OffRoaderX

I've been using LMR400 on my repeater for over a year-and-a-half and it has been plenty "good enough" for me and everyone in the several hundred square miles that the repeater covers.
Is it as good as a multi-thousand dollar commercial-grade repeater installation?  NO
Will the coax last forever? NO
Does it work? YES
Be wary of "some people" that love spending other people's money.

That cant work, for the reasons you stated, and to back that up, I tried it.
You either need two antennas or the amp has to be before the duplexer, which in this particular case would kill the duplexer.

Welcome!
#1: No.. If they publish the tones, that means they want everyone to see them
#2: "It depends".. you can expect anywhere from 1/2 mile to 80 miles
#3: You only need the TX/Encode tone (the one you transmit) to use the repeater. The RX/Decode only makes it so you only hear traffic from the repeater and not kids down the street talking on simplex, etc.

Forgot to mention..Thanks for reminding me...  Always beware of the "some people" that try their best overcomplicate everything.

Forgot to mention..Thanks for reminding me...  Always beware of the "some people" that try their best overcomplicate everything.

Forgot to mention..Thanks for reminding me...  Always beware of the "some people" that try their best overcomplicate everything.

Forgot to mention..Thanks for reminding me...  Always beware of the "some people" that try their best overcomplicate everything.

I would like to do something similar so following to see what is recommended.

They are the same..
Try removing the Decode tone to see if that helps, unless you are absolutely certain that the repeater uses the same decode and encode tones.
It is also possible that you are simply out of range of the repeater - EVEN if you can hear it, that does not necessarily mean that you can hit it.  Try going outside or driving closer if necessary.

BuyTwoWayRadios and BetterSafeRadio (i have purchased from both) are both based in the U.S. and have great support.  Anything else I buy on Amazon because they make it very easy to return things if necessary, unlike if buying direct from some manufacturers (Retevis, Radioddity, etc).
Sorry, NO affiliate link below.
 

If what that person said is "the FCC does not allow new GMRS repeaters", then that person lied to you or is an idiot - likely both.

Sounds like a good setup -  try it and see how it works!  I'm using an old/used VXR-7000 repeater with LMR400 coax, PL259 connectors, and a Tram 1486 antenna - I have a good/high location and I get a range of about 55 miles - it would be further but I'm surrounded my mountains..  Location more than anything else will determine your range but that tower should help.
Be wary of "some people" that will leave comments and try to drastically over-complicate everything trying to impress us.

I keep my Roger Beep on - when someone complains about it, I remind them that its my radio and nobody is forcing them to listen to me.

Randy all is good in the universe. The code was wrong as suspected. I got that fixed and can now talks with others many, many fars away.

Try removing the RX/DEcode tone.. both DCS and CTC (if any) and lower the squelch level a few clicks and see if that makes a difference.

Yes for sure I must be experiencing this and getting confu!@ed lol. I love your videos Randy. I also discovered the problem this morning on my mobile Radioddity DB20-G without the presence of my HT’s. I went to the forum as you predicted at the precise time at which I was about to become frustrated because all my radios are having the same problem. Unfortunately I am now to far from the repeater to do a radio check. Earlier today with much excitement because I finally had the proper codes I was calling for radio checks on my mobile but probably did not hear any responses because I had the RX/DEcode enabled on that radio also. I am getting into the car now to drive closer to the repeater in an attempt see what else I must be doing wrong or to confirm you with your infinite wisdom have set me straight. Wish me luck!

Try removing the RX/DEcode tone.. both DCS and CTC (if any) and lower the squelch level a few clicks and see if that makes a difference.

I always use the -d switch, and it does nothing for the narrowband mandate, the only way around it on the version I am using is to change the clock.  

BTech Support reached back out to me and let me know that they were mistaken. They retested my radio and were able to get a fix on a GPS signal.  I'm not sure how long they waited for the unit to connect to GPS but I will be testing it again once they send it back to me.  
 
I'll update the OP with this information.

Hallelujah!
Obviously though "some people" get their GMRS/HAM license JUST so they can play radio police..

I got my GMRS license to be able to talk to friends and family with GMRS. I didn’t sign up to become the radio police.


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Cool story!  So we should be able to find that in the FCC enforcement database and read up on the details - got a link? 
Also curious how he "found out" ... 

The English on that webpage is suspect, but that aside, it says this is for making a cross-band repeater (RX on UHF, TX on VHF or visa-versa) - that means that the two radios sitting next to each other would not be much of an issue. But if you set your radios to work as a GMRS repeater (RX on 467.xxx and TX on 462.xxx) there would be much desense (the radios making each other deaf because they are too close) unless you set them at least 10-15 feet apart... But I've never used something like this so I would like to see what anyone with experience has to say. 
Something like the Retevis RT97 would do exactly what you want, but it costs a bit more.

The English on that webpage is suspect, but that aside, it says this is for making a cross-band repeater (RX on UHF, TX on VHF or visa-versa) - that means that the two radios sitting next to each other would not be much of an issue. But if you set your radios to work as a GMRS repeater (RX on 467.xxx and TX on 462.xxx) there would be much desense (the radios making each other deaf because they are too close) unless you set them at least 10-15 feet apart... But I've never used something like this so I would like to see what anyone with experience has to say. 
Something like the Retevis RT97 would do exactly what you want, but it costs a bit more.

Confirmed (again): mine gets a GPS fix (altitude & speed) with the phone UNpaired from the radio AND turned off.. Took almost 10 minutes in the house but almost immediate outside.