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If you have any emergency who are you going to call? If the brown smelly stuff hits the fan, everybody else will also have the same emergency and everyone else will be trying to transmit at the same time and hopefully you know what happens when more than one person tries to key up when someone else is keying. There will be a gazillion people keying at the same and they won't care if you're transmitting or not and they will not be polite and ask for a break. It will be a total radio chaos and you won't be communicating with anyone. Public Safety Agencies have the same problem when an extreme life & death emergency happens, but most public safety radio systems these days have a feature to prevent more than one transmitter being keyed at the same time and jamming up the frequency. Also, public safety agencies usually have training for those situations and strict radio discipline. GMRS user don't have that training or any radio discipline for during emergencies. It would be best for you to have other contingency plans during those emergencies, the 9-1-1 and GMRS systems will not be the solution during those times for you. The GMRS is not an emergency radio system, but it "may" be a system for communication to use when the emergency subsides.

Give this a watch. It's about an hour, but many people have found it helpful. https://youtu.be/1rZ_oWdls-E?si=Kjnqac1q3oqPvj0i

It’s not unusual at all to transmit from radio A to a repeater but be unable to hear your own transmission on a nearby second radio, radio B. B is desensitized by its proximity to the relatively powerful signal from A. As long as others can hear you don’t worry about radios in the same room as you.

There is quite a bit of simplex traffic in my rural area. GMRS is popular with the farmers. And simplex traffic really increases during the firearms deer season which starts this weekend. And some of the conversations from the hunters is not suitable for women and children. I won't even scan the different channels for the next few weeks for that reason.

You don’t need to see them. Line of sight means that UHF radio waves travel in a mostly straight line. Lower frequencies frequently bounce off layers of the atmosphere; UHF cannot be relied upon to do that. It pierces through the atmosphere and travels farther without attenuating. Hams use VHF and UHF to communicate to the space station or to bounce signals off the moon. Nor does UHF follow the curvature of the Earth. A half mile is seldom the outer limit, but under certain circumstances it might be. On the other hand many of us frequently enjoy ranges of several or even many miles. Most people get GMRS radios for communications while they’re doing other things, like hiking, fishing, off roading, or recovering rockets out in the wide open spaces.

The answer to all 3 questions are "just the FCC rules." The long and short of it... the FCC is less worried about the hardware compliance for performance sake and more worried about the end user. Restricting the hardware to help prevent users who are not knowledgeable from getting on emergency frequencies and causing harmful interference is the end goal. There are some other license holders that they are trying to prevent interference with, too... but emergency services is the top priority. There are a bunch of radios that are capable of covering all of the desired frequencies and typically outperform the technical requirements for GMRS and other services, but due to the risk of harmful interference, they can't get certified for legal use.

Probably the best solution for this would be a decent mobile antenna on a mag mount sitting attached to a steel baking sheet. If you wanted to stay with the antenna attached to the HH, I use ones from Signal Stick.

Think of the radiation of an antenna 0 dbi gain as a ball. Bear with me simplifying as much as I can. As you squish the ball it get flatter and The sides bulge. Having more of the radiation pattern focused to the horizon. This is what a higher gain antenna is accomplishing. Without going into directional antennas. So the more gain an antenna has the flatter the radiating disc gets. But it starts losing coverage vertically. Yes/no higher gain antennas can help with obstructions. For instance, vehicular offroading with a group where there are elevation changes I will get better coverage for the radios above and below me with a lower gain antenna such as a 1/4. Where if I were to drive in a flat wooded area. I would want a higher gain antenna in the hopes of punching through the leaves and trees. When it comes to hts. I haven't noticed a night and day difference between 0 and higher gain antennas. The ht often is only around 4'8" to 6' off the ground. Often maybe a slightly better radio report from otherside of the repeater with a higher gain antenna. What i do notice is the eye poking risk, physical interference and the constant jabbing of the higher gain (often much longer) antenna. Truthfully ht antennas are relatively cheap. Try different one (borrow if you can) to see what works and you can live with. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

I assume your Aubree and Smiley antennas have SMA connectors. You might be able to find a right angle adapter with pl259 on one side and the appropriate SMA connector on the other side. MaxGain has a good selection of adapters. https://mgs4u.com/rf-connectors-and-adapters-list/

Maybe the repeater is set to narrow? Narrow is more effiecient in power, and bandwidth utilization. Radio operators generally don't like it because when compared to wide band it loses in audio fidelity. You should hear narrow digital. Sounds like everyone has a stuffy nose and is in a tank of water. Get p25 trunked encrypted, aggravating, due to all the compression. If your intrested in how bad it is ask a FD or PD to let you listen to dispatch for a second. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

The 0.5 watt ERP limit on interstitial channels applies to GMRS radios as well. FCC documents show that the reason for the 0.5 watt ERP limit was to avoid interference with the surrounding repeater channels.

