RoadApple

Hi... Welcome to the forum!

Just don't turn your head when transmitting...

They must be experienced! Notice that they are using the "RED STRING" privacy code

When the conditions are right, it doesn't take a lot of power... You are quickly becoming a voice of the world Great Job!!

Perhaps folks hearing this helps provide a more realistic perspective on FCC enforcement (or lack thereof). So many radio folk live in this fantasy land where the FCC is lurking around every frequency to catch you not ID'ing every 10 minutes... @OffRoaderX has been pointing out the reality for years...

Yep, that sounds like the wild west days of CB on 10M.

I agree with @beerftw. Interoperability with unlicensed FRS is one of the things that is very handy during community events etc. While your GMRS license covers your immediate family it does not cover your friends or other people you may need to communicate with. The ability hand someone a cheap no license required FRS radio and talk with them is IMHO a real plus! And IF I don't want to hear miscellaneous FRS traffic, that is where CTCSS and DCS comes in...

It's worth a shot.

Hey @TNFrank, I'm curious if you have tried making 10m contacts at night when there is lower solar activity and it is much less susceptible to skip conditions. Doing so might help you stay closer to home...

The choice between GMRS and/or Ham and/or CB comes down to, what is it that you and your dad hope to accomplish via your use of the radio? Different radio bands/services often serve different purposes in terms of practical range, unwanted interference from distant stations, etc. There is a whole host of considerations, not the least of which may be the need for you and perhaps other family members to pass an exam to be licensed. I suggest you first start by identifying what you want out of radio, then decide on which avenue makes the most sense.

You won't find any "skip" in UHF/GMRS. It is pretty much line of sight. Many folks here are also licensed hams and there is a ham/amateur section on this MyGMRS forum that you might find interesting. There seems to be a lot of cross-over with us radio nerds.

Welcome to the forum!!

I've not worked with it, but I've heard this same sentiment expressed by others.

Thanks @WRTC928 this is good information to know. I too am interested in a radio with all the controls in the mic. I tried the QYT KT-9900 which, I think, is basically the same as the Anysecu WP9900. Meh.... It was okay, but I ended up returning it, in favor of searching for something with a better build quality and duty cycle. Some of those mini radios seem like an overpowered HT on a bigger heat sink. Still, when I keyed up for more than about 15 seconds the fan kicked on in a desperate attempt to keep it cool. It was not thermally stable. Also, the QYT was ham locked and if possible, I'd like to find an open/unlocked dual band unit with mic controls. I will be interested to hear your impression of the Abbree AR-7600 after you have had it and used it for a while longer. Thanks again!

DITTO!

I totally agree! I never said or suggested it was weak. I don't use it and I don't claim to know a lot about Meshtastic, I was merely relaying the impression made upon me by some locals who were discussing it, while I listened, as their experience seemed to be much less than robust or reliable. Sorry, I did not intend to drag this thread down the Meshtastic rabbit hole. Back on Topic: Again, Good Luck @TNFrank. I hope you find a method for learning CW that works for you, and good luck on your general test!!

Welcome to the forum. There are some good and helpful people here!

Yeah, based on the conversation I listened to, it sounded like the reliability and/or utility of the Meshtastic technology was very questionable. All the more reason for me to simply ask myself: WHY? Again, for those who like to experiment and pursue it just for fun; I won't unplug your bouncy castle...

YES!! HA!! You are correct, IF I knew their number. Last night as I listened to a 2m net discussing Meshtastic and Coretastic and sending datagrams via radio, I could not help but rhetorically think; WHY? Our cell phone is already a radio sending data, so why are we eagerly reinventing the wheel. Answer: (1) Just for fun, (2) in the event common commercial infrastructure is not available! For those that find CW fun, I say go for it, I won't rain on your parade. It is just not for me. Radio is great when commercial infrastructure is not available, reliable or is otherwise impractical for the type of communication needed, such as a road trip caravan, off-roading, camping off the grid, community events, emergency comms, and contacting unknown people in far away places, etc. 99% of the time, if I know the person I'm trying to contact, I do call on the phone. But I'm just an old pragmatic troglodyte

CW, i.e. dots and dashes is simply an early form of binary (0 and 1) data communication. From there, voice comms was a HUGE breakthrough! The way I see things, it seems like a bit of regression to use CW when you can just talk to someone... I've no interest is saying "HELLO" via my computer by typing: 01101000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111 Good Luck @TNFrank ! We're cheering for ya...

You are correct. If you know you are activating the repeater, that tells you that your transmission is being received at least to that point (it may be travelling further), but it certainly does not tell you if the quality of your transmission is acceptable for normal communications. It's best to make a contact with someone and get some real live feedback on your signal quality and clarity and not just rely upon "hitting the repeater".

Seems to me that, if radio serves a purpose for them (utility), they will use it, but when radio is the purpose (hobby), most have no interest and that's okay. I have to agree with @amaff that I'm not sure getting more people randomly chit-chatting on GMRS is necessarily a good thing.

A solution in search of a problem....

I'll second the suggestion made by @TNFrank. I found hamstudy.org very helpful and easy to use.

I've no scientific evidence on this question but here is my thought. NO Connecting and disconnecting the PL259 or SMA connector over and over probably does, at some level, cause the metal to wear down, and over a prolonged period that could impact the connection quality. My guess is that you probably wouldn't, in your lifetime, connect and disconnect enough times that it would really make a difference in terms of wearing down the metal. The PL259 is pretty solid so I would not worry about it. That said, the SMA could be fragile, and you are far more likely to accidently bend or break the inner wire of connector by repeated connections.