WRNU354

I'm thinking the radio manual should describe Busy Channel Lock Out as: Busy Channel Lockout - You may think this feature might be useful, but except for a few special cases, you will be wrong.

Based on your input and input so far there is little use, outside of very special cases, for BCL and, in fact, can impede comms on repeaters. Also based on input so far, good practice is to manage the talk out timer by letting the repeater's squelch tail to drop. Lastly, if the channel is noisy or congested select a channel less so and switch to it. Thanks!

Thanks! Good point on not waiting for the squelch tail drop and its effect. That's something I didn't consider. My favorite repeater's squelch tail seems to be about 2 seconds and the talk out timer is about a minute. Considering your points, the weekly repeater event check-in probably incentivizes people to break with the good practices. I'll listen to see if they fall back into good practice of letting the squelch tail drop after that. Thanks again.

Thanks! That is a special case, indeed. To your point and more generalized, BUSYLOCK is useful with simplex comms in noisy environments?

My enabling Busy Channel Lock (BUSYLOCK) on my radios seemed like a simple courtesy to reduce the chance of accidentally stepping on others. Before enabling it I did receive good advice that BUSYLOCK can disable a radio's ability to transmit in noisy or congested environments. I thought this risk acceptable risk since BUSYLOCK is easily disabled. What I didn't anticipate was the effect of BUSYLOCK had on my participation in repeater based events. The owner of my favorite repeater hosts a weekly event were participants start by checking-in. With a list of participates complete, he calls upon each to respond to the week's topic. It provides lighthearted discussion and opportunity to check out equipment. After enabling BUSYLOCK I found my attempts to check-in resulted in the BUSYLOCK error tone, even when I was sure the previous participant was done and no one else was attempting to talk in that moment. In my ignorance I did not consider the repeater's use of carrier delay (hang-in timer) on BUSYLOCK. With the repeater's carrier delay longer than it takes for participants, including the host, to realize the current speaker is done and there is an opportunity to talk I was effectively blocked. Now slightly less ignorant, I have disabled BUSYLOCK on my radios unless I find some future special case use. Does anyone have use for BUSYLOCK?

Everyone knows laser / cat physics with K-9 oversight is the key to any good security system!

I just visited the Flat Earth Society Discussion Board to see how they explain limits on radio propagation and me now stupider cuz it.

Yes, I have Plasti-Dip sprayed the pluck-a-fit foam in five cases with good results. Some years back I came across the tip on making foam, especially pluck-a-fit foam, more durable and tear resistant. It's simple enough to do, but there are a few tricks to making it work: 1) Do it in WELL ventilated area where over spray will not be problem. Use personal protection as needed. 2) Put the foam on a very large piece of cardboard and align it like it is in the case. 3) The solvent used in Plasti Dip can melt the foam, so the first several coats must be very light to create protective layer. 4) Make sure you spray inside the cut-outs and on the ends. Spraying the underside of the foam is not necessary. 4) Take your time and let each coat dry completely. 5) Add coats until the Plasti-Dip is thick enough to provide the desired protection. 6) Don't use the Plasti-Dip coated foam until the solvent smell is gone.

You ever treat the pluck-a-fit foam inserts with several light coats of Plasti Dip Spray to increase durability and tear resistance?

I agree. I have been looking for a protective sleeve for my Wouxun KG-935G's since I bought them, but I haven't found one yet. Thanks

I have been lugging around a large hard-side waterproof case with two radios and ALL the accessories. It's heavy, takes up a lot of room, and is generally overkill for all but the most extreme conditions. So, when I saw your solution I immediately realized it was better. Its light, rugged enough to toss into a vehicle and lower cost. For my particular use, I chose one radio per case and created inserts from scrap foam in my workshop. Each case has the basics; Radio & manual, Antenna, Extra battery, DC charger & A/C charger, USB-A to USB-C cable and field book. Thanks again for the inspiration!

For both the Wounxun KG-XS20G Plus and KG-935G Plus factory programming software provides the ability to password the MODE key and password the RESET "ALL" function. I didn't find any reference to this password functionality in my hardcopy manual or the latest PDF version so I played around with it see how it works. Here's what I found: Both passwords must be 6 digits. Password digits can be any number between 0-9 with a password of all zeros a special case. Entering 3 to 5 digits will cause the factory software to left justify the entered digits and pad the remainder with zeros. A password of all zeros disables the feature. All zeros is the factory default. Changing modes on the radio with "Mode Switch Password" enabled: 1) Press the MODE button 2) Enter the 6 digit password 3) Press the MENU button Do a RESET / ALL with "Reset Password" enabled: 1) Press the Menu button and using the up / down buttons select RESET function: 2) Press the Menu button again and using the up / down buttons select the reset type "ALL" 3) Press the Menu button again and enter the 6 digit password. 4) Press the MENU button. Quirks: Attempting to write a password of less than 3 digits to the radio will result in an programming software error. Saving to file a config with only 1-2 character passwords entered and then reading that file back results in the 6 digits passwords being left justified and padded with zeros.

When available on the radio, I enable "Busy Channel Lockout". With this enabled on my mobiles and HTs it prevents me from transmitting on a busy channel and gives me a districtive error tone. So far I haven't experienced any downside to enabling this feature by default and should I suspect a problem it is easy to disable on the radio.

Thanks again!

