GreggInFL

Which foundation is this? Is it local or national?

Pics?

Are grants available for putting up a community repeater, or components thereof?

Seriously? What's the thinking behind that?

LOL. I gotta write that down.

Marantz was the bomb. We had speakers so large they were on wheels. I installed an 8 track in a '64 Mustang. Music was public, and phone calls were private.

What does the hot spot cost?

I have the free Starlink 911 service with T-Mobile. It provides texts to 911 when out of cell range. Whenever I'm out of cell range I receive a notification that satellite connection is available. If you pay $10/month you can text any number, not just 911, but I'm too cheap for that. https://www.t-mobile.com/news/network/t-mobile-text-to-911-available-for-everyone

Simple question not worthy of another thread: Is DMR "legal" on GMRS? (Didn't read the whole thread because I'm lazy today.)

Do you have any radios now? FRS?

Power helps if you have no LOS to speak of. Before I became interested in GMRS I tried FRS radios in our neighborhood, which is flat with thick foliage. Range was, maybe, 1/4 mile. A GMRS HT will do a ~mile. But yeah, at the end of the day, elevation = propagation.

Well, poop.

Do you have a GMRS license? IIRC, there is no minimum age limit (could be wrong, it happens), so get a license and two radios. Show dad how it works.

This. I can hit a local repeater that's about 35 miles away through moderate foliage with a 5W HT not because my radio is great, but because the repeater has a world-class antenna 400' AGL in flat terrain. If I get above tree level I can hit it from ~50 miles with an $18 CCR.

That's specifically what I use and it works well.

You're welcome! We're here to serve.

Welcome to the forum!

I remembered my dermatologist's advice and applied SPF 50 yesterday while at the track for the Rolex 24 hour at Daytona. Central Florida high was forecast to be 86, but I think it only made about 82 or so. I'll leave now. Swing by this summer and we'll talk Florida weather.

Sounds like your receive tone is not right. Try removing the tone and just listen for repeater traffic. It's possible the repeater has different TX and RX tones, which means your radio can either TX or RX, but not both.

I'm an engineer. I like short sentences and long equations.

Ever been to China? I have, more than once. The air in some places is so thick you can chew it. Pretty easy to have low costs with no regulation, no plaintiff bar and cross-subsidized products for predatory pricing in other countries. And their own country: https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/explained-china-neijuan-crackdown-industrial-competition-policy-125030500886_1.html

When you do your radio check ask if anyone has a scheduled net on a local repeater.

Yeah, you're in the right place. I see you are in West Allis. I used to live in Brookfield. Small world. Please keep us up to date on your project. It sounds interesting.

Did it get stolen?

That's a good point. GMRS can seem complex to the newcomer who finds themselves sucked into the vortex of offsets, interstitial narrow-band @ 0.5W on 8-14, repeater duty cycles, etc. While all that can be interesting, and valuable, to those who want to go that far, it means nothing if you just want to talk to someone. Treat it as a simple blister-pack radio you can purchase at Walmart. Push the button and talk to the other guy. If you want to get fancy with a larger antenna, great. If you want to get really fancy with a repeater, even greater. Take one step at a time until your needs are met. One need not eat the whole whale in one bite.