Extreme
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Posts posted by Extreme
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On 4/24/2022 at 10:23 AM, Sshannon said:
I’m in Butte, so SW Montana, but as far as ham radio there’s a DMR repeater on 70 cm in Eureka. I assume you’re in that area, maybe Troy or Libby. It’s networked to the Brandmeister network so you can literally talk to people all over the world.
https://www.dmr-montana.net/radio-site-data/eureka-dmr.html
Ham radio is much more active than gmrs in Montana although Billings now has gmrs repeaters.
Good luck!
I have some lots in Walkerville if there's interest in putting a GMRS repeater up there. Not living there now but don't know why it couldn't be done. Should provide hella range from there, overlooking the valley toward the Highlands, Fleecer Mtn, Pintlar, I-15 corridor and toward I-90 West toward Deer Lodge.
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20 minutes ago, WRFP399 said:
I found zero difference between a 1/4 wave and a 5/8 over 5/8 collinear antenna where I am when talking to a repeater. We have mountains as well as wide open flat area. I go with a 1/4 wave because there is no reason to have a larger antenna if it doesn't do anything better.
Agreed. I've been trying to say just this to my off-road buddies who're getting their first mobiles. A lot of them are in Jeeps with fiberglass tops so that's an issue and they're leaning toward longer antennas to get them above the top. I was lucky enough to have a perfect spot for an 8 x 8" ground plane for my 1/4 high at the rear of the LJ.
It is cool that they're getting away from CB and into GMRS. Better in every way on the trail or hunting in my experience.
Guess I could take this to the Jeeps & Radios thread.
Thanks for the feedback and reminding me of radio 101.
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5 hours ago, marcspaz said:
The best antenna for you is going to vary a bit, depending on where you are going to be using the radio and what you want to accomplish.
On a vehicle, a 5/8 wave antenna is going to show at least 3dB gain over a 1/4 wave, and at least 1dB of actual gain (depending on design, it can be much higher). This antenna has the least amount of elevation tolerance. So, if you live in a hilly/mountainous area, this may not be the best option, but it would be good in large geographically flat areas.
A 1/2 wave doesn't require a ground plane and has about 2.1 dB of gain over a 1/4 wave, but it has no actual gain... its straight break-even. It also has a bit more tolerance to elevation.
A 1/4 wave actually has a loss of about 2/10ths of a dB. While it doesn't provide as much range, in hilly or mountainous areas, its going to be the best choice due to the very high elevation tolerance.
Based on this, I actually carry a 5/8 wave antenna that is about 32" tall and about 6dB gain, and a 1/4 wave antenna. Then I just swap them on and off the vehicle depending on the terrain I am in and the range needed.
Thanks Marc. As soon as I read this I realized I'd been taught this here a few years ago when pondering antennas... sheesh.
My 1/4 is great in the mountains but we do have some extremely long shots with potential for more reach. I've hit a repeater from 50 miles so don't know what better I could ask. I might consider a 5/8 to play with.
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Will I gain any performance (distance and/or clarity) with one of the base loaded antennas over a 6" 1/4 wave? Both would be on the same 8" square ground plane on my Jeep. Wondering if the added height above the roof will be of much benefit. The 1/4 is working fine, just nit-picking. Spring loaded base would be a must if I go taller. The ground plane would remain the same.
Assuming all will screw onto the existing NMO mount.
If they need tuning, I'll likely opt out. Guess I could experiment and be careful to swap to the shorty in the overhead brush.
UHF High Gain Antennas: Laird TE Connectivity B4503S (theantennafarm.com)
5/8 wave is 15"
UHF High Gain Antennas: Laird TE Connectivity B4505CS (theantennafarm.com)
1/2 wave is 31"
UHF Quarter Wave Antennas : Laird TE Connectivity AB450 (theantennafarm.com)
1/4 wave is 6"
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On 3/15/2021 at 5:58 AM, SkylinesSuck said:
Just testing out Tapatalk with the same pics in my original post.....
