Jump to content

WRYZ926

Members
  • Posts

    2117
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    45

Everything posted by WRYZ926

  1. They definitely gave you the wrong information. They gave you the offset for VHF repeaters which is 0.600 MHz. And that is why you came up with 463.300 MHz The correct offset for GMRS is 5.000 MHz which will give you the correct offset frequency of 467.700 MHz. GMRS repeater channels always use a positive offset of 5 MHz. Your radio will transmit on 467.700 and receive on 462.700. The repeater will transmit on 462.700 and receive on 467.700
  2. I'll add to what Steve posted. Here is a link showing the only authorized channels for GMRS. https://www.buytwowayradios.com/blog/2022/11/list-of-gmrs-frequencies-and-channels.html You can't just pick any frequency between 462 MHz and 467 MHz and use them on GMRS. You have to stick with the designated channels. Midland radios will not transmit on anything other than designated GMRS channels. I have yet to see anyone hack a Midland radio.
  3. We transmitted into dummy loads as part of a test of our emergency communications trailer. So unless someone was really close to the trailer, no one heard us when transmitting into a dummy load.
  4. Yes it will work. The issue is that the FCC doesn't allow cross band repeating or linking different services. While your GMRS call sign gives you privileges on GMRS channels they don't give you privileges on the amateur bands. And an amateur license does not give you privileges on GMRS. It doesn't matter if you have both licenses or not. We tested some dual band amateur mobile radios with cross band repeat that were MARS Modded and yes you can cross band from GRMS to 2m. I don't suggest doing it though. You will get the attention of the sad hams and sad GMRS curmudgeons really quick by doing this. And again not permissible by the FCC.
  5. The Comet 2x4SR definitely does better with a good ground plane underneath. I have one mounted on a small metal plate that is bolted down to an expanded metal rack on my SxS and another mounted on the center of the cab roof on my 2010 Ford F150 Super cab. I get an SWR of 1.8 and below on 2m, 1.25m, MURS, 70cm, and GMRS with both setups. It's hard to find a good spot with a large enough surface for a good ground plane on a Jeep Wrangler. Going with an antenna that doesn't require a ground plane will work better.
  6. GMRS Live is a variant of AllStar Link. Both use the Asterisk Server.
  7. I know that Colorado has their GMRS Channel 3 program. I don't know if any other state has adopted that plan or not. I know there was talk about trying to make that a nation wide program. One problem is getting everyone to recognize such a program and then use designated channel/frequency only for emergencies. A prime example is CB Chanel 9 which was the defacto emergency channel for a long time. You will hear all kinds of conversations on Channel 9 now days to the point it would be useless as an emergency channel.
  8. Some dual band 2m/70cm antennas already work for MURS/FRS with acceptable SWR of 2.0 or less. And you are correct that it would not take much to dual band MURS/FRS antennas with just small changes to the element lengths.
  9. It would be easy to make a dual band antenna that covers MURS and FRS/GMRS. It's done all of the time for 2m and 70cm dual band radios. Tri band and quad band hand held radios generally require two antennas: one for 2m/70cm and another for 1.25m and 6m. The cat's out of the bag when it comes to actually separating FRS from GMRS. I doubt that will ever happen. But I could be wrong on that.
  10. Actually it is right below the 6m band which is 50.0 MHz to 54.0 MHz. The US Military still uses 30 MHz to 70 MHz. Some source state 30 MHz to 75 MHz or 88 MHz. This includes the frequency hopping SINCGARS radio system. Yes 46 MHz or 49 MHz could be used for public two way coms but that portion of the VHF spectrum can be fickle hence calling the 6m band the magic band as it is either open or closed and you never know which it is. And openings don't stay open very long.
  11. I should have been more precise in my statement by saying that a FRS radio can't transmit on GMRS repeater channels. I never know when a simple answer or a precise answer is needed around here.
  12. EASY PEASY that even a lowly Private can understand. Legal FRS radios can't transmit on the GMRS repeater channels. All bets are off if someone is using an unlocked radio.
  13. Yes following the regs does matter and why I stated the following: One really can't tell if someone is on a FRS radio or GMRS radio when using simplex channels as the FCC messed up when they allowed both services on the same channels. Obviously you won't ever hear a FRS radio on the GMRS repeater channels. Again. GO with what works for you on how often you say you call sign as long as you are at a minimum giving it every 15 minutes and at the end of your conversation.
  14. That's why I made my comment about people needing to eat a Snickers Bar as they seem to be very hangry over stuff that doe not matter. In the end it doesn't really matter how you use GMRS as long as you follow the FCC regulations and guidelines. Same goes for amateur radio too.
  15. That is the plan if/when I get the roof drilled for a NMO mount. I do plan on adding a backing plate to the underside of the cab roof. I would not want the roof to tear if I hit something with the antenna.
