piggin

It would be great to know of dual certified gear. I would prefer not to use straight part97 equipment. It would be nice to know as well what kind of options for programming the various gear available has too. I am totally ignorant here. And I don't want to buy an old computer. I don't care what kind of radios others use at all. I just want high performance and wood stove like durability and reliability. An Icom 2730A will work but "some people" would object strenuously. If I ran part 90 gear I would not care a bit.

I live in an urban area. So let me define what I mean by "best". Best would include the following characteristics: High sensitivity and excellent resistance to desense in the presence of strong RF emissions. Excellent selectivity so multiple strong signals won't cause false images. I just want GMRS and do not need wideband receive...I don't need NOAA weather either. (250 watt NOAA station a few miles away...it shows up all over the dial on lower performing radios I have) There are high power digital signals here in the 468 mhz area or so that also enter the mix. Incredibly close vhf pagers too...and county dispatch. Are there over the counter GMRS mobile radios that would work? I find the Wouxun KG-905G a fantastic performer for me here. It really has an excellent receiver! But...5 watts only. I want something with more power for more distant use...but I certainly don't need it now and may not actually ever buy one. But it would be very valuable info for me on whether I should buy over the counter or watch ebay for older Motorola commercial gear. I apologize for the radio nerd question. Thanks!!!

True. They still make great antennas though.

I work 200+ miles on vhf. Topography dictates what can be done...I have worked stations over 200 miles away from high altitude locations here many times. It isn't hard with LOS. For reliable regional work HF rules to a degree that is amazing. Comedy ensues when you bring up 4 repeaters on your HT from high elevations. I wish winds were low enough here to use bigger antennas. But they are not.

My GP3 is the antenna I use for distant repeaters. It is my ham radio antenna and is fed via 60ft of LMR600 spec feedline. It's a great 5.1 dbd antenna Mounted much higher than my Laird 4503 I use for local work, and switching between the two is comical because the GP3 hears far and misses stuff close in that the Laird just hammers in with. It is not great for transmitting on 462 but the match for repeater inputs on 467 is below 2 to one 1.8 or a bit less. Recommended highly if you already have one up for ham use. For a new install there are many options with more gain. But I will say it is rugged and durable. Winds here go over 100mph at times and the one piece radome had no issues. Wind load is an issue here so nothing bigger is possible. That being said, I love mine but unless your a ham it makes little sense. I can easily work some repeaters 100 miles away with it. It works! Personally, if you have the money get the highest gain Laird you can afford and feed it with heliax. Big stuff over an inch. I am broke so I use what I can afford. YMMV. PS Antenna is 2200 feet above sea level in western North Carolina. I am in the mountains. KY, WVA, GA, SC, VA are all easy on 2 meters with this antenna @ 25 watts. Tropo is hilarious and I exploit it to the max when it occurs to the amazement of distant repeater owners. Guys in Ohio were surprised to hear me one morning!

It is one of the reasons to love UHF. You can build stuff and model things. So much smaller than...160 meters!

I dug some old RG8 out of my stash and swept it and will shortly chop it up into 1/4 wave pieces and 1/2 wave pieces and try my hand at building a collinear vertical to see how it works. I plan on schedule 40 PVC 1 inch as a radome and will try to keep the cost below 30 bucks. I have a good analyzer on hand which I bought specifically for building antennas some time ago. I will post pictures and brag in an insufferable manner if I succeed with good results. Anyone else? Thanks and if I succeed (or fail hard) I will let you know. I am planning a 5 or 9 DBD gain antenna to start. I am old cheap and nearly blind so I will keep you updated. Building your antennas is fun, and boasting about them is epic. But be forewarned...If I succeed and post the recipe many will tell you you sound great because of your location Of course your location IS important. But if you make it yourself you can boast and be completely obnoxious about it. I certainly have in the past. Updates will follow....of course.

You are solid copy full quieting in West Asheville. I am using only a HT (3db rooftop antenna) so I don't have a prayer. Excellent machine and it's really getting out. A fellow Extra here so well done OM and 73. I prefer being unknown so no call. Sry OM. I occasionally appear on the mt Mitchell machine. Best wishes!

