WRTC928

I have the same radio, but I've never noticed that. It's possible mine does it but it's so quiet that I haven't noticed it yet. Next time I'm in the car, I'll check and see.

I recently moved back to Oklahoma after 18 years in Alaska. I sometimes still think in terms of large areas where cell phone service isn't available. There probably aren't too many of those in the lower 48. Not coincidentally, there are a surprising number of GMRS and amateur radio repeaters in Alaska for a state with such a small population.

All valid points. I was actually thinking of an agreed-upon channel to be used to call for help, not necessarily monitored by emergency services, but that would suffer from the fact that nobody would be monitoring. I don't know if most GMRS users routinely scan or just pick a channel and stay with it.

That doesn't mean it wouldn't be useful.

Could it happen? Sure. It's right there in the regulations. Has it ever actually happened? Not as far as I can determine. I'm willing to risk it. YMMV

According to its spec sheet, it operates up to 500 MHz. The sheet states that it will receive only on aviation frequencies, but doesn't mention any other frequencies being restricted to Rx only, so presumably it will Tx and Rx on GMRS frequencies without modification. Assuming the spec sheet is to be believed, of course.

Here's the weird thing I've noticed about antennas: There's not necessarily one "best" antenna because each radio seems to have a preference. I can run a test with two identical radios, and one is better with Nagoya and the other prefers Abbree. Or Signal Stick. Or HYS. I've decided that about all you can do is buy a quality antenna and hope for the best. I have noticed, though, that on GMRS frequencies, a GMRS-tuned antenna will do better than almost any dual-band antenna, (which shouldn't be surprising); however, much of the time, a dual-band antenna is good enough and "good enough" is a valid concept. If you operate on amateur radio frequencies as well (I know the rules. Don't start), a good dual-band antenna may be the best option if you don't want to decide what band you're going to use today and change the antenna accordingly. I have BNC connectors on my EDC HTs, so I could certainly do that. I mean, if I were a scofflaw. If you're strictly operating on GMRS, then definitely get a GMRS-specific antenna.

Interesting. Maybe changing your repeater's tones to DTCS instead of CTCSS would stop the cross-contamination. Just throwing out ideas.

That's interesting. I've never heard of that before, but it seems like a useful feature. I do sometimes look at my radio and can't remember if it's on or off.

@WRZY921 is correct. Despite what "some people" may tell you, there's no way for someone at a distance to differentiate between power levels that small, so you're not going to get into trouble with the authorities. The reason for the wattage and bandwidth restrictions is that they are very close to other designated frequencies and excessive power or bandwidth can "spill over" to the adjacent frequencies. Set the radio to the lowest possible power and narrow bandwidth and you won't interfere with anyone else. I have Tx disabled on those channels just because I've never had any reason to use them, but I have a couple of radios rated at 1 watt on low and I wouldn't hesitate to use them if I had a reason.

Actually, using a repeater on a ranch is one of the few scenarios in which I think it makes sense to have a repeater with a reach greater than that of the recipient radios. There are occasions when you need to do an "all hands" call ("Come to the house, the barn is on fire." "The fence is down and all the horses are out." That kind of stuff.) If someone is a bit out of range, they can still receive the message. Even so, 50 watts would probably be much more than necessary.

What you're describing is an issue not of power, but of obstruction; i.e., the hill in the middle of the property blocks signals from going to one side of the property to the other. The distances you're talking about are easily attainable with 5 watts provided there are no obstructions. I've talked clearly from one 5 watt HT to another 5 watt HT several miles away on an open highway. Much more is possible if one or both radios are in elevated positions. Radio waves travel in a straight line, or close enough to straight that it makes no difference. A repeater on the highest point of the property means any radio on the property has a straight line to the repeater, which then has a straight line to the other radio(s). In my -- admittedly limited -- experience, more power can make a fuzzy signal clearer, but it won't get you any significant improvement in distance.

If you want to use those channels, it might be worthwhile to actually measure the output. Baofeng typically overstates the wattage of their radios. Additionally, the nominal power ratings aren't the same on all bands. Generally, they'll have their highest power available in the VHF bands. Your radio doesn't do VHF, IIRC, but they probably list the same power ratings as for the unlocked version. Then, there's some variation from one radio to another. For example, I have a bf-f8hp that is rated at one watt on low power, but I actually measured it at 0.4 watts in the GMRS frequencies.

I have the same antenna and I also get a higher SWR in the GMRS frequencies, but I figure that's because 462 is technically "out of band" for that antenna. It's not high enough to damage my radio and I rarely use GMRS, so I don't get too concerned.

Yes, it's fine. If you want to use more than 5 watts (5w on 1-7, 0.5w 0n 8-14), it's your only option if you wish to remain compliant with FCC rules. As others have said, try not to use channels that are used by local repeaters. That may be easy, or they may all be busy. In my area, there's only one, and in your area, you apparently won't have difficulty either. However, if you want to use repeaters when you travel, that may not be the case. If you're in an area with lots of repeater use, the repeaters will probably have Tx/Rx tones, so people can set their tones to match the repeater output tone and ignore your traffic if they choose. If you set "privacy" tones, try to pick ones that the local repeaters don't use for their output tones. Anyone with no tones set can still hear you, but at least the repeater users can tune you out if they want. It's really just about courtesy. The Golden Rule applies.

