warthog74

So be it. I know the rules, and so does every licensed ham “illegally” broadcasting on those frequencies. You can’t stop propagation either. Nobody cares. Not even the FCC. How many people on THIS forum are using type accepted radios for GMRS? I bet not even half. I don’t see anybody stating the obvious to those users here. Yet people use them anyway. It’s not a big deal. You guys need to take a chill pill.

Spoken like a true “Sad Ham”. You have NO clue how many licensed Hams use their high power HF rigs on 11 meter do you? The FCC doesn’t care and those frequencies haven’t been used by the US gov’t in decades.

If you think that small portion of 10 meter is fun try the 11 meter “free band” frequencies. Start on 27.555 USB. Make a call on that frequency, or jump on somebody calling, then QSY to another frequency thats unused to continue your conversation. Unlike the standard CB 40 channels that get overrun by nut jobs, the frequencies between 27.410-27.515 LSB and 27.525-27.785 USB are full of worldwide contacts that treat it more like licensed HF frequencies. I talk to Ireland, Sweden, Russia, Germany, Italy, UK, Australia, Canada, etc pretty much daily up there. Also Jamaica’s main frequency is 27.515 LSB if you’re feeling a little rastafarian. You don’t need more than a Tech license (or even need a license for 11 meter) to have fun during a solar cycle. Edit: It’s also fun jumping on the UK FM 40 in the early morning (their evening) here in the US. Their channel 19 (27.78125 FM) can be hilarious at times. I guess it’s called “the muppet channel” for a reason. Anyway, enjoy this solar cycle while it lasts. We still have a few years left before it dies off.

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I wouldn’t worry about that. Most people that buy these types of export “10 meter” radios convert them for CB use since that’s what they really are in disguise anyway. Real 10 meter radios aren’t channelized and they don’t come with echo and roger beeps. Also there seems to be more Ham radios used on 11 meter than actual legal CB’s these days. Take a listen to 27.385 LSB or 27.555 USB. More often than not, when asked what their set up is, most say they are using an Icom, Kenwood, Yaesu, Xiegu, Alinco, Hermes Lite, or one of the various brands of modified 10 meter rigs. Heck, a good chunk of them are licensed hams that still enjoy 11 meter. Is this legal? No. Does anybody really care? No. Will the FCC come knocking on your door? No. Just don’t TX on bands you aren't licensed for and you’ll be fine.

AM only 11 meter radios are cheap yes, but if you want a CB with AM/FM and SSB they end up being pretty similar in price. The Retevis HS4 is a really nice radio for the price. On sale you can find them for roughly $175. After an easy (front panel button press) modification they will cover 10, 11, and 12 meter making the radio much more useable. If you can bump your budget up to $300, look on eBay for used HF equipment. I recently picked up a MINT condition Icom IC-735 for $265 from an estate sale. FB market place, craigslist, and goodwill have some good deals at times also. You really need to be on top of it every day though to find and snag the best deals.

Have you tried using a different web browser (like firefox, chrome, pale moon, waterfox, brave, etc) other than what you are currently using that’s failing to download the file? A stock browser with no add-ons or extensions installed should download it just fine.

I'm slightly confused by this statement. The Surecom SR-112 is a simplex “parrot” repeater controller. It records, then plays back incoming transmissions on a specified frequency. It’s meant to be connected to a handheld or mobile radio that acts as a simple portable simplex repeater. So are you saying that you are trying to hit your portable repeater from 35 miles away? If that’s the case you’d need that repeater set up to have its antenna a few hundred feet in the air to make it more than a few miles. If not, i think you might be using the SR-112 the wrong way, or don’t quite understand how the SR-112 actually works. I’ve built a solar powered ammo can portable repeater with the SR-112 myself. It’s great to extend comms a few miles when camping, fishing, etc, but it will not cover 35 miles without some serious height and a proper antenna. If you are trying to hit somebody else’s "full duplex" repeater, ditch the SR-112 from your configuration and just program the correct frequencies and input/output tones in to your mobile for that repeater.

