WQYC236
-
Posts
199 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
30
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Gallery
Classifieds
Posts posted by WQYC236
-
-
I'm still on the porch and looking forward to playing with all of you "Big Dogs" some day. Home base installation is nearly finished and almost ready for a maiden voyage. "Big Brown Truck" is expected tomorrow which will most likely get me overwhelmed with radio programing. Installed is a KB9VBR J-Pole and a Ed Fong J-Pole and separated by approx 10 feet. Both install in my attic which has zero construction foil attached (only Styrofoam insulation panels) and is approx. 30 ft above GL at an altitude of 1,120 ft. Very hilly and heavily wooded topography. Both installed per given instructions and It will be interesting to see which of the two will produce the best SWR and overall performance under same cabling and overall conditions.
Happy Easter to All!
pfactor
Be sure and let us know how these experiments come out, especially communicating in the hill terrain.
-
The FCC will accept any submissions made, but will almost certainly simply file it away. They have no resources left with which to take any real action.
We have had some folks working for a well-known major corporation using 146.505 simplex for well over two years here in NW Indiana and the FCC's reply to a thoroughly documented and recorded report was just this (paraphrased):
This despite the fact that the illegal usage occurs every day of the week for hours on end...
...and we even know precisely who they are!
Looks like we may have to start making a "Citizen's Arrest" and Fed Ex them to the FCC.
-
-
I ditto on turning the power down. 20/25 will do as well as 40 in most cases, as the higher the tx power the more chance of drowning your input, even with dupexor (unless you are spending $3,000 on it, and even then I have turned them down to necessary power only.
When I worked for M we had a customer that used a 25 watt mobile for 2 way and phone interconnect, and 2 HT600 portables, but her repeater antenna was on a 500 foot tower she owned. We had the repeater all rigged up blowing A/C directly into it, as she liked to use that phone for 20-30 minutes at a time, and it was an R100 repeater! We had it set down to get about 2 watts out the antenna, and it had great coverage, more than she needed.
Input path to the repeater will determine the usability in most cases not power out. Too many guys have CB mentality, not what you need.
Interesting information. I have an 1100 foot mountain within 3 air miles from the house (but no AC power), and although we now have a great 30 watt repeater in the area, it might be fun to build a very low power (8 watts) solar machine just to see how it does.
-
I am 47 airline miles from the tower and can easily get into the repeater from my mobile (both the TH-7800 dual band and my CS800 DMR in analog mode).
I've also manage to get in from my 4 watt XPR7550 DMR in analog mode, albeit not full quieting.
Prior to the relocation, I could barely get into it from my radio room using a hi-gain rooftop mounted antenna. From what the owner told me the other day, with the ground elevation taken into consideration, the "height" now is equivalent to around 560'. The repeater is a venerable Micor that's been around for a very long time. Motorola equipment from that era doesn't want to die...
That's fantastic! Thanks for the update. Sounds like you may have a lot more people using the repeaters in your area than we have in our area.
-
There is an almost daily "community rag chew" on the Joliet, IL GMRS repeater that sometimes lasts over two hours... Everyone identifies with their call even more frequently than absolutely required, just to be on the safe side...
It's a phenomenal repeater now that the owner has the stick at ~500' on a new tower location. Previously the repeater had been located on top of a 17 story building... that unfortunately was at a much lower elevation; pretty much in a hole!
What kind of range are you getting with the repeater at 500 ft. in all that Indiana flat land?
-
This is an update on the DKDCG guy I wrote about earlier. I was back in the same town on Saturday and sure enough he was still there "warbling" through all 22 FRS/GMRS frequencies! I was actually trying to have a LEGAL conversation with my grandson on his new GMRS hand held radios about three miles away and finally had to sign off because of this idiot.
His standard operating procedure is to "warble" twice on each channel and then move to the next until someone responds to the noise. If someone answers, he always says the same thing "I didn't know this radio was working", and then proceeds to move through the frequencies again. This went on for the entire two hours that I was there. Never underestimate the power of stupid people with time on their hands.
He did mention the apartment complex he lives in so we may be getting closer to a lawful solution to what is becoming a bigger problem.
-
I also would definitely go with a 5-6 db, center loaded, longer antenna in the center of the roof. There is a noticeable difference in range over the short quarter wave type antennas, especially at the limits of your effective range.
-
Interesting choice in radios. Let us know how they do when you hit the open road.
-
I'm truly in the presence of greatness on this forum!
-
How did you guys learn how to do all of this neat stuff? I'm struggling here with all the acronyms.
-
Uhmmm maybe that would make a great call sign in DX...
Ha! If I have another conversation with him I may tell him he made the big time on MYGMRS!
-
I think you are talking about the "Mount Hope Repeater" in Sanford. It's listed here under the repeater directory. You're correct that it lists the input and output frequencies as the same and the tones are unlisted. So you will have to ask permission to use it and I'm sure the tones will be forthcoming. Just email the owner and fill out the information.
-
Speaking of the unlicensed, I'd like to expand that term to the "Don't Know, Don't Care Group" (DKDCG)! I spoke to one of these on Saturday while I was in a small town of about 30,000 people near me.
