequency is stored in search skip memory.  
WX— appears when you scan the preprogrammed weather channels.  
t
s
and — indicate the search direction.  
SRCH— appears during a limit search, a direct search, and a weather  
band search. See “Searching For and Temporarily Storing Active Fre-  
quencies.”  
-L-— appears instead of the channel number during a limit search.  
-d-— appears instead of the channel number during a direct search.  
Hi— appears with a frequency to show the upper limit of the frequency  
range to search.  
Lo— appears with a frequency to show the lower limit of the frequency  
range to search.  
-H-— appears during a limit search hold.  
-h-— appears during a direct search hold.  
Error— appears when you make an entry error.  
16  
 
BANKS AND MEMORIES  
Your scanner can store up to 66 frequencies. You store each frequency  
in either a memory called a channel, or a temporary memory called a  
monitor. This scanner has 60 channels and six monitor memories.  
CHANNEL-STORAGE BANKS  
To make it easier to identify and select the channels you want to listen  
to, channels are divided into six channel-storage banks of 10 channels  
each. Use each channel-storage bank to group frequencies, such as the  
police department, fire department, ambulance services, or aircraft  
band (see “Guide to the Action Bands”).  
For example, the police might use four frequencies, one for each area  
of town. You could program the police frequencies starting with Channel  
1 (Bank 1) and then program the fire department frequencies starting  
with Channel 11 (the first channel in Bank 2).  
MONITOR MEMORIES  
The scanner also has six monitor memories. Use these memories to  
temporarily store frequencies while you decide whether or not to save  
them into channels. This is handy for quickly storing an active frequency  
when you are searching through an entire band.  
When you are in the search mode, MONappears and the flashing num-  
ber at the top of the display indicates the currently selected monitor  
memory. Once you have stored a frequency into that monitor memory,  
t
s
press or . The scanner shifts to the next monitor memory and restarts  
the search mode.  
Note:  
To store frequencies into a monitor memory, you must first per-  
form a limit or direct search. See “Searching For and Temporarily Stor-  
ing Active Frequencies.”  
17  
 
OPERATION  
TURNING ON THE SCANNER AND SETTING  
SQUELCH  
SQUELCH  
1. Make sure that  
is turned fully counterclockwise before  
you turn on the scanner.  
VOLUME  
2. Turn  
3. Turn  
clockwise until you hear a hissing sound.  
SQUELCH  
clockwise, just until the hissing sound stops.  
Note:  
SQUELCH  
If you want to listen to a weak or distant station, turn  
SQUELCH  
counterclockwise. If reception is poor, turn  
clockwise.  
STORING FREQUENCIES  
Follow these steps to store frequencies into channels.  
MANUAL  
1. Press  
. Enter the channel number where you want to  
store a frequency.  
HI LO AIR  
PROGRAM  
2. Press  
. PGM appears on the display to indicate the  
scanner is in the programming mode.  
18  
 
3. Use the number keys and CLEAR/. to enter the frequency (includ-  
ing the decimal point) you want to store.  
HI LO AIR  
4. Press WX/E to store the frequency.  
Notes:  
If you made a mistake in Step 3, Errorappears on the display  
and the scanner sounds three beeps. Simply start again from  
Step 3.  
Your scanner automatically rounds the entered frequency to the  
nearest valid frequency. For example, if you try to enter a fre-  
quency of 151.473, your scanner accepts it as 151.475.  
5. Repeat Steps 1-4 to program more channels. Or, if you want to  
program the next channel in sequence, repeat Steps 2-4.  
To listen to a frequency you have stored, press MANUAL, the channel  
number, then MANUAL again.  
SEARCHING FOR AND TEMPORARILY  
STORING ACTIVE FREQUENCIES  
Good references for active frequencies are Radio Shack’s “Police Call  
Radio Guide Including Fire and Emergency Services,” “Aeronautical  
Frequency Directory,” and “Maritime Frequency Directory.” We update  
these directories every year, so be sure to get a current copy.  
If you do not have a reference to frequencies in your area, or if you want  
to search for unlisted frequencies, use a limit search or direct search.  
See also “Guide to the Action Bands” in this manual.  
19  
 
