gman1971

The 'coil' is about 2.5' diameter. You can see it in this zoomed picture:

 
The connectors I bought for the (free!) heliax are not crimp type. The tool for prepping the heliax cost $139, but only takes about 10 seconds with an electric drill to complete the job. The connectors are compression type and requires only two wrenches to tighten 'em up. I didn't mind buying the tool to do the job properly since the heliax cost me nothing!
 
Here is a shot of my 'antenna farm' on the roof. The G5RV-Junior is strung between 2 x 32' fiberglass poles on the left side of this picture. You can see the 300 ohm ladder line towards the middle of the antenna. The tall white antenna near the front of the house is my UHF antenna I originally had for my repeater. I wasn't happy with the performance of only 5 mile radius so I sold the repeater to a gentleman in Oregon who had a nice tower space at 450' on top of a mountain for it. He was happy to pay me about 90% of what it cost me. It was not quite 5 months old.
 
Near the center of the roof is a dual-band V/U antenna, with another V/U antenna on a chimney mount. There is another antenna on the chimney UHF mono-band. There was a 6m antenna on the chimney as well, but a storm eight years ago took it out. I managed to put it back together but haven't bothered having it put up again, as I no longer am physically able to do any roof walking at 73 years old! 
 
Not visible is a J-pole UHF antenna on a short mast which I use as a test antenna when working on fellow hams/GMRS rigs.
 
In the foreground is my "ARC(h) Nemisis, doggone power lines... 
 

Thanks for the tips, I might try it... but I've given up on crimping any cable, b/c when you finally discover what rendered the setup range-less was my poor crimping job... its kinda sad.... 
 
G.
 

Did I say this already? THIS... this is how its done. 
 

Another Anaconda? hahaha.... How did you manage to coil the anaconda??? with 1 a kilometer curvature radius?? hahaha.... the 7/8 Anaconda was just too much for my 25 foot run, basically to the top of the mast over on a 2 1/2 story house, so I went with FSJ4-50B b/c I could also fit it easily inside the 1" antenna mast tube... At some point before I had some Heliax 1/2, but turns out the cable, for some unknown reason to me, was clearly damaged as it always read massive SWR on the analyzer... no matter what connectors were installed.
 
Good to know about the gigantic spool of FSJ4-50B, however, factory made cables for me only, with factory pre-installed tri-metal N connectors b/c I now know I can't crimp those Heliax cables to save my own life... so its better to pay the professionals to do it right, just once. heh...
 
I think the FSJ4-50B is a great cable for most runs, provided you don't need a 200 foot run or something that long... for anything above 50 feet I would probably go 1/2 and anything beyond 150 probably 7/8 Anaconda...
 
G.
 
 

For the acronym dictionary...
FPP = Front Panel Programming. The ability to set radio configuration parameters without a computer or programming software.

That or I could try threatening her with being grounded.
 
Oh wait... pretty sure my authority in that area disappeared 18 years ago.... 
 
Buttering it up it is.

I can speak to the few Kenwood portables I own. Those are:
 
TK-370G-1 (FCC ID ALH29473110), 128 channel, wide/narrow band setting per channel
TK-3170-1 (FCC ID ALH34713110), 128 channel, wide/narrow band setting per channel
TK-3140-1 (FCC ID ALH32263110), 250 channel, wide/narrow band setting per channel
TK-370-1 (FCC ID ALHTK-370-1), 32 channel, wide band only
TK-3160 (FCC ID ALH36423110), 16 channel, wide/narrow band setting per channel
TK-3360 (FCC ID ALH415100), 16 channel, wide/narrow band setting per channel
 
Pro's:
 
All of the above are Part 90 certified, however the 370G, 3170, 3140 and the 370 are also Part 95 certified thus are perfectly legal to use for GMRS.
 
The 370G and 370 are larger older models, built like a tank and a bit on the heavy side. All the other radios are "palm-sized".
 
Depending on the radio they will take either a nickle metal hydride or lithium ion battery pack. Some will take either one. The battery packs and chargers seem easy to find, original or clone on line.
 
All of the radios, except the 3140, use the standard Kenwood style two pin accessories and use the cheap "Baofeng", cheap Chinese, programming cable. The 3140 however uses the Motorola type multi-pin adapter for accessories and programming cable.
 
I've had good luck finding the programming software with license keys on line. Some have the "engineer's" key which lets you do anything with the radio even if it's password locked.
 
If one wants to use the radios for the Ham 70cm band some model sdo cover 440 MHz and up, or allows entry of frequencies below the lower official band limit, 450 MHz, with a warning popup. The radios will operate there. From what I've read the Kenwood radios seem to work about 5 percent outside of the official band limits so for a lower limit of 450 MHz you likely can get the radio to work down to 440 MHz. I've got mine programed that way, and the simplex along with the repeater section are primarily above 440 MHz anyway. 
 
I've had good luck finding operator and service manuals for these radios as well. 
 
Con's:
 
The radios are typically only 4 watts max output, option to select low of 1 watt. The difference between 5 watts and 4 watts I doubt is noticeable in practice.
 
Chrip doesn't fully support these radios, and with most of them it's very buggy. I highly recommend using the official Kenwood software.
 