I had the radio on scan when I heard that annoying warbling sound produced by somebody hitting the "Call Button" on a walkie talkie. If that wasn't annoying enough, the scanner was following him up through the channels, one, two, three, four, etc. After listening to him move through all the channels twice, I thought maybe someone was actually in trouble and trying to find help on any possible channel. I identified myself and asked if someone needed assistance. The response was "No, I'm just trying to see if this radio works".
To make a long story short we talked for maybe 3 or 4 minutes while I explained to him (obviously an adult male) about licensing and the power and channel restrictions. I encouraged him to stay on the FRS only channels if he wasn't going to get a license and to especially avoid the Repeater channels, explaining that he could be interfering with legitimate communications. He responded with short, unintelligent answers. I finally signed off and went back to scanning mode, only to hear him back on the repeater channels warbling through every frequency, just as if nothing happened!
The famous turn of the century evangelist Billy Sunday once said, "Anybody can get born again, but stupid is forever"!
- Logan5, chiefeis and mainehazmt
-
3
-
not much action here in glen burnie md on frs or gmrs....ive only heard one station id on gmrs in a month and no traffic on balt 675, kinda sucks....
I was just on that repeater last weekend about 4:00 PM asking for a radio check from Warrenton but got no reply. Got a solid tone back from it 72 miles away.
-
-
Good point. But I was thinking just in general use, similar to a Ham log. Would be interesting to keep track of who you've talked to - assuming you can find someone to talk to ;-)
Hmmm...at least I could remember their call signs. I used to hear two guys come on the air at exactly 23:15 every night on 462.675 and talk for ten minutes (in Russian)! They were like clockwork for about a month and then disappeared completely. A log book would have helped me to keep better records in that case. My base antenna is up about 40 ft and I could barely hear them so the could have been anywhere.
-
Definitely agree. I helped Logan perform some tests over the weekend and earlier this week. I had experienced the difference elevation made to transmissions in the past, but I think Logan had less first hand experience with the results of elevating the antenna.
I have to admit, the results of our tests even surprised me. The elevation of the transmission/receiving locations made a DRASTIC difference even in flat terrain.
I was sitting in a parking lot in Culpeper, VA with the radio on scan when I heard two guys obviously putting a radio on the air for the first time and doing some brief testing on 462.550. I broke in and told them they were loud and clear at my location and asked where they were. It turns out they were in a neighborhood 32 miles north of me, but at an altitude of about 1100 feet! There's a whole community of houses on that flat mountain top plateau and only two licenced GMRS operators. Too bad one of them doesn't put up a repeater.
-
-
run power to the base of the tree and get a quality enclosure
Exactly right!
-
If I had a 100' tree, I wouldn't have spent so much money
I know that feeling! One of the problems is that the closest tree (an oak) is about 70 ft. horizontal and 100 ft. vertical from where my radio is located. Even calculating the side 'c' of the triangle (122 ft) that's a fair amount of line loss. That's why I think putting the repeater and antenna together in the tree makes some sense.
-
Had to have code approval with the city. but Our local Ham club made it easier, still took 6 months. glad to have it over and only one neighbor complained and she is across the lagoon and in the garden club to which I also belong. She said "Were not thrilled about it" referring to her and her husband. I am digging thru my junk trying to find two old HT's for a simple tower mount two antenna repeater. at only 4 watts how important is antenna separation?
If the distance between the antennas was a multiple of a wave length wouldn't you experience some gain? If we could work out the bugs it might be marketable as a package. I don't have a 100 foot tower yet but I do have two 100 foot trees (still working on how to climb them safely or launch a line to pull up a rope). My understanding of how to make a HT into a repeater is woefully lacking. I'd still like to find a way to turn my Motorola base station into something that I can ping or that would parrot back my voice for testing purposes since I'm usually working alone.
-
When code approved of my 55' tower, since the FAA required no light for it height, They said no residential 110v AC power could be affixed directly to the tower. Power for rotor is 24v and other devices use 12v. Unless you use a mobile duplexer, and a small repeater, it would be a large box. Not sure a 100' cord is a good idea. I do like the idea of eliminating so much feedline but it is more complicated as always. My current Hoffman enclosure is 24X24X18, I wonder what the wind loading would be.
Was just re-reading your post, what is "my code"? Is that a neighborhood thing? We don't have any restrictions on towers unless they get into airplane territory out my way.
-
When code approved of my 55' tower, since the FAA required no light for it height, They said no residential 110v AC power could be affixed directly to the tower. Power for rotor is 24v and other devices use 12v. Unless you use a mobile duplexer, and a small repeater, it would be a large box. Not sure a 100' cord is a good idea. I do like the idea of eliminating so much feedline but it is more complicated as always. My current Hoffman enclosure is 24X24X18, I wonder what the wind loading would be.
Nothing is ever easy when it comes to actually doing it. Maybe the concept would lend itself to a low powered solar application. I've talked 17 miles from a mountain top with only 4 watts.
Another Newbie Saying Hello
in General Discussion
Posted
Very interesting results, thanks for posting!