I think @kidphc was thinking you meant the oem rubber duck. He’s right about poor quality elbows causing problems, but there shouldn’t really be an issue with a higher quality one. The thing is they just weren’t originally designed for true UHF. the PL259, even though referred to as a UHF connector, was designed for much lower frequencies. It’s too bad the GMRS manufacturers don’t install N connectors on their radios instead of SO239s.

I've never used the oem rubber duckies, never took them out of the box. I will get an adapter and try. It's mostly for listening/monitoring anyway.

Either use a shorty for when she is using the truck and swap out for longer when you drive. Even on a hood mount any all band style antenna is going to be long. Hoping out of the truckbto fold the 2x4sr got old fast. Not to mention even with the spring it's a thick stiff antenna. I don't think it will take whacks well. Hence why I switched back to the Larsen 2/70sh back on. Mine has a permanent kink in the open coil and has tons of paint missing from all the whacks. Yes it's loud, but it takes a beating. Didn't help the wind load was high and the mount+antenna was always rocking. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

When you ask about using an HT antenna, do you mean the oem rubber duck or are you asking about using an Aubree or Smiley as mentioned in your second paragraph? As long as it’s rated to handle the power (which you already alluded to), and if you’re using a high quality 90° connector (I like Amphenol) you should be just fine. Try it. See if the antenna gets warm. Just be aware of the fact that your RF exposure will increase proportionally.

I live in a very low traffic (GMRS traffic) area. I might leave the RX tone out so I could avoid doubling with someone on simplex.

Sounds like desense. Put some distance between the two and try again.

HT antenna are usually not rated for more than 5w so most don't try. They are usually very compromised and are a barely passible design for the job. The elbow connectors are generally really bad. They a lot of time are not constructed internally very well. The 90° design often induces other issues. Generally, speaking avoid them. If the ground plane is an issue. How's about a jpole or slim jim. They are compact and integrate a counterpoise into the design, so no ground plane necessary. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

Your best bet is to find a local radio club (amateur or GMRS, regardless of what type of radio you THINK you want), then attend a meeting or two, meet some active members, ask questions, ask for demos, ask for advice specific to your area with regard to what bands/freqs are most used in the region; available repeaters and amount of "traffic" (radio comms). Most clubs allow non-members to attend, and are more than happy to share their knowledge. These same clubs are usually involved with coordinated EMCOMMS with local agencies, providing simulated exercises and practice of their protocols so those that participate know what the heck to do when actual SHTF. Once you learn more about local reality, THEN you can decide what you want to pursue, and what you want to spend money on. Having said all that, "line of sight" is not as, ahem, clear cut as you might think. I'm dealing with highrise buildings in an urban area with mountains (actually little more than pointy hills) and difficult terrain, yet with some actual testing with a buddy, I have pretty decent capabilities out to about 2.5 - 3 miles in general. GMRS is NOT a "social gathering place" in a lot of areas, so a lot of people get discouraged when no one responds. GMRS is also NOT for hobbyists/experimenters that want to try new methods, as it has severe restrictions of band usage and types of transmissions. The Amateur (ham) bands are where there is a lot of contesting, long distance random contacts, multiple modes (including multiple digital modes which simplify long distance contact by combining RF with internet linking of repeaters/reflectors), and lots of regular "nets" where you can check in, test your equipment, and interact with others on a more or less regular basis. There are FAR more bands and unlimited freqs within those bands (based on actual local band plans), vs maximum of 30 specific channels on GMRS which are shared among all within range.

You're all a bunch of radio AND internet dorks.

