TrikeRadio

Offsets are all the same for all GMRS repeaters. always +5 and that is just built into the certified GMRS radio's repeater channels. But yes, the repeaters on the same frequency will use their own input and output tone so you can communicate to and listen to only one at a time.

Have you tried to see if you can get a response from the Ranchino repeater? (I think it is the only one you mentioned that has the input tone publicly listed.) The others.. I guess you will just have to wait for their permissions to get the input tones. I can say that the Mesa Crest club (which yes it costs a very small fee) is well worth it... great coverage and good people on it. They also have a repeater on Santiago Peak as well as their main one. Good luck and welcome to the world of GMRS.

"Tones" I think he meant...(Typo I'm sure) It means your RX tone/code/CTCSS for the repeater. You may have the RX tone wrong that might be why you cant hear them

Yeah even if their new callsign shows up on the FCC site... usually takes a day or two for MyGMRS to add it or recognize it.

Excellent! Yep you never know until you actually try. Glad it is working for you!

Can you tell us what city or location you are in? Do you know what elevation or line of site there might be to the repeater? Is it on a local mountaintop, tall building, tower? 20 miles is not generally a problem for a 50 watt mobile unit or even a lesser wattage radio even with some obstructions. but line of sight to a repeater is always the biggest factor. EDIT (Oh I misread your statement about distance. I see now you said you are 20 miles from the edge of the repeater's 35 mile range circle so.. yeah that might be tricky to hit consistently) also... simplex (radio to radio without a repeater) can work even without great line of sight if you are close enough, so... how far are you trying to connect between two radios?

I have two TD-H3s and I can confirm that the provided USB cable can be used in the SIDE PORT USBc port (not the bottom one on the battery that is for charging) to both connect to CHIRP and program the radio, and you can update the Firmware using it. But yes you do have to either let the software select the correct PORT or you have to manually select the correct port for the usb cable. You CAN get a separate programming cable, but it should not be necessary.

That is the best part of it all! My family looks at me and wonders why I mess with radios. I guess I'll need to have a natural disaster happen around here to validate my radios.

I have not seen much as far as posting about any GMRS/HAM communication assistance in the Western North Carolina regions where the hurricane flooding was so bad. Does anyone have any news or stories if radio operators have been able to help out in that area? Would be nice to hear some good news coming out of Ashville and surrounding areas if radio operators have been able to make a difference.

In any case, you should call the repeater and at least state your callsign. Don't just key it to see if you get a tail. You may or may not hear it. - you can ask for a radio check or just state " testing repeater (whatever it is called or the channel or frequency) and you call sign to see if you get a repeater response or an actual person responding that they hear you.

Hope that gets you connected. Good luck, and feel free to ask questions if you need help.

Some repeater owners request or "require" you to get permission. if you can find the repeater on the repeater map here at mygmrs.com you cna usually submit a request, but you can also likely ask on the repeater itself. But it kind of sounds like you are trying to reach it on the regular "channel 22" instead of the repeater channel for 22. Check your documentation. the repeater channel which might be called repeater 22 or r22 or just channel 30 sometimes is what you want... and of course enter your transmit tone (if you know what the actual input tone is...how do yo know it is 141.3?) on that channel and try. with 15 watts you should be able ot hit most any repeater in your local area as long as you have line of sight to it.

Which specific repeaters and what is your "area of LA"?

