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This is one more thing I didn't know. If a person's radio didn't support cross-mode tones they could always just the leave RX tone off. They would receive all traffic on that frequency in range but that probably isn't too big of a deal. I, too, avoid Goober Operated Repeaters. There is one GOR in an area I travel occasionally, that after seeing the clues, decided it would be to my benefit not to use the repeater.

SWR isn't really a big deal with HTs because they're not putting out much RF energy. The radio can stand a high SWR without damage. It may get a little warm, but that's about it. If the radio was getting warmer than I thought normal, I'd throw away the antenna and use a different one, but so far, that hasn't happened. Most mobile/base units have a circuit to disable transmit if the SWR is too high. A notable exception is the Anysecu WP-9900. Keying up for even a few seconds on an antenna with an SWR higher than about 4.0:1 will turn your radio into a paperweight. I really like the concept of the WP-9900, I just wish they'd address some of its shortcomings. But for $89, I guess you can't expect too much.

I got some solder that really wasn't solder. I am pretty experienced in the work and I couldn't get this crap to flow out. I thought it was me until I got my old roll of Radio Shack solder out and fixed up the joint in seconds. The new solder came with my new soldering iron. 1st time I had one you could set the temp on the iron. And then I had that issue, wasn't sure what was going on until I read more reviews and they said just throw the solder out that comes with it. So I did, and I agreed with them.

Some radios, even newer ones, won't support cross-mode tones. I was surprised to find that my TYT TH-9800 doesn't. There's only one GMRS repeater in Oklahoma using cross-mode tones, and I've never seen an amateur radio repeater using them, so I guess it doesn't matter much. The one guy using cross tones is probably a goober anyway, and I don't want to use his repeater.

Well, if you are operating on someone's repeater, and have been 'told' (documented) to NOT use their repeater, then the complaint is malicious interference with the repeater. Which is one of the few things that the FCC will in fact look into. But the repeater owner needs to have documented proof that you have been informed that the repeater is for private use, which is also legal under GMRS, and you are still interfering with the repeater. Randy mentioned that there are FEW enforcement actions in the GMRS service. But those that do exist are for interference. Now here's the rub. If you are contacted by the FCC about interfering with someone's private repeater and you tell them it's a paid repeater. Then, since they are doing an investigation, they MIGHT look into that. If the owner has his documentation together and can prove it's either a club machine and he collects 'club dues' or he can show that the money collected is ONLY for the maintenance of the repeater, he's in the clear. If not, then he might get a notice too. But YOU are getting a notice if it goes that far. Regardless of what he's going or not doing legally, you are interfering with his repeater. Interference is one of those really broad regulations that most anything fits into. Broken radios that are transmitting off frequency is interference. Putting up a repeater on the same frequency as another one in your town when there are other pairs open. Again, interference. This one needs a bit more to it, like the new repeater owner needs to KNOW there is another repeater there, or at minimum your repeater needs to be well documented as preexisting the new one. And your not gonna get any assistance with this if your repeater is on your garage and talks 2 miles. But a high profile machine that is documented and public, yeah, the FCC is gonna be on their side of it. But, in this case, being told, with documented notice (first class mail with signed receipt) that you are interfering with the operations of a private repeater can get the FCC's attention. But it's gonna need to be more than a telephone call to the FCC office to get the ball rolling. But if the repeater in question is well used by other's and they are paying their fee, and you aren't. It's not difficult for the owner to request the membership file complaints, and actually get part of them to do so. If you get multiple complaints from multiple license holders, you are going to get a letter from the FCC about your actions.

Umm. Never had an issue even remotely like this. Imagine something like this happens when you need your radio to work?

Can you imagine the chaos that would create?

Ha! Except they’re using GMRS radios.

I think that's called FRS.

The Chinese are busy at the moment making deals with Vietnam and India to manufacture their products.. I'm sure they will do the same with their testing. Move it out of China into another country but with the same motives doing it in the heart of China. Pretty soon, you see Baofang made in China and Baofang made in India.

Such dirty talk in the thread.

Most of those components between the portions of the Chip Dragon picture are antenna connectors and channel pots for Motorola handheld radios.

So far my BTech GMRS-Pro is a decent handheld. Today when I turned it on the LED by the antenna was flashing Red and Green and after a few seconds shut off. Battery is fully charged, hasn't been dropped. I did a factory reset and everything was fine. Had to restore everything to the radio, but did this after upgrading to the new firmware. If you have one of these radios, and get the red and green flashing LED, do a factory reset and restore all the settings via the app first to see if that solves your problem.

