BoxCar

There are several sites that provide reviews of units that can be used for a base station. Within your budget there are 2 that cover your needs from Icom. The IC-7100 is a mobile/base covering all bands but doesn't have the waterfall display. The Icom 706 MK IIG is available on the used market again, no waterfall but both are solid 100W units. You can get an SDR radio for fairly cheap that will throw up a waterfall display using a software program downloaded from the net. For my 2M/70cm work I use the ID-5100A and a hot spot for D-Star. Probably one of the best sources for an unbiased review is the ARRL. You may want to consider joining them for their wealth of information available. The other trusted(?) sources would be the ham equipment dealers such as Ham Radio Outlet, DX Engineering, Gigaparts and others. They will, of course, be biased to their new equipment lines but can definitely offer good advice on power supplies and antennas along with other accessories you'll end up needing.

Michael, Kindly show the world where there is an approved device that covers both the GMRS and CB frequencies and not a unit that covers frequencies outside those two bands.

Yes Michael, there are units that do cover those frequencies but Mr. KIA, the OP was asking as a person not licensed to operate that type of unit and specifically for a unit to cover just the GMRS and CB bands which there isn't a unit. So, quit being an idiot and address the question being asked in the frame it was asked. And further, the Yaesu doesn't operate on the GMRS or CB frequencies without illegal modification so the answer is STILL there isn't a unit that combines those particular frequencies.

GMRS is short range, line-of-sight communications but has a higher power output than CB. GMRS is also FM where CB is AM so the messages are much clearer. GMRS is able to use repeaters that improve the range and can be connected to form networks. Because the frequencies for CB are around 27 MHz and GMRS is in the 460 MHz area the two can't be combined into a single unit.

Before you do any more to the antenna, CALCULATE what the length should be. There are several sites you can use that will provide an answer in either millimeters or inches. The adage measure twice, cut once always helps. The loading coil if used adds an even amount like a 1/4 or 1/2 wave so you need to be able to calculate the length of the stinger above the coil. The length is measured from where it comes out of the holder to the tip, not the physical length of the stinger so it needs to be a little longer than the calculated length.

A used Part 90 repeater is a better investment. Units from Motorola, GE, or others are proven, solid units. Amateur units from Kenwood, Icom or Yeasu are also good candidates. The key piece for a repeater is the antenna. It needs both height above ground and gain. Gain increases the effective radiated power and improves reception. Gain is reported in either dBi or dBd. Dbi is imaginary while dBd is real gain as you subtract 2.1 from the dBi figure to obtain the real power increase of dBd for an antenna. Repeater life is measured by the duty cycle which is the amount of time the repeater is in use. Low cost units have a duty cycle or time spent actually on-air of about 20% or working about 12 minutes per hour. Part 90 units and amateur units will start with a 50% duty cycle and go up to a 100% duty cycle which means constant use.

Are you worried about scratching the metal plate? If not, remove the boot and check the SWR on the antenna.

The only way this could be done is by using the Internet to carry the traffic between repeaters. As you would need the Internet, why not use programs such as Skype or one of the video terminals from Google, Amazon or Facebook?

Repeater ID can be done in many ways but it doesn't need to be automated and broadcast when not relaying a transmission. The repeater would be properly identified if I stated this is call sign using repeater call sign or the repeater did transmit a CW id after carrying a transmission but otherwise remained silent. The reuirement is met.

Fattening the radiation pattern is a double-edge sword as it may impact your coverage closer to the antenna.

This is for your home base station? Are you having problems hearing with the Tram? The biggest factor on improving the quality of the signal is antenna placement. Changing antenaas without changing where it is located does very little to providing any improvements except in the area you already cover.

These radios aren't the Star Trek communicators seen on TV. They suffer from an entire range of issues regarding antennas, power output and terrain. First of all, standing where you are could you see where the repeater is? If there is anything blocking your view such as buildings, hills or mountains, fuggitaboutit. The second thing is if you could literally see where the repeater is, how far away are you? More than 10 miles with a clear line of sight is iffy at best. That's where output power comes into play - not only your handneld, but the repeater's output as well.Third is the antenna,the little stubby antennas on your radio is radiatting less power than your radio is rated at - period - statement of fact. How much the power is reduced depends on how the antenna is made and you aren't going to fix that. The primary key to increasing the range from any radio is how high above the average height of the terrain surrounding your radio. The HAAT (Height Above Average Terrain) of the antenna is the most important piece regarding range. As GMRS type radio waves radiate in a virtual straight line the range is how far away is the horizon from the antenna. By law, the amount of output power for GMRS is fixed so the theoretical range is also fixed depending on the antenna height. In other radio services the FCC uses the HAAT of an antenna to limit the output power. So, the range your radio has is limited by these three factors. Now, speaking of codes, a code is used to further limit the number of stations on the same frequency being heard. If the code does not match, the radio does not process the signal to the speaker. When programming in codes, do not limit your receiver to only "hearing" if a code is sent, most repeaters only use an input code which your transmit sends. So, leave the receive frequency set to no code unless specifically required. This is the most likely reason you can't receive a repeater signal when a transmit code is required. It's so easy to assume a receive code is also needed when in fact the code is blocking the signal.