This link is pure gold for seeing the effect of feedline loss on your station. https://kv5r.com/ham-radio/coax-loss-calculator/ I have 100 feet of LMR 400 going to my 2m/440 antenna. At 465 mhz power loss is 48 percent. That does not count loss in the connectors or adapters inline too. I just call it more than half to be conservative. 50 feet of LMR400 is 28 percent loss. Feedline loss is evil because not only does it turn your transmitter power into heat...it also turns incoming signals into heat too. It reduces the sensitivity of your station while making the transmitted signal weaker. It's one of the things I hate about UHF. Good feedline is expensive. If you know anyone who works in LMR for a living beg them for scrap hardline...maybe you will score! I use a short run of 20 feet to my low antenna and use Bolton LMR600. Loss in the cable is 7 percent. This makes me happy. It is a great local work antenna system. Unlike your home station however, you can drive your car to the top of a mountain...and be the king of all signals while you are there! I have been on mountains and worked ridiculous distances with only 10 watts. I live near the blue ridge parkway so it's easy.

LOL. Well done. Epic really. Too bad we are not neighbors.

I just put up in the past week my first dedicated base station antenna for GMRS. I had a free antenna a friend gave me some years ago and a mount on hand so all I had to buy was feedline. I wish I could recommend a base radio for you but for what I need the Wouxun KG-905G works well for my mission of walking children in the local area. My antenna is an expensive Laird FG4503 which is really great on the simplex frequencies in the 462 portion of GMRS but only passable on the 467 repeater input frequencies. I can work a couple of local repeaters with it and since that's of no interest to me I am happy with how it performs. It is not too high as it is attached to a plumbing drain vent made of iron pipe on the roof. Feedline is Bolton LMR600 equivalent which was cheap and is only 20 feet long. It seems well made but the connectors are nickle plated and not gold or silver (bummer) but on my SDR receiver local stuff has never been louder. I wanted minimum loss because I am a radio dork and wanted to resist the urge to buy a base station. Total cost not counting feedthru on hand or the weird mastic tape and silicone tape used was 53 dollars. My ham antenna is bigger and higher and has LMR400 feedline 100 feet long but I use it primarily for 2m/440 and it's ok on 2m and poor on 440. I mention it because although it is usable on 462 it is not on 467 and the higher height and gain results in poorer very local work. I am not interested in the repeaters on GMRS very much since my radio dorkitude is satisfied with ham radio. Depending on what you want to do, really dictates your installation. If you want to use repeaters use the biggest and lowest loss feedline possible within budget and buy an antenna that is as high a gain as makes sense for where you are. I am pretty high up and need some valley fill in the radiation pattern. My higher gain ham antenna higher up is not as strong close in as the new install is. On distant repeaters it is better. I have peak winds over 100mph in the winter often enough that I prefer single piece fiberglass radomes on my antennas. Everyone's needs are different. A good source of practical information for wind load at speed is available by looking at professional antenna spec sheets and seeing how robust a support you will need for an antenna of a given height. Also read and read again every review you can find on the antenna that you are considering. I hope you really enjoy whatever you erect and asking others for help is a great idea! Remember...I am a radio dork and if I used unfamiliar terms I am sorry. PS look up the difference between DBI and DBD gain. Manufacturers use both terms and they are different! PPS. Use as short a feedline (coax) as you can to minimize loss. (to signal and wallet) PPPS. Antenna height is the king of all distance. The higher the better. There is a reason repeaters on the top of a mountain reach further. UHF is line of sight (mostly not counting ducting or temperature inversions which can favor low antennas)

I used a rigexpert AA-600 and mounted the antennas directly on it. I got the same results you did. The 771G is the best rubber antenna I have ever tested. The 701 is the worst! If you get it the exact right distance to your body it works fine. For me 701 is not recommended. 771g is highly recommended. My KG-905G likes them!

You don't live far from me! I am in Asheville. I have piles of FRS radios as well as some pretty good receivers. I really like my Wouxun KG-905G. I have no way of testing it's output power but the receiver is excellent. It is a chunky simple HT. Since I live in west Asheville my RF environment is pretty severe. Pagers and whatnot cause images and interference galore on lesser receivers here where I am. The 905G picks up and copies signals well none of my other radios can. I am heavily biased though being a serious receiver geek. I think it's worth the money...and it sure is fun to listen to on scan. It stands up well to my rooftop antennas. One is a Comet GP3 I use for 2m and 440 and the other is a Laird FG4503 I use for GMRS to talk to my kids when they are walking around. I don't own and don't plan to get a more powerful GMRS radio and so far it has worked well for me. I plopped a couple of Nagoya 771G antennas on mine and that is a serious upgrade. Remember though...I am a seriously impaired radio dork. YMMV. That being said, the 905 receiver is very good. It's chunky and a bit heavy though. For something lighter and less pudgy best look elsewhere. It seems to transmit well too. I hope this addled advise helps you.