Luckily, with the warranty period ending, and the fact that we have Chip Dragon (I miss labeled the picture as Air Dragon though) stations spread across the country, we can do this. In fact, Motorola XTS series radios as they age also have this problem.....but it only manifests after 10-15 years of use. And why we still use XTS series handhelds, we can repair them, they work well, and Battery Universe sells IS rated batteries for them, even though Motorola ended support and manufacture a few years back now. Soldering is a skill that I wish more "radio" technicians were taught. Now, it is IT types being handed a radio system, that in some cases do not even know how to change a car tire (if their car even comes with a spare now), let alone solder. Then, crappy solder that does not last, or flow well because it is hazardous....that gets to be a crazy situation for a large company and anyone that even tries to solder. I had an intern in a safety class mention that "soldering" should require a specific hazmat class and safety classes as you could get burned and contaminated with lead. I told my "leadership" that if they push too hard on that route, they may see some of the older techs leave...with no replacement. The youngest member of my team came from Icom America and is almost 40 now....and he can solder (but most often is working on Kenwood NX-51xx/53xx series radios, yes those fail too). Thank you for the reply.

for the most part and in most areas i agree, GMRS users are generally polite, however in the areas if have traveled in in the last two three years (in this order) i find Los Angles, Sacramento, Dallas, parts of Arizona and parts of Washington to be complete jerks. Los Angeles i just turn the radio off..

I don't even carry my CPR / BLS certification card around with me, and there's an exponentially greater likelihood I'll need to show that one. I've got a digital copy I can pull down if I ever need it. But until then...

Could be interesting, thank you for sharing......you know my attitude toward CCR's though Better late than never, and not amazed it has taken this long to reign in some of those products/manufacturers, some very "dirty" RF emitters in some cases. Doing some testing with several series of Motorola radios myself soon.....how they operate in GPS and radar compromised environments. Using my own XPR6550/XPR7550/e radios in GMRS band (have to use my personal license) - work does not even want to be tied to this project (unless it goes well, then the "brown nosers" will try to say they supported me all along - funny how that works), so doing while on "vacation". But it caught the eye of the Feds. Received their personal invite, as I also tested cameras, which helped result in the Hikvision ban. For CCR's I do own a lot of them, (purchased to evaluate) which confirms my use of: Motorola, Harris, Thales, and Icom radios instead. The Anytone 878 series is the only CCR I bring along these days to the field.

That’s how they are here as well, but there are only a handful of us who actually have licenses. The vast majority of GMRS just buy the radios and use them miles away from populated areas. Honestly, that doesn’t bother me a bit. Maybe there shouldn’t be GMRS licensing for handheld use or lower than some wattage level.

TBH, in my area, most GMRS users are very polite and respectful.

As others have said, you may or may not have any issues with a glass mount antenna. Defrosters, embedded AM/FM antennas and certain types of tint can cause a problem. Or they may not cause any issues. Some window tint has enough metal in it to affect RF signals.

I made mine because I was excited to get it and bored at the same time.

I very much doubt I'll be in a position where I have to prove I have an amateur or GMRS radio license. I just bought the card because it's cool.

This should be good to watch. Looks like there is a FCC rule change being proposed to bar Chinese Labs from doing FCC testing for certification on various electronic items, including radios. Maybe this will end up clamping down on radios that seems to violate FCC rules from being certified due to questionable testing results. https://www.oann.com/tech/fcc-to-vote-to-bar-chinese-labs-deemed-security-risks-from-testing-us-electronics/

I did not notice any degradation in any signal level with my glass-mount antenna when turning on the Rear Window Defroster. In the Phoenix Area, we do not allow any frost on our windows and never had a reason to use it. Also, my rear window has the factory tint. My VSWR on 462 Megs is 1.2:1 and on 467 Megs is 1.6:1 and unfortunately, I hear a lot of FRS traffic about 5-6 miles away and I can communicate with several repeaters approx. 35-50 miles away. On the Trail, obviously it varies due to terrain, foliage, and obstacles and I am not disappointed in the performance. Some of the poor signal reception is because some of my fellow Jeep Creeps use cheap FRS radios from inside of their vehicle You just need to follow the mounting instructions and ensure the antenna is tuned/trimmed properly.