Limit Search  
A limit search lets you search for active frequencies between upper and  
lower limits that you set. -L- appears on the display during a limit  
search.  
1. Press PROGRAM, then LIMIT. Loappears on the display.  
2. Enter the lower limit of the frequency range you want to search.  
3. Press WX/E, then LIMIT. Hiappears on the display.  
Note: If the frequency you entered is not a valid frequency,  
Error appears. To enter a different frequency, start again from  
Step 2.  
4. Enter the upper limit of the frequency range.  
5. Press WX/E, then LIMIT. Loand the lower limit frequency appear  
on the display.  
t
s
6. Press to search from the upper to the lower limit, or to search  
from the lower to the upper limit. The current monitor memory  
number starts flashing at the top of the display.  
7. When the scanner stops on a transmission you want to save,  
press MONITOR to store the frequency in the current monitor mem-  
ory. The monitor number then stops flashing.  
t
s
8. Press either or to continue the search. If you saved a frequency  
in a monitor memory, then the monitor memory number on the dis-  
play advances by one and starts flashing again. (If the last monitor  
memory was 6, the scanner returns to monitor memory 1.)  
9. To hold the frequency, press LIMIT. -H-appears on the display.  
To exit the hold mode and resume the limit search, press LIMIT  
again.  
Notes:  
t
s
You can press or during the hold mode to step through the  
frequencies toward the upper or lower limits.  
If you tune to a search skip frequency, the display shows L/O  
(see “Search Skip Memory”).  
20  
 
Direct Search  
When you listen to a channel, you can search up or down from the cur-  
rently displayed frequency. -d-appears on the display during a direct  
search.  
1. Press MANUAL, the channel number, then MANUAL to select a fre-  
quency stored in a channel.  
HI LO AIR  
t
s
2. Press or to search up or down from the selected frequency.  
3. When the scanner stops on a transmission, press MONITOR to  
t
s
store that frequency in the current monitor memory. Or, press or  
to continue the search.  
4. To hold the frequency, press LIMIT. -h-appears on the display.  
To exit the hold mode and resume the direct search, press LIMIT  
again.  
Notes:  
t
s
You can press or during the hold mode to step through the  
frequencies toward the upper or lower limits.  
If you tune to a search skip frequency, the display shows L/O  
(see “Search Skip Memory”).  
21  
 
LISTENING TO MONITOR MEMORIES  
Once you have stored frequencies into monitor memories using a direct  
or limit search, you can listen to the monitor memories by pressing MAN-  
UAL, MONITOR, and then the number for the monitor memory you want  
to listen to.  
MOVING A FREQUENCY FROM A MONITOR  
MEMORY TO A CHANNEL  
Follow these steps to move a frequency stored in a monitor memory to  
a permanent channel.  
1. Press MANUAL.  
2. Enter the number for the channel where you want to store the  
monitor frequency. The channel number appears.  
HI LO AIR  
3. Press PROGRAM.  
4. Press MONITOR and the number of the monitor memory number  
that has the frequency you want to store. The channel number  
starts flashing.  
5. Press WX/E. The scanner stores the frequency in the selected  
channel, and the channel number stops flashing.  
22  
 
MANUALLY SELECTING A CHANNEL  
You can continuously monitor a specific channel without scanning. This  
is useful if you hear an emergency broadcast on a channel and do not  
want to miss any details — even though there might be periods of si-  
lence — or if you want to monitor a specific channel.  
Follow these steps to manually select a channel.  
1. Press MANUAL.  
2. Enter the channel number.  
3. Press MANUAL again.  
Or, if your scanner is scanning and stops at the desired channel, press  
MANUAL one time. (Pressing MANUAL additional times causes your  
scanner to step through the channels.)  
To resume automatic scanning after manually selecting a channel,  
press SCAN. Your scanner then scans through all non-locked channels  
in the activated banks.  
23  
 
