marcspaz

No, but I do have strobes for 2 of my vehicles because I do volunteer field communications work for for DHS/FEMA, DoD/USMC, the Commonwealth of Virginia, Loudoun county and Price William county. However, they are hidden. Not a 'wanna-be' look. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb0eyScO9lA

That's me... sort of. No basket weave belt (its a tac trainer) and only 1 radio. I don't use 10 codes, though. Have to draw the line somewhere.

I love the 29 LTD! When I get paid on Friday, I'm ordering the AM/FM version.

Yes, if you have Sync enabled, there is a channel mode for A and for B. When you disable Sync, because there is only a single channel bank, you only get the channel mode option once.

Okay, I figured it out. All of the problems were because the frequency counter and CTCSS/DCS decoder functions were enabled. I disabled that and everything started working fine.

So, I just found that if I program the offset frequency and direction in the A/B Channel tab on Chip, I can then change them or enable/disable them. I don't see any way to change the tone settings in the software to 'prime' the setting like I did with the offset. Getting closer, but can still use some help, if anyone knows.

I am having an issue with my TD-H3 radios. I read the manual, search the web with 3 different search engines, and no luck finding anything useful. All 3 of them behave the same way, so I think I am doing something wrong. Since they are getting popular for GMRS, I figured I would see if anyone else here had the same problem and resolved it. So, short version, everything works if programmed in Chirp. However, I can't change any offset or tone values if I attempt to set them through the FPP. In VFO mode I cannot configure the CTCSS, DCS, Offset Direction nor Offset values; menu items 10, 11, 12, 13, 23 and 24. When I attempt to set a value, and press the BT/menu button to confirm, the values set back to off/none/0.000/etc. So, here is the odd part... If I use Chirp-Next to program the radio, it programs perfectly and everything works fine. In existing memory channels that have been programmed with Chirp, I can successfully change any of those values. BUT... if I manually save a new memory channel via FPP, I still can't manipulate any of the aforementioned menu items in the new saved item. I have reset the radio several times. This problem exists regardless of if the radio is in Ham, GMRS or Normal mode. I tried enabling and disabling a bunch of other features to see if there is an impact, but nothing seems to matter. When I am planning ahead, this isn't really an issue, but if I am out and about or have an emergency and need to program a repeater into the radio, it's just not possible with the FPP. So, any ideas about what I am doing wrong? Thanks, Spaz

I have to disagree with using a mobile radio being dangerous when driving. I am unaware of a single study that supports the claim. There are plenty of studies that show drivers adjusting their AM/FM/Sat radios are in the top 3 causes of distracted driving, but nothing about 2-way radio. I would think it's no different then talking to a passenger. The next step from laws like this is no entertainment radio, no navigation, no talking to passengers. It's stupid and tyrannical. Just hold people accountable for distracted driving instead of naming and outlaw every possible distraction.

It's workin', driver.

That would seriously be awesome.

@kidphc I really hope he sells to someone. It won't be the same, im sure... but it would be nice if someone is willing to carry on the legacy.

I'm heartbroken. We're losing some affordable, quality products soon. https://youtu.be/1r-RxIvw5zY?si=6sdAppWmYd1rrqP7

I swear, I'm not BSing at all, I almost bought one last night but opted to spend the extra cash for the FTM-500DR instead.

I'm glad you ended up with the KG-1000G. It's a great over the counter GMRS radio. One of my favorites. I had the TYT TH-9800D when it was sold by Yaesu as the FT-8900R. 15-20 years ago, it was a great radio. I would buy one today if it was $100 or less. I'm not to keen on about $250 for tech that old, when newer, better performing radios are available for about $200 to $300, depending on brand and features. The UV980p is a good radio, too. It's the platform the KG-1000 was built on., though I'm not sure there is a MARS/CAP mod for it.

This is just an "I think", based on owning a couple... from what I see, the Amateur Radio and the GMRS radio are the exact same radio, in every way, shape and form. What distinguishes the GMRS radio from the Amateur Radio is the stickers, labeling and what firmware is loaded at the time of sale from the manufacturer. Again, making assumptions based on past experience owning some of these, the firmware for all versions of the radio are likely stored in a controller memory. Because each radio is identical, all 3 versions of the firmware are stored. There is a BIOS (Basic In/Out System) that is independent of the firmware loaded. The BIOS will look at the boot options and see if there is a command to go to a boot menu or load the stored data in the EPROM (aka ROC/Radio On a Chip). If there is no indication to load the boot menu, the BIOS loads the current radio configuration, memories, restrictions, etc.. If there is an option selected to load the boot menu, the BIOS will load the menu. Depending on what you pick, if anything at all. the bios will flash the EPROM with the firmware stored on the controller memory and then reboot, loading the new operational state. This is why all of your saved memories and settings gets wiped when you change modes/types. Just to recap what I mentioned before, in Ham mode, it only allows transmitting on ham frequencies. On GMRS mode, you can only transmit on the pre-programmed GMRS frequencies stored in a memory channel. In normal mode, you can transmit on every frequency from 136 MHz to 520 MHz.

