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I use a Tram 1486 on my repeater.. Its not very expensive, it has a very low wind-profile and it does not look like some kind of space-antenna on the roof. EDIT: .. and it is very easy to tune for GMRS.

Get over yourself dude. Never said I blocked you specifically. Hell I'm Batman and your the Joker. We need each other. It's a love hate relationship. Where on a rare occasion when the stars align, we might actually agree on something. But we do have a symbiotic relationship where one of us is the host and the other is the parasite. We just can't agree on who is who. But that's all right. You'll keep making my butt itch and I will keep giving you headaches. It's all good.

You could if you use an antenna switch to switch between the two radios.

Weare in Uwharrie monthy doing trail cleanups with the park along with other weekends just wheeling.Its nice that its only a couple hours from me. Not many places in VA that allow the wheeling like UH

2018 Ram 2500ish Power wagon, stock except for 35 x 12.50 Falken Wildpeaks. RF wise, its whatever everybody else settles on. Trail wise, National Parks around Harrisonburg Va.

You aren't going to cover a large area with an antenna that's that high off the ground. The Tram is a decent choice, but the antenna needs to be tuned to the frequencies your repeater will be using for best results.

Been Jeeping for 40+ years. First vehicle was a CJ. Currently we wheel our 2009 JK 2 Door. Its our beat on off road jeep. Also light wheeling of our 2020JT. Do alot of Jeep Jamborees, so Uwharrie for 5 years now along with Greenbrier and others. Do alot of Forest Service roads with the JT. I use what ever channel others are on but scan when alone.

Well, news flash, YOU have been lied to. There are indeed dumbass ham operators that believe this crap and a number of GMRS guys that fall into this as well. The biggest believer in this BS about SWR by far is CB operators. I have also come across the ones that think that any amount of cable loss that's not an absolute necessity is sinking an installation and the radio system will never talk without more than X dB of cable loss. And these moron's will die on that hill as well with their beliefs. There was a time that being a ham operator actually meant that you had some level of technical ability and knowledge. In fact it was a requirement to prove that knowledge during testing for a ham license. That's not been the case in years. Once the FOIA became a thing and the question pool for the tests were made into study guides for passing the test, there was no longer a need to have specific knowledge of radio, you just had to be able to memorize enough of the questions and answers to pass the test. And these folks that get licensed now did just that and then through a total lack of any real knowledge, listen to wives tails of Whoa when it comes to cable loss and SWR and treat those lies as gospel and preach them to all that will listen. And the reason they believe? Because the dolt that is preaching the good word of SWR has been licensed for 6 weeks longer than they have. I don't understand the 'importance' of the length of time that someone has walked around with a ham license in their pocket. Old people have had drivers licenses for far longer in some instances, it doesn't mean that grandma should still be driving when she has run over 12 curbs, 4 dogs and a shrub or two in the front yard. Does it mean that you are some how a master of bating when you have been playing with yourself for 30 years? No, it just means your old and lonely. And not much different mentally than most teenage boys. Other than they might get some at some point down the road. The guys that had to actually construct a radio at the testing office to get their ham license (yes it was a thing once) are about 3 days older than the dirt that they will be buried in any day now, if they haven't been already. I will have been a ham operator for 30 years in April or 24. And that don't mean crap. Other than I got a ham license long ago. It doesn't prove anything past my ability to fill out a forum every 10 years and send some money to the FCC with that forum and renew my license. It's the same method used to renew a GMRS license, a commercial radio license or many other certificates that someone might have. What does prove out that I know something about radio and electronics? Two years of electronics in high school with a state certificate of completion. Three years of college with a degree in electronic repair and a degree in industrial electronics. Fourteen years as a communications field technician designing, installing and repairing public safety communications system and 911 phone systems. That would be a good starting point. But, any skill that you are being paid to use, and have been paid to use for more than 2 years typically means you must know something about it, because most employers would have fired you in that time frame if you weren't any good at what you are being paid to do. Again, just my personal opinion.