My mobile radio has crossband repeat capability. It's a nice feature, but TBH, I'll probably never use it. There are so many repeaters in my area that I can hit with an HT that I doubt the issue will come up. I suppose it might be useful when traveling to other parts of the country. My days of camping out in the wilderness are past. Still, I think the capability is cool. To answer the OP's question, I don't see any reason why that wouldn't work. If it's only you using it, the duty cycle probably won't be high enough to be a problem. It would not be working any more than if you were using it as a base station in your house. Still, because you won't be able to see it when it's in use, you might consider putting a small fan on it. If you want to get fancy, you could set it up so that the fan comes on when the radio reaches a specified temperature, or you could just set it to blow all the time. I can't imagine any downside to having a fan on it all the time except the negligible cost of electricity to run it.

If I understand your question, a repeater is typically used to establish communication between two HTs or mobile radios when the distance or obstructions prevent communicating by simplex. Yes, if it's properly installed, it will increase the range of your HT simply by virtue of the fact that it has a taller and better antenna and more power. However, that will only work on the one channel for which the repeater is programmed and only to another radio which is programmed to that frequency pair and CTCSS/DTCS codes, if any.

Question for the brain trust: Does it make any difference if you let the vehicle warm up in winter or cool down in summer before you turn on the radio?

Okay...get ready to laugh... After I changed the coax connector and tested the SWR...I forgot to put the antenna on. I replaced the antenna and tested again and got SWRs mostly in the 1.5 +/- range all the way up and down the 70c and 2m bands. As I got to the upper end of 70cm and the lower end of 2m, it went up but still was acceptable, which I expected for a dual-band antenna. I'm going to call that good enough.

So...I tested the outer shell of the coax and the center pin and definitely had continuity. I replaced the connector and must have gotten it right because there is now no continuity. That got the SWR down to 5, so that clearly wasn't the only problem. My test leads aren't long enough to reach from the connector to the NMO mount, so that will have to wait until tomorrow when I can get longer leads.

That was my first thought. I really don't want to remove the headliner, but I don't know any other way to find the problem.

I was using a Comet SBB-1 antenna on a mag mount on top of my car and had excellent SWRs, 1.0-1.5:1. This week, I had a hole drilled in the roof and a Larsen NMO-K mount installed in the same place where the mag mount was. Now, using the same antenna (and two other antennas) I'm getting SWRs of 7-10:1 up and down the 70cm and 2m bands. I don't know how it could have changed so radically by installing a roof mount. The coax is shorter, but I can't imagine that would do it. I didn't do the work myself and I didn't see it done, but the guy has installed radios before. What can be the cause of this?

There's only one repeater in my area and I can reliably use it from about 20 miles away. There used to be one about 25 miles away that I could hit from my house but it went silent a few months ago. I assume it went offline or changed the access code.

My remark was directed to your uncertainty whether the older UV-5r could transmit on MURS frequencies. You are correct that using a UV-5 on MURS frequencies would be inconsistent with FCC regulations. Everyone has to decide for themselves whether that's a risk they're willing to take. I do it, but I keep the power to no more than 2 watts and narrowband on channels 1-3. This is not really out of fear of the FCC, but respect for the reasons the rules exist. It's my understanding (subject to correction) that MURS frequencies are adjacent to some business and public safety frequencies. Using too much power could spill over and interfere with their operations. Too much bandwidth could do the same. While interfering with licensed business radio signals might not be catastrophic, it does plant you squarely in the a**hole camp. If I were deep in the woods with some friends, maybe I'd turn the power up if we needed it to stay in touch. IDK, I haven't had that come up. If you need more than 2 watts, you probably should be on GMRS anyway. As to using a radio that isn't type-accepted for MURS, I don't give that much thought at all. If you don't exceed acceptable power or bandwidth causing interference on licensed frequencies, nobody is going to ask what radio you are using. Hams are the most rule-respecting group of all radio users, and lots of them have MURS programed into their amateur radios. Whether they ever use MURS is another story, because except for being deep in the woods, it's hard to imagine a scenario where ham or GMRS wouldn't be better. Most of the hams I know also have GMRS licenses, and yes, those channels are programmed into their radios as well. Maybe they never use them, IDK, but in the event of a disaster or emergency, I want to have the ability to communicate with GMRS and FRS radios and many other hams feel the same way. The issue of type-acceptance often comes down to practicality. I'm not going to lug around three HTs or have three mobile radios installed in my truck, but I want to have all the bases covered should it become necessary. If someone wants to use MURS regularly but they choose a UV-5r because it's cheaper than a dedicated MURS radio, that's a matter of practically as well. If they're willing to accept the (very tiny) risk of being fined by the FCC, that's none of my business.

Yes it can.