https://chirpmyradio.com/projects/chirp/wiki/Home

My name is Glenn and I have a GMRS problem. Back in 2012 I innocently bought a pair of cheap Midland GXT1050 walkie-talkies, lying to myself that they were only for practical purposes. I knew deep down I desired to tinker with radios as I did when I was a child playing with CB. Reading the manuals and searching the internet I learned that there were things in GMRS called "Repeaters." I quickly returned these repeater-incapable radios and bought a slightly less inferior set of MOTOROLA MR356R, which also came in a dirty bubble pack. I applied for and received my first GMRS FCC license in February of 2012. I freely admit I used them for some time, I even "checked in" to a few "nets"... but eventually I weened myself from my addiction. I let me license expire on 02/28/2017. I thought I was free. I thought I had escaped. I was wrong. Years later in 2024 I heard that the dealer of GMRS callsigns had lowered the cost to a mere $35. "Go ahead, everybody's doing it. You can handle it," I thought. I returned to the dark ally where my FRN was still waiting for me, I navigated the dank smoke filled corridors of the FCC website and claimed a new GMRS callsign that would last me ten years, and would drag my entire immediate family back into the authorized, but despised world of GMRS. I bought a set of Tidradio TD-H3 HTs because of a shady street dealer who recommended them on youtube. I was excited, I was thrilled. I knew I could take it slow and control myself. "They are just tiny radios", I said, "I can handle it this time." Soon I was checking in on a local GMRS NET as a "guest", but I wanted more. I signed up and payed money to a group who owned the repeater. I got a group member ID. I could now call the repeater whenever I wanted! But I was calm. I had this under control. I was using the radios for practical purposes, communicating with friends whom I cycled with in a group on weekends. It helped I maintain group safety, I kept saying to myself. Then it started. I did not want to go overboard and buy a mobile unit, but maybe I could get a mag mount antenna for my car and use my little HT with a hand mic to just "Try it out" first. Then I bought a few other removable antennas for my HTs to see which worked better when cycling. I bought different hand mics and even a boom mic headset to see if that worked better while cycling. I have caught myself watching video reviews of Mobile Units and checking prices. I have looked up repeaters along the route I drive to where other family lives. I have even contemplated paying more money to another repeater club which has more activity on it than the one I currently have access to! I don't know where all this is leading. But here I am. I am a GMRS user. There, I said it.

I see you changed your icon too. Well done. @OffRoaderX

As people have already stated, yes the stronger signal will stomp on other transmissions that are weaker in spite of tones. It can distort or cause distortion on the other tone transmission. and if a user is not using a tone on receive (only transmitting on a tone, they will for sure hear the other party in open if it is stronger than the one they intended to hear. Two groups on the same channel/frequency CAN use it together with different tones but it is never likely to be ideal.

Here is what I use wtih a mobile antenna. Juse a metal pizza pan. (This was mostly and experiment using it indoors and it seems to put out a great signal to he repeater 24.5 miles away)

I knew, just from reading the title of this thread that @OffRoaderX would be the first to reply.

I guess it is sort of like the stock market... when everyone is freaking out because they don't understand the reality or the long term ... time to buy at a discount.

FYI.. Routing the coax through the rear hatch on my VW Passat wagon seems to have worked best for me. the angle, spacing, and rubber seal seemed to work much better than the doors or sunroof without bending the coax very much at all. Thanks for all the idea and input everyone.

I bought this mobile mag mount antenna for trying my HT in the car and on a metal cookie pan for a ground plane in the house... works great and comes with the adapter. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TPZ221K?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

Using VOX on a bike is probably never a great solution. Beyond the technical issue of getting it to transmit when you want and not due to wind noise is one thing, but from my experience, there are a lot of other things one says and noises one makes while riding that would trigger it... sounds and words you may not want to be transmitting! Think about it... Just saying. Get a boom mic with something to cut the wind noise and a PTT button.. or get a small hand mic.

What frequency are you trying to transmit to? QUOTE From link below... "The firmware and software can also be found on the TIDRADIO Support site which allows full operation in the frequency range of 136-174 and 400-520 MHz (and beyond). This range is also accessible by pressing PTT and * at PowerOn." https://www.miklor.com/COM/Review_TDH3.php

I don't think it matters about the firmware... Even though TIDRADIO has separate firmware files to download, I think they may be essentially the same. When you reset its mode to NORMAL it should work with the "unlocked" setup. Question for OP WSEK624... * What channel slot are you putting your test frequency into. (In NORMAL it should take any channel slot, but if something is not right and it is still locked in GMRS mode... then it is programmed to only allow GMRS channels in 1-22 and repeater channels in 23-45 I think.) Above that it is listen only in GMRS. * I assume you are trying to enter HAM frequencies since you have it in "NORMAL" ? * Can you also check your firmware version for me in setting 42?