SPECIAL FEATURES  
USING THE KEYLOCK  
Once you program your scanner, you can protect it from accidental pro-  
gram changes by turning on the keylock feature. In this mode, the only  
SCAN MANUAL KEYLOCK/  
VOLUME  
, and  
controls that operate are  
SQUELCH  
,
,
,
.
Note:  
The keylock does not prevent the scanner from scanning chan-  
nels.  
KEYLOCK/  
To turn on the keylock, press and hold  
until the scanner  
beeps and KEYLOCKappears on the display. To turn it off, press and  
KEYLOCK/  
hold  
until the scanner beeps and KEYLOCKdisappears  
from the display.  
LOCKING OUT CHANNELS  
You can increase the effective scanning speed by locking out individual  
channels that have a continuous transmission, such as a weather chan-  
LOCK-  
nel. To lock out a channel, manually select the channel and press  
OUT/S/S  
so L/Oappears on the display.  
To remove the lock-out from a channel, manually select the channel and  
LOCKOUT/S/S  
press  
so L/Odisappears from the display.  
Note:  
You can manually select locked-out channels.  
To remove the lock-out from all channels in a memory bank, follow this  
procedure.  
1. While scanning, press the number key corresponding to the mem-  
ory bank you want to unlock.  
MANUAL  
2. Press  
to enter the manual mode.  
LOCKOUT  
3. Press and hold  
for more than 3 seconds. The scanner  
beeps twice, and all locked out memory channels in the selected  
bank are unlocked.  
24  
 
TURNING CHANNEL-STORAGE BANKS ON  
AND OFF  
You can turn each channel-storage bank on and off. When you turn off  
a bank, the scanner does not scan any of the 10 channels in that bank.  
While scanning, press the number key corresponding to the bank you  
want to turn on or off. If the memory bank indicator is on, the bank is  
turned on and the scanner scans all channels within that bank that are  
not locked out. If the indicator is off, the scanner does not scan any of  
the channels within that bank.  
Memory Banks 3 & 4 are Turned Off  
Notes:  
You can manually select any channel in a bank, even if the bank is  
turned off.  
You cannot turn off all banks. One bank is always active.  
SEARCH SKIP MEMORY  
You can skip specified frequencies during a limit or direct search. This  
lets you avoid unwanted frequencies or ones you have already stored  
in a channel. You can program up to 30 skip frequencies into the scan-  
ner’s memory.  
To skip a frequency, press LOCKOUT/S/S when the scanner stops on the  
frequency during a limit or direct search.  
To clear a single frequency from skip memory so the scanner can stop  
on it during a limit or direct search, press LIMIT to hold the search, press  
t
s
LOCKOUT/S/S  
until L/O disap-  
or to select the frequency, then press  
pears from the display.  
25  
 
To clear all the skip frequencies at once, while in the search mode,  
press and hold LOCKOUT/S/S until the scanner beeps twice.  
Notes:  
If you program more than 30 skip frequencies, each new fre-  
quency replaces ones you stored earlier, starting from the first  
stored frequency.  
You can select the skipped frequency when the scanner is in the  
hold mode. The scanner displays L/Owhen you select a skipped  
frequency.  
PRIORITY  
You can scan through channels and still not miss an important or inter-  
esting call on a specific channel. When a channel is selected as the pri-  
ority channel and the priority feature is turned on, the scanner checks  
that channel every 2 seconds, and stays on the channel if there is activ-  
ity. PRIappears on the display whenever the scanner is set to the pri-  
ority mode.  
To program a channel as the priority channel, press PROGRAM, the de-  
sired channel number, then PRIORITY. P appears beside the channel  
number.  
To turn on the priority feature, press PRIORITY while the scanner is in  
either manual or scan mode. To turn off the priority feature, press PRI-  
ORITY until PRIdisappears from the display.  
Notes:  
You can only select one channel at a time as the priority channel.  
Channel 1 is initially set as the priority channel.  
You cannot select a monitor memory when priority is turned on.  
26  
 
