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I has one.. But I can't talk about it because that might be comparing apples to oranges and apparently that makes "some people" very sad.

Hey, you're new and only been a GMRS licensee for 4 months and with a post like that not having any respect for the Queen you more than likely will never make the "Righteous Dude" List.

I have been a ham for a long time. But I have also been a commercial radio tech for half that time. While I have run into a number of hams that seemed to have some level of superiority complex, he seems to have the same complex that is anti-ham. We have butted heads a couple of times on here (yes, he is a member) because he didn't care for my detailed answer on a topic or something to that effect. I don't bother with his videos. But after doing commercial radio for 15 years, if I can't figure out GMRS radio, I need to find a different job.

Repeater outputs are the simplex frequencies Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

For that you should try the Grindr app.. I've had great success with it. Or H.A.M. radio.

You might not be on a repeater channel. 1-22 are simplex channels, which transmit on the same frequency they receive. But there are eight repeater channels which allow the repeater to transmit while simultaneously receiving. Doing both at the same time is called Duplex. Different manufacturers denote those channels differently. Some continue the numbering scheme and refer to them as channels 23-30, others repeat the 15-22 numbers but prepend or append RP to the channel, like 15RP, to indicate that they are repeater channels. Repeaters receive on the 467 MHz main frequencies and transmit at exactly the same time on the 462 MHz main channels. That’s referred to as an offset and it is generally exactly 5.000 MHz for UHF channels (in ham radio also). They need an offset to be able to transmit while receiving. So, in your radio there should be eight repeater channels which are programmed to receive on exactly the same 462.xxx frequencies as 15-22, but which transmit on the main 467.xxx frequencies, where xxx is typically the same for both. You need to use one of those.

From the perspective of an amateur radio operator... operator... I love Randy's videos. I even have a paid subscription with him to help contribute in some small way to the equipment testing and content creation. Truth is, his content is funny as hell and very helpful to many, including me. I love that he doesn't take crap from anyone and his socio-political humor is great. I have had the pleasure of having some private chat messages / emails between him and I also... and learned pretty quickly that he is a great guy. People seem to lose track of the point that there is an entertainment persona and then how he is in his day-to-day life. Like my wife reminds me when I start griping about inaccuracies in movies and TV shows... 'It's for entertainment. Just let it go.' LOL

Ok I'm not sure what to think about him but he's facing back lashes for some of his postings. IMHO as far as it goes his attacks calling people sad hams is getting out of control.

Short answer: correct.

I recently replaced my aging 1977 Montgomery Ward 702 base station with a Radioddity CB-500. Let me tell you... for a compact little $89 radio it's an excellent bang for the buck! AM/FM, 10 and 11 meter capable (by moving a jumper), NRC, echo, talkback, ctcss/dcs, weather channels, hi/low power, 7 color display, etc etc. It's basically a rebranded AnyTone AT-500M II. I don't think you'll find better radios for the size and price honestly.

Oh no, are you saying there are "Sad HAMs" in our midst? Are they allowed to do that? That is just not right that they're playing in our playground and messing with our megahertz. Who can I complain to about that? Zenu?

And when he is not doing his Queen thing, he wheels a "Notarubicon" Jeep and occasionally a Nissan.

I just saw all the soy-tears.. but FYI, those are not sad-GMRS'ers.. those are Sad-H.A.M.s trying to disguise themselves as regular GMRS'ers, and failing..

All I can say is I have learned a lot from him and I think his videos are great. Just like with Ham Radio Crash Course. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

There's more gravy than the grave about him? Naw, Randy's ok (not that he needs me to defend him). He doesn't suffer fools much, he's not afraid to look foolish. He understands moreso than most, I think, that GMRS is not a hobby in the vein that amateur radio is but a communications service designed for local, point to point contacts. His rails against the sad hams of the world is more a fight against pedantic and priggish responses to his YouTube videos; and he has a point there as the SH behavior is rampant on many FB pages and other social media platforms and is doing more to harm that hobby/service than most any other thing. And he does know his GMRS radios! Tests them, calls them as he sees them...