Many here have stated what GMRS was actually setup to do. Provide extended family and small group communications beyond what the FRS service could. It was a medium power service that allowed fixed stations (base setups with elevated antennas) and repeaters for the extension. That is what is was originally for. And the rules and regulations pretty much bear that out. But that's not what it has turned into. I will preface this with the fact that 3 days ago I renewed my ham license for the 3rd time. That is a 10 year license, so I have been involved with ham radio since 1994, so 30 years at this point. And ham radio wasn't ever really to be a social gathering place. It was for the furtherment of communications through experimentation and to build a pool of qualified electronics technicians that could provide support for technology in the future. Of course, ham radio isn't that any more either. But, GMRS is now a conduit for social interaction. This was once done with CB radio. A great many people had radios and they communicated throughout their community with other individuals in a social manner. AKA they would get on the radio and BS back and forth. It wasn't for building RF techs, radio nerds, or specifically for emergency communications. But ANY radio service can be used for EMCOMM. It's just going to be limited by the regulations and equipment available for that service. But GMRS is now a gathering place for folks to chat with each other via voice communications. My guess is that COVID may have sparked renewed interest in having a reliable conduit for communications that didn't require face to face interactions and was always readily available. I wasn't personally involved with GMRS during COVID. But I have since done testing and continue to test coverage and gather radios for deployment for family so that the path of communications can't be easily severed. My repeater site will soon have alternative 'off grid' power in addition to the current grid, battery and generator power that is in place and functioning. Single 'car' batteries with a single 100 watt solar cell and charge controller will maintain power and limited light for family members during a disaster situation so we can check in with each other and maintain some sense of normal during an abnormal situation. But again, that's not what it was really for. It just lends itself to that function. But in the end, it still is a conduit for social interaction. And that is a good thing.

If you were engaged in a task or activity where you are 1/2 mile from another person engaged in same, and needed to talk with them, but couldn't leave your location, you'd be hard pressed to yell loud enough to be heard. Vehicle to vehicle comms are very much something GMRS is good at facilitating. As well as, in my case, not having to yell when working around the house/yard where I need something done but can't leave my location. Sure I could use a cell phone, but the ease of pusing a PTT switch on a radio gets things done with less delay. Many more examples are out there, but I'll leave it at this...

Hi Mac, It usually helps to post a more detailed question rather than relying on what can be a cryptic title. There have been a few radios where the power outputs of programmed channels appear to be recalibrated after programming. I don’t recall if the AR-152 is one of those. Some posts have even mentioned that the result seemed like the power output was inverted after programming, so high power in the menu put out less power than low power. I’ve never experienced that with Chirp but that’s not to say that others haven’t. If that’s not what your title alludes to, please give us more detail. You’ll find that most of us here enjoy trying to help answer questions. Disregard those who react negatively.

Just for clarification - According to the FCC's own records & data, 99.99999% of people doing it in the last 15 years "get away with it", and 99.9999% of people also over wattage, have also gotten away with it.

Birdies aren't necessarily only over 1 MHz spectrum. There some times no rhythm or rhyme. However, you aren't seeing spread spectrum transmissions from what I see. Sst usually will have a step looking effect in the water fall as it transitions between frequencies. Plus in the waterfall the blips go almost across the entire 1.6 MHz of the band being displayed. Personally, what I see are EMI burst at roughly. 4m,.5m,.1m,.4 apart. Maybe a power supply with bad shielding. Although I don't know any that run at that cycle rate. I once saw the processor of my computer showing up like that. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

Hey all, I'll preface this by saying other than tuning in a music station I know diddly squat about radios. I have a nagging question. If GMRS radio is truly 'line of sight' and I have a tough time talking to someone 1/2 mile away due to trees, geography, buildings then what's the point of this all? I know there is a point but I'm just not getting it. If I need to 'see' the other person why wouldn't I just walk up to them and chat rather than using radios? I want to be ready in the event I need to use my GMRS radios for an emergency but I'm getting the sense I know nothing of the power I yield in my hand. Thanks!

Had a buddy with topo like that. Mind you where we live around D.C. it's Rolly Polly Piedmont till you head towards D.C. which kinda sits in a bowl. He kept complaining about dropping his mast 10' got him to a certain repeater. Raising it or lowering it more he lost coverage. He would often hit 20 miles straight line due north east. But couldn't make a repeater well that was less 10 miles. It drove him mad. Turns out his house sits on a kinda hill. But his house is surrounded by a hill ridge except in one direction. You got it there was a nice direct line North East that was clear. Every other directions using line of sight calculators he needed a 50' tower. What you should take a way is that you should look at a topo map or uhf line of sight calculator. I don't think much is to gain by switching a HT antenna. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

FWIW, I have a buddy that bought one that was a dud (probably fake) - measured 99.9SWR/dead short.. they sent him a new one, no questions asked.. it was also a dead-short dud... But I've had a few that worked just fine.

My comment was a bit of an "inside comment".. iYKYK ....

Everyone I know that has had that antenna has thrown theirs straight into the trash.

2.15 dbi is exactly the same gain as a half-wave dipole. Yes, it’s low gain. What makes you think that you need to upgrade the antenna that your radio came with?

As @kidphc indicated, matching the bandwidth of the repeater is always going to give you better results than a mismatch.