USING THE DISPLAY BACKLIGHT  
You can turn on the display’s backlight for easy viewing in the dark.  
Press KEYLOCK/  
to turn on the display light for 15 seconds. To turn  
off the light before 15 seconds elapses, press KEYLOCK/  
again.  
Note:  
KEYLOCK/  
Do not hold down  
or it will lock up the keypad. If this  
until the scanner beeps and  
happens, press and hold KEYLOCK/  
KEYLOCKdisappears from the display.  
LISTENING TO THE WEATHER BAND  
The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) has allocated 11  
channels for use by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra-  
tion (NOAA). We have preprogrammed your scanner with the seven fre-  
quencies most commonly used by NOAA.  
To hear your local forecast and regional weather information, simply  
press WX/E. Your scanner begins scanning through the weather band,  
and WXappears on the display.  
Your scanner should stop within a few seconds, and then you hear the  
local weather broadcast. If the broadcast is weak, you can press WX/E  
again to scan through the rest of the weather band.  
27  
 
A GENERAL GUIDE TO SCANNING  
Reception of the frequencies covered by your scanner is mainly “line-of-  
sight.” That means you usually cannot hear stations that are beyond the  
horizon.  
GUIDE TO FREQUENCIES  
National Weather Frequencies  
161.650*  
162.440*  
162.525  
161.775*  
162.450  
162.550  
162.400  
162.475  
163.275*  
162.425  
162.500  
* Not preprogrammed in this scanner, but you can manually program  
them.  
Ham Radio Frequencies  
Ham radio operators often transmit emergency information when other  
means of communication break down.  
The following chart shows the frequencies this scanner receives that  
Hams normally use:  
Wavelength  
(meters)  
Frequency  
(MHz)  
10-meter  
6-meter  
2-meter  
70-cm  
28.000–29.700  
50.000–54.000  
144.000–148.000  
420.000–450.000  
902.000–928.000  
33-cm  
Note:  
Your scanner cannot receive some types of transmissions on  
these bands.  
28  
 
Birdie Frequencies  
Every scanner has birdie frequencies. Birdies are signals created inside  
the scanner’s receiver. These operating frequencies might interfere with  
broadcasts on the same frequencies. If you program one of these fre-  
quencies, you hear only noise on that frequency. If the interference is  
not severe, you might be able to turn SQUELCH clockwise to cut out the  
birdie.  
The birdie frequencies on this unit to watch for are:  
31.05  
41.40  
51.75  
To find the birdies in your receiver, begin by disconnecting the antenna  
and moving it away from the receiver. Make sure that no other nearby  
radio or TV sets are turned on near the receiver. Use the search function  
and scan every frequency range from its lowest frequency to the high-  
est. Occasionally, the searching will stop as if it had found a signal, often  
without any sound. That is a birdie. Make a list of all the birdies in your  
scanner for future reference.  
29  
 
GUIDE TO THE ACTION BANDS  
Typical Band Usage  
HF Band (3.00–30.0 MHz)  
10-Meter Amateur  
High Range  
29.00–29.70 MHz  
29.70–29.90 MHz  
VHF Band (30.00–300.0 MHz)  
Low Range  
6-Meter Amateur  
Aircraft  
U.S. Government  
2-Meter Amateur  
High Range  
30.00–50.00 MHz  
50.00–54.00 MHz  
108.00–136.97 MHz  
137.00–144.00 MHz  
144.00–148.00 MHz  
148.00–174.00 MHz  
UHF Band (300.00 MHz–3.0 GHz)  
U. S. Government  
0.6-Meter Amateur  
Low Range  
FM-TV Audio Broadcast, Wide Band  
Public Service  
Conventional Systems  
Conventional/Trunked Systems  
Trunked Systems  
Public Safety  
High Range  
33-Centimeter Amateur  
Private Trunked  
General Trunked  
Fixed Services  
Studio-to-Transmitter Broadcast Links  
Private Fixed Services Paging  
406.00–450.00 MHz  
420.00–450.00 MHz  
450.00–470.00 MHz  
470.00–512.00 MHz  
806.00–823.93 MHz  
851.00–856.00 MHz  
856.00–861.00 MHz  
861.00–866.00 MHz  
866.00–868.93 MHz  
896.11–902.00 MHz  
902.00–928.00 MHz  
935.00–940.00 MHz  
940.00–941.00 MHz  
941.00–944.00 MHz  
944.00–952.00 MHz  
952.00–956.00 MHz  
30  
 