He’s probably a figment in of your imagination. Some undigested id.

John Fogerty approved…?

Should note: highly recommend a mag mount mobile antenna. Even with a handset it works well (cavet, your experience will vary). Well much better than ht inside of a car with the rubber duck antenna. It is also why we recommend sma to bnc adapters for the ht and bnc to so239 for the antenna. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

Much better. Remember UHF is line of sight. So the higher the antenna the better it will work (see). Power comes into play to overcome distance and obstructions (like leaves and trees). Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

I finally watched the entire Salton Sea Walk video yesterday for the first time. Truly incredible story, gave me a whole new respect for him and his work. It's too bad that the ending isn't a happy one (yet?).

I totally agree that's what I read in owners manual for all six of my owners manual

TX won't matter on a simplex channel (unless you're trying to talk to someone who's listening for that tone). But yes, unless they're transmitting the tone you put on the RX side, your radio just won't open the speaker, essentially. You can look at it and see that it's receiving, but it won't make it through the radio to the speaker.

Nice to know. Thanks.

That. The only thing that changes for a repeater is *your* transmit frequency (IE: the frequency the repeater is listening on). But it's re-transmitting on your receive frequency. If you don't want to hear 'em, you can put a Rx CTS or DCS tone on your radio on those channels (same way if you have a repeater programmed on one of those channels, you won't hear simplex traffic on that channel unless they are using the same tone as the repeater)

Okay so this is normal... Thanks

But if you looked at his picture it clearly showed GMRS22. That's not RPT22. Second, he didn't say he was getting "blown away by static." In fact what we hear sounds like someone is transmitting digitally on the channel. And finally there's no reason for squelch to not work on an SOC radio.

Here's the mounted DB20-G in the Exploder. More great radios for Wifeypoo to admire!

I think I saw that costume at Party City in the Halloween rack. Complete with Yaesu stickers for them to affix to their Pofung's!

22 isn’t a repeater channel. It doesn’t transmit on 467 MHz main channels. Go to 23-30 (or 22RP if that’s how your radio shows it.

Will give it a try

Cable loss, and power level. Here's the math part if you care. Lets say that you have 3dB of loss in your feed line to the antenna. So that means that if you are pushing 20 watts into the the cable at the bottom, 10 watts gets to the antenna. Now that same loss happens to the reflected power. If you have 2 watts reflected, then you will only see 1 watt of reflect in the meter. Now lets remove the 20 watt radio and hook up a 4 watt radio. You have 4 in, and 2 at the antenna. You then have .2watts reflect, and .1 watt (100mW) shown as reflected power. The meter will have a hard time even seeing .1 watt of power and doesn't really have the accuracy to correctly measure that small level of power. So it gets inaccurate. Same thing happens with other radio services like ham when you significantly increase the power level. A guy running 100 watts may not see a significant amount of reflect at that power level, but when he increases to 1000 watts, it shows up. This is why when you are using a Bird watt meter to make SWR readings, you use a 1 or 5 watt slug to take the reflected power reading and not the 50 or 100 watt slug you are using for forward power. That 100 watt slug is not going to accurately show you a few watts of reflect. You need a slug that will properly indicate the lower power level. AND, you need to take into account the cable loss for an accurate reading.

Are you programming in the proper offset for the repeater channel? The offset should be set to a + 5 MHz.

Humm.. clinically depressed? He should do a video on the virtues of Xanax. Have a video of before and after use, sad Ham to a happy Ham.

Someone should make a video about this on the Youtubes.

Just gotta watch his Salton Sea video and some of his old In4Lo stuff to see what he's like in "real life".

Don Rickles made a very nice career insulting people. I hear he was a nice guy in real life.