I’ve always had a CB in every vehicle, and a base station at home, since the 80’s. Locally we still have a few nets and some regulars chatting away. I recently did a 2100 mile round trip from WI to MS and back. My travel vehicle has a Uniden 885 CB/Police Scanner combo in it. Between the 2 services that radio offers it was never quiet. Bigger cities always had drivers on it, either giving traffic, scale, smokey reports, or chewing each other out. Late at night in the middle of nowhere there were a few guys trying to strike up conversations, even if it was with themselves. The weird thing is 2m, 70cm, and GMRS are all but dead around here. At least with 11 meter (CB) there is always something going on (mostly on SSB). Don’t ask for a radio check on 19. Nobody will respond to that. Most drivers that are still allowed to have CB’s only really care about road reports and will ignore anything else. Or if you really want somebody on 19 to respond, start ranting about politics. The dumber you sound, the better. That’s a sure fire way to get a few wound up and ripping you a new bunghole. That’s how you get a radio check.

Make sure to check/enable “off hook scan” otherwise it wont scan unless the mic is grounded to a metal mic hanger.

Not really, no. You might see a small drop in power output, but that’s about all i ever noticed. Not every Kenwood model will let you do this, but most every older conventional model i’ve tried it with worked. Can’t recall if i ever did a 880-2 or not. If it programs and transmits without beeeeeeeping when you key up it worked. If not, put it back to its original band plan and sell it. (or keep it for parts)

Or just “force” it to use one of the other UHF band plans which are selectable in the software. It will complain when you go to program it, but it will allow you to do it anyway, and it will work. I’ve done this numerous times with various Kenwood VHF and UHF handheld and mobile radios without issue. 780’s / 880’s / 863G’s, etc, etc.

Sure it’s for 11 meter band (CB), but…. https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-25-456A1.pdf Now you know.

I went with a copper j-pole for 3 reasons. Weighs 1 pound, it has next to no wind resistance, and cost. With my cobbled together setup consisting of thin 1 1/4” aluminum electrical conduit with some wood slats to help anchor it from swaying, it made the most sense. There will always be something better. There will always be something worse. For me it works well and does what i ask of it. No complaints. I also have another j-pole that i have 50 feet up for my small solar powered GMRS repeater. I set it up for our (semi rural) neighborhood to use, but it actually covers about 10 miles. Again, no complaints. People can crap on them all they want, but a copper j-pole wont snap in half or splinter like fiberglass does. Oh, and i clear coated mine, so don’t yell at me about oxidation. J-pole base station antenna at about 30 feet. (Don’t mind my cat. He loves it up there). J-pole repeater antenna at 50 feet on 30’ flagpole + 20’ aluminum electrical conduit.

I started playing with solar about a year ago. Nothing overboard. Just a little 320ah power bank w/150 watt panel to keep things running and/or charging (phones/handhelds/flashlights/fans/led rope lights/portable tv) while camping, fishing, etc. Also built a small ammo can gmrs simplex repeater thats powered by a 10 watt panel and 6ah battery. Great for extended comms when out in the wilderness.

Same thing happened to mine recently. However i’ve owned it for about 12-ish years now, so i’m not too disappointed. Now i just shut VFO B off and have it display voltage instead.

That's fine. Marketing “lingo” aside, proper wrapping/sealing is all that’s required regardless of connector type is all i’m saying. There is nothing wrong with pl259/so239 if installed properly. Spending money on N connectors is not really going to change anything or be a magical “permanent fix”.

There are thousands of websites that say this. Google it. Believe what you want, but weatherproof does NOT = waterproof. An N connector will not solve your problem as it is not waterproof. But suit yourself and waste more money, and have this same problem again in 6-12 months. If you properly wrap your connections regardless of connectors, you shouldn't have any problems for a few years.

Source of info: https://waterproved.com/definitions/ There. It’s settled. You’re welcome.

I use one of these for my 5 watt GMRS repeater. https://www.jpole-antenna.com/shop/462-mhz-land-mobile-gmrs-j-pole-antenna/ Cheap, light, and works well. You’ll want to get it higher than 18 feet though. Trust me. I ended up using a 30 foot flag pole, then i attached 2 10 foot aluminum poles on top of that. Antenna now sits at 50 feet and covers 10 miles of city and rural mixed. At 30 feet i barely got 5 miles. However at 30 feet, it should have no problem covering your 250 acres.

Good for you. Do you want a cookie too?

I just used a light layer of clear coat as i like the copper color. You can however spray paint it to match your house, the sky, etc. Won't harm anything.

I am using that same GMRS tuned j-pole for my repeater. It's up on a 50 foot mast. Works great.

Odd. I got my CB500 in 6 days.