marcspaz

No, you don't need an amateur radio license to transmit with any radio on GMRS. You do need a GMRS license to transmit with any radio on the GMRS frequencies. There are no license requirements to listen to any radio frequency. There are only restrictions and licensing requirements for actually transmitting, and those requirements change depending on what frequencies you want to transmit on. For the radio specifically, the Baofeng UV-5R has a bandwidth utilization that is too large for FRS and GMRS. If you cause harmful interference with adjacent channels or services, you may have repercussions. Just something to be aware of.

I just wanted to take a moment to follow-up on my research and testing. Just so everyone knows there is no bias, I do not work for, nor have any connections to Comet or any other two-way radio communications companies. This is a totally unbiased opinion. I actually found a great, multipurpose antenna (Thanks KD2NCN / WRCR872 !). I bought a Comet CA-2x4SR NMO and its performance exceeds my expectations. Comet advertises this antenna for this very purpose and they did not let me down. My dedicated GMRS antenna (Midland MXTA11) had a 3:1 SWR on channels 1 through 7 (shared FRS/GMRS) and 15 through 22 (GMRS only). On the FRS channels it had a SWR of 2.5:1. Likely due to the extremely low power of the handheld, otherwise it would have be 3:1, too. On the 70cm frequencies, that antenna actually did very well, with a 1.5:1 SWR. On 2 meter, it was over 5:1. The Comet antenna has a 1:1 SWR on 2 meter, 1.2:1 on 70cm, and a 1.5:1 on all FRS and GMRS frequencies. In my simplex testing on channel 15, while using the old antenna, my mobile to mobile between my two trucks was a max of about 2.6 miles in the suburbs. The new max is 8.3 miles in the same suburbs. Also, I got a signal report that I was "full quiet with loud audio" on a repeater that was 28 miles from my test location, while using a full 50 watts. If there are any Hams looking for a good 2m/440/FRS/GMRS antenna, I highly recommend this one. Hope this helps someone. Spaz

That's good to know. If that's the case, I'll likely keep both antennas in the truck and just swap them as needed. I appreciate the reply.

I am wondering if anyone has used a Diamond SG-7900-A-NMO on their vehicle, on GMRS frequencies? If so, how did it go? I am looking at getting a better mobile antenna. A radio I just ordered covers 2 meter, 70 cm and GMRS frequencies. I am thinking about getting a Diamond SG-7900-A-NMO for 2m/70cm use. I had one before and it worked great for its intended use. The antenna is pre-tuned and not adjustable. The Ham UHF frequencies stop at 450 MHz. I am hoping the antenna will be tuned close enough to get good performance and have a good SWR on GMRS frequencies as well. It will make life easier if I don't have to swap antenna's as I move between Ham and GMRS. Any feedback on your experience on this is much appreciated. Thanks, Marc

I appreciate the info. Much appreciated. That actually makes a lot of sense. I appreciate it.

That's bad news and a serious oversight on my end. I can't believe I missed that. Midland micromobile came up in the top 5 recommended GMRS radios is a bunch of online reviews. Is there any options other than selling this radios and buying a pair of widebands?

Hello, I am in a bit of a pickle today. I am getting what I believe to be sub-par simplex performance with my new GMRS mobile radios. Though, I may just be at the limit of the service. I am hoping someone may have a recommendation or some information for me. I have 2 trucks that I put Midland MXT400's in. I am using the Midland 6 DB gain antenna. Both antenna's are hard mounted to the windshield cowl, about 8 inches forward of the windshield and vertical. The antenna base on one truck is 60 inches off the ground and the other antenna base is 54 inches off the ground. I have a UHF SWR/Watt meter. Both vehicles are reading about 1.1:1-1.2:1 and there is zero reflective energy on either setup. With both radios, I can successfully talk to repeaters 20+ miles away and they sound great. On simplex, in as straight of a line as I can get on any road around here, I can only talk about 2.5 miles with 5 watts scale (3.7 measured). When I bump the power to the 40 watts scale (35 measured), I don't pick up any more than 25 to 30 yards of more range. I tried buying a couple of magnetic mount antenna bases and put both antenna's in the center of each vehicles roof and gain zero performance. I also saw about the same forward and ref energy reading as well as SWR. I am a HAM and on 440 (70cm), on a 5 watt hand held, I am getting about 7 miles on a 5 DB gain antenna. With my 2m/440 setup in my car, I get about 17 miles on 440 simplex with 35 watts. I am having a hard time believing that the small jump from 440's to 460's is crippling my simplex performance. Especially since I am able to use repeaters 20+ miles away. Any suggestions? Is this what I should expect out of this part of the UHF band or am I overlooking something? I feel like I am probably making a simple mistake and I am just missing it. Thanks in advance for any help. Marc