Primary Usage  
As a general rule, most of the radio activity is concentrated on the fol-  
lowing frequencies:  
VHF Band  
Activities  
Frequencies  
Government, Police, and Fire  
Emergency Services  
Railroad  
153.785–155.980 MHz  
158.730–159.460 MHz  
160.000–161.900 MHz  
UHF Band  
Activities  
Frequencies  
Land-Mobile “Paired” Frequencies  
Base Stations  
450.000–470.000 MHz  
451.025–454.950 MHz  
456.025–459.950 MHz  
460.025–464.975 MHz  
465.025–469.975 MHz  
Mobile Units  
Repeater Units  
Control Stations  
Note: Remote control stations and mobile units operate at 5 MHz higher  
than their associated base stations and relay repeater units.  
Specified Intervals  
Frequencies in different bands are accessible only at specific intervals.  
For example:  
Band Type  
Specified Interval  
VHF, HAM, and Government  
All Others  
5.0 kHz steps  
12.5 kHz steps  
25.0 kHz steps  
Aircraft  
Note: Your scanner rounds the entered frequency to the nearest valid  
frequency. For example, if you try to enter 151.473, the scanner accepts  
this as 151.475.  
31  
 
BAND ALLOCATION  
To help decide which frequency ranges to scan, use the following listing  
of the typical services that use the frequencies your scanner receives.  
These frequencies are subject to change, and might vary from area to  
area. For a more complete listing, refer to the “Police Call Radio Guide  
including Fire and Emergency Services,” available at your local Radio  
Shack store.  
Abbreviations  
Services  
AIR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Aircraft  
BIFC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Boise (ID) Interagency Fire Cache  
BUS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Business  
CAP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Civil Air Patrol  
CB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Citizens Band  
CCA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Common Carrier  
CSB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conventional Systems  
CTSB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conventional/Trunked Systems  
FIRE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fire Department  
HAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amateur (Ham) Radio  
GOVT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Federal Government  
GMR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . General Mobile Radio  
GTR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . General Trunked  
IND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Industrial Services  
. . . . . . . . . . . . . (Manufacturing, Construction, Farming, Forest Products)  
MAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Military Amateur Radio  
MARI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Maritime Limited Coast  
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Coast Guard, Marine telephone,  
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shipboard Radio, Private stations)  
MARS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Military Affiliate Radio System  
MED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Emergency/Medical Services  
MIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .U.S. Military  
MOV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Motion Picture/Video Industry  
NEW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .New Mobile Narrow  
NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Relay Press (Newspaper reporters)  
OIL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oil/Petroleum Industry  
POL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Police Department  
PUB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Public Services  
. . . . . . . . . . . . (Public Safety, Local Government, Forestry Conservation)  
PSB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Public Safety  
PTR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Private Trunked  
ROAD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Road & Highway Maintenance  
RTV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Radio/TV Remote Broadcast Pickup  
TAXI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Taxi Services  
TELB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mobile Telephone  
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (Aircraft, Radio Common Carrier, Landline companies)  
TELC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Cordless Phones  
TELM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Telephone Maintenance  
TOW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tow Trucks  
TRAN. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Transportation Services  
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(Trucks, Tow Trucks, Buses, Railroad, Other)  
TSB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Trunked Systems  
TVn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FM-TV Audio Broadcast  
32  
 
