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Yes.. That's what deSense does.. The reason you hear the beep is because that happens AFTER you let go of the push-to-talk trigger, so the radio is no longer desensed.. Get the radios at least 25 feet apart and try again.

Yes, this is exactly what you want to do.

Well, it's provoked. Just maybe not here. If you happen to log into eham and look in the EMCOMM section, you can see a multipage show about how StarLink is now going to replace ARES and hammie EMCOMM. And me trying my level best to explain that the ONLY thing that will bring about the end of EMCOMM in ham radio is the narrow minded ham operators that feel that EMCOMM can ONLY take place on the ham bands, with some sort of voice communications. If a microphone isn't involved, and it's not in the assigned frequency spectrum of the ham radio allocation then it's 'not real EMCOMM'. And they just keep coming out of the woodwork furthering the narrow minded thought processes. But they refuse to see StarLink as a possible tool in their EMCOMM toolbox for data transfer and instead poo poo on the idea of it completely. Bringing up that ham radio is ad-hoc and redundant and in their minds will still save the world from the evil Motorola radio systems. Mind you.... and I can't believe I am saying this. I agree with Randy on a good bit of his view on ham radio and the SAD HAMS thing. Keep in mind that on November 6th, I renewed my license for the 3rd time.. I have been licensed since 94, making it over 30 years a ham. But I keep getting reminded. Just the other day, I actually heard a couple guys using the repeater. So I piped up and attempted to join in. I finally got recognized, and even after being recognized and spoken to, the two original members of the conversation would continually short key. When I said something about it, the guys reaction was, "yeah, I tend to do that most of the time". fully admitting that he steps on everyone else and just doesn't care. I took the high road and left the 100 watt radio in low power and tried to maintain a turn, but they just weren't having that. I choose to take the high road and maintain two ham repeaters. Keep tossing my call out on the local repeaters to see if there is anyone to talk to. And maintain a presence. Which is more than most it seems.

When you are at this dialog box, just as you enter radioreference from Chirp, change the zip code to the location you want:

Not that simple. And since you didn’t watch it (clearly) your statement falls flat.

I would recommend at least watching the video before commenting on it. The problem discussed has nothing to do with a radio, but the fact that all parties involved did a very poor job of communicating and coordinating with each other. Taking unprovoked digs at Hams for no reason is in poor taste, too... though I'm not going to try to tell you not to share your opinion... I'm just mentioning it.

You spelled 'retard' wrong.

So I think I'm beginning to see a trend here. 1) CB is for citizens to talk to other citizens whether they know each other or not. 2) GMRS is for co-workers / family / friends to talk to each other IF they know each other, but not to be mixed between the categories. ("Don't cross the streams." ~ Egon Spengler, PhD) 3) HAM is for talking to random strangers. Is that about right? Give me a minute to grab a snack... I've still got a lot to learn here.

What @OffRoaderX said exactly, the fact that you heard it on the other radio after you let the button go is why I thought this.

Okay, I just wanted to make sure how you were testing between radios. The reason is if you are on the repeater channel with both you should only hear between them if they go through the repeater because the transmit is on a 467 and the receive is on 462.

This video was just posted to YouTube. I have no affiliation with it but I have seen the presenter’s videos before and he follows the science of things. I have long been fascinated with the Amelia Earhart story and this video largely focuses on the radio aspects of her final flight. I thought you all might enjoy this. Cheers

Not all repeaters kerchunk. Yes, if you want to talk through the repeater, you must be on the correct repeater channel. Until you fully understand what you’re doing I recommend leaving the RX Tone cleared out. That way you’ll hear everything on that channel. Once you know you can receive the repeater you can always add the tone or code for RX. If you want to talk directly to another radio, you and the other radio must be on the same simplex channel, which are 1-22.

Use Repeater Book. You can specify listings by highway in each state you are planning to visit.

Keep in mind the H8 is 10 watts ONLY on VHF. For UHF, it's 5 watts. I've confirmed this with three different radios.

Also, don't forget to try turning on "stale" repeaters. Just because the info hasn't been updated in a year or more doesn't mean the repeater is down or no longer exists.