They all use, except the 370, the reverse SMA antenna connector you find on just about every cheap Chinese radio. I think, my guess, is when they designed the CCR's they simply copied an existing interface design, looks like they picked Kenwood. The 370's antenna connector however uses the old Motorola screw stud type antenna connector.
 
No true VFO. However on a few of the radios, after removing a configuration diode and enabling the feature in the programming software, the radio can be front panel programmed, but only to a memory slot. I know the -370G is possible since it's covered in the service manual, not sure about the others.
 
Most of the radios do offer some form of security, voice scrambling or inversion, but legally it can't be used, at least not on the Ham or GMRS services. For Part 90 service I don't think that's a problem.

That may not be as big a negative as you would think.
 
Looking at the ARRL band plan for the 70cm band the simplex section isn't that big. So, on some of my Kenwood radios I programed in a series of simplex frequencies like 446.000, 446.025, 446.050 etc. You can look at your area to see what they typical channel spacing is. The memory names were 446-000, 446-025, 446-050 etc. Now when I rotate the channel selector it sort of looks like a VFO. Not perfect but does a good job. The radios I have use "zones" so the "VFO" channels were assigned to its own zone for convenience.
 
Other zones were assigned the GMRS channels, repeaters etc. That kept everything organized. Then I programmed one of the function keys to switch zones.
 
Even with a 128 channel radio I was able to cover most of the simplex sections with a few repeaters and the GMRS channels too. If you can find a radio with 250 or more channels you likely can cover everything with spare memory channels for future use.

Sounds like you have some buttering up of the new landlords. 
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And this, ladies and gentlemen is the best example of "doing it right, doing it once" Dang it... I guess I am in need to step up the ante here... 7/8" holy anaconda Batman.... and I am only running FSJ4-50B as my 25 feet feedline... all silver and trimetal connectors, tho.
 
G.
 

I went with 7/8" Andrews Heliax myself, but kinda overestimated the length I actually needed. Hence I have nearly 20' excess which I've gently coiled up and tie-wrapped neatly.
 
For any future needs I have 678' of 1/2" Andrews FSJ4-50B Heliax. The Type N Male connectors are $20 each.

It was my clumsy fingers that caused that, indeed I meant to type FT-857D. As for the Xeigu G90 it is indeed made in China, but the build quality and superior parts used push it into the same category as any of the three Japanese brands, as does the price!
 
I was honestly amazed to discover that it actually receives slightly better than my IC-7300, and transmits equally well. I put a two way coax switch and set both radios to the same frequency in the 20m band. I also set the 7300 to 20 watts to match the G90. I made six contacts in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Texas. During the contacts I switched between the two randomly.
 
Each of the six reported no change in signal quality. In fact they weren't convinced I'd actually changed radios!    However, when receiving, the G90 produced a much richer and fuller sound with far less hiss. It was far more pleasant to listen to.
 
Imagine my shock discovering that the $500 Xeigu G90 was easily as good as my $1000 IC-7300! 
Okay, the 7300 does have more "Bells and Whistles" than the G90, but still... 
 
BTW, I still have and use my really ancient Kenwood TM-V7A. The blue/white screen died about 12 years ago, but the radio still works perfectly! I keep it parked on my club's 2m and 70cm repeaters. I was at a pre-Covid hamfest last winter and found a brand spanking new TM-V7A still in the box! I offered the guy $100 for it and he said "Okay." So I have a brand new "old" radio as a backup.

That doesn't mean the selectivity is sufficient enough to reject closer noise that makes weak on-frequency transmissions readable.

Thanks to @gman1971 for starting up this thread.
 
For the P1225  (this is just for starters, I suspect others will have additional comments on this radio)
Pros:
Easily found on eBay and other online sites as well as swap meets, hamventions, etc. Programming software is much easier to find than for other, newer, Motorola products. Lots of accessories available from other vendors: Chargers, mics, batteries... Solid radio. Almost indestructible  Non-working radios available for a song for spare parts if needed. Good quality electronics, rev and xmt are clean.  Well known radio. Lots of online support. Part95 compliant.   
Cons:
Rcv/xmt quality, while infinitely better than CCRs, is nowhere near that of more modern Motorola radios. No Li-Ion batteries Many aftermarket batteries are junk. Because it uses NiCad or NiMh batteries, the radio cannot be left on and sitting in most cheap chargers. Often the radios that can be found are in ok condition. But, need a charger, battery and antenna, this can double the price, or more. Most models have no display. The models with display are hard to find. Bigger and heavier than newer hand-helds Programming software requires older Windows systems (XP or Win-7). However, they can be run in a Virtual Machine.

The topic of the use of un-certified radios on GMRS, including Part-15, Part-90 and Part-97 gear, has been: discussed, argued, debated, nuanced, bantered, ridiculed, promoted and otherwise been beaten well past death on MyGMRS,com.
 
It certainly is worthwhile to note any certification a given radio might have. Be it as a pro, con, or simple comment.  But, please let's keep this thread to a simple presentation of brand name UHF radios that work on the GMRS frequencies and not get into that discussion again on this thread.