  16. Center of the cab roof is always going to be best.\ I don't know how thick the roof metal is on a 2006 F150. but the roof is pretty thin on my 2010 F150. A magnet mount does hold the antenna at highway speeds but it won't take much to knock the antenna off. I'm going to go with a permanent NMO mount as soon as I can find someone close to help with the install.
  17. Everyone does things a little different. Go with what works for you and your repeater.
  18. WOW!!! Looks like some people could use a Snickers Bar about now. We can't blame it on people being cooped up in the house due to cold weather either. We aren't sticklers on the use of call signs on our repeater. You can either give your call sign at the beginning of your first transmission or at the end of your first transmission. I know the rules only state every 15 minutes and at the end of the conversation. But it's a curtesy to give it in the first transmission since we have a lot of people with the same names or they sound similar on the radio. It makes it easier to know who we are talking to. The only time we say anything about someone NOT using a call sign is if they are kerchunking the repeater. It' not hard to just say "your call sign testing". And if they want to give their call sign at the end of every transmission, we won't say much about that either. This is especially true if there are a few of us on the repeater talking as a group.. To each their own.
  19. That will make a difference. I have tried the Nagoya and Abbree 771 and 771G with all of my hand held radios. The 771 did make an improvement with my Baofeng GT-5R and the 771G did make an improvement with my Baofeng UF-5R GMRS radios. I tried the 771 on my Icom IC-T10, Explorer QRZ-1 (TYT UV-88), Wouxun KG-Q10H, and Wouxun KG-935H. In every single case with these radios, the stock antennas worked better. I also tried the 771G on my Wouxun KG-935G and again the stock antenna worked better. You won't know if an aftermarket antenna will be better, worse, or the same as a stock antenna without trying. And yes the longer 771 is a pain to use in a vehicle or even when carrying a radio on your belt. The best improvement you can make is to use an external antenna on your vehicle or a base antenna at home.
  20. I tried the Nagoya 771 antenna on my Baofeng radios along with radios from various manufacturers. The 771 is around 15.5" long. I did see a small improvement when using the 771 on my Baofeng radios. But the OEM antennas on all of my other hand held radios worked better. Plus you have a longer antenna to deal with. You are better off just sticking with the OEM antenna the radios come with.
  21. You are correct that the mobiles aren't a good comparison to hand held radios. But it does show that even going from 20 watts to 50 watts does not make a big difference. Hand held use short and very compromised antennas that aren't very high above the ground. Line of site will make more of a difference than 2 watts versus 10 watts. Here is a question to ponder. Will a hand held work better if used by a big person compared to a skinny person? I ask since our bodies act as part of the ground plane when using a hand held radio.
  22. I did a similar experiment using 20 watts and 50 watts on my base radio and Comet CA-712EFC. There is a GMRS repeater about 50-55 miles straight line distance from me. I could get in and was heard at 20 watts but had lots of static/noise. Switching to 50 watts made all the difference. The extra 30 watts didn't get me any more FARZ but it did make my signal clearer. It's not going to make much difference between 2, 5, or 10 watts with an HT when everything else is equal. One has to quadruple the output power to gain 1 S unit (6dB). And most people won't be able to hear the difference in 1 S unit.
  23. Definitely not enough difference between 2 watts and 10 watts when using a HT for anyone to notice. Now I have held my cane up in the air while using a HT and cell phone and have occasionally seen a slight improvement. But I have to point the cane towards the tower no notice any change. As mentioned, UHF frequencies do not get along with trees, especially evergreen trees.
  24. Remember that the advertised amperage of power supplies is the peak amp draw and NOT the continuous power draw. You can figure the continuous power draw will be 75% to 80% of the peak amps. Most 30 amp power supplies are only good for 22-24 amps continuous. I run my Icom IC-2730 and my Wouxun KG-1000G with an Astron 30 amp power supply and it does fine since I never talk on both radios at the same time. I tried running my Yaesu FTDX-10 or Icom IC-7300 with my LDG AT-1000ProII auto tuner on the 30 amp Astron. Tuning with the LDG would be enough to cause the 30 amp Astron to go into protection mode and shut down. Either radio and the LDG tuner runs fine on the Astron 50 amp power supply.
  25. The Astron power supplies are worth the extra cost when compared to some of the cheap power supplies on Amazon. I just replaced a 50 amp TekPower switching power supply from Amazon with a 50 amp Astron switching power supply. The TekPower was only a year old and it started making noises whenever I transmitted with my 100 watt HF radios and also put noise in my transmissions. Now for a truly clean power supply, you are going to want a linear power supply, but those cost more than switching power supplies.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Guidelines.