WRYZ926

The need to use plain language without attempts to decieve also goes for amateur radio too. And no new digital mode for amateur radio can be used without first making it public per the FCC. Business bands and public service band fall under different rules than amateur and GMRS bands.

I found that video pretty informative. I also own an Icom IC-T10 along with the KG935G. Both are very good radios even being SOC. I know there is a difference when it comes to VHF compared to UHF. But I can use the IC-T10 inside my house and still be understandable by others when talking on the repeater 21.5 miles away. It is sometimes hit or miss with the KG935G inside the house. I can forget about getting into the 70cm repeater with an HT though. All three repeaters use the same tower. The 2m and 70cm antennas are 900 feet above the ground and the GMRS antennas are 400 feet above the ground - all of them are on the same tower.

I have a few Abbree 771 and Nagoya 771 antennas for 2m/70cm and GMRS. The 771 antennas do make an improvement on my Baofeng and Explorer QRZ-1 (TYT UV-88). But I did not see any improvement with those antennas on my Wouxun KG935G or Icom IC-T10.

I haven't had any issues with my CCR radios either. In fact I got rid of all my Midland radios and replaced them with Wouxun radios. The Wouxun radios are built better and work better. And even the top Japanese radios either built with Chinese parts or built in China. And I guess everyone's Apple or Android phones must be junk since they are made in China too.

The KG935G is my favorite GMRS HT.

I have to agree. I hold both and don't want to see GMRS turn into HAM LITE. The Elmers around me are more than willing to help anyone no matter if they hold an amateur license, GMRS license or both. I too am happy to help others. We have one member of our amateur radio club that is happy with just having his GMRS license for right now. We have been helping him get setup for mobile and a base station.

It does depend on what part of the country you are in. 2m and 70cm is pretty active here in Missouri. But no one uses 6m or 1.25m (220MHz) around here. There are weekly nets on different repeaters within a 100 mile radius of me on every night except Friday and Saturday nights. Plus there are the rag chewers on all the time too.

Thank you for that info. Maybe someone more local to you (or the repeater) can help you out.

@Sheldon what is your location, or the location of the repeater you are trying to use?

20 to 25 miles can be a stretch for handhelds on GMRS and 70cm bands. Our club's repeaters are on a tower 21.5 miles away. The 2m and 70cm repeater antennas are at 900 feet and the GMRS repeater antennas are at 400 feet. I can get into the GMRS repeater with a handheld when outside but not while inside my house. I can't get into the 70cm repeater at all on a handheld. And it is hit or miss getting into the 2m repeater inside my house but is no problem outside.

Hopefully I was helpful and you get your radio working.

You want to set the tones and talk on the repeater channel. Repeater channel 6 is setup with the correct offsets whereas Channel 20 is not since it is a simplex only channel.

The IC-5100 is another one that can be modded. I know guys that have done it and the mod works fine.

I am running my Comet CA-712 with a 32 foot run of LMR400 Ultra flex. The base of my antenna is about 18 feet above ground.

There are a few Icom radios that can have the MARS Mod done which will allow them to transmit on GMRS. The IC-7300 is NOT one of them though. I will let others discuss the actual legalities of doing such modifications.

I primarily use GMRS to talk to family and friends. I find that I use 2m/70cm the same way just to talk to family and friends. We have been testing our GMRS repeater for the last month or two. So it has been used to talk to friends in the local amateur radio club. Along with using the repeater, we have also been testing on simplex channels too. Our GMRS repeater will be opened up for public use soon. It will be for general public use and also as another means of communication during an actual emergency.

I have been pleased with the performance of the Comet CA-712 and also with the other Comet antennas I have. In addition to the GP9 and CA-712 above my roof, I have a 16" dual band SBB1NMO on my Ford Escape and a 2x4SRNMO on my Honda Pioneer 500 SxS.

I will admit that it has been a while since I messed with Linux. But you shouldn't have any problems if you follow the instructions on the web page that Sshannon linked to above.

@wrci350 ny post was not directed towards you. I was making a general statement for all new GMRS users.

Think of the signal as a beam. I'll use two of my antennas as examples. I have a Comet GP9 (9db) and a Comet CA-712EFC (6db). Yes the GP9 has higher dB but it also concentrates the signal in a narrower "beam" when compared to the CA-712. The GP9 works better for longer distances over flatter terrain while the CA-712 works better getting around different terrain.

Most people will use CHIRP to program, especially for Baofeng radios. CHIRP is open source and very popular. It also works with a lot of different radios. I personally find the Wouxun software easier to use and you can download it for free from Buy Two Way Radios. It is legitimate software when downloaded from there. For Midland radios that can be programmed with a computer, then download the software directly from Midland. All of the above is easy to find, download, and use for new GMRS and amateur radio operators.

This is true. It also depends on time of year and local activities. FRS is worse around here during deer season.

There is a version of CHIRP Next for Linux. I would go ahead and upgrade from CHIRP Legacy to CHIRP Next if it was me. https://chirp.danplanet.com/projects/chirp/wiki/Download

And here is my reply to the exact same question asked on the Radio Reference forum: The FRS side is definitely just like CB full of foul language and bad behavior. The good thing is that FRS radios can not access GMRS repeaters. Around me the active GMRS users are pretty good since most also have their amateur licenses. It's bad enough that FRS and GMRS share the same simplex frequencies. The FCC messed up on that one. And as mentioned, where are the extra frequencies/channels going to come from. Public safety and Amateur radio operators are not going to want to give up their frequencies for GMRS use. GMRS frequencies - 462.5625 MHz - 467.7250MHz 70cm band - 420.0MHz - 450.0MHz Public Safety UHF frequencies are generally between 450MHz and 520MHz

And there are more of us that have both amateur and GMRS licenses that don't want GMRS to turn into HAM Lite.