WRXB215

Man, you are going through a string of bad luck. Hope you get what you are looking for soon.

LOL! Yep, reverse-psychology works well on children.

Yes, that would be nice.

It happens sometimes. Don't let it get to you and certainly don't let it turn you off of radios. Be patient and keep on plugging.

Good advice.

That's a good thing.

Physical locations and online. https://www.retail-insight-network.com/news/radio-shack-is-coming-back/?cf-view https://www.amazon.com/stores/RadioShack/RadioShack/page/428CD7AB-87FF-4B6C-B5C3-96B7B297DFC4

Yep, could be rudeness, or could be they don't know you and just don't know what to say.

Yes, some radios actually do this. I like to refer to it as "self preservation."

I was not into ham radio at the time but it's my understanding that he was the guest speaker at the Baytown Hamfest last year. I'm sorry I wasn't there to meet him. He sounds like quite a gentleman and scholar.

For me, its the D that's the problem. People will typically hear it as a T if I don't use phonetics. That happened just this morning driving to work. "TYT!? That's a cool call sign!" And that is not the first time I've heard that. On the other hand, I get the CW thing. I'm trying to learn Morse code now. 20wpm isn't for the faint of heart. And to think, some people go way faster than that.

I agree.

If you don't understand what @Sshannon said, start with the instructions below. When you are done with that, go back and re-read what Steve wrote. By that time, you should be able to program your UV-5R. If not, let us know exactly what problem you are having. For the AT-778UV: First, using the OEM software(this can't be done in CHIRP) click on the Model menu and select Model Information. Make sure Band 2 is selected. After setting the band, double click on a channel/memory space in the grid to get to the settings for that line. Your results should look like this: In CHIRP, it should look like this: Read this to get a better understanding of CHIRP, especially the Tone Mode column. EDIT: I forgot to mention, one of the strengths of CHIRP is that after programming your repeaters in one radio, you can copy the lines and paste them into the file of other radios. If you have multiple repeaters and multiple radios, this will save you a lot of time. NOTE: When using CHIRP, first read from the radio and save the file. You will need a different file for each different model of radio. You can't load the AT-778UV file into a UV-5R. There is a lot of other specific things CHIRP has to know before trying to write to a radio.

Keep in mind, the higher the wattage, the faster you drain the battery.

When the grid goes down, repeaters may not be available either. Batteries and generators only last for so long. As far as satellites go, you can only communicate on them for a few minutes at best while they are in range. Then you have to wait for a while before you get another chance on another satellite. And not only that, the other person you are trying to reach has to be on the same satellite at the same time. If you want to use satellites at any given time you need to use something like the Garmin Rino. Otherwise it is really hit and miss.

As @OffRoaderX indicated, starting out with ham radios is going to make it a little more difficult. I have some UV-5Rs and an AT-778UV so if you have any specific questions about those I may be able to help. The way tones work is the same across the board. Here is a few very basic pointers to hopefully help you get going: Simplex: radio to radio Duplex: radio to repeater (offset) GMRS offset is +5MHz. GMRS radios should already have this set on the repeater channels for you. Ham radios don't so you have to set it yourself. When using a repeater, RX will be a frequency 462.### and TX will be a frequency of 467.### with the same .###. See note above. Tones: Most repeaters use a "tone" on the RX or "input" of the repeater which will be the 467.### frequency. These tones are sometimes called PL or DPL tones, CTCSS, etc. but they work the same. When a repeater, or radio has a tone set on the RX, it will squelch out (ignore) any signal that does not carry that same tone. Therefore, you must use the same tone on your TX that the repeater uses on it's RX. You do not have to use a tone on your RX. Without any tone on RX, you will hear all signals in that frequency. Hope this helps.

@Jbailey welcome to GMRS. If you have any specific questions, just ask. Also, don't hesitate to do a search. Most questions have been asked and answered.

Welcome @Millimar

Congratulations!

Every day I become more and more convinced that is the most likely scenario we will face.

They are likely using tones. If you have a tone set on your RX, it will squelch out any signal that is not sent with the same tone. Find out what tone they are using and set that in your TX and they should hear you. You can year signals that are sent with a tone if you use the same tone on RX or no tone at all.

The tones are sometime DCS. Which repeater are you referring to?

OK, now you've done it. You've gone and made me cry. I'm taking my toys and going home. Seriously though, I wasn't trying to dictate any kind of requirement. Using a unit number or some other id like first name or nick name can help avoid confusion. People use to always confuse my father and I because we sounded so much alike. My mother and my sisters sounded a lot alike as well.

You and your family members should use the call sign plus a unit number.

I just now looked at a handful of them. Only one in that group appears to be linked. Also, most of them are closed patch but there are a few that are open.