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Okay, I’ll bite here. I own a repeater (Rugged 575) in Naperville, IL at 300' receive / 250’ transmit. It’s on a commercial site with other UHF and VHF radio systems as well. Not only have I spent nearly 5 figures setting this up correctly but I monitor it as if it was my baby, cuz, you know, it *IS* my baby. I built it with no financial help from anyone else. Of course there was other help I received by LOTS of other commercial repeater owners (Those of you that are reading know who you are) as I’ve come a long way in the last year and some change here. I have my repeater system set up for several different private family usage cases and I also have a tone for public which I closely monitor as well and others that are out there do use it. As a repeater owner I’m super happy to turn my radio on and hear other people using it. As a matter of fact just yesterday some other licensed GMRS users were using my repeater and I needed to use it with my wife as I was at the grocery store and I broke in and said, “hang tight guys, I need to talk to my wife for a minute. I’ll let you know when I’m done”. Anyways, I flipped to our tone, talked with her about the particulars, then went back to the public side and said “Carry on guys! Glad to hear you out there using the machine”. That being said, mine is set to “Ask permission” as well because as others have mentioned, I want to know who is using it to verify their license and location because it’s my system and it’s my responsibility to make sure it’s up to par on the commercial shared site. I have sent an email back to EVERY! SINGLE! PERSON! As well welcoming them with the tones to use it! I haven’t had the need (yet) to ever reject anyone from using my repeater but I still keep a tab on who has access to it as in my opinion, it’s my responsibility to do so. Not only that, but I have my custom verbiage I send back with every request as well stating that this is a family repeater as well and to aid to traffic on the other PL tone. Heck, I’ll paste what I send you can see where we are coming from with this: “The tone for my repeater is XXXX (left blank) (N – normal, not inverted). When you key up for the first time please identify yourself using your call sign and call for ROB. I am regulating who is using my repeater as it is being used for my family as well. I have received an exceeding amount of requests to use my repeater. Originally this was set up for family only use but seeing as the range is far better than expected, I have opened it up on an as-requested basis to any licensed GMRS operator. PLEASE NOTE: ALL TRAFFIC MUST YIELD TO MY FAMILY. The tone for public use is different than family so if you see your radio lighting up receiving on 462.575 but no audio is coming through on your radio it's because my family is talking so please do not key up until that traffic has cleared. Thanks and I hope to hear you on the air!” That being said, sometimes users don’t understand what a multi-table is either so I will say this too: When you first use a new repeater you should ALWAYS call out for a radio check IMO because you don’t know how that repeater is set up and should NEVER assume anything! I was in Iowa once and I made contact to the owner on the traveler tone (I was travelling) and he told me that it’s linked to another repeater in California! NONE of this information was posted on mygmrs.com and upon googling I couldn’t even find it either!!! It was good to know that I was keying multiple machines too and me and the owner had a nice long 30 minute conversation and he was glad I keyed up and shouted out! To sum up further as a repeater owner: *MOST*, but not *ALL* repeater owners don’t mind you using their machine I’ve found. Now I’m in the Midwest mind you, so again, no assumptions would be made for other machines that I’ve never used, but around here most repeater owners are very happy to have you on their machine and it brings a great smile to their face to know that they are serving the public with a reliable communication system and growing the hobby as well! Remember that GMRS isn’t HAM and HAM isn’t GMRS. A *LOT* of people out there want GMRS for family use under one license and that’s what I’m doing but I’ve decided to open it up to the public as well as the coverage is fairly decent. I looked at getting a business license and could have easily done it too but I like the idea of being able to chat with my family *AND* other GMRS users so here we are! Thanks!

The connectors I use are screw on. The bead of solder on the ground is to help prevent the connector from backing or pulling off... not an electrical ground. The screw on type has a full 360 shield with perfect pressure application all the way around. I haven't used a true solder on connector since 1988 or 1989. N type is really the best way to go. Worth the few extra bucks, all day.

No question is stupid! I just got my GMRS license yesterday (WRJL946) and just got the Midland MXT275, I'm waiting for it to come in to start, this is all new to me so I'm in the same boat!

Not at all a stupid question. First, VHF is still very much in use. I suspect you may be thinking of the switch from simple VHF analog systems to trunked and digital systems. VHF just refers to the band of frequencies. VHF is broadly considered to be from 30 to 300mHz, with a lot of mobile activity in the middle of the band. Then, PL/DCS/etc. work the same regardless of frequency or band. For listening purposes (I.e. stations you receive and listen to) the PL/DCS/etc. setting acts as a filter, preventing you from hearing signals that do not contain the specified code. Conversely, turning off PL, etc. on that frequency allows you to hear everything being transmitted, regardless of the presence or absence of PL, etc. So, for simple listening purposes you probably do not want to set PL on receive. However, for an example of where you might use PL consider a situation where there are two repeaters on the same frequency, and you only wish to listen to one of them. In this case you would set the receive PL for the frequency to the PL being transmitted by the desired repeater. Note also that on many radios you can program the same frequency into different memory locations (often improperly called channels). So Memory location 1 could be 462.550 with a PL of 69.5 and location 2 could be 462.550 with a PL of 131.8. Now, you didn't't ask yet, but you probably will soon, about transmitting PL. In this case, it is the receiving station, usually, but not always, a repeater, that has set its receiver to require a PL tone (I.e. filter out any signals without that PL). It is just the reverse of what you have done on your receive settings. So, in order to be "heard" by the remote repeater, you need to include the proper PL/CDS/etc. tone in your transmitted signal. That's it.

Not a stupid question. I believe you can also receive UHF signals in the 400 - 480 MHz range on that radio also. GMRS-V1 is a BaoFeng UV-82 with the transmission locked down to the FRS/GMRS frequencies. It may be possible that you’re programming based on obsolete and outdated information. A number of public services may still retain the same frequency/frequencies, but many have transitioned to digital instead of analog, such as NXDN or Project 25. Try those frequencies with no PL tone. Realistically, a frequency allocation for public services should be a regional one which they have exclusivity on. They should be the only traffic you hear, and you’ll hear them if you just use CSQ (no PL tone) on receive (if they’re running analog).

I would agree ham radio can probably be safely classified as a hobby. But, I would not make the same statement about GMRS. Yes, for some GMRS is a hobby. But, as @wayoverthere notes, probably a greater percentage of MyGMRS members than of the general GMRS population fit that description. Look at the history and licensing to get a feel for what GMRS is. It's roots were as a business service, and those early licenses are still grand-fathered in, and business use is still perfectly legal on GMRS. Licensing is by family unit, not individuals. This encourages use of GMRS as a practical communications tool, rather than as a hobby. Another point of comparison is repeaters. GMRS repeaters are limited to 8 frequency pairs, have no coordinating body, and commonly share frequencies using PL, etc. to control access. GMRS repeaters tend to be used for short, task oriented communications and less for rag chewing. So, sharing channels works well. Ham radio, with frequency coordinators, etc. seeks to limit the number of repeaters in an area to avoid interference. There are many other differences, but I think I have covered the main points. But, I would add one more thing. Where is it written that either as a hobby, or a personal communications tool, that getting people interested in two-way radio is, or even should be, a commonly agreed upon or shared objective? I think that is an admirable goal. But, I would also not fault someone who did not share that goal.

Welcome to the insanity... er, I mean family of course.