WRWE456

What you may be missing is the purpose of GMRS. It is intended for family and groups to stay in touch. That's why your license covers your immediate family. It's not really about making random social contacts although some use it for that on repeaters. Could be there is just no one around that wants to talk to strangers. Ham radio is better if that is you goal.

Thanks for posting that. I learned quit a bit. So it seems that linked repeaters are not allowed. Got my popcorn.

Here is a good source for reasonably priced connectors: https://www.americanradiosupply.com/sma/?page=1

Glad to help. I do not have that radio or know anything about it so I will let others answer your questions about it. Just looked it up for reference: https://www.ameradio.com/product/5165/description.html is this the one? I assume it requires software to program do you have that? It could be a project to get it set up for GMRS. Good luck!

And one more. Welcome!

The Midlands are very basic radios. They do not have removable antennas so can not be upgraded or connected to a car antenna. They also do not use repeaters. They are fine for basic simplex use like camping with the family, hunting etc. I have six of them.

WSAT598 that's a cool call sign! That Tiger Mt. repeater really has some reach. One thing to keep in mind with the whip antennas is to keep them vertical while transmitting. I believe that Abbree is a copy of the Nagoya NA-771G https://www.buytwowayradios.com/nagoya-na-771g.html?___SID=U which is a very good antenna. Is it as good as the Nagoya? I don't know. And of course getting outside and up high will help.

Welcome! You bit off quite alot for your first GMRS radio. Here is an article that is good for beginners to read: https://www.buytwowayradios.com/blog/2024/01/how-to-buy-your-first-gmrs-radio.html

I heard a couple guys talking about it on the Tiger Mt. repeater this afternoon and said it seems to be cleared up today.

Hello and welcome! I am up in the San Juan Islands and I hear the Tiger Mt. repeater very well. Where are you located? I don't have anything to add to your theory but it sound plausible. I had to look up QRM (man made interference from electronic devices) as opposed to QRN (interference from natural source's) Very interesting stuff! I don't know how many are using SDR's to monitor GMRS but we do have a few ham's around here that may have something to offer. Thanks for sharing something new and interesting.

You didn't say if you were using it in a car. I was assuming you were using it in the house. More details will help.

Hello and welcome! Most mobile antenna's require a ground plane such as the metal of a car body to work properly. If it's a magnet mount you can place it on a cookie sheet or pizza pan which will provide a ground plane. You will get better performance outside the house and as high as you can get it. Same with the handheld. UHF (GMRS) is mainly line of sight. The more stuff the signal has to penetrate the weaker it will be and the shorter your range.

Glad to help. Thanks for the report on BTWR support.

And yes the Moni button is monitor. It turns the squelch off so you can hear everything even very weak signals that will not open squelch even on the lowest setting.

Interesting. Here is a link to it. if you scroll through the photos you will see the mic close up. https://www.buytwowayradios.com/wouxun-kg-1000g-plus.html

I have the KG-1000G Plus. Renaming that button must be one of the changes made to the new model.

That roof rack may not be doing the 72G any favors. There are many things that can cause issues like that.

That reads: 6/Mode

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Man that was brazen! I have heard of pirate radio but this takes it to a new level.

Good luck! Please let us know what they say.

I'm just thinking of a college student and his ability to set up much of ham station. Would depend on his living situation I guess. I'm sure he could handle more studying for another test LOL!

Fortunately for me the rural area I live in is still analog for most everything including Sheriff ,EMS and fire which is mainly what I am interested in. I get by just fine with a Uniden BC125AT hand held. I have three of them. Cost $130. I think was what I paid.

There are of course Sat phones and they do work well however you are still relying on someone else's network. I asked my sat phone provider what would happen if they were unable to function if SHTF and they said the phone would work for 60 days after last payment was made. So even that is limited in a longer term outage. Still may be the best option however as they are easy to operate. Just need a clear view of the sky so anyone can operate them without much technical ability.

That's ebay for ya, people will sell current production items for way more than they cost new. I see it all the time. There must be enough people that fall for that or they wouldn't do it so much. Ya most of the prices I saw were in the 300-400 range.