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@OffRoaderXhas some affiliate links on his YouTube videos: GMRS T-Shirt Generic-Baofeng UV-5R Precision Engineering T-Shirt Retevis Apparel

Yeah, thanks for 'the flowers' But I think we are referring to two different types of threats. The two legged threat is a consistent issue in all areas. The threats I was actually referring to were the natural disaster type stuff. I am in OHIO so I really don't expect a hurricane or an earthquake as a primary threat source here. We do gets some minor flooding, tornadoes. Other stuff not so much. I am fallout close to a major metropolitan area (Columbus) that may catch a nuke of things really got going on with a nuclear war situation, but we are not a dirty bomb target. We are however a major hub for freight and overseas goods distribution as you can reach 80% of the population of the USA from Columbus, Oh inside 10 hours. That could draw attention from those meaning to break the supply chain. Other places have other threats. If you go out to tornado alley, your primary threat is obviously tornado's. But my point is that you need to prep for what YOUR area may throw at you.

Assuming the meter is working correctly, and installed in circuit correctly then there is a problem with your antenna system (feed-line, adapters and antenna). Now begins the process of elimination. You may wish to try your measurements again using the shortest possible cable length and different adapters as you have them available to see if results change. I am not a fan of cut-by-chart trimming of antennas. When an antenna is known to be long for its intended purpose, I prefer to trim a little and measure, then repeat as necessary so as to sneak up on the target value. Doing so helps you know where you are getting close (because SWR gets better with each snip) but also when you have gone too far (because SWR starts to rise). Be aware that at high frequencies, minute length changes can cause big changes. It is possible that you may already snipped it too much, but also that you have not snipped it enough. Further, If you are testing using repeater input frequencies (467 MHz range) and the antenna is actually tuned for 462 MHz range, then the 467 numbers will appear higher than the 462 numbers. Snipping of course should only be done on a basic antenna, or one that is, by design, intended for sniping and/or you have advanced knowledge antenna designs. I don’t own your specific antenna, so I cannot cannot from experience comment if it is designed for cutting or not. For what is is worth, there no such thing as an SWR of less than 1. The first number is always 1 or greater, and the second number is always 1. Collectively they would appear as follows: 1.5:1, 1:1, 1.15:1, 4.7:1, etc. So .8:1, 0.5:1, 1.25:2 are all examples of invalid SWR values. Hope there is a little nugget of assistance in there. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

One suggestion I'll make is try to dig a little more into the setup on that (or any) repeater before pinning your plans on it, primarily whether they have backup power in case grid power is down.

Yes, you can use an amp but why? It would be less expensive to just buy a higher power radio without the multiple point-of-failure hassle.

Both services are active during emergences with the larger base being amateur radio because of its existing infrastructure and recognition by emergency service agencies from fire, law and Red Cross. GMRS/FRS can't compete due to a single frequency band, lower allowed power and lack of a national organization setting up recognized guidelines. In some areas where evacuations are more common you will find a lot of people using the FRS bubble-pack radios but with no real coordination or information sharing.