USXX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Government Classified  
UTIL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Power & Water Utilities  
WTHR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Weather  
High Frequency (HF) Hi (3 MHz–30 MHz)  
10-Meter Amateur Band—(28.0––29.7 MHz)  
29.000–29.700 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HAM  
Very High Frequency (VHF)—(30 MHz–300 MHz)  
Low Band—(29.7–50 MHz—in 5 kHz steps)  
29.700–29.790 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND  
29.900–30.550 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
30.580–31.980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, PUB  
32.000–32.990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
33.020–33.980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS, IND, PUB  
34.010–34.990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
35.020–35.980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BUS, PUB, IND, TELM  
36.000–36.230 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
36.250 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oil Spill Clean up  
36.270–36.990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
37.020–37.980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PUB, IND  
38.000–39.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
39.020–39.980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PUB  
40.000–42.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .GOVT, MIL, MARI  
42.020–42.940 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .POL  
42.960–43.180 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND  
43.220–43.680 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TELM, IND, PUB  
43.700–44.600 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TRAN  
44.620–46.580 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . POL, PUB  
46.600–46.990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .GOVT, TELC  
47.020–47.400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PUB  
47.420 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .American Red Cross  
47.440–49.580 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, PUB  
49.610–49.990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MIL, TELC  
6-Meter Amateur Band(50–54 MHz)  
50.00–54.00 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HAM  
Aircraft Band (108–136 MHz)  
108.000–121.490 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AIR  
121.500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .AIR Emergency  
121.510–136.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AIR  
U.S. Government Band (138–144 MHz)  
137.000–144.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
2-Meter Amateur Band (144–148 MHz)  
144.000–148.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HAM  
VHF-Hi BAND (148–174 MHz)  
148.050–150.345 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CAP, MAR, MIL  
150.775–150.790 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
150.815–150.965 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TOW  
150.980 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oil Spill Clean up  
33  
 
150.995–151.130 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ROAD  
151.145–151.475 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .POL  
151.490–151.955 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, BUS  
151.985 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TELM  
152.0075 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
152.030–152.240 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TELB  
152.270–152.465 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, TAXI  
152.480 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
152.510–152.840 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TELB  
152.870–153.020 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, MOV  
153.035–153.725 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, OIL, UTIL  
153.740–154.445 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PUB, FIRE  
154.490–154.570 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, BUS  
154.585 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oil Spill Clean-Up  
154.600–154.625 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
154.655–156.240 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MED, ROAD, POL, PUB  
156.255 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OIL  
156.275–157.425 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MARI  
157.450 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
157.470–157.515 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TOW  
157.530–157.725 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, TAXI  
157.740 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
157.770–158.100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TELB  
158.130–158.460 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BUS, IND, OIL, TELM, UTIL  
158.490–158.700 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TELB  
158.730–159.465 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .POL, PUB, ROAD  
159.480 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OIL  
159.495–161.565 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TRAN  
161.580 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OIL  
161.600–162.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MARI, RTV  
162.0125–162.35 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL, USXX  
162.400–162.550 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WTHR  
162.5625–162.6375 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL, USXX  
162.6625 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
162.6875–163.225 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL, USXX  
163.250 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
163.275–166.225 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL, USXX  
166.250 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, RTV, FIRE  
166.275–169.400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, BIFC  
169.445 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wireless Mikes  
169.500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT  
169.505 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wireless Mikes  
169.55–169.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL, USXX  
170.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BIFC  
170.025–170.150 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, RTV, FIRE  
170.175–170.225 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT  
170.245–170.305 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wireless Mikes  
170.350–170.400 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, MIL  
170.425–170.450 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BIFC  
170.475 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PUB  
170.4875–173.175 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .GOVT, PUB, Wireless Mikes  
173.225–173.375 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MOV, NEWS, UTIL  
173.3875–173.5375 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MIL  
173.5625–173.5875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .MIL Medical/Crash Crews  
173.60–173.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT  
34  
 
U. S. Government Band (406–450 MHz)  
406.125–419.975 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GOVT, USXX  
70-cm Amateur Band (420–450 MHz)  
420.000–450.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HAM  
Low Band (450–470 MHz)  
450.050–450.925 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .RTV  
451.025–452.025 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IND, OIL, TELM, UTIL  
452.0375–453.00 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IND, TAXI, TRAN TOW, NEWS  
453.0125–453.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PUB  
454.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OIL  
454.025–454.975 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TELB  
455.050–455.925 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .RTV  
457.525–457.600 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
458.025–458.175 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
460.0125–460.6375 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FIRE, POL, PUB  
460.650–462.175 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
462.1875–462.450 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BUS, IND  
462.4625–462.525 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IND, OIL, TELM, UTIL  
462.550–462.725 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GMR  
462.750–462.925 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
462.9375–463.1875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MED  
463.200–467.925 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BUS  
FM-TV Audio Broadcast, UHF Wide Band (470–512 MHz)  
(Channels 14 through 69 in 6 MHz steps)  
475.750 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Channel 14  
481.750 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Channel 15  
487.750 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Channel 16  
.
.
.
.
512.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Channel 20  
Some cities use the 470–512 MHz band for land/mobile service.  
Note:  
Conventional Systems Band—Locally Assigned  
851.0125–855.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .CSB  
Conventional/Trunked Systems BandLocally Assigned  
856.0125–860.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CTSB  
Trunked Systems Band—Locally Assigned  
861.0125–865.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TSB  
Public Safety Band—Locally Assigned  
866.0125–868.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PSB  
Common Carrier  
869.010–894.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CCA  
Private Trunked  
935.0125–939.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PTR  
General Trunked  
940.0125–940.9875 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GTR  
35  
 