@gortex2 Nice. It sounds like several of us do Uwharrie. We going to need to make this meet up happen.

Like I stated in another reply. My buddy and I would be down.

I have both a Comet 712 EFC and a Commscope DB404 and my repeater is a Motorola GR500 (I also have a few GR1225's) I don't understand why, but the Comet is performing better but either of those would be a good choice. Both so far have held up to some good winds. Some gusts over 50mph

Thank you both for the information

You can listen to it on Channel 16, but to transmit through the repeater you will need to get the tone(s) and configure your radio to use Repeater Channel 16. I'm sure there are probably some Youtube videos explaining how it all works.

Welcome to the forum, I hope you brought your sense of humor. Yes you can just listen. You were probably hearing the repeater auto ID itself. If you can't find anything using the call sign you can search for repeaters in you area. Channel 16 is 462.5250. Not hearing anything else on the repeater can be a normal thing depending on your area. If the repeater is using tones you won't be able to TX to it unless you know what tone they are using. Having no tone set on the receive side means you will here it even if they are using a tone.

Welcome to the exciting and dynamic world of GMRS radios! ..I cant be sure about what you were hearing, but I think it was a repeater.

I use the DB404 and 408 but those are a bit big for your application. The TRAM is the economical way to get it up but requires tuning and care on installation. I like the Laird FG Series of antennas for applications like yours. The FG4605 is a solid LMR antenna and you only connect the cable and install. No tuning and no radials to worry about. I used the FG4603 and FG4600 on my Motorohome for years. https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/te-connectivity-laird/FG4605/3519995

I finally got the Laird B4505CN mobile antenna. I tuned it this morning and tested it. Amazing my mobile can transmit over 35 miles using a walkie-talkie over. I try to get the minimal and in between SWR I can in the 462.550 (1:15) to 467.725 (1:6 SWR) . Cant be too ambitious and in reality I'm just gonna be around the 462 frequency. I'm just a bit bummed that the rod is not shoved all the way down to the base. I took off 1/8. Anyways using the walkie-talkie for a test run, I was able to find the clearest, less static mounting location where I can mount the the Anytone radio without detaching and and relocating the face. I cant wait to install this as soon as I finish programming some of the channels and the repeater. I can easily hit the repeater in 18 miles. The only thing is one of the good repeater is is using DCS. I'm nit sure if my radio will connect to it. Although I have a setting to the tone number he has. The other thing I found out is when I was reading the radio manual, I'm required to connect it to a minimum of 12 amp so I can achieve the maximum steady output. It was drawing 23 watts on my 13.8 power supply at home. So it means, i wont be able to use a cigarette lighter socket. I have to wire it all the way to the battery.

I used a Comet GP-6NC at a similar height. It worked decently, however, it snapped in half in a high wind storm.

RT Systems software can't be beat for ease of use. +1 on @Sshannon recommendation.

Sounds like we may have enough folks to put together a MyGMRS offroad event on the East Cost. Something to consider for Spring?

One guy who knew how to do it.

Welcome to the forum! I don’t have a TH9800D, unfortunately, but it’s much easier to diagnose driver issues than it is to roll your own data cable. Make sure you load the appropriate driver first before ever plugging in the cable! The pinout of the USB-C is described here: https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/technical-articles/introduction-to-usb-type-c-which-pins-power-delivery-data-transfer/ It is not a simple interface. I see from the reviews that at least one person did receive a programming cable that was DOA. The dealer replaced it. Good luck!

Does anyone read a manual anymore. Right from the user manual

Impossible! I have been assured by multiple people that have "....Been a licensed H.A.M. radio operator for [insert years here] years" that these people do not exist and NO H.A.M. operators are like this, and the certain youtubers just make up these stories.

