WRVR303

.For the first question, you don't need a repeater (linked or not) to access a repeater. You just need a radio & antenna setup capable of reaching the repeater--the higher the antenna, the greater the range. For the second, think of Zello as an app that lets your phone work like a radio, or talk to a radio such as a repeater. If the owner of a linked repeater, or more specifically a repeater with internet access, has installed Zello functionality, then you could use your phone to talk to a radio user or another Zello user via that repeater, and they can talk to you.

What about puttting up the tallest permissable "flagpole"?

I'm running a Laird FG 4605 on my roof. Fiber Glass 460+ MHz 5bB gain. (colinear design)

I live in a hollow and am surrounded on three sides. If it is truly line of sight to the repeaters, at 20-25 miles you probably don't even need a Yagi. If you want a "One and Done" solution, then the Yagi should be your first choice. If are also planning on eventually having a mobile unit in a vehicle, you could start with a mobile antenna on a piece of 2'x2' sheet metal just to see how good your Tx/Rx is. If you haven't already done this, a web site such as www.heywhatsthat.com lets you map the elevation profile between you and the repeater to see just how straight a shot it is. This image shows the terrain between my house and a nearby repeater. A 5W handheld with the stock antenna can barely hit the repeater; a 40W mobile with a 5dB Laird antenna on sheet metal on my porch is very clear. The same 5W handheld going through 70' of 1/2" hardline coax to a 5dB Laird on my roof is very clear on the repeater. (The antenna on the porch has to transmit "through" the house to get to the repeater.)

The Laird will be on the long side to start with. That is, a 450 MHz antenna is longer than a 470 MHz antenna, so you will need to cut it shorter. On a Laird 4505 I have the suggested cut lenghts were around 11-5/8" at 450 and 10-1/8" at 470, but per a NANO VNAH4, (and double checked with a Daiwa SWR meter), for 465 I stopped at 10-1/8". Don't cut your antenna based on my numbers, get the antenna cut chart for your exact model from Laird. On mine, there was a cut chart on the package. But, with your SWR meter, you can start cutting 1/8" at a time, until you make a cut and don't see any more change.

On my KG-935+ I could hear faint, weak signals a little better with the Nagoya 771 compared to the stock antenna. I also played around with both of them with a NanoVNA (knowing that trying measure SWR and such on a tiny HT antenna was basically a waste of time). When sweeping from 450-470 MHz the 771 actually showed a clearly defined "dip" with a significantly lower SWR of 1.5 to 2.0 around the 462-467 MHz range, while the stock antenna showed a fairly flat line across the 450-470 portion, staying in the 2.5 to 3:1 SWR range. Edit: I in spite of the above, I use the stock antenna because the length of the 771 was a PITA, bordering on PMEO (Poke My Eye Out)

So I'm a member of the NGGMRS network, because getting access to 20 linked, professionaly designed and maintained repeaters, covering a few thousand square miles for around $90 a year is one heck of a bargain in my book!

I have two Motorola mobile radios I bought brand new in the mid-late 1990's, and they still perform flawlessly on both transmit & receive. But, one is only 8 channels, while the other is 16, and GMRS has more channels than that. The biggest issue with them is that it takes someone with a DOS computer and the OEM software to program them. Yes, DOS. Not something new fangled like Windows 95, lol. It want to say they cost in the $500-$700 range back then, when gas and diesel were barely $2 a gallon. I also have a Wouxon KG 1000+ in my RV, and a KG 935+ HT. They are very easy to program, have tons of features*, and I find both the Tx and Rx quality to be excellent. Now, as to whether they will still work in 2048, that remains to be seen. I'm 62 so that may be moot. Here on the NGGMRS network, the Kenwood TK-8180 is highly respected, and a lot of members run them. *The Motorolas have only 4 features--Tx, Rx, volume and squelch, lol.

A quick search on Amazon books for "GMRS Radio" returns dozens of basic GMRS user guides....did you overlook the obvious? ps, Write an article and submit it to 2600.

The top image shows an antenna with 3dbi gain, and the bottom shows one with 7 dbi. You can see how the higher gain concentrates or focuses the signal so less of it goes up in the air above the antenna, and goes out horizontally instead. But, if you were in a valley, trying to reach someone up on a mountain, the lower gain antenna could actually reach them better.

Read the specs for the required operating voltage range for you various devices. A typical spec is 13.8 VDC, +- 10%, so they will operate properly anywhere between 12.42 and 15.18 VDC. (I have an ambulance converted into an off-grid camper, so I'm pretty familiar with setups like yours.)

On an old Mororola mic I was messing with a few months ago,I found a voltage present on the "button" on the back of the mike, that slips into the mic clip. When shorted by being in the clip, the radio would scan, and when open it would stop scanning and park on the last used channel. The current from the button was just a few milliamps.

Since a lot (most?) GMRS radios don't show what frequency a given channel is on, consider adding in the channel number to the above logo.

Be aware that there is often a very big difference between the "listed" power output claimed by the manufacturer, and the actual power output measured by a power meter. So, if you are considering buying a radio, look for blogs or Youtube videos where someone has actually tested the power output.

Menu Option [51: FAN-SET] Fan Activation Setting Function: The KG-1000G Plus has a built-in temperature detection system that will activate a cooling fan as needed. There are three options. Options: TX / VHT+TX / ALWAYS Default: VHT+TX TX: The fan turns on when transmitting VHT+TX: The fan turns on during transmit and when the temperature of the radio is high. ALWAYS: The fan is always on. And, there is always the "option" to just cut the wires.....