No, you need to be in Mem(channel) mode. Most GMRS radios will not let you transmit in VFO mode.

Amateur radio, or ham radio, remains a critical tool for communication, especially in emergencies. When disasters disrupt internet and phone networks, ham operators provide a reliable lifeline, coordinating relief and sharing real-time updates using simple, battery-powered equipment. Beyond emergencies, amateur radio connects people globally, fosters innovation, and serves as a training ground for future engineers and emergency responders. Its independence from centralized systems makes it resilient against cyber threats and infrastructure failures. In a digital age, amateur radio proves that simple, reliable communication remains vital for connection, safety, and innovation.

I use several zip screws at each joint. I use 1 5/8' fence post couplers. I went overboard and have three wall brackets along with the guy ring at the top. While fence posts and fence top rails aren't ideal, they do work. Just make sure to properly secure them to your structure and at each joint along with some guy ropes/wires. And keep the weight and wind load down with the antennas. I normally only put 1 antenna on each fence post mast.

I suggest using something like this EZ 43-A Adjustable 3 Way Down Guy Ring for up to 2-1/4" Mast - Heavy Duty placed right below the antenna. You can use some good Dakron rope such as 1/8 inch Black Dacron Polyester Cord for your guy rope. I like using Nite Ize CamJam Cord Tightener - Tie Down Rope Tightener with Carabiner Clip to tension the guy ropes. I use 1 5/8" fence posts for my antenna masts along with satellite dish j-mounts and guy each one with all of the above going to eye bolts or other tie off points. The biggest antenna is a 6 HF cobweb antenna that is a 8 foot square antenna. The antennas will still sway in high winds but I haven't had any issues even with 50-60 mph winds.

What I did was put both radios on channel 1 and talked to my son about 25-30' is all. I will try setting both on the same repeater channel and see how that goes, thanks for the help and man this is a learning process for sure....

The whole purpose of a periodical subscription is to stay current with evolving issues and topics. I also don't see how reprinting decades old articles makes for a viable periodical. That's called an archives not a magazine.

I thought this might be an issue. The other handheld I'm using doesn't even break squelch. Would that happen if what you're describing is happening? I also got no response when I asked if anyone was hearing me, which could have been because no one was listening. Thanks.

Let me ask the question here... What were you looking to hear on the scanner? Was it just for GMRS? There would be tons of stuff to hear on that scanner provided it is programmed correctly.

When that happens to me I click on the Advanced Search Settings and I always discover that there’s something there from a previous search, such as a state filter, which results in an empty result.

Yeah, I don’t think a person can post in the classified section unless they have a Premium membership.

Good catch, I was focused on the Tx and Rx info that fell below his image and missed that. My bad.

Expanding on this with an example ..I think of it like you and a friend in a room, 6 ft apart. In the absence of other noise, you can carry on a conversation at a normal speaking volume just fine. Desense is the equivalent of now you have a rock concert speaker stack playing next to you, while you try in futility to hear your friend....you see their lips moving, but can't hear anything they're saying.

Are you testing with the two handhelds in basically the same location? If so, since the repeater is passing the transmitted audio in realtime it's entirely possible that the audio is getting through, but the nearby signal from the transmitting radio is causing the other radio to desense (or "go deaf"), so it doesn't "hear" the audio coming back. Having done a little testing for/with desense, the behavior in practice is pretty much what you described ...receiving radio shows an incoming signal, but no audio. Unless there's some pretty severe barrier (like a hill/mountain) to the signal (or a pretty bad blind spot near the repeater), getting into the repeater from a couple miles away should be doable.

If you say what part it is that you are feeling lost about the most, it would help others to point you in the right direction. Nobody learns everything at once. As far as getting a response from a PM, you have to realize that not everyone on the forums checks in every single day to get messages and what not. I'm just a novice myself so all I can recommend is to concentrate on the basics. Don't even think about repeaters until you get simplex down pat first. And I make a lousy teacher so take anything I have to say with a large grain of salt.

Not watching the video.... this seems to be turning into some Hammie ARES EMCOMM thing that would infer that if she had a yellow vest and a Baofeng radio that she would have been fine because "Ham Radio saves Lives" Which is a true statement ..... because laughter is the best medicine.