Personally, I would buy a used Motorola XTL2500 or 5000 dash or remote mount radio for a good mobile setup and you could save some money for the programming cable and maybe the software. The Motorola radios will be a lot more durable and will last a lot longer and have some important features that the Chinese radios don't offer.

Maybe you can stop throwing hams under the bus. You're ranting to and expecting support from an audience that in many cases have both our GMRS and ham licenses.

Looks like that's were we should start, get the FCC to enforce the rules. The whole point with enabling digital voice, in some limited manner, on GMRS has nothing to do with experimentation or making it a "Ham Lite" type service. It's more about improving the quality of service. As it exists now the general GMRS user really only "practically" use channels 1-7 and 15-22 due to the above restrictions on channels 8-14. The proposal I made in that paper would take the nearly useless narrow band low power interstitial channels and put them to better use. The topic of this thread was more "repeater" channels. While not exactly adding more channels by allowing using digital voice on 8-14 and at a reasonable power, 5 watts in simplex mode, we effectively gain 5 more channels without asking the FCC for more spectrum, which likely won't ever happen. Better than nothing and a kick in the butt from the FCC.

Yes, I did read your file and still proclaim it pie-in-the-sky hogwash. Digital and analog will NEVER be compatible on the same channel concurrently.

Sounds like to me the battle is already lost. What your complaint is really all about is no FCC enforcement. Not really about digital voice, although you pick on it as an example. We also have reports by others of illegal use of GMRS by businesses with no licenses etc. This topic deserves a whole thread on its own. But that’s not what this one is about.

I really want to get a drone but all my Jeep upgrades are coming first.

If I can get the financing worked out I'm going to see if I can get one as well. Hopefully sooner than later. I'm not sure that things will be the same in the next couple of months, let alone years.

Whoever gave you that information is flat out wrong. JVC Kenwood is still making new radios. Just delivered 25 new units the other day, and they all worked quite well.

Okay, car analogies aside for a bit, I think I get where you are coming from on the radio front. On the commercial side, I have almost zero experience with anything civilians can buy for private use, except for owning 4 Moto mobiles. That said, in my opinion commercial gear (like from Moto and assuming Kenwood based on other experience) will absolutely be a much better quality radio than non-commercial radios, such as radios designed for GMRS or Amateur use. Typical Commercial Radios Pros: Will typically have more physical durability. Better weather/waterproofing (in most, not all cases). Better/improved receive sensitivity. Better transmit frequency and power stability. Better protection circuits to prevent accidental damage (antenna shorts and thermal protection, for example). Higher power output options. Higher duty cycles. Something that me and my friends have experienced... you can more commonly run these radios for decades without needing repair and without noticeable degradation in performance. I have purchased 10+ YO commercial gear that ran just as good as it did on day 1 and still have them years later. There is no such thing as a commercial radio not being able to do what a purpose built GMRS or Amateur radio can do. You just need to purchase a model that will do what you want it to do. There are plenty things that commercial radios can do that non-commercial / private use radios can do, such as encryption, multiple heads, multiple mics, high volume ambient noise reduction on transmit, for some examples. As for as longevity of non-commercial radios go, we are in a disposable world. New non-commercial radios simply don't work as well or last as long as commercial radios. Once you abandon the commercial v. private/amateur gear categories, pretty much all non-commercial gear is the same. Just a question on if the price and features are there for you. Everything else is going to be opinion, anecdotal, and personal preference. I have noticed that, too. New troll technique?

Thank you, gonna try!

As an internet legal scholar and couch-based constitutional expert, you should know that complaining about it here is not going to accomplish anything other a bunch of back and forth verbal & grammatical masturbation.

Congress gave the FCC the right to get involved in local wireless communications, as well as justification to exist as an agency when they passed the Communications Act of 1934. And just FYI, complaining/arguing/chest-beating about it in an online forum wont change anything - If you really want to change/eliminate the FCC start by contacting your congressman or an attorney.