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..this section of the forum is so dead, I didnt even know it was here.. Anyway.. I just setup my Spec5 Trekker Bravo, so, i'm IN !

I'm sure I seem like a broken record to the people here, but pay attention to the FCC's restrictions on power and bandwidth. They exist for a reason; some FCC desk-jockey didn't just pull them out of his ass. Exceeding authorized power and bandwidth can cause your signal to "spill over" to an adjacent frequency or stomp all over someone on the same frequency, thus interfering with someone else's enjoyment of the airwaves. Radios which are compliant with Part 95 Subpart E (GMRS regulations) typically have the limits "baked in", but lots of people use amateur radios on GMRS frequencies. That's technically a violation of FCC regulations, but I don't care and neither do other reasonable people. For that matter, as far as I can tell, neither does the FCC. However, ham radios often (usually?) can be programmed to exceed the power, bandwidth, or both authorized on GMRS frequencies, and I do care if someone is crushing my signal. Hams are taught to use the lowest power output that will work for your purpose, and that's a good practice for every radio service. Just be a decent human. Be polite. Don't curse, be intentionally offensive, or otherwise act like a jackwagon. My rule is that if someone seems to take offense at something I've said, I just drop it. There are other channels to talk on and other people to talk to. If someone is being an a-hole, move your conversation to another frequency or use CTCSS/DTCS codes so you don't hear them. Periodically take a break in your conversation in case someone else wants to use the frequency, especially if you're on a repeater. There is no such thing as privacy on a radio. CTCSS/DTCS codes can keep you from hearing other people, but they won't keep other people from hearing you. Don't discuss your sex life or where you hid the house key.

Here is another example of how changes in the atmosphere effects UHF radio waves. My bother and I both have Allstar nodes and both were set to the same frequency and PL tones. These nodes only put out about .05 to 1 watt of power on transmit. And we have our radios set to 5 watts or less when using the nodes. We are 19 miles apart and 5 watts is normally not enough for us to hear each other. The other day there was a storm cell in between us and we could hear each other. My brother was using his Allstar node to talk to guys in Texas. I could hear him but not the other people. He could also hear me when I was using my node. The storms and low cloud cover was bouncing the 5 watt signal 19 miles. Granted neither one of us had a very strong signal as the signal strength meters barely moved, but it was enough of a signal that we could hear each other. We both ended up changing the frequency that our Allstar nodes use to stop this from happening.

It's the strange ones that are most fun to play with. Imagination is the spark that fuels fun.

Me too. Mine was KAFU2984. I have no idea why/how I still remember that.

That’s generally correct. From 95.335(b): b) Revoked or withdrawn certification. In the event that the FCC revokes or withdraws a grant of equipment certification for a type of Personal Radio Service transmitter, existing transmitters already in service may continue to be operated unless and until the FCC determines otherwise and gives Public Notice of that decision.

Ask a question and the strange people come out to play...... LOL

I foolishly assumed that once a two-way radio is no longer typed accepted or certified for a specific service, that radio may continue to be used. On the other hand, manufactures and venders can no longer sell those radios for their original intended service, even though they can still be used,

Yes.. LJ...

No

I haven't been able to get on the forum much lately other than to do a quick scan. So, I apologize in advance to all who take offense to my poking the bear. But I have lost toke, er time, to make up for.

Gee, is Dan around here somewhere?

Really, is anything after a CJ really a Jeep?

I don’t know the answer, so my reply is dumb, but your question was not dumb.

10-4

There are no dumb questions. Only people with huge egos trying to feel superior by making you think the question is dumb.

Mission? I haven't been on one of those since 1972. Didn't like what people who didn't like me were doing.

Ex-military or police? Real people only say that on TV.

Probably not allowed here, but I find gunfire generally tends to drive those folks away. Not in their direction mind you.

No lies detected.. But he knew the risk when he signed up and paid the tax for his GMRS permission-slip and was prepared for the mission.

But then people can go on line and find out your address, or at least where you get your mail. Any good stalker can find you with either. I mean heck, I not only got the address but used Google maps to find he who has been blocked due to, well let's just say being and "individual".

Should have read all the way before answering. But my truck has a 120v ac power supply. Yea, I know, another cable. But, you could also charge the battery from solar. Hmm, as anyone ever rigged a wind powered generator on a moving vehicle. I should shut up now, because I'm getting all sorts of fun things to figure out. That the problem with retired engineers, we get bored not solving problems so we invent them.

I have an Airstream. Would the shape of the roof make a difference? Of course I'd also have to consider the overall height of the rig and antenna.

You can buy really nice used scopes at Ham swaps for good prices. I've seen plenty of dual channel 100MHz Techtronic scopes for sale for $100 to $200. In fact good used test gear is one of the things I always look out for. For a hobbyist it a great way to build up a test bench for a few $100's to a $1000 depending on what you want. You can easily end up with gear that would have cost several $10K's if purchased new at the time. At a minimum I would recommend a couple of variable DC power supplies (0 to 30 VDC at 1 to 2 amps), function generator (good to 5MHz), dual channel scope (50 MHz to 100 MHz) and a good bench top 4.5 digit multi-meter. After that you can look for more specialized gear like RF power meters, frequency counters, LCR meters, electronic loads, service monitors etc. depending on one's area of interest. Most of my more specialized stuff is stored away unless I'm using it. I have a dual channel HP frequency counter I have to do some work on (replace a noisy fan and install the optional 4GHz prescaler.) GPS disciplined 10MHz frequency standard, a used Rubidium atomic frequency standard, 200 MHz quad channel scope, 6.5 digit bench multi-meter, 20 MHz dual channel arbitrary digital waveform generator, 200 watt electronic load ...

Found some!