RCM

A tip on reading the advice regarding radio suggestions.  There is a tendency for ham operators to be more willing to use commercial and/or used equipment. On the other hand, those who started with GMRS or came from CB tend to prefer turn-key purpose made gear.  Neither is better or worse than the other. But, depending on your needs and abilities, there might be a difference to you.
 
You check under the avatar to see if a member lists a ham license. Most, but not all, hams do.
 
Personally, I like Motorola equipment and the M1225 is a fine radio.  But, consider the info under my avatar.
 
YMMV
 
And, +1 on bluemax49ers for your programming cable needs.

Well I was able to reach Sassafras repeater to talk with a gentleman in Cleveland GA today on the 4 watt TERA TR-505 and I was in Gainesville so I was about 30 miles from Sassafras and 10 or 15 miles from Cleveland. I think the problem is exactly like you explained, I’m losing contact with the repeater when the 4 watt handheld is in areas without line if sight. That explains why the radio works sometimes and does not work sometimes. I also have to keep in mind that since the Sassafras repeater is not linked at the moment there are simply fewer people listening.
 
Anyways, my son is coming up tomorrow and he’s going to help me run some Simplex testing around the local Dahlonega area, so that should be even more educational.

Fully agree. The 1225’s are great. I’ve also used the CDM1250s and 750s with great success.

I've used the M1225 as a repeater setup and mobile, I will agree. Very nice! 

There's so much good stuff out there in the way of used Part90 Commercial gear.... I've got a couple PM400's, an XPR5550 (shop truck), an old TK-880, and an assortment of portables that run the range from Vertex through Motorola. I've always been a fan of the M1225 for starter gear. It's small enough, has decent specs, and the software is very easy to use. I've picked up units off eBay for under 25 bucks for low power (25 watt) 4 channel models. The 20 channel display units usually run higher, but almost always under $100 for clean working units. The M1225 series was also type accepted for Part 95, which calms some people's fears. 
 
I have to admit that having access to all the software and cables makes things pretty easy for me, but unless you're looking at current model top of the line stuff, the software is pretty easy to come by, and most of the mobile cables you can make yourself if you can follow a diagram on Batlabs or Repeater-builder.

I think MURS is 2 watts max.
 
ETA: It is 2 watts.
 
§95.2767   MURS transmitting power limit.Each MURS transmitter type must be designed such that the transmitter power output does not exceed 2 Watts under normal operating conditions.
 
Source: FCC

I had posted this as a response in another forum topic and wanted to see what others thought. How do you run your system and have you had any issues running it the way you do?
 
I decided long ago to list my repeaters as open with no CW ID running and stating "It is your responsibility to ID as required by FCC rules and regulations". I figure what good is a repeater if it sits idle most of the time, I built my last machine to cover a huge recreational area and I want people to use it. Unless I get complaints I wont change a thing. I have listened to people tell me about repeaters that sat Idle 95% of the time until they failed, what a waste of money. I rather see it burn up knowing it served people well then die a slow painful death idle in a shack.

No, actually I never used the incorrect 000 500 offset. I caught the error before programming it. So basically I went from no offset 000 000 to the correct offset of 005 000. So technically I was broadcasting my callsign on the repeaters output frequency so no FCC improprieties were executed on this very fine day...LOL. However; You make a good observation sir! So basically I was Simplexing with myself, which is kind of like talking to yourself with radios! As long as you don’t answer back, YOU’RE GOOD!

The old GE Phoenix rigs do have a hot receiver, and have all the needed aux pins out the back, with COR, PTT and audio signals.
 
I have a friend who still uses a Phoenix as a UHF link radio on his VHF ham repeater.
 
I'll contact him, and see if he has a programmer available.
 
NOTE: I am personally not too familiar with these rigs, but they are so old, they may be crystal controlled.