I am extremely well known in the tech world. Not because of things like YouTube or forums, but because of the work I do. So, I have had some unique opportunities and have some test equipment that most people don't have. Not sure what else to say. I didn't mention the KG-1000G. Although I did test that radio, too. I said I had test results from the MXT500 and the Yaesu FTM-300DR, the the Midland was better. I didn't say i did a head to head, because i didn't. I have no video, pictures or anything else. I wasn't comparing them. Over the years, I tested lots of radios on separate occasions. I happened to reference the results if these two a couple of times in a few threads here, because I found them unusual. The reason I tested the Yaesu was because I was having receive problems and was hoping to align it... but I ended up sending it to Yaesu for repair. The numbers I shared were after the repair. My results after the repair matched (close enough) to what is advertised in the owners manual... From the manual "0.2μV for 12dB SINAD (420 - 470 MHz, @FM)" I have no pics, video, etc., because I was just doing it for me and my own benefit. I don't typically post tech stuff on YouTube. Especially bland stuff like Yaesu doing a repair for me. As far as the Midland goes, at a completely different time, maybe a year later, I got a pre-release MXT500 model through a friend who is a pro offroader and was sponsored by them at the time. I bench tested it for sharing information here and it was trash. I spent a couple of weeks working with Roger French at Midland to get it squared away. When it came back, he emailed me a test sheet that included the 12 dB SINAD and SQ4 test results. So I confirmed them at home, too. I didn't video record or photograph any of that testing either, because it's way outside the understanding of most people who come to this forum. We have a lot of new users who just want to know if it's any good and don't need to get in the weeds. While I didn't share much on the KG-1000G, again months apart from any of the other two, I tested that radio for entirely different reasons. Danny Feemster from Cricket Ventures was working with Wouxun to develop the KG-1000G. The radio they sent me was a prototype that was essentially a heavily modified KG-UV980P. It was the only one in existence at the time and I had to send it back after about a week. That was a fantastic radio. I've actually been blessed with being asked by a global tech company to test another prototype just a few weeks ago, though I can't disclose those details yet. Should be interesting to some, when it does get shared. While I still have my test gear, I don't have any of these radios anymore. It's been years in some cases. I can't duplicate the tests without spending a ton of money... not worth it. Seems like you have your mind made up that I'm a liar about doing any testing myself... which I find some irony in. I have no problem steering clear.. but I'm pretty sure if you post some BS, you can expect to get called out again. I tried... just not going to bother anymore.

What I don't understand is, you can make a friendly post like this and politely disagree, but for some reason, even though I have zero to do with Midland or any other brand or radio industry at large (I'm an IT guy by trade) you attacked my character and credibility in a mean way. Have to be honest, a big part of my issue with you in this thread has nothing to do with you not believing me. You have no idea who I am, so I don't blame you. The situation is comfortably in the category of "not what you said, but how you said it." If you were as cordial with you're original concerns as you were with this post, I would have been a lot more receptive. As I mentioned before, no skin off my back one way or another, but if we're going to play in the same playground, you can't get upset when you behave poorly and people here give you grief about it. I am 100% willing to wipe the slate clean... I don't even need an apology... but there needs to be some understanding that not everyone is a sellout and just genuinely has a different opinion. Either agree or disagree. No need to be rude. Seem fair?

It's just another excuse. If he gets called out and pushed for more details, he'll make up some lie to justify acting like a dickhead.

Nickel and lithium based batteries should be stored at a 40% charge and not connected to anything. I personally also put tap over the connections, to prevent anything from touching the contacts and shorting or discharging the batteries further All batteries will eventually discharge to zero if they are in a radio or a charge cradle that isn't on and in a charge state. This damages batteries and can cause the battery to never charge again. Some highend batteries with electronics in them will sleep after they have been out of a radio or charger for some time. Those will appear to be dead, but just need to be reactivated. Storing batteries in the radio will not only discharge the battery, it could damage the radio. There are issues with corrosion, battery leaks and expansion.

This is only true if you are trying to use a scan feature built into a radio. If someone is using a standalone decoder or if their radio has a decoder, they can decode any custom tones if they are close enough to a user or if those custom tones are used on the output. Radios as little as $35 have decoders in them and you can buy a standalone decoder for just a few $$$.

In Ham mode, it only allows transmitting on ham frequencies. On GMRS mode, you can only transmit on the pre-programed GMRS frequencies. In normal mode, you can transmit on every frequency from 136 MHz to 520 MHz. That's pretty much it.

No PM. No apologies.

As others have mentioned, you really can't prevent someone from finding the tones or even testing their way through them. Short of turning the repeater on and off depending on need, you can implement security through obscurity. Though, the more obscure you get, the more likely you are to need a non-compliant repeater and mobile/portable user radios. Split-tone is one means of obscurity. Have the repeater transmit a tone that is different than what is used to unlock the squelch, or no transmit tone at all. Use DCS in and CTCSS out. This would make it much harder to guess... however, if someone is close enough to someone using the repeater, you can always scan the users transmission. Additionally, you can use what is known as "user defined CTCSS". For example, I could use 300 Hz or 2.9 KHz. If you want to get really extreme, you can also configure some units to require the presence of two tones or digital ID's at the same time, in order to open the repeater squelch, known as paging. Some other obscure configurations could include non-standard splits. There is nothing that says you have to use a +5 MHz split for your repeater. There are specific frequencies that we can use, but no mandatory use of any given pair. Meaning, you could have your repeater input on 467.650 and your repeater output on 462.550. So, if you want to have a ton of fun, configure the input of the repeater to be on 467.700 MHz and have the squelch open with a paging tone group of 67.0Hz/1.9KHz, have the output on 462.575 MHz with a DSC of 754, and then use a voice scrambler.

I should. I'll have to slate some time for it when I'm done traveling. It's an XTL5000. I have 3 of them. Two UHF and one VHF. All 110w units. I run the w7 heads because I love the old-school look and feel.

I use several different antennas on GMRS. I use diamond x300 at home, and a diamond x30 and x200 for portable repeater use. All are shared between GMRS and Amateur Radio.