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Good advice. Thanks for that!

Thanks for that input! For occasional 2m/70cm I use a very good local linked repeater network without any problems. For GMRS, I use mostly short distance simplex when travelling with a group or at the lake or other destination. The performance from my current mag mount which I usually place on the cab directly in front of the 3rd taillight, (basically where the antenna would be if I use one of these 3rd taillight mounts) works just fine! I like that location (up and centered) because it keeps the antenna up and out of the way of getting things in/out of the truck bed and I don't have to stare at it while driving. All the discussion about the effectiveness of the ground plane, while interesting, and not at all irrelevant, is just not too significant of a factor for my purposes. That's why my OP was a question more about the antenna mount itself (water leaks, strength etc.) and less about the RF propagation characteristics associated with its location which seems to be the direction the thread drifted. I'm not going to drill into my roof and I'm sort of tired of taking the mag mount on and off, so without any specific feedback that indicates that this type of mount is structurally problematic to my vehicle, l will probably give one of these mounts a try and hope for the best.

You would create a user and pass, but its just a formality. Use a throw away email, though i never received any spam. Small phone would be annoying, but the app is simple enough. I actually prefer it, but i don't use chirp though. You can program to Chirp via USB-C. Make sure to use a USB-C data cable. Here is a how to do it via USB-C:

Another easy solution is to use the short cable with a RJ45 coupler and a standard cat6 cable. That’s my setup and it’s working fine.

True, the small ones definitely do have their limitations when used alone. I've standardized my 12VDC items with Anderson PowerPoles and made up a bunch of PowerPole 'Y' pigtail connectors along with several 'extension cords' so that I can parallel several of the smaller capacity batteries if need be. Also handy when topping off multiple batteries

Gotta be careful with Google AI with these technical/administrative questions. I've been trying to help a blind Canadian immigrant get his US ham license. Due to the difficulty in studying, he is having great difficulty with the Tech exam and after unsuccessful several tries, he was looking for an easier way. Google AI told him his existing Canada license can be 'converted' to an equivalent grade US amateur radio license, which, after much legwork and investigation, we determined is NOT true. The actual situation is that one must pass the US exam to get the US license. Period. The corollary is that he CAN operate under a reciprocal agreement using his Canadian ticket while in the US until a) his Canada license expires, or b) until he becomes a US citizen. I think this is the point Google AI misunderstood and misrepresented - reciprocation vs conversion. Bottom line: Google AI rendered incorrect information that gave the guy false hope and took us a couple weeks to clear up.

I’m not certain that surplus ground plane in one direction more than another affects directionality, much if any. I absolutely agree that some antennas require a minimum radius ground plane and I suspect that having that at least the minimum radius ground plane in all directions contributes to more even 360° coverage, but for GMRS that radius is relatively small. I’m old enough to remember how CB signals were pictured as very off center when an antenna was mounted at one edge of a vehicle, but the ground plane minimum radius is much larger for CB than for GMRS.

@Alec Do you mainly use your radio to talk on repeaters or simplex? If you're in an area where there's good repeater coverage, and that's what you mainly use, whatever compromise you make with antenna location should be negligible. Let us know what you end up doing and share some pictures.

Yeah, with the shape of the ground plane of the trunk (dependent on vehicle and frequency), I'd expect some directionality, given most will have more ground plane to the sides than front to back. id also expect the greenhouse to be blocking/shading the signal in some directions too. It just struck me as a little odd that permanent mounting in that location would mean more loss than a mag mount in the same place, where on the roof it's the other way around.

In the description it says it can be used as a base station. Some people take that literally and think it'll do 1-23 plus the 8 repeater channels. It will not. It can't because it has the duplexer built in which would kill the incoming simplex channels. It's designed so you can respond with the repeater on the repeater stations with the microphone instead of needing a separate radio to transmit to the repeater to talk. Some people.... don't understand this. Even Randy was hoping the description of the "base station" was that of a full range GMRS radio as described. But he to, found out it can only transmit on the repeater pairs while only receiving on the 467MHz side.

Piqued my interest after having seen the review. But I'm also allocating funds for a new handgun, so may have to watch for the giveaway video!!!

As Steve Shannon mentioned, yes, but at an additional $35. In what way is your call sign ridiculous to where you'd want a change? I can't see that with the sequential assignment system. Maybe in the Amateur world where you get a tongue twister or very bad on cw maybe...

Isn't this a repeater ? If so there is no need for 800 frequencies. 99% of the time a repeater is on one channel and one channel only.

I just ordered a swr meter and should be here soon. The two radios are identical in the tones and settings. Tidradio is sending a new radio also, no questions.

Steve you just answered a question I had regarding call sign assignment. That was were the issued alpha numerically. It seemed that way but with any government agency appearances can be deceiving.

@mickeydav did you double check the tones?

Sure, you can give up your current license and buy another, but it’ll cost you another $35. We had a member here that regularly irritated people then got a new license with different call sign. But there’s no selection of call signs. You might get something you dislike more. They’re assigned in order.

I would check/confirm but mine is all boxed up and ready to give away to someone on Youtube. You should email the BTech Support with your questions - they are very good and very fast/responsive.

Not on mine. That's the problem. The software I downloaded from BTech seems extremely rudimentary. For example, there are only 16 channels. Period. Supposedly, you can store up to 800 frequencies and scan them. There's no way to do any of that with this software.

The payment should be associated with a FRN and show up as unused funds. If you apply for a new license using that FRN, instead of paying through the payment portal you should see your $35 there and a balance due of $0.

I just randomly came across this review of the RT97L that was published on Youtube about 3 minutes after you made this post:

One should keep in mind with that pic on whether or not the vehicle would be moving in any random direction as we all do when traveling. What frequency? Too many variable to take it with even a half grain of salt. You could have -2.8db and a split second later you would have +2.8db to the receiving station.. Now if the car was stationary in an anechoic chamber there's a better chance of those numbers be acceptable. But when we get back to the real world you wouldn't be able to tell where the antenna is placed on the car.

We have limited stock of the new Retevis RT97L repeater available and ready to ship before the tariffs are in place. Like most things we sell, these will undoubtedly be bumped in price, so hurry up and get them before May! Purchase the Retevis RT97L Like the RT97S, these are waterproof (IP66 for this model), have an all-metal chassis, a built-in pre-tuned duplexer, and a DB9 accessory port. 16 channels are supported, in wideband or narrowband mode. CTCSS and DCS codes can be programmed with the included USB cable, but default to 136.5 Hz with the built-in channels. The antenna connector is a UHF (SO-239) connector. There is also a built-in heater to allow cold-weather operation, and it will reduce output power if it's starting to overheat, so it can stay running for longer. The transmitter duty cycle is 100%. RepeaterID will also support these with a model specifically for this repeater. The pinout is slightly different than the RT97S series, so the original RepeaterID is not fully compatible.

So--and I'm, um, asking for a friend--one can get a new license/call sign if their current one is ridiculous?

After 90 days you can’t renew an GMRS license but you can get a new one. According to google’s AI refunds can be given, but it’s probably easier to apply the credit towards a new license. Call their support number. I’ve gotten excellent and friendly service the one time I called.