I just grabbed some popcorn. Please tell us more.

It’s just the choice some manufacturers make. RPT15 is exactly the same as 23, RPT16 = 24, etc. Personally I prefer using 23-30, instead of RPT15-RPT22, but it’s the same thing RPT15 (aka channel 23) receives on the same frequency as channel 15, but transmits 5 MHz higher.

Are you typing in a location or using location near me? If the latter, it’s possible your browser isn’t set with permission to use your location. That’s just a guess.

EDIT: UPON REFLECTION I DECIDED IT WAS BEST TO JUST REMAIN QUIET.

One thing that I like about the Brendan Carr nomination is that he is already a commissioner. Regulations are some of the most complicated things there are in government and bringing in an outsider who has little experience exponentially adds to the burden for the people who do the actual work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhYJS80MgYA Oooops... Lscott beat me to it.

OP's statment he says monitor for traffic not talk to random men and he mentiond channel 19 which has been embraced as a highway channel partially do to Randy. So that's where I interpret the question to relate to vehicle traffic. I guess that's just where my mind goes. zoom zoom beep beep. "What is the best GMRS channel to monitor for traffic; I'm new & I've heard nothing on ch - 19."

At a press conference on August 12th, 1986, US President Ronald Reagan said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’”

Amateur radio (HAM) is where you will get buried in acronyms. GMRS follows more of a KISS (keep it simple stupid) methodology. There is a bit of it when it comes to the technical stuff but no where near as much as HAM. GMRS is just more "chill". At least in my novice opinion.

Ive used both for checking into nets outside of RF range, in the sf Bay area and Seattle. Both can also be used to access a home radio when travelling, but depends on interfacing a radio to the computer (echolink) or node (all-star)

You can use phone apps for Allstar too. We have several guys in the local club that use the Allstar apps on their phones all the time. Both systems require a repeater to have a node connected if you want to access the repeater through your phone. Here is a good place to start reading about Allstar https://www.allstarlink.org

Remember that the repeater outputs are the same as simplex channels 15-22. If you have your radio set to, say, Repeater 16, and it's listening for tone 67.0. If someone is nearby is transmitting on simplex 16 and transmitting the same tone, your will hear that transmission. IE: they're almost certainly not actually using the repeater. (also, a side tone and privacy tones / codes are different things) (edited for clarity because even I couldn't figure out wtf I had written... I knew what I was trying to say, but what I wrote was nonsense )

@Billz Welcome to myGMRS.com. Lots of good people here who are knowledgeable and helpful. As @SteveShannon said @marcspaz video is a good one to start with. If you prefer the info in written form you might give this page a shot. I will also second @WRUU653 on HamStudy.org. That is what I used for my tech and general and I'm using it to study for the extra. P.S. I've been kicking around the idea of writing a PDF of GMRS basics and FAQ. Maybe I'll go ahead and dive into that. It would be something good to have.

The Ham VOIP image has both Allstar and Echolink baked into it. Allstar is best for linking repeaters together, and hotspot nodes, but Echolink is a nice addition for when you only have your phone and are out of town.

A mobile antenna on a pie plate in front of a window can do a pretty decent job. If I lived closer I’d help you put one in your attic.

Are you testing on high-power channels? Did you confirm that the radio is set to HIGH POWER for the channels you are testing? IF yes to both and you're still only getting low-power output, then the fix is to send it back and tell them to send you one that works.

I am away from my programming cable and wanted to figure out how to program the UV-5G Plus from the keypad. I took a look at the video from @OffRoaderXon the subject of programming BAOFENG radios, and it was slightly different from the manual for this radio. It got me thinking that it would be worth drawing something up to help myself, and hopefully others as well. I am a very visual person and I usually draw pictures so I know what the heck I am referring to. In this case, I wanted to have a reference for the relationship between T-CTCSS and Input Tone as it really does not make a lot of sense to the new user. Hopefully this will be useful to others when they come across this thread. I did not add the step for the R-CTCSS as it's not absolutely necessary. If anyone spots and error, please let me know so I can make this a handy resource.

Did you donate your subscription to QST to a local library?

As a lobbying group they represent Hams very well. QST Magazine is very informative