AVOIDING IMAGE FREQUENCIES  
You might discover one of your regular stations on another frequency  
that is not listed. It might be what is known as an image frequency. For  
example, you might find a service that regularly uses a frequency of  
453.075 also on 474.675.  
To see if it is an image, do a little math.  
Note the new frequency.  
Double the intermediate frequency of 10.8 MHz (21.600)  
and subtract it from the new frequency.  
474.675  
–21.600  
453.075  
If the answer is the regular frequency,  
then you have tuned to an image.  
Occasionally you might get interference on a weak or distant channel  
from a strong broadcast 21.6 MHz below the tuned frequency. This is  
rare, and the image signal is usually cleared whenever there is a broad-  
cast on the actual frequency.  
FREQUENCY CONVERSION  
The tuning location of a station can be expressed in frequency (kHz or  
MHz) or in wavelength (meters). The following information can help you  
make the necessary conversions.  
1 MHz (million) = 1,000 kHz (thousand)  
To convert MHz to kHz, multiply by 1,000:  
9.62 MHz × 1000 = 9620 kHz  
To convert from kHz to MHz, divide by 1,000.  
2780 kHz ÷ 1000 = 2.780 MHz  
To convert MHz to meters, divide 300 by the number of megahertz.  
300 ÷ 7.1 MHz = 42.25 meters  
36  
 
TROUBLESHOOTING  
If you have problems, here are some suggestions which might help.  
PROBLEM  
POSSIBLE CAUSE  
REMEDY  
Scanner is totally inop-  
erative.  
No power.  
Check the batteries, or  
make sure you  
plugged the scanner  
into a working outlet.  
Scanner is on but will  
not scan.  
SQUELCH is not cor-  
rectly adjusted or  
channels are locked  
out.  
Adjust SQUELCH  
clockwise or remove  
the lock-out.  
In the scan mode, the  
scanner locks on fre-  
quencies that have an  
unclear transmission.  
“Birdies.”  
Avoid programming  
frequencies listed  
under “Birdie Frequen-  
cies” on Page 29 or  
only listen to them  
manually.  
If none of these suggestions help, take your scanner to your local Radio  
Shack store for assistance.  
RESETTING THE SCANNER  
If the scanner’s display locks up or does not work properly after you con-  
nect a power source, you might have to reset the scanner.  
Caution:  
This procedure clears all the information you have pro-  
grammed into the scanner. Before you reset the scanner, try turning it  
off and on to see if it begins working properly. Use the following proce-  
dure only when you are sure your scanner is not working properly.  
1. Turn off the scanner.  
2
9
2. While you press and hold down the and keys, turn on the scan-  
ner.  
37  
 
CARE AND MAINTENANCE  
Your Radio Shack PRO-29 60-Channel Direct Entry Programmable  
Scanner is an example of superior design and craftsmanship. The fol-  
lowing suggestions will help you care for the PRO-29 so you can enjoy  
it for years.  
Keep the scanner dry. If it gets wet, wipe it dry immediately.  
Liquids can contain minerals that can corrode the electronic  
circuits.  
Use only fresh batteries of the recommended size and type.  
Always remove old and weak batteries. They can leak  
chemicals that destroy electronic circuits.  
Handle the scanner gently and carefully. Dropping it can  
damage circuit boards and cases and can cause the scan-  
ner to work improperly.  
Use and store the scanner only in normal temperature envi-  
ronments. Temperature extremes can shorten the life of  
electronic devices, damage batteries, and distort or melt  
plastic parts.  
Keep the scanner away from dust and dirt, which can cause  
premature wear of parts.  
Wipe the scanner with a damp cloth occasionally to keep it  
CLEANER  
looking new. Do not use harsh chemicals, cleaning solvents,  
or strong detergents to clean the scanner.  
Modifying or tampering with the scanner’s internal components can  
cause a malfunction and might invalidate the scanner’s warranty and  
void your FCC authorization to operate it. If your scanner is not operat-  
ing as it should, take it to your local Radio Shack store for assistance.  
38  
 