No, the radio will start drunk transmitting using your call sign

Will that result in pickled contacts? I

He asked about using an HT antenna on a mobile. So I geared my answer around it. For receive sure you can use the HT antenna with appropriate connectors, I wouldn't transmit. My abree 48" tacti-cool antenna is literally a tape measure with flexible heat shrink. I do expect damage to it if I lit it up with 20 watts. Pretty sure I would have a floppy flaming sword. For apartment/condo/house/camping. A slim jim outside thrown up with some rope is really hard to beat in price, performance, and convenience, regardless of transmit or receive. Oh look incoming storm, oh look potential static conditions, bring down and roll it up. Plus they cost barely any more than a ht antenna. For receive only I would have recommend a lot of other things to start with. Like a passive/active antenna with a cheap SDR dongle. So much more to listen to, s/m/l wave, vhf/uhf/shf, international broad cast, pirate radio stations, unencrypted traffic, hunting for wspr beacons, slow video scan, yada, yada. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk

Im limited by the garage she parks in and the roof rack of her 4runner is literally just a few inches from hitting the door when she pulls in. Thats the only reason I put her antenna on the hood. There really is no other place to go with it. Im not even thrilled with only 15 watts from the Midland... but she insisted whatever radio goes in her vehicle had to be small and discreet. I think I can get the DB20G into the same pocket the Midland is in... so thats the direction Im headed. I just need a suitable antenna for it since I want to have access to the other frequencies to match my truck.

The hood-mounted Midland antenna already drags on the garage door... so ideally something same or shorter is what im after.

I think understand now, you need a tx-ctcss to activate the repeaters but the rx-ctcss limits the receiving to just that repeater and no one else.

You just can't help yourself can you.

There is no way I would run a GMRS repeater without using both RX and TX tones. Just like I always run both RX and TX tones on my radios too. As mentioned, you will get all of the simplex traffic if you don't.

@nokones expressed it well. After hurricane Beryl, the only coms I had for a few days was GMRS and ham radio which worked very well. But that was NOT an SHFT situation and there were repeaters that were still available. Under a real SHFT, radios may not be as useful as we would like.

The AZ GMRS Repeater Club has a Net every Tuesday at 1900 (7PM), except for holidays and the 5th Tuesday of thd month. The Net is called the Tuesday 1900 Net and is open to everyone and is conducted on the 550 channel through the White Tanks Repeater. The White Tanks Repeater will cover most of the Valley of the Sun. During the Tuesday 1900 Net, Non-Club Members are in courage to participate and the White Tanks Repeater will have the Travel Tone activated for encode (Repeater Access) for all guest users. Leave the receive channel as CSQ since the Repeater does not transmit any Tone out downlink. The topic of discussion varies and will be announced at the beginning of the Net. For more AZ GMRS Repeater Club information go to www.azgmrs.org As for SWCRS, it would be best to go on their website at www.swcrs.org or www.tucsongmrs.com Sorry, I have no information on the White Mountain Community System.

I'm Marc Spaz, and I approve this message. In compliance with the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002.

I could try to suggest something to you, but I don't want to confuse anymore then you already are. Although, if you're using them Blister Pack Radios, that's part of your problem.

I have tested and used both of the Rocky Talkie radios and can confirm that they are indeed very rugged and very simple to use. I used to use a Motorola XTS2500 as my off-roading handheld but have now switched to the Rocky Talkie 5W radio because it is smaller, lighter and far more simple to use. and it has pretty much the same farz for local (within 1mile) comms. The silly little (very strong/rugged) umbilical cable that comes with the 5W has also prevented me from dropping/losing the radio multiple times.

If you are asking, its already too late.

Eh, tripping some GFCIs is no big deal. Call me when you key-up and 4 of the gas pumps you're sitting next to crash and go through a whole reboot cycle so no one can get gas for 10 minutes.

The reason the antenna is fixed on the Q10G is not because it has a GPS, but because it can SEND its GPS location in the form of a digital data transmission. So, per the rule you quoted, it must have a non-removable antenna - which means you cannot connect it to a giant antenna on your roof and blast the very annoying digital-signal-noise for miles in every direction. The 935G, like 99% of all other GMRS radios, does not/cannot send digital data transmissions, so it can have a removable antenna. There is also a rule buried in the FCCs rule book about certain transmission specifications must be met (ie the radio must have 'clean signals') in order to have a removable antenna, so a few (VERY few) low-end GMRS radios also have non-removable antennas because of this.

I don't know how long it's been this way and I may be misunderstanding exactly what it means but under "My Repeaters" there are two tabs, one for Favorite Repeaters and one for Owned Repeaters. Perhaps this will help.