marcspaz

I mean.... it should work as long as the UV-9G supports split tones (I don't know if it does), but its more complicated than it needs to be. A more simple solution (more likely to work) would be to set the tone mode to Tone, and set just the Tone value to 88.5 (assuming that's the correct tone), ignoring the ToneSql field.

I laughed pretty good on this one. LoL I know it's hard to believe, but I have seen enough people ask this question that I figured I could post it in one spot and just link it. That way I don't have to type it over and over. I know what you mean about the meters, too. I have a Tektronix analyzer sitting on the shelf of my office. $26k when it was new,, a million years ago.. I do like the cheap meters because their good enough for pass/fail, which is all most GMRS operators need. Plus, if I put screen grabs from the analyzer up, the people who need to know what it says, can't understand what they are looking at. But, yeah... here we are. LoL

Can you provide a link or part number for the Laird antenna? Want to be sure I understand what part we're discussing.

Sorry to disappoint you, but that is never going to happen. It needs 13.8vdc for full power. The transmitter would need to be installed within inches of the alternator, and even then, it would only be at full power when the alternator it making at least 13.8 volts or more. You will lose 10w for every 1 volt the alternator drops. You're chasing something that is impossible with certified over the counter radios. It's 50w under proper operating conditions. Not 50w regardless of how poor the operating conditions.

If you are testing it in the vehicle instead of on a quality regulated 13.8vdc power supply, the test is null. You still haven't accounted for the power source concerns, which is likely the actual problem.

There is a lot more to it than just power. UHF is a line of sight service and things like trees and terrain make a difference. Where you are compared to everyone else makes a difference. If you move 1 foot in one direction or another, depending on whats around you, that 1 foot could make the difference between another operator hearing you perfectly or not at all. You could also be dealing with things like receive sensitivity on any given radio. A 1 watt difference does make a bit more of a difference when you are at a 4 or 5 watt power output, compared to starting with 20 watts... not so much. That said, if you increase your power 100%... going from 4 watts to 8 watts for example... you will see an slight increase in range, but we are talking measurements in feet or maybe yards... best case.

True... I was being a tad facetious. The lightning strike is coming no matter what. However, I have had nearby strikes hit my antenna right next to the house, but have never had the house hit. I guess my point is, your lightning protection can give electricity a lower resistance path that can do damage if done incorrectly... damage that may not have occurred if the resistance was higher and the strike didn't hit the house/arrester at all.

To follow-up with what Stone said, if you are going to put a grounding system in with spike/surge protection, it needs to be perfect or you are just improving your odds of getting struck and having stuff get broken by making a better grounded lightning attracter. During lightning season, I just disconnect the cables and toss them on the ground when the radio is not in use. I never lost anything but a single antenna and transmission line due to an indirect lightning strike. Zero damage to the house or anything else around the antenna. I guess the point of my story is, execute with perfection or don't waste your time.

I agree... inexpensive radio. I'm not surprised. I'm guessing the volt meter in the radio was an after-thought. When you key up at 50w, does the voltage display on the radio level off at 13.6vdc - 13.8vdc during full draw?

@Rican Hopefully this helps. Even if BuyTwoWayRadios.Com is willing to exchange the radio, I doubt that will resolve your issue. It's possible, but resolving any issues you find in this list are more likely going to bring you improvement over what you have currently.

This question has been coming up a lot lately... "My 50w Radio Doesn't Make 50w. Why?" I figured I would post quick highlights of the more common items that lead to low power. This is just a list of a few items. If anyone would like a bit more detail, just ask and myself or one of our seasoned operators will be happy to help with further explanation. One of the most common issues that will prevent you from reaching a full 50 watts is the manufacturer. They have to have their device certified by the FCC in order to be sold in the US. The radio needs to be sold in the configuration as tested and certified. If the radio or any subsequent builds tested exceed 50w, even if it's not intentional due to something like component tolerances, the manufacturer will either not get or lose their certification. To avoid risk of losing certification, when the radios are designed, they are designed to operate at much less power. I know for a fact that many popular brands target 46w, so they can round-up to 50w for advertising. However, manufacturing tolerances allow for +/- 4w. So, a properly running new radio under the absolute best conditions could make as much as 50w or as little as 42w. Again, only under perfect conditions. Those perfect conditions are typically 13.8vdc "at the radio" (not at the power source), almost unmeasurable losses due to test gear insertion, a proper dummy load, and being on the channel/frequency that the manufacturer centered up the transmit power to. The following issues are just a few that will lead to less than ideal conditions. - Not testing on the channel/frequency that the manufacturer tuned for max performance. - The power source is too low. - Power cables are too long, lending to too much voltage loss at the radio. - The power cables are too thin for the current draw and length of the power cables, lending to too much voltage loss at the radio. - Power cables have connections that are crimped instead of soldered. - Corrosion at the battery connectors or other connectors in the power lines. - Improper grounding of the radio. - Improper grounding of the antenna. - A bad or poor performing antenna. - Bad or poor performing antenna cables. - RF interference from something in the vehicle that is close to the radio, causing improper performance. There can be more than this, but in my decades of experience, these are the top problems I have seen. Below is a video showing the difference between my amateur radio on my bench vs installed in my Jeep. Even mine isn't perfect because I wanted to use the factory auxiliary switches, as well as Power Pole connectors for easy removal, and I don't mind losing a few watts compared to the convenience.