SPECIFICATIONS  
Frequency Coverage:  
VHF Lo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29–54 MHz (in 5.0 kHz steps)  
Aircraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108–136.975 MHz (in 12.5 kHz steps)  
VHF Hi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137–174 MHz (in 5.0 kHz steps)  
UHF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406–512 MHz (in 12.5 kHz steps)  
800 MHz . . . . . . . . . 806.0000–823.9375 MHz (in 12.5 kHz steps)  
851.0000–868.9375 MHz (in 12.5 kHz steps)  
896.1125–956 MHz (in 12.5 kHz steps)  
Channels of Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Any 60 channels in any band  
combinations (10 channels x 6 banks) and 6 monitor channels  
Sensitivity (20 dB S/N with 60% modulation for AM;  
3 kHz deviation for FM):  
29–54 MHz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.4 µV  
108–136.975 MHz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 µV  
137–174 MHz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.6 µV  
406–512 MHz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.5 µV  
806–956 MHz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.7 µV  
Limit Search Speed/Direct Search Speed . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Steps/Sec.  
Scan Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Channels/Sec.  
Priority Sampling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Seconds  
Delay Time (Automatic) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Seconds  
IF Frequencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.8 MHz and 450 kHz  
Audio Power:  
FM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 mW Maximum  
AM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 mW Maximum  
Built-in Speaker . . . . . . . . . . 17/16-inch (36mm) 8-Ohm, Dynamic Type  
Power Requirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . +6 VDC, 4 AA batteries  
AC Adapter (Cat. No. 20-188)  
DC Adapter (Cat. No. 270-1560)  
Dimensions (HWD). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61/8 × 27/16 × 111/16 Inches  
(155.6 × 61.9 × 42.9 mm)  
Weight. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.11 oz (230 g)  
Specifications are typical; individual units might vary. Specifications are  
subject to change and improvement without notice.  
39  
 
RADIO SHACK LIMITED WARRANTY  
This product is warranted against defects for 1 year from date of purchase from  
Radio Shack company-owned stores and authorized Radio Shack franchisees  
and dealers. Within this period, we will repair it without charge for parts and  
labor. Simply bring your Radio Shack sales slip as proof of purchase date to  
any Radio Shack store. Warranty does not cover transportation costs. Nor does  
it cover a product subjected to misuse or accidental damage.  
EXCEPT AS PROVIDED HEREIN, RADIO SHACK MAKES NO EXPRESS  
WARRANTIES AND ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES ARE LIMITED IN DURA-  
TION TO THE DURATION OF THE WRITTEN LIMITED WARRANTIES CON-  
TAINED HEREIN. Some states do not permit limitation or exclusion of implied  
warranties; therefore, the aforesaid limitation(s) or exclusion(s) may not apply to  
the purchaser.  
This warranty gives you specific legal rights and you may also have other rights which vary  
from state to state.  
9/94  
We Service What We Sell  
RADIO SHACK  
A Division of Tandy Corporation  
Fort Worth, Texas 76102  
UBZZ01256Z  
8A5  
Printed in the Philippines  
 

Pyramid Technologies Speaker PW1086 X User Guide
Q See Speaker System NS BT007 User Guide
RCA CRT Television P46728 User Guide
Remington Electric Shaver R 510 User Guide
Roberts Gorden Furnace UHD[X][S][R] 125 User Guide
Roberts Radio Clock Radio ecologic 6 User Guide
Rotel Stereo Receiver RSX 1056 User Guide
Samson Speaker System STUDIODOCK 4i User Guide
Samsung Projection Television series 510 User Guide
Savin All in One Printer SDC326 User Guide