Thanks for the comprehensive list of scan groups. Perfect! Part of my GMRS emergency uses is achieving and maintaining situation awareness, so your post made me realize I mostly overlooked the guns, hoses, and boat people comms. I'll investigate what's available in my area. Completely overlooked by me is local railroad comms. That would be good too since I am close to a major rail line that moves lots of hazardous materials. I believe most of the local law enforcement comms in my area are encrypted, so I need to check that. Chicago PD does transmit in the clear on 8 channels, but since I'm well out of effective range of Chicago small arms fire it's of little interest. I'm starting to think of GMRS as my gateway into Ham Radio so you just gave me another reason to get a license! Question: Are monitoring ISS comms as cool as it sounds?

One of my earliest memories was with my mom at the department store. At my then eye level the escalator had this BIG RED BUTTON that I just had to push despite my mother yelling "no! stop!" as a ran toward it. Good news was my curiosity was satisfied, but the bad news it was the emergency stop button. I don't remember this but my mom said my reasoning was "Why put a big red button on it if they don't want me to push it?" So why put 200 programmable channels and 10 scan groups on a radio unless they want me to use them?

Thanks for the reply! Q: What am I scanning for? As for special events, I agree with you. We all get together, choose the channels and we are good to go. Also, you make a good point about exploiting the dual receive many radios have by setting one channel to a repeater and the other to a local simplex channel. It's my nature to dig the interworkings and application of technology. Over the decades, it has served me well by keeping a roof over my head and food on my table. So honestly, a big part my GMRS time is pushing buttons, turning knobs, and flipping bits on my radios to see what happens and what might be useful. About 1.5 years ago when I decided to upgrade from FRS to GMRS that created opportunity for me to explore the additional capabilities in the context of local or regional emergency use-case: With the emergency use-case I see 3 priorities; situational awareness, comms with family members in less than idea RF environment and possible comms with unspecified others in the community to organize a response. In my original post use-cases 1-4 are for this purpose. What I don't know and perhaps to your point, is just how useful GMRS will be in an emergency. Thanks again!

Getting past the basics of GMRS I have been trying out creating various channel groups with corresponding scan groups. This is part of my overall project to create a single common configuration across my HTs and mobiles. Channel & scan groups I've created for my HT's and Mobiles, so far are: 1) Basic - Channels 1-7 and 15-22 with no CSTSS/DCS Use: General monitoring and communications 2) Repeaters - Channels 15-22 with no CTSS/DCS Use: General repeater monitoring 3) Usable Repeaters - Channels of repeaters with CTSS/DCS available for my use. Use: Repeater monitoring and communications 4) Family - Channels 1-7 and 15-22 with family CSTSS/DCS codes Use: Family simplex communications configured to minimize interference 5) Repeater Simplex - Channel R15-R22 (467.5500 - 467.7250) without CTSS/DCS. Use: Inspired by the THE QUEEN OF ALL THAT IS GMRS, I created this group to determine if repeater users might be close enough for simplex communications.

I agree with TrikeRadio, I have two DB-25G's and use Chirp, exclusively, to program them with not a single problem. One nice feature of the DB-25G is during up and down loads it gives visual indication of its progress so you can see it begin, progress and finish. Only thing I can think might be problem, only because I've done it, is accidently plugging the programming cable into the HEADPHONE socket next to the identifically sized DATA socket. The DATA socket is silver and the one closest to the fan.

Good attention to detail and in my opinion nicer than Baofeng's camo pattern Cerakote? Could a course nylon mesh of grid over the screen serve as an anti-reflection device for added stealth? The antenna, being a dark straight line, could also benefit some attention to break up its form. I don't know what types of paint are recommended for antennas.

14:04 Central ... Still down

Good hands-on real-world testing yielding meaningful and actionable data! Thanks!

I have a Baofeng UV-5R that has a PTT/mon/call button assembly that looks a lot like your AR_5RM. Maybe its the same? Like your AR_5RM, I can accidently key my UV-5R by just picking it up. I thought I would take the chance to see if I could increase its PTT pull weight hoping it is a fix to our shared problem. Good news, maybe? I was able to increase the PTT pull weight from 14oz to 1 lb 6oz without taking the radio apart. All I needed was a small thin flat screw driver and a 5/16 x 7/16 x 1/16 nitrile O-ring (available a Harbor Freight assortment box). Can't say its a super solid fix, but I tried it a bunch of times and banged the UV-5R around as hard as a dare, with no ill-effect. Providing your AR-5RM has the UV-5R's construction its a simple modification that is quick and easily reversible. How is works: Underneath the plastic PTT button you remove there is a thin sheet of silicone and under that is the REAL PTT, a membrane button on a PCB. The internal diameter of the O-ring you are adding is larger in diameter than the membrane button. With the O-ring in place, the plastic PTT button will have to overcome the additional resistance of the O-Ring before it comes in contact with the membrane switch. What I'm hoping that will make this fix reliable are the legs on the plastic PTT button that holds it in place will also prevent the O-ring from moving. Step 0: Verify your AR-5RM looks like it shares the same PTT button as my UV-5R. Step 1: Gently and carefully use a small blade or flat-screwdriver to pry out the plastic PTT button. This is just a piece of plastic that when pushed, in turn, presses on the real PTT button, a membrane button covered by a silicone sheet. Step 2 - Put the 5/16 x 7/16 x 1/16 nitrile O-ring in place centered vertically. Next gently and carefully re-install the plastic PTT button, PTT label down, being especially careful not to displace the O-ring. It is helpful to use the small screw driver to assist in the installation. Done! Give it a try and let me know what you think.

I agree. It might be an age thing with me, but I want buttons I can feel and give at least tactile feedback when pressed. With devices using touch screens and similar tech there's no feel and without visual confirmation I don't know if I successfully pushed a button let alone the correct one. A lot of manufacturers now use haptic interfaces where depressing a touch sensitive button cause a short pulse of vibration that may also be audible. While better than nothing, to me it's inadequate.