WRYZ926

Yes you can make a repeater using two radios. But you will be better off using an actual purpose built repeater. @OffRoaderX can tell you more about using two KG-1000G radios as a repeater. What I can tell you is that the KG-1000G makes a nice base station when used with a good antenna and good coax. My setup is a KG-1000G, Comet CA-712 antenna and LMR400 type coax. The antenna is 18 feet above the ground at its base. I can talk to others on simplex up to 25 miles away here in Mid Missouri. Geographical location and antenna height will make a difference.

One will definitely get farther range in the open desert or across lakes. And of course the higher both stations antennas are the better for line of sight. Here in mid Missouri, 30-35 miles is about the max to reach the local repeater with it's antennas at 400 feet above ground when using a mobile radio.

One thing I found is that RT systems does not always play well with aftermarket cables, especially with the Prolific chips. Double check your coms port number in device manager to make sure your computer is seeing it. Then check that you are using the correct com port number in the RT Systems software.

It's all good @WRUU653. I sometimes suffer from too much blood in my caffeine system.

Okay I was wrong, CHIRP Next does support the 935G. I just prefer the Wouxun software from the BTWR website. It is nice and easy to use. I run CHIRP Next on my Mac mini and Windoze 11 computer.

The KG935G has been mentioned a few times in the different threads. Buy Two Way Radios is currently out of stock on the KG-935G Plus but expect them to start shipping on March 15th. They are $149 and worth it. https://www.buytwowayradios.com/wouxun-kg-935g-plus.html?___SID=U You can download the Wouxun software from the BTWR website. I find the Wouxun software easier to use. It will only run on Windoze though.

And that is exactly what he did. Unfortunately the driver did not have insurance. But home owner's insurance is covering 100% of everything and will go after the driver.He is just waiting for all of the replacement stuff to arrive.

Like mentioned in another thread, a good SOC radio works fine. I wouldn't worry about SOC radios from Yaesu or Icom, they work just fine. I do have to say that it does sound like having a good hand held scanner would be the best option for you to listen to all of the bands. There is really no one size fits all for hand held transceivers.

Safety first. A club member had an ID10T run off the road and hit one of the guy wires on his 70 foot tower and it tweaked the tower and guy wire mounts. He had several beam antennas on the top and it was not safe to climb the tower. He called in carne to drop the tower. Cranes can average about $200 an hour with a minimum 2 hour charge. But that is cheaper than medical bills and lost wages.

I agree with what @Sshannon and @WSAM454 said. Most of us will flat out ignore a kerchunk. And if you are giving your call sign, then you might not be getting into the repeater well enough for people to hear and understand you. We currently have a guy asking for radio checks on our GMRS repeater but most of the time all the rest of us hear is static. Or if he do hear him (with lots of static) he is hard to understand.

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double post, please delete

This is very true. My Icom IC-T10 is SOC and does very well.

Yes you normally tune while transmitting. But an out of tune antenna with a high SWR definitely won't hear as well either.

It's definitely easier to turn the power level down than it is to add power when needed. I'll use low power on my base station or even a HT when talking to someone across town on simplex so I don't blow them out of their chair.

Eight miles should not be a problem for a HT to reach if the repeater antennas are high enough. It sounds like either the repeater antennas aren't that high or you are dealing with a lot of RF/EM noise in your area. Urban and suburban area are going to have higher RF/EM noise. This is commonly called the noise floor. For the OP, I agree from personal experience that VHF definitely does better cutting through foliage and getting around hills compared to UHF. I notice this all of the time when using the local repeaters while in my vehicle. I can be in a valley or surrounded by cedar trees and I can still get out fine on 2m while 70cm and GMRS struggles at times. Now UHF has its advantages too. UHF works better inside buildings and such.

I'm interested to see if the Smiley antenna does any better than the stock 935G antenna. I have an Abbree 771G antenna and it doesn't do any better than the stock 935G antenna. The same Abbree antennas are definitely better than the stock Baofeng UV-5R GMRS antennas and does make a difference.

This is very true. The local 2m,70cm, and GMRS repeaters are all on the same tower 21.5 miles away. I use mid power on my 50 watt base radios since I do not need to use high power. Now high power is needed at times when talking simplex on all three bands.

There is another thread that explains the loss of different types of coax cable. It is worth reading. And that is also why most of us will use LMR400 or equivalent coax for our base station antennas, it has the lowest loss per 100 feet for UHF. Range is very dependent on location. This of us in the midwest and eastern parts of the country will probably never see 60 or more mile ranges due to terrain, forests, structures, noise floor, etc, etc. Those in the deserts with clear line of sight over gray distances and little to no noise floor will have greater range. The quality of your coax and antenna, along with the antenna height above ground matters. I can get into the GMRS repeater that is 21.5 miles away on low power (5 watt) with my KG-1000G hooked to my Comet CA-712 antenna mounted above the roof (20 feet above ground). But at low power, my transmission volume is a bit low for others to hear. I can probably use any of my HT's hooked to that antenna too. I also have a Wouxun KG-XS20G in my SxS with a Comet 2x4SR antenna that works great getting into the repeater. 25 miles is about the maximum distance I can talk to anyone on simplex with my 50 watt base station. The others that I can reach have their antennas either at 30 feet or 60 feet. But we have to use high power to hear/understand each other. Granted line of sight for the other guys from my location is just barely over the local terrain and forests.

I agree that it isn't worth chasing after a 10 watt hand held, the extra 5 watts won't make a difference. Now you can get the Wouxun KG-10H amateur band HT that covers 1.25m, 2m, 6m, and 70cm right out of the box and it can be unlocked for GMRS. It will also receive air band frequencies. But it is out of your price range if your cap is $140. The KG-10H is $220.

It could be that there was structures, trees, or terrain blocking you two. The antenna that comes with the KG-935G is actually a good antenna. I can sometimes get into the repeater that is 21 miles away with mine. Granted the repeater antenna is at 400 feet above ground.

More information about your buddy's setup would be helpful. You might be hard pressed to reach each other if you are both using hand held radios. Your buddy having a base station with a good antenna as high as he could get it would definitely help. You can also try a longer antenna on your 935G too.

There are a few restrictions when one instals Windows 10 or 11. As mentioned, there will be no tech support. Another thing is that you won't be able to change some of the customizable features either. But Windows 10 and 11 will still work without activation.

Yes I have but it's been a few years since I've messed with Linux. Maybe it's something with how the CHIRP program is written.

I'm still surprised that you have to run the windows version of CHIRP in WINE instead of the native Linux version.