Anyone who watches him on YouTube should get that he has nothing against the amateur radio service - He hangs with Josh from HRCC after all, it's the knowitalli'vebeenahamfor30yearsandyou'reanidiotanditwon'twork crowd he likes to send up with the Sad Ham moniker. And they need it! And I have been a ham for 30+ years, believe me I do NOT know it all, hihi.... And I also get that thing from my wife and son when we watch movies! The hand comes up to block the

Most of the people he calls sad hams walk right into it. If you take the time to understand what he’s saying you might even agree. Yup, sometimes he has gone against the grain but for the most part he’s helpful.

Perfect example (that none of the kiddies will understand) - and exactly the same thing.

I know! Just when I thought that Midland had finally hired some GMRS design engineers who had a clue... They did great, as I understand it, making this radio dual conversion. I believe this is the first ever GMRS by Midland to include that feature which does make a difference in areas with a lot of RF pollution. Even though NAR experienced long battery life in his test, not allowing for procurement or attachment of spare batteries if out in the wilderness for days, is just short-sighted. If the attached antenna works well, I can live with that being incapable of removal, but why? I always hated that style of belt clip, preferring the rigid, one-piece, style that is more common. Midland seems to really play up that minimalist "keeping it simple for the non-radio person" rot, but it isn't necessary. Any Wouxun ht or mobile is just as simple if you choose to not program in PL codes for simplex or repeater use. The thing about the Wouxun design is, their radios can easily and readily grow with you, your knowledge of radios, and your needs; allowing for addition of more repeater or simplex channels with differing PL/DPL codes in them. I am now expecting any day, to see Midland introduce the absolute ultimate in minimalist communications for the non-radio-geek. Picture it! "The New Midland TCCC" (Tin Can Communications Center). "Midland R&D has just developed a new communications device which will revolutionize communications with family, friends, and neighbors. Our new TCCC never requires batteries, needs no license, and has exceptional privacy! The TCCC comes complete with two tin cans and a 100 ft length of high-quality, communications grade, string. It allows for reliable, network-free contact when afield, between rooms, between houses, and even between automobiles! Extra 100 ft lengths of communications grade string may be necessary for vehicular operation. Be prepared for your next outing, road trip, or EMP incident! The new Midland TCCC is impervious to EMP, Government eavesdropping, and other hazards. It needs no programming or knowledge of radiocommunications principles to work. Get yours today!"

This one time, at band camp, I found myself in a hell that only Xenu could punish me with: a gathering of licensed sad-H.A.M.s. I thought I was in for a fun-filled weeknd filled with music, but no, instead, I got stuck with a bunch of overgrown man-children playing with their glorified walkie-talkies. From the moment I arrived, I knew I was in trouble. These guys, who were clearly incapable of any meaningful social interaction, swarmed the place like a plague of dorks. They had all the charm of a root canal and twice the ego. Imagine an army of Sheldons from The Big Bang Theory, but without any of the redeeming qualities or comedic timing. That’s what I was up against. It all started innocently enough. I was trying to enjoy the campfire when a group of them descended on me. They were babbling in a language that was a mix of Klingon and technobabble, discussing radio frequencies and antenna designs as if they were secrets to eternal life. Their leader, a guy I’ll call Bob because he looked like every Bob you’ve ever met, decided he needed to “educate” me on the wonders of ham radio. I swear, if he had a ham-radio-shaped soapbox, he would have stood on it. “Yo! Bob,” I said, “what’s the frequency for tuning into some good music?” It was a joke, a simple, harmless joke. But Bob, with all the wit and humor of a malfunctioning robot, started giving me a lecture on frequency bands and how important it is to get a license - he must have said "i've been a licensed ham-radio operator for over 25 years" over 20 times. Every time I tried to engage in normal human-conversation, it was like talking to a brick wall. A brick wall that talked back, but only to explain in excruciating detail why you were wrong about everything. These guys couldn’t recognize sarcasm if it slapped them in the face and called them stupid. I tried to make a joke about their radios being a way to compensate for something, but they just nodded seriously and started discussing the size of their antennas. I kid you not. The other operators were no better. They were like drones, each waiting for their turn to speak about their precious radios, completely unaware that no one else cared. Conversations were like passing around a hot potato, except the potato was a steaming pile of boredom, and no one wanted to let go of it. It was mind-numbing. One night, after enduring yet another lecture from Bob about the superiority of Morse code, I lost it. I stood up and said, “Look, I get that you guys are into this stuff, but I came here to relax, not to join your cult. Can we, for the love of Xenu, talk about something else for five minutes?” They stared at me like I had just spoken in tongues. Then, Bob, with his usual cluelessness, said, “But amateur radio is the best way to relax! You just haven’t experienced it properly yet. You should get your ham ticket!” At that moment, I fantasized about using Bob’s radio as a blunt instrument. Instead, I walked away, muttering curses under my breath. I retreated to my tent, trying to block out the sound of their droning voices and the endless beeping of Morse code. I couldn’t believe I had paid to be in this dork-fest. As the days dragged on, I learned to tune them out. I found solace in the woods, away from the incessant chatter and the constant hum of their radios. I survived band camp, but just barely. I walked away with a story that would make for great campfire tales, but also a newfound appreciation for the blissful silence of solitude. In the end, I was not assimilated, and thank Xenu for that. I escaped with my sanity mostly intact, but I knew one thing for sure: never again would I underestimate the sheer, unrelenting boredom that comes with a bunch of licensed sad-hams.

