WRYZ926

I would replace that RG8 with LMR400 or equivalent. You will do a whole lot better with the correct type of coax for UHF.

Nothing wrong with getting a new radio. I will recommend the Wouxun KG-1000G Plus over the Midland MXT500. I had both and got rid of the Midland. The KG-1000G is a better radio.

How high is your antenna and what type of coax are you using? The loss from the N Type to SO239 adaptor will be minimal. 37-38 watts should be plenty as long as you have a good clear line of sight to the repeater tower. An extra 10 watts won't make much difference. The local GMRS repeater is 21.5 miles away from me. I run my KG-1000G on medium power and get in just fine. My 20 watt KG-XS20G gets into the repeater just as good as the KG-1000G does.

You mean we are suppose to read the manuals????? Everyone is correct that mobile radios only go down to 5 watts at the lowest power settings which is way over the 0.5 watts limit for channels 8 - 14. I know one mobile radio that will transmit on channels 8-14 even though it should not since it is over the 0.5 watt limit on low.

GMRS repeaters will have close to the same coverage area as 70cm repeaters. VHF and UHF frequencies will have their advantages and disadvantages. I am lucky that the local club has all of their repeater antennas on a very tall FM radio tower. The 2m and 70cm antennas are at 900 feet while the GMRS antennas are at 400 feet. We didn't notice much of a difference on coverage are between the 70cm and GMRS repeaters while we were testing the GMRS repeater. We are getting around 30 -35 mile radius of coverage with the 70cm and GMRS repeaters. Our 2m repeater has a large coverage area, it covers an 80 mile radius. I say get and use 2m and 70cm along with GMRS. It never hurts to have more tools in the tool box.

I'll fix my typo. Thanks for catching that. I agree with you that it sounds like he is overloading his power supply.

What size power supply are you running and are you using a single power supply for the radio and amp? It sure sounds like you are overloading the power supply. What power level do you have the KG-XS20G set at when using the amp? Most small amps require you to run the radio at around 5 watts or less, otherwise you overload the amp. And you really don't need an amp with the KG-XS20G. Even though it is rated at 20 watts, most will put out around 25 watts. Again the extra 5-10 watts over what the KG-XS20G puts out isn't really worth it. You won't notice the difference.

All of my different hand held radios vary in output power from 4 watts to 6 watts. As said, it's the luck of the draw. But one or two watts won't make a difference. I agree that Baofeng radios are not the best even though they do work. A lot of us like the Wouxun brand radios. Check them out to see if one fits your needs.

Our amateur radio club has officially opened up our GMRS repeater to the public. The repeater frequency is 467.600/462.600 with a PL tone of 141.3. I will see about getting it listed on the map. For more information about the repeater and our club: https://www.aecimo.org/?page_id=6974

Yeah soldering connectors on is not for everyone. One won't go wrong with a quality prebuilt coax cable. And it never hurts to coil the excess cable right below the antenna.

It is important to use the correct type and good quality coax. The cheap Amazon coax will have more loss than TM LMR400 or the Messi and Pailoni equivalent. The cheap coax won't have as much braided shielding and/or use lower quality materials which leads to more loss. Using a good antenna with at least 6dBi of gain will overcome the 1-2 dB loss from the coax. Again use quality coax and quality connectors (if making your own cables).

This is true.

The Wouxun KG-1000G cable is not a standard straight through or crossover cable. Pins 5 and 7 are crossed. Here is the pinout for the KG-1000G cable 1 - 1 2 - 2 3 - 3 4 - 4 5 - 7 6 - 6 7 - 5 8 - 8 I will suggest getting a cable tester for testing. Here is one on Amazon that will test 6 wire cables with RJ12 connectors and 8 wire cables with RJ45 connectors. RJ45 Network Cable Tester for Lan Phone RJ45/RJ11/RJ12/CAT5/CAT6/CAT7 UTP Wire Test Tool

Have you tried listening on AM and FM. The KG-Q10G can listen to CB on both.

A 30 amp power supply with 25 continuous amps is enough to run two 50 watt radios on high power at the same time. A 30 amp power supply with 20 amps continuous will not be enough to run two radios simultaneously on high power. I run my TYT TH-7800 and Wouxun KG-1000G on the same R & L Electronics 30 Amp (22 watts continuous) without any issues. Though I only run mid power level on both for the repeaters and don't transmit on both at the same time.

The Comet CA-500 is a good and simple antenna analyzer to use. Yes they do cost more but are worth it. Above that you are looking at the Rig Expert analyzers. I normally steer clear of most MFJ products. The different VNA and Nana VNA models are cheaper but there is also a learning curve to using them.

A 20 amp power supply will be more than enough for the MXT500 or any other 50 watt radio as long as you running just one radio. The power draw of the MXT500 is around 12 amps while transmitting on high power. Remember that most power supplies are rated for their maximum amp draw. Their continuous power rating will be lower. Most 30 amp power supplies are rated at 20 - 25 watts continuous. Basically one can run between 75% to 80% of the rated amps continuously.

I see that the Midland MXT500 isn't the only version with low power issues.

Even having a repeater with its antennas at 400 feet above ground is not a guarantee o getting out really far. Again terrain and height of your antenna with a clear line of sight matters. Our GMRS repeater antennas are at 400 feet and the range for those using 50 watt mobiles with good antennas on their vehicles is only about 30-35 miles depending on the mobile's location. We have lots of rolling hills and river valleys along with forested areas around me. Now I can easily get into the repeater with a 5 watt hand held using my base antenna that is on my roof. The base of the antenna is 18 feet above the ground. Again line of sight and a clear path matters.

Definitely use an antenna analyzer. Even an inexpensive NanaVNA will work.

I have to agree that you won't notice the tiny amount of loss when using a quality adaptor. I'll also second staying away from the cheap adaptors on Amazon. I have a custom length cable with a PL259 on one end and a N Type on the other. The only reason for the custom length and different ends is because my brother made up the cable for me so I didn't have to go out and buy cable. If I had to buy the cable, I would just get the closest length (longer than needed) of good cable with either PL259 connectors on both ends or N type connectors on both ends and just use a good adaptor. A little extra coax coiled up at the antenna end won't hurt a thing and will act as a choke to help keep out RFI/noise.

I would love to run longer antennas but I need to be able to park in my garage and also fit into low parking garages at my doctors appointments. I might end up getting another Comet 2x4SR for when out and about.

Base station: KG-1000G with a Comet CA-712EFC antenna Ford Escape: KG-1000G Plus with a Nagoya UT-72G antenna Honda SxS: KG-XS20G with a Comet 2x4SR antenna Primary Hand held: Wouxun KG-935G Plus with stock antenna. I am using LMR400 Ultra flex coax for the base station antenna since that is what I was given. The mobile antennas use what ever cable came with the magnetic mounts.

I think we all have done that a time or three @Sbsyncro glad to hear that you figured it out and there is nothing wrong with your radio.

I can't help much with this. I did test my KG-1000G just now and didn't notice any problems. I bought mine in Nov 2023