WRXB215

I don’t always travel into deep state trap zones but when I do I put my phone in airplane mode. 

if i remember, that was yellow water  too 🤣

I few days ago, I placed a UV-5r on top of a 4x4 fence post while I was working on the pool and forgot about it. That night, we had a legit severe thunderstorm -- even got a tornado about 3 miles away. Two days later, I found it still lying on the post. I picked it up, carried it in, gave it 2 days to dry out, and it works just like it did before it got wet. Obviously, you can't count on that, and I wouldn't expose a UV-5r to rain intentionally, but still, I was pretty impressed.

Even the Baufang's are pretty tough.  Couple years ago when installing solar panels on my RV roof one of my UV5R jogged loose from my pocket clip and took a 12' fall to the cement..   I just said 'oh $hit" let it sit there on the cement while I continued with my work.   The radio was blaring away 😅 sitting there on the ground.     When i got down on the ground i checked her for damage, nothing but a slight indentation on one corner of the radio bear the antenna.   Today, its one of my favorte radios, only becuse its been battle tested.   

True, but it's not about the cost/value of the radios. It's about being sure they don't get damaged and will work when you need them. 

Here's another option: https://www.amazon.com/SUPON-Stainless-Cushioned-Universal-Photography/dp/B08RDQMHMK/ref=sr_1_20?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.7F0MoaqS1hOXuseoMg5yEjYpp_O-zMI5uiSuOpv_Fuk2OfTdof57AzGC2DiJN2Ps9tYlipokl8qTVyhO2GAXghhtsG07MAx29IdW_9oXP289HV-XBsLZZ3bcP5q779s1U3ql4RT8k1qVGGvMOYXnlcy7YSMBnpRadQZCGNGJDt44ZxiEjWfclO4NgkyvRZomTc2pwLghdBkTluuXs2JsIqZ4ghtBk8Z-DAlrjvTstFqtTqoeWWkLwJUBzc_J28W99A5RiyQuPoFS082QeKHlDsq0nXRMXyg6PH7XJj0ewjY.AvkF1II5IvOKkPeMniBdCh2UnX9ERVlRYHFX1jRFq5U&dib_tag=se&qid=1749492042&sr=8-20&srs=18203216011

I tried the tones on that repeater and it didn't respond.  I went through the set and still nothing.  I don't think it's running anymore.  Said it was put into the database 16 years ago, so it may be defunked.
 
Looks like the owners GMRS license had expired in 2011
 
https://mygmrs.com/license/WQFG755

Yep, there are other brands that are way more expensive.

Is it a HAM Lic?   you follow this copied cliped process:   
To request a vanity call sign that was previously held by a deceased individual, you can apply for it under the "in memoriam" provision or the "close relative of former holder" provision, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). You must have in your station records a written statement from a spouse, child, grandchild, stepchild, parent, grandparent, stepparent, brother, sister, stepbrother, stepsister, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, or in-law of the deceased confirming their association with the club and their consent to your request.    Here's a more detailed explanation:   1. Check if the call sign is available: Use the FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) or other databases like QRZ.com to see if the call sign is currently in use or available. 

CW is a mode. Morse Code is the most common code use with CW.

CW is a mode. Morse Code is the most common code use with CW.

Went and poked around on their website and found this.


Is that just a rebadged $30 UV88 (also the basis for the Radioddity GM-30)? I'm in the wrong line of business.

I figured I would let everyone know, I updated Chirp tonight and saw the Radioddity DB20G is now on the supported radios list. Which Im sure means the other brands of this same radio likely work with it as well. Consider this a friendly heads up. I think we all prefer Chirp over most all oem software. 

I looked it up but I am still confused.

No you are not. One shouldn't expect a manufacturer or reseller to replace a defective product after any and all warranties have expired. I don't know of any manufacturer or reseller of any consumer products that will replace or fix (free of charge) any product after the warranty has expired.

Am I the only one thinking it's weird/irrational that the OP expects warranty support from a vender when the product is no longer under warranty and will angrily boycott that vender when denied free out-of-warranty support?
or, maybe i'm just missing something?

Everyone has to have a FRN number no matter if they hold a MGRS license, amateur license or multiple licenses. That's why I looked him up using his FRN.
And according to the FCC database, he does NOT have an amateur license, he only has a GMRS license.
If you go to the FCC website and look up a GMRS call sign, it will not show if they hold any other licenses. If you use the Advance Search and search by FRN then it will show all licenses held by that person the FRN is registered to.
That website showed two different GMRS call signs, the last name, middle initial and location are the same but the first names are different. 
The first call sign is his and the other is listed as possible match. 

I am going to second the 778uv... got one to use as a mobile rig, and a week later grabbed a second for the base rig as well.... absolutely great radio for the money for sure....

I, too, shopped forever to find a small ~25W mobile radio with a fully integrated mic or a remote/detachable head. The 20V2 is about the only thing there is in that category, but I was off-put by the reviews and the 20W limit.

I ended up with an AnyTone 778UVII 25W mobile radio. This thing is great! And I also recently discovered there are folks out there that have successfully detached the faceplate and ran a cable from it back to the radio unit. There’s an Aussie selling a kit for that on eBay. Might do that later, but for now I’m pretty happy with this thing. 

Stop being such a looser. I doubt you even read it.

A well setup repeater will have battery backup and generator backup power. Granted one still has to be able to get to the repeater site to keep a generator fueled and running. Hurricane Helena is just one example of properly setup repeaters with backup power kept running even when everything else was down.
We have battery backup and generator backup at our main repeater site that has our 2m, main 70cm, and GMRS repeaters. So far we have not had to run the generator even in the bad storms with tornadoes.

I sell punctuation cheap.  Contact me for pricing.

TLDR.
The simple answer to the question is: "It depends".

A little family history. My great, great grandfather seventeen generations back on my mom's side was the Chief of the Zamboni tribe in Malawi. Does that mean anything to anybody? I don't think it should. Bottom line, we are all members of the human race and there's no need for all this pigeon holing and placing people in irrelevant boxes. Just my opinion.

@WSHW974 please ignore the snide comments from this forum’s resident ass hat. You can certainly program tones in these first 30 channels. What they are referring to is that GMRS is a channel based service and so the frequencies are assigned to the channels and baked in. The first 22 are simplex and the next eight are for repeaters with the same receive frequencies as 15-22 and the transmit having a pre programmed + 5. (462.xxx Rx and 467.xxx Tx) No need to set the offset as it is also baked in. You can set tones for repeaters as well. Hope this helps.