WRYZ926

The DX Engineering Max400 is an LMR equivalent and good coax for less cost. Search around for LMR400 equivalent coax. I would just stay away from the cheap stuff on Amazon.

A job is not done correctly if no blood is drawn.

The main issue with Baofeng radios is not the transmit quality. The issue is the receive quality. They are more susceptible to frontend overload and interference when compared to other radios. But yes the Baofeng radios do work as intended and have allowed many people to get into amateur radio and/or GMRS without spending a lot of money. The same thing can be said about Hi-Point. Granted most of my experiences has been with their carbines. They are cheap, no frills firearms that work reliably. Again they serve a purpose that they allow people on limited budgets to be able to have a firearm for self defense. It doesn't matter what we talk about when it comes to radios, firearms, or anything else. Prices and quality range from very cheap to very expensive. And even the more expensive stuff will have their quirks and/or issues. Go with what you like and also what fits your budget. Don't worry about what others say.

Don't bother because he will state that he has 999 reason to not use any Chinese made radio. In fact he will only recommend an old commercial radio that requires either MS-Dos or Windows 3.1 to program.

Most Y adaptors are going to be stereo aka 3 pole males to stereo 3 pole female. And that is where the problem arrises with sound quality. And @MSnow is correct that you will want a 3 pole in to dual 2 pole out adaptor along with a stereo speaker for everything to work correctly and sound good. I never tried a stereo speaker with the stereo y adaptor yet. But I can tell you that using a stereo y adaptor with a more single channel speaker sounds horrible when connected to both speaker outputs on the radio.

I've had my KG-1000G radios for about the same amount of time. I have one in my 2023 Ford Escape and the other in the house. My experiences have been similar to yours. Installing radios in the Escape was a bit of a pain too. There are very few spots to get wires through the firewall. I am running a Tram 1174 antenna for GMRS and a Comet SBB-1 for 2m/70cm. I have height restrictions since I park my Escape in the garage. Plus the parking garages at doctors' offices have low clearances too. The Wouxun KG-1000G is close to the same price as the Midland MXT500/MXT575 and it has performed better than the Midland radios for me. And don't let Negative Nancy poo on your posts or about what radios you use. Just ignore him like the rest of us do.

I do wish that Wouxun would have a mic gain setting on their radios. The KG-1000G mic is a bit hot. I haven't had any complaints when using the KG-935G or KG-Q10H. But then again I am not holding the radios too close to my face either.

Correct me if I'm wrong. Hasn't the Yaesu 8900 been discontinued for a few years now? And yes the TYT TH-7800 and TH-9800 are copies of discontinued Yaesu radios.

It's always nice to have choices. Midland radios are not for me but I also won't knock someone that likes them either. Nor will I degrade others for buying what they like or what they can afford. We all have different budgets and income levels. Go with what you like and don't worry about what others think of your choices. I see the same snobbish attitudes on the different firearms forums too. I'll stick with my Hi-Point carbine that is cheap, FUGLY, yet accurate and very reliable.

I've went round and round with Siri and whenever I have called her a dirty name, she just laughs at me and really messes up what I have types. Siri is pure evil. The issue I had with the MXT500 I owned was that it had low power even set to high. And I don't care for how the Midland radios with everything in the hand mic cannot be programmed using a computer. That is more of a personal preference for me since they are pretty easy to program through the radio itself. Midland radios are fine for those that want a simple radio that works right out of the box and they don't want/need all of the bells and whistles. I'll stick with Wouxun radios for Part 95 certified radios as they have all worked well for me. PS: I double checked everything to make sure Siri did not change anything before hitting the reply button.

I just did a presentation on repeater etiquette at our club's monthly meeting last night. And that was one of the key points. I pointed out that you should always give your call sign on a couple of the Power Point slides. We have a guy that is notorious for doing that. He made the comment that he does it between 10-11 at night thinking that no one else is around. I politely informed him that some of us are night owls and do hear it. I would rather have someone using Roger Beeps or have a setting wrong that makes their radio squawk or make other noises at the end of every transmission than put up with a kerchunker. I bring up the squawk because we have a couple of guys using Baofeng and other CCR hand held that quack and man does that hurt my ears.

I occasionally turn the Roger Beep on just to aggravate my friends and fellow club members that get bothered by hearing it. Otherwise I couldn't care less. Some will give you trouble for using a Roger Beep on any of our repeaters but we also do not ban the use of a Roger Beep.

You can get the Icom IC-2730A for $310 at DX Engineering and Giga Parts. And if you are interested in having the MARS Mod done, Giga Parts only charges $35 for the mod if you have them do it at the time of purchase of the radio. I replaced the TH-7800 in my shack with the IC-2730A. I'll eventually replace the TH-7800 in my vehicle with another IC-2730. I currently am using one of the TH-7800 radios strictly for Winlink and it will go into a go box along side my Xiegu G90.

Sorry to hear that. I bought both of my TH-7800 radios at the end of 2023-beginning of 2024 and I haven't had any problems with them.