I find GMRS to really be this, as described above; a tool in support of activities, not the activity itself. I use it for camping, hiking, caravanning, skiing (that's a big one), occasionally at outdoor places like amusement parks, and more recently sailing since ship-to-shore communications are so highly regulated over Marine VHF. I can't help but enjoy it as a hobby in and of itself, but recognize most people just buy a couple (or more) radios and go about using them in their activity.

I was talking 30 miles with my TidradH8 crystal clear to a uvr5. Both had Nagoya antennas. I was impressed.

It’s literally my base desk radio. I talk all over the region with it. 11 watts GMRS off of battery. USB-C and solar rechargeable. 11db gain antenna outside,.. means roughly 66 watts erp after coax loss.. I have 4 more of them. 3 in the cars and one still boxed just in case. Yeah they’re the best I’ve found yet… I try them all.

I'm just being careful to not answer like "some people" that come in and decree something as if it is set in stone and has no variables and could never be anything different from what they once experienced or read in a book.. Those guys make themselves look like R-tards, and they're all over this forum. I crave to be different!

95.1751 GMRS station identification. Each GMRS station must be identified by transmission of its FCC-assigned call sign at the end of transmissions and at periodic intervals during transmissions except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section. A unit number may be included after the call sign in the identification. (a) The GMRS station call sign must be transmitted: (1) Following a single transmission or a series of transmissions; and, (2) After 15 minutes and at least once every 15 minutes thereafter during a series of transmissions lasting more than 15 minutes. So if you used a timer and spoke for 35 minutes you would ID when you finish the first 15 minutes, again at 30 minutes, and then when you stop talking at 35 minutes. But nobody does that. Just throw it out there when you think about it and when you’re done with your conversation.

So if that's the case then anyone with any FCC license should get free use of GMRS ? And to be honest the HAM fee is about 20 years too late.

Unfortunately the FCC doesn't seem to do much when it comes to GMRS violations unless there is some form of interference with emergency services. This leaves repeater owners to fend for themselves. I have just gone through this myself about a month or two ago. Unfortunately, my only solution was to change to a split tone system leaving the original tone on output, and changing the input tone. (Example, if the repeater is using 141.3 for in and out, change the input tone to 146.2 and leave the output tone at 141.3) This can be a hassle for some bubble pack users who cant do split tone, however it seems to clear up the interference rather quickly. I have not had any issues since (Knock on wood.) The other thing is that you shouldn't post the new codes publicly, and instead require people to request access into the repeater. This helps you to keep track of who is on the system.