Just made contact on the Sassafras Mountain repeater to a gentleman in Ellijay, GA so I would like to thank all of you for your assistance and patience with me in solving my startup issues.  I can't say enough positive things about this group and the organization.  I look forward to tuning in to the next NET meeting.

BTW, my avatar image is borrowed humor from a post I saw on here in the General Forum (I think) and I saw a discussion on radio testing and the comment was "test...test..." and it had a link to a video on youtube that showed a Baofeng being set on fire as a "test" and I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair.  So I made an image of the burnt radio from a screen capture image.  So I wanted to make sure to not take credit for thinking up that joke.  I hope that user doesn't mind...haha...

I use one for my repeater along with 2 Moto M1225 radios. Works great. I also bout the voice board to do Voice ID

2w vs 4-5w makes very little difference anyway. The main thing the additional wattage does is heat up the radio and drain the battery. A good antenna is far more important.

That first link says Larry Waggoner, W0KA was in on this project.  I didn't know he was ever into Phoenix radios, but his big repeater is made from a GE MSTR-II.  Larry is a personal friend of mine, and fellow broadcast engineer.  I have his info in my phone, and talk to him on a regular basis.  If you have any more specific questions, I can call and ask him.

How are you testing to see if you are hitting the repeater? Are you are expecting to hear a beep or squelch tail (a short period of carrier after you unkey your transmitter)? While those features are typical, they are not required and, in many cases, not present. Sometimes the only way to tell if you are activating the repeater is to listen on another radio -- one that is as far away from your transmitter as possible. 
Other than that, there are several possibilities...
- Have you ever heard any traffic on the repeater? It may not even be working.
- The PL tone may have changed from that listed in MyGMRS.
- You may have set your radio to require a PL tone on receive, possibly a different tone than the repeater transmits or forwards - or the repeater may not have PL on the output at all.
- Your signal may not be reaching the repeater. Try driving to some location that is line-of-sight from the repeater and see what happens.
- And, finally, just as a test, you could give your Baofeng a try. You will not get arrested.
 
Good luck, keep trying.

MyGMRS Staff is providing some resource information below, but does not guaranty the accuracy of the data in these links. Use at your own risk.
 
 
Link (1):   http://www.rtzaudio.com/kg4lne/pages/phoenix.html
 
Link (2): https://www.qsl.net/w4xe/rpttech/rpttech211.htm

If that shop is still in business, I'm sure they could tell you which vintage it is.  Heck, if it's the PLL one, they may even program it for you if you slip them $20-25 or so.
 
 
EDIT:  You might also ask them for a copy of the manual, or at least a photocopy of the alignment instructions, and the pin-out for the back connectors.

Awesome! I'll check that one out. I'll also make sure to look for the Part 95 certification and offset capability. Thanks!

Check out the Baofeng GMRS-V1 for a decent handheld radio. It's a pretty good radio for about $55 shipped from Amazon.
And, it's type accepted and therefore 100% legal.

Check out the Baofeng GMRS-V1 for a decent handheld radio. It's a pretty good radio for about $55 shipped from Amazon.
And, it's type accepted and therefore 100% legal.

That is a very good, time-tested and reliable controller. You won't be disappointed with its performance.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone on the forum!

900 MHz also avoids licensing, equipment authorization, and channel availability headaches. Any time there is significant separation ("outside the immediate vicinity of") from the 462/467 MHz transmitter and the person operating it, the transmitter becomes a remote base, and there are some additional restrictions that come into play. Since 2.4 GHz is already accepted for short-range wireless microphones, 900 MHz is also fine. The question then becomes whether crossbanding to 900 MHz causes a 95.339 violation. Fixed, base, and repeater stations can be operated by remote control. Short-range 2.4 GHz microphones are designed to only operate in the immediate vicinity of the transmitter, so use on a mobile station is acceptable. Crossbanding a mobile station to something like a set of DTR650s would enable violating 95.1745, producing a 95.339 violation, as the mobile station is considered remotely controllable.

Heed this Midland engineering.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone on the forum!