Yes, that is why I carry the mobile UHF in the car. Sometimes I'll carry the 7550e UHF if I am going out and about with the family, so we can talk via GMRS... but... 
 
We should probably start a new thread, hijacking a CCR thread to post about pros/cons of Motorola/Kenwood/ICOM et. all radios is probably not going to fly well with the moderators.
 
DONE: https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/2183-brand-name-radios-proscons-thread-usednew/
 
G.

Oh, dang... I am very very sorry if I came out that way. Just trying to help, that's all, sometimes I get too passionate about it... 
 
So, there is a plethora of older Motorola (and other brands) radios to chose from, to my mind first comes the workhorse HT1000, the radio that public safety used to carry back when I was in college, or the HT1250s, both of those are good radios to own, but if you want to do the newer digital VHF/UHF ham radio stuff, the newer XPR series offers DMR and FM, although only single band. The APX radios (more $$$) will do more than one band, but in P25. The XTS will also do P25... which is not compatible with DMR (or MotoTRBO) unfortunately, although some people build MMDVMs that will link P25 repeaters to DMR, or D-Star, or Fusion... et. all. 
 
In my experience, once you get past the "single band" psicological barrier, b/c most of the LMR stuff is going to be single band, I think you won't ever look back.
 
I will say that, b/c for me at least it was a very hard pill to swallow at first. I've always carried dual band radios on me for more than a decade... But been carrying a single band radio for a year or so now and never looked back. Most of the time on my belt is a VHF XPR6550, but I have two mobiles, one VHF and one UHF in the car to reach the other band.
 
You might ask why VHF? well, I found it to be much further reaching than UHF, has HAM VHF repeaters, has MURS in case you need simplex, plus Marine VHF along with the NOAA weather channels to which I listen. Then there is a host of EMS/Public safety stuff on VHF too, like Dane County EMS, etc, which is all VHF FM still. All Police Depts around here went digital circa 2017 IIRC, most of them are P25 now.
 
I found the XPR6550 to be a really good radio for the cost. I have a few of those, in both flavors, U and V. You can find those for < 100 bucks on eBay from time to time, and the CPS can be purchased on eBay as well, along with the XPR programming cable. The APX/XTS/XTL radios I don't know much about, but I've spoken with people who swear by them, so I figured those are worth a look too.
 
There are a lot of <100 buck used radios that are way better than most CCRs. ICOM and Kenwood make a lot of decent stuff too, some of the newer Kenwood NX-series radios will do P25 and DMR on the same radio... and while Motorola won't, the audio overall sounds better, IMO, of course. The RX Audio Leveling function available on the XPR7000 series and  XPR5000 series is probably the best feature I've ever encountered in a radio... which basically makes every incoming transmission sound exactly the same volume, regardless of the other person having the gain on their mic set to +30 dB... So you never have to reach for the volume level ever again...  
 
Feel free to PM me.
 
G.

Did I say this already? THIS... this is how its done. 
 

Yeah rg400 can be tough. I found a easy way. Take scrap 2×4 drill a whole so the center conductor can slip easily through the center. Before you cut the sheath, slip the shrink wrap, ferrule, and the ring. (Using pl259 here). Proceed to cut the coax, slip the ferrule part way on to the shield wiring. Slip on the pl259, place the rest of the shielding around the connector. Take the crimper and gently grab the ferrule. Place the whole thing onto the 2x4, make sure not to damage the center lead. Using the crimper as a vise push down till seated. Finish the crimp and check for shorts as usual. 
Kinda works for n connectors as well.
 
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Heliax is the only way to go, especially if in the future, you need to run duplex communication.  When I set mine up, I opted for 7/8" Andrew Heliax, with N- Connectors of course.  I also dived in and acquired a DB420 antenna set up in an omnidirectional pattern.  RG 400 makes perfect patch cabling...double shielded, yet flexible.  My wife had a small coronary when she first saw it up, but she got over it in less than 24 hours.  Antenna, feedline, and grounding are where all the money and effort should be directed.  Do it once and do it right.

You can't use 2 Btech radios or any other CCRs in the same room while trying to use a remote located repeater. The units are too close together, and transmitting on one of them will overload the receiver on the other one, so you will hear nothing.  Get them 100 feet apart, and it will work.

i bought mine new from https://northgeorgiacommunications.com/ a authorized Motorola dealer for $695.  you have to by through a authorized dealer for the warranty. 

The mention of the P1225 was really just to illustrate the point that there are good quality radios available for not much more than a basic CCR, and around the same price as a GMRS certified CCR.  
Look through this forum and you will see lots of recommendations, and a few warnings as well. Both Vertex and Kenwood make excellent equipment and are readily found in the used market.

And, the P1225-LS, which is to be avoided since it was designed for trunking systems. I will still work as a basic radio, ut with only 2 channels.

The model you want will start with P94ZRC90
 
The P1225 came as either a 2 channel or 16 channel model (plus a 16ch  keypad version with display).
 
Software can be a stumbling block if you're not friendly with someone who has a copy. It used to be available for anyone who had a MOL (Motorola Online) subscription. I've got a boatload of the P1225's. PM me and I'll hook you up.