Look at Cyber Communications in Warwick for one.

Try any radio dealer. There should be several within a 100 mile radius selling commercial and public safety radios.

A repeater transmits only when a signalis received on its input meeting the proper conditions, A repeater transmitter is no different than a handheld, mobile or base station none of which are required to transmit a periodic identification signal. What is required is the signal sent through, not by, the Part 95 repeater be identified by the signal originator. The point being is the rules are predicated on an operator originating a transmssion. The real issue with the rules and their interpretation is the rules are written with the assumption there is a physical operator (person) operating a station when it transmits. Automated stations do not have a physical operator to initiate a transmission so therefore, under a strict interpretation of the Part 95 rules a repeater does not have to initiate a transmission for identification but, in order to cover all situations, an identifier transmission is a prudent operational necessity. This goes back to the requirement that repeater users are both authorized and follow the rules for identification.

If pushing programmable buttons is cheating that would make turning the channel selector or using the channel selector buttons o the radio or microphone cheating as well by your rules.

The only thing in Part 95 regarding repeaters is the transmission must be identified and users be specifically authorized. I don't see any rule requiring the hardware broadcast an identifier.

On my Yeasu FT-4XR I can push one of the two programmable keys. The ame on my BaoFengs.

Recently in another thread I stated repeater operators were not responsible for carrying unlawful traffic. The position I took that repeater operators are not responsible is both true and not true. In my limited research, no repeater operators have been cited for the retransmission of unlawful traffic and, the only operators speciffically excluded for liability are amateurs operating under Part 97. In a discussion with the Commission regarding liability the Mobility Division stated that without a specific request the provisions of 95.1702(d) can be applied putting the responsibility for unlawful transmissions on the repeater owner/operator. This lack of any exclusion means a repeater operator must maintain a list of those operators both authorized and excluded from repeater operations as part of their station's documentation. With the exception of amateurs, all repeater operators can be held responsible for allowing the retransmission of unlawful traffic if the Commission decides to pursue the issue. While automated stations are an integral part of any land mobile radio operation the only protection offered is the used of access codes on the receive frequency of the repeater and a list of both authorized and unauthorized users. Under current rules the Commission is unlikely to pursue enforcement against a repeater owner/operator without a specific complaint but the possibility exists without an exclusion being offered for automated stations.

Noob Steve, Your proposed installation is sound and definitly workable. Probably the key item to your proposed install will be the antenna. No matter which antenna you use, the key will be antenna heighth. I would look into finding a metal fence post or long spike that could be driven into the hilltop and a PVC pipe slipped over it. Attach the antenna to the PVC for added height and you would be good to go. The spike or post could be left in place as there would be no damage to the environment (and unnoticeable unless you knew where to look). A ground rod or piece of rebar driven at least a foot nto the ground would be sufficient for your purposes and a 10 foot piece of 3/4 inch PVC serve as the mast. As you wouldn't launch in windy condition conditions, you don't need to worry about wind loading for the antenna.

The key difference between using a J-pole and another antenna is the installation. J-poles don't need a ground plane as it is part of the antenna design. A vertical often requires a ground plane and/or radials to perform as intended, I have both a J-pole and a vertical whip I use for 2M/70cm. The whip is a mag mount and gets the better signal reports but that I feel is due to the installation. Both, when either is used, are at roughly the same height but the vertical is on a sheet of steel measuring 2 feet on a side as its ccounterpoise.

More likely it was reflected from the rock faces on the mountains. It's one reason 800 MHz works well in CO. They rely n the signal bouncing from the hard granite peaks in the Rockies.

I haven't used CB since the early 80's but it maes no sense to me that a repeater chanel be selected as the "travel channel." Mobile to mobile communications would be impossible without an external installation (the repeater). A simplex channel would be useable just as the CB channels are used today. No reliance on there being a repeater being in range with the same codes as the traveler. The issue of codes still exists as CB does not have this capability and there is nothing preventing some stations having codes and others without them.

MURS,from my understanding is the former B/ILT colored dot frequencies so there were several Part 90 radios in use and may still be available on the secondary market.

The FCC has published guidelines regarding the amount of RF exposure and safe distances from antennas for both operators and others such as family members that need to be maintaned. There are several calculators available on the Internet. The ARRL has one that is easy to use along with a brief description of the requirements from the FCC applicable to all radio stations, not just amateurs. For a 50W station, the minimum distance for an operator using GMRS frequencies is 6 feetfrom the antenna while family members should be 10 to 12 feet away when transmitting.