I have to agree with @SteveShannon on this. I just tested my Q10H with a Wouxun hand mic and it works just fine. I have also used headsets. with my Q10H and 935G and they work fine with both radios. One thing to remember is that the hand mic will only transmit on the channel set in the top area (A) when you have dual channel display. It will not transmit on the area B channel if it is selected. Another issue when using a hand mic or headset is that no matter if you change the two PTT buttons on the radio, the hand mic or headset will still only transmit as if you are using PTT 1 button (bottom PPT button) So lets say that you have PTT 1 set for area B and PTT 2 set for area A, the hand mic/headset will only transmit on what area PTT 1 is set for in the radio's settings.

It really depends on what type of antenna you want to build as far as length goes. You typically want 1 foot for a 1/2 wave antenna for GMRS. A 1/2 wave is better than using a 1/4 wave. 1/4 wave antennas definitely need a good ground plane while 1/2 wave antennas do not need a ground plane. You will definitely need a NanaVNA or antenna analyzer if you plan on building your own antennas. Always start a little long so that you can cut/trim to get the SWR correct. Like wood working, it is always easier to cut material off than it is to add material. One of the guys in my local club has built j pole antennas for GMRS, 70cm, 6m, and even 11m/CB. He used aluminum tubing for the 6m and 11m/CB antennas. He had some old 75 ohm solid core coax that he used to make the 70cm and GMRS j pole antennas. Some solid wire around 6 gauge will also work well for a 1/2 wave vertical GMRS antenna. You can always put the wire in some PVC pipe to protect it.

Either that or he needs to go see his doctor again to get his medication doses adjusted. He's like a little kid - you never know what he is going to say.

I'll have to see if I can find the videos again from a guy in Europe that uses an electric trike when doing POTA. Though he only uses the trike to haul everything.

Where there is a will there is a way. This would be a good use for the small IP rated 20 watt radios or a good water proof case. Though I have not looked into an HF radios that are IP rated if they even exist. I agree that ham-sticks would be a good solution for the HF bands. @Lscott I don't blame you for considering a trike. I have looked at them myself since I am disabled yet still need some type of exercise.

Again, NOT everyone lives in the ideal location for getting extreme ranges on UHF. And no one really cares that you get 200 miles when using repeaters. And most of us are also getting very tired of your negative comments. You either live a very sad life or you need to seek professional help and get on meds. Our GMRS repeater antennas are at 400 feet above ground and we are getting a coverage radios of 30-35 miles. This is due to the local terrain and forested areas. There is another repeater close by that haas a 50 mile radius but their tower site is at a higher level above sea level. Reception is going to be hit or miss for both repeaters depending on people's actual location. Most GMRS repeaters in Missouri have a coverage radius of 20-25 miles, again location and local terrain plays a big part. There are only 4-5 repeaters in the entire state that get a 50 mile radius because they are on the highest point in their area. And 70cm repeaters do not do any better. It is the nature of UHF. Our main 70cm repeater antennas are at 900 feet above ground on the same tower as our GMRS repeater and the 70cm repeater has the exact same coverage area as the GMRS repeater with the same dead zones. @WRJB532 Thank you for posting this for those that live in your area or for those that might be traveling through.

You can find adult trikes for as low as $220 on Walmart's website. https://www.walmart.com/browse/sports-outdoors/adult-tricycles/4125_1081404_1230089_7538787 And it looks like you can get them on Amazon starting at $146 and up. https://www.amazon.com/s?k=adult+tricycles+for+men&crid=3BWK1SSI08NJT&sprefix=adult+tri%2Caps%2C132&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_5_9

Yes when I say the storm took out the cell towers that includes everything from losing power to actual physical damage to the towers and/or equipment. The same thing with amateur radio repeaters. I always laugh at the preppers that think they can just pick up their Baofeng radios and use the repeaters during a natural disaster or other major catastrophe. The repeaters can and will go down without backup power or if they are physically damaged. And a good backup power system can get quite expensive depending on your setup and how long you want it to last.

I received a written warning for the same thing. My brother did get a DUI on his bicycle. What ever you decide on as far as equipment, make sure to stay safe.

As mentioned, it is against FCC regulations to use a non certified radio on GMRS. The chances of the FCC kicking in your door are non existent, unless you are really messing up to get the attention of our overlords. As for your question. Yes Icom and Yaesu radios can be MARS modded. Both brands require actual physical hardware modifications. You better be good at working with super tiny components if you want to do the mod yourself. Some retailers will perform the MARS mod for you. Giga Parts is usually the cheapest for the MARS mod if done at the time of purchase of a radio from them.

@BoxCar is correct. definitely check your state and local laws. Missouri is one state that bans both ears covered while operating a motorized vehicle. I would have to dig into the state statutes to see if that covers non motorized vehicles on public roads. I know that you definitely get a "DUI" on a bicycle and even on a horse in Missouri. They do word it slightly different when not operating a motorized vehicle but the charges are the same.