While OffRoaderX is giving you good advice, I personally found that most 50w radios will only output about 48w-50w on the bench with a dummy load and proper power supply. Comparatively, 35 to 37 watts once installed in a car is fairly normal for non-technical owners doing the installation at home. There are a lot of variables that impact the final output in a vehicle. Also, you would have to jump to 70+ watts before you see a very small, but usable improvement over 35 watts.

Martin has new 43's for sale for about $650... including the PEP module. Another $450 for the elements and you have a rock star meter for life.

Sounds like a 'match' made in heaven.

Speaking of how smart someone is... A neutron walks into a bar and says "Bartender... I'll have a beer." The bartender says "Sure" and slides him a beer. The neutron said "Thanks! What do I owe you?", and the bartender replied "For you? No charge!"

Hahahaha

They both have good audio fidelity, but the KG-1000 has a better class of receiver. It has a better ability to discriminate between noise and weak signals, making it a better receiver.

Yeah, we have chatted about this a bit here. Just my personal opinion, the KG-1000 is a great mobile radio if you are a radio geek and really enjoy bell's and whistles AND you are a technically inclined person. The MXT500 is great if you want a full power, full bandwidth, repeater ready radio... no frills, works out of the box and not confusing to operate. There are many good radios available when you look at new market specific gear, as well as legacy LMR equipment... but those two just seem to be my top favorites.

Dang... that's hot. I'll have to show you guys what mine is doing when I'm back in VA. I don't have any of my gear right now, but Monday or Tuesday I'll shoot some video.

No... it's 2.6:1 on the 467mhz channel. I don't see a 1.6 on any frequency with that antenna. I think the best I get is on 2m, it's 1.7. The advertised range stops at 465mhz and it's used in very limited circumstances. So, I'm not too worried about it. The UHF and the NMO are mounted in very different locations, but have near identical performance. I also mo Ed them to a few different vehicles with the mag mount and there was very similar performance. As I mentioned, it's it's compromise to use it, but I don't worry about SWR until it's at 3:1. Then I consider tuning are replacing the antenna.

I use the Comet 2x4SR. I have one in UHF and one in NMO. It works great in 2M, MURS, 70CM, and it has a 2.6:1 SWR or better on all GMRS channels, including the repeater inputs. It has about 4dB of 'real' gain on the GMRS channels. It is a compromise across the board to have it all on one antenna. UHF https://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=H0-001424 NMO https://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=H0-011146 I also have a Comet M-24m that I use when clearance is an issue. It woks better on GMRS than the Ham bands. But, as I mentioned, there is going to be compromise.

I am not sure about everywhere in the US, but in VA and FL, SKYWARN is phone, internet (email/text) and Amateur Radio. ARES does integrate FRS/GMRS into its responses, but it's very limited and we don't train for it on the regular bases. It's use in training (where I am) is very rare because we usually put them in the hands of SAR/USAR staff, VIP and command staff, etc., during actual emergencies when Ham radio folks are short staffed and we need an unlicensed service for them to use, that keeps them in touch with Hams to move traffic to where it needs to go. Not to sound mean, but if you are too busy to study for the test, chances are you won't have time to drill/practice or actually help when/where needed. And that is okay, BTW. To give you some incentive, my wife got her license when she was 12... and had to learn/demonstrate Morse Code. The grandchild of a friend of mine got their license this year at just age 7. I was super intimidated by it, but just took the online practice exams until I passed with a 100%, and then went and took the actual test. It was a lot easier than I thought and had myself freaked out for nothing. I highly recommend spending a little bit of time on it and getting your Tech license. BTW, I recently bought a VHF/UHF handheld Ham radio (which is all you need to get started) for $35. It can be as cheap or expensive as you want it to be. That is really the intent of GMRS. The service restrictions don't really lend to doing much more. Repeaters greatly expand range, but they are few in some places and none in others, they are privately owned in most cases and have restrictions on power, modulation and information types that make it so its not practical for many cases. That said, I know there are whole communities that are prone to wild fires, earthquakes, etc., that implemented GMRS networks to help the whole community and to empower the community to help themselves. You can always reach out to your local volunteer groups and see if there is anything like that around you.

@SargeDiesel sounds good. yeah,, the standard duty mounts tend to have shorter and thinner screws since it's not intended to hold as much weight. Stores like ACE Hardware should have longer screws. I haven't checked the big stores, like Lowe's or Home Depot, but they may, too.

I went through and looked at my posts. I didn't see anywhere I said I sanded anything. If I mentioned that in another thread or said something that made you think I did, I apologize. I didn't sand down anything. The antenna mount comes with one of two bare aluminum plates that you can put between the set screws and the hood, so the screws don't puncture the hood/paint. I did not use those clamping plates, but rather let the screws puncture the paint and clamp to the aluminum. If you notice in my picture below, I just ran the screws through the seem seal to make the contact.

I suspect you're a tad younger that me, because when I say "in the old days", GMRS didn't exist. I have a frequency allocation chart I bought in 1986 that doesn't have GMRS or FRS on it.