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WOW! I can't believe it, but I got it working. So, it was user error (not at all shocking there!). But, in simple, the accessory connector is upside down compared to most of the other 16 pin radios. Everything I found online states that pin 1 is bottom left while looking at the back of the radio with the heatsink facing down. Apparently, this is WRONG for the M1225 (at least this version of it). I dug through the service manual and found that pin 1 is top right. I checked the ACTUAL pin 8, and guess what.. working perfectly. Hopefully this helps someone else in the future too! If you are using one of the cheap, china no-name repeater cables, the blue pot for RX adjustment needs to be facing UP (towards the top of the radio). I am very thankful that plugging them in upside down didn't blow anything up, since I read online that can easily happen if these things are installed upside down. Mystery solved!

Yes, absolutely. I did the same thing when I replaced my 25 foot LMR400 UHF-UHF feedline with FSJ4-50B N-Male N-Male, same length. The heliax I got was factory made. I got mine from eBay as a NIB New Old Stock, I paid 35 bucks for 25 foot with 2 preinstalled trimetal N-male connectors, which are like 29 bucks a pop. To give you quantitative figures: The antenna feedline connector at the base now reads a near perfect 50.03 Ohms impedance, and the return loss is -38dBm... as expected range now is measured in tens of miles, too, as opposed to the LMR400 which had an impedance of 43 Ohm and a -28 dBm return loss, while not bad, range was at best 10 miles. There are people here who can also make these cables. I just wanted a factory cable with the datasheet and sweep chart to ensure I wasn't getting a dud. The keyword on eBay to find a N to N heliax is "PNMNM" if you type that you'll get every cable on eBay that has N-male (NM) to N-male (NM) There are a ton of listings, just look for FSJ4-50B. G.

It is all part of the journey. There are multiple facets to the issue. The first is licensure. If you have your license, step 1 complete. Second facet is equipment. As a licensed user, you are expected to use equipment that meets the requirements of the FCC for the services in which the equipment is used. This means frequencies, power, modulation type, bandwidth, frequency stability and more. The FCC is expecting users to use only equipment that has been been type-certified for GMRS. You can read the federal regulars here: https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/part-95/subpart-E or on the FCC website. Part 95e not only covers your obligations as a licensee, but it also covers the equipment. While some ham radio equipment (Part 97) may technically be capable of transmitting on GMRS, it is not legally permitted to be used there. There is some legacy Part 95a equipment that I believe may still be legal to use on GMRS and there is much Part 90 equipment that folks still use for GMRS because its performance is superior to current generation GMRS product. My conclusion from all learned to date is that the FCC seems to be turning a blind eye to the use of Part 90 equipment on GMRS because a) it used to be used to be legal for use there and it is far more superior to current GMRS equipment (and many times the price). In any case it must be programmed so it remains in compliance at all times. I own separate radios for amateur and GMRS operations so can remain legal on both fronts. Both radios are capable of transmitting only on the frequencies for the services in which they are certified, both are capable of listening on a whole lot more. As you read the posts in this forum, you will learn of some of the high quality products some are using. Purchasing used commercial Part 90 equipment seems to be a favorite. I recommend reading the FCC rules for GMRS. Things should become more (but not perfectly) clear. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk