RCM

https://lmgtfy.com/?q=Zello&s=d&iie=1 It's a PTT app for smart phones. There are GMRS chat channels, and some of those are connected to actual radio repeaters.

Cite?

UHF 20 channel. PM me if you're interested, and I'll give you a price.

That means Yaesu took care of you. The reason I say that is I used to be in the business, and Yaesu was always good to take care of the dealers. Kenwood, not so much. Don't get me wrong; I'm a fan of Kenwood commercial gear and also amateur gear from early '80s and back. But I worked for a full line dealer during the '90s, and Kenwood was dead last in customer service. Yaesu was first. Alinco ran a very close second. We couldn't just replace a Kenwood that failed. If we did, we would likely have to eat it.

Me too. I think that would be enough to make me move to a better location. You know how some people talk about "location, location, location?" This is what they were talking about!

Thanks, Bill! I'll check that out.

I have one I'm not using, if you want to buy another one. For substantially less than that.

I remember when Standard was its own radio company, unaffiliated with Yaesu. Mirantz was the audio equipment division of Standard, but they also made some very good vhf and uhf handheld radios under the Standard name. As for Yaesu, they made the best Japanese ham radio gear. All of the ham radios were Yaesu, and Vertex was their commercial division. My first HF rig was a Yaesu FT-101. My (I think) third was also a Yaesu; an FT-840 that I still own and use.

Merry Christmas!

The offset on GMRS is the same (+5 MHz) as it is on 70cm/440 MHz ham. The repeater probably does use tone squelch, so you will need to find out what it is and set the transmit tone accordingly. You don't absolutely have to use a receive tone if you don't want to.

Well stated.

I'm on a handful of them. Mostly GMRS-CHAT and UNITED GMRS. I also started my own channel, HSV675 but so far I'm the only member of that one. Since I originally posted this thread I've talked with a member I recognized from here, on GMRS-CHAT.

How about something like this? https://amzn.to/2PJbXLO

Those are mobiles. As DeoVindice said, TK380s and TK390s for handhelds. Actually I would (did) just get TK380s. Not only do they have a better user interface and bigger display than the '390; they also use the same software as the TK-880. The handhelds are a different programming cable than the mobile. But you can build a channel list in the program for the mobile, program it, then switch cables and change a couple of parameters in the software and dump the same channel list into the TK-380. With the '390 you would have to have different software and start from scratch. The '380 holds more channels than the '390, too.

You're welcome.

Kenwood TK-880, short answer. There are other good ones too; some of the other (both newer and older) Kenwoods for example. Also a couple of the Motorolas, such as the M1225 if you don't need more than about 20 channels and don't mind paying a shop to program it. The software for those is out there, but it takes some searching. The software for Kenwoods is easy to find. Also some of the Kenwoods can be programmed without a computer (TK-805 for example) and the TK-880 and possibly others can be programmed that way once that feature is enabled.

Rugged Radios also misleads people to believe that as their customer, they can legally transmit on business band itinerant frequencies under RR's license. It's not a 100 percent lie*, but it is a gross misrepresentation. * A customer can do that at certain events where Rugged Radios is physically present and gives the customer express permission to transmit on the specific frequencies in use, but only at the event location and while the event is going on.

Few if any uhf radios go all the way to the 50 watt level. That's fine though, as there is no discernible difference between 40 watts and 50 watts. I strongly recommend that you avoid those Midland radios. They are nothing but rebranded Chinese radios with a hugely inflated price tag, and their performance is subpar. A real commercial radio in the standard 25 watt power level will outperform it, and the commercial radios are also available in a 40 or 45 watt version. Best of all, you can buy two or three good condition commercial radios plus programming cable and software for the price of one Midland MXT400. Or, skip the programming and buy your commercial radios from a seller who will program them with the frequencies you need.

I've heard of some issues with some cables. Maxton should be a good one, though. That appears to be what KJ6ZWL (Blue Max 49ers) sells. I would probably ask the seller about the driver issue. Mine works fine with Windows 10, but XP should be even more compatible.

Is there a particular reason for the restriction on number of daily "likes"?

I saw that too. They also sell a MURS radio.

Great synopsis of the radio hobbyist community! I agree, 100 percent.

They're just reflashed and rebadged Chinese stuff. A member who hasn't been around for awhile, Hans, posted exactly what they are awhile back.

Nope, I don't think you do. I was talking about Midland.

What cable do you have, and what version of Windows are you running? You are using the Version 4.02 software linked above, correct?