And I didn't specify in my original post I'm using above the taillight mounts for both antennas.
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Asking for a friend. Is your tailight mount GMRS antenna working ok? He has a '99 TJ that he runs topless, has a rack on the back and is asking me about which antenna and mount (hard or mag mount). Since I run only 1/4 wave on a ground plane I don't have a solid answer for which antenna type and mounting solution might work best for him. 1/2 wave, 5/8, etc., etc..
I'll continue through the thread from the end backward to see what I come up with. Kind of talking him out of the Midland and leaning him toward the Wouxux 20w.
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What's the Map for Dummies on the new format? All I see are google style streets, etc.
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1 hour ago, H8SPVMT said:
Besides 2 repeater channels all my frequencies are simplex and over three years now I have run my radio in scan when traveling around town and road trips. Never heard another traveler on the GMRS with exceptions to maybe four truckers.
Being Jeepers and traveling in small groups we'll talk amongst ourselves over the open road and off, using 462.57500. Seems no one local even turns their GMRS on or uses SCAN on a day to day ride around town.
Of course I have to consider that I am dealing with "the ONLY TIME" I am on the road and that may just never coincide with others travel routines during normal daytime/night travel.
Very near to my experience on/off road with one exception: a stuck hunter actually contacted us from about 10 miles when we were driving by his general area in route to another recovery. He scanned us chatting on 16 with his HT, shouted us down, and got himself 'scheduled' to be recovered. They had walked 7 miles out and had many more to go with zero cell coverage. We got him on our way back from recovery 1.
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Bigger.
Bracket mounted under sun visor clip with existing holes. Wrangler is a different ball of wax with removable fiberglass roof.
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XJ remote 8180Mind sharing a picture? Inspiration can come from anywhere!
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Should be posted somewhere under jeep & radios.Mind sharing a picture? Inspiration can come from anywhere!
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On 2/12/2022 at 12:55 PM, austinpa said:
Hello
has anyone successfully installed just the faceplate of the Wouxun 1000g overhead in a Jeep Wrangler?
Not specifically, but mounted complete Kenwood TK-8180 on the aftermarket rollbar overhead 'plate' in my LJ and a Kenwood 8180 remote faceplate in an XJ. Both are apples and oranges for you so no real help. Just didn't want to leave you hanging.
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On 1/25/2022 at 10:29 AM, bobthetj03 said:
As a fellow Jeep owner, I too became victim to Midland's marketing monster. Having a TJ, room is even tighter than your JKU, and having a radio hanging out in plain sight during top off season made me nervous, so I thought the 275 would be a great replacement for my old CB radio. Being new to the GMRS world, I dove in, got my license, bought the 275, and went to town. It didn't take me long to find the 275's shortcomings, especially since one of our local repeaters used split tones. It wasn't 6 months later that I sold the 275 to a fellow jeeper that just wanted a radio to communicate on jeep runs. I went head first down the rabbit hole, did some research, and ended up with Wouxun's KGXS-20G mobile. 20 watts, so more power than the 275, a very small chassis, so I was able to mount it in front of my console. The mic had controls for the radio, and a speaker in the mic, which proves super handy when traveling with the top down, or a noisy soft top. The dual watch display is super clean and clear, just so many more features to choose from, and room to grow as a GMRS radio nerd to be. And, at $219, while a bit more pricey, if it were to get stolen, I wouldn't cry too much vs. $400-$500 options. I usually just unscrew the mic and toss it in my security drawer under the seat when I'm in a sketchy neighborhood. I liked this radio so much, I bought it's HT brother, the KG935G. It has almost identical features to the mobile, is Part 95e only, no silly computer programming shenanigans to try to make it work as a radio it's not, and the quality so far has met my needs. I now have 3 HT's, 2 different antennas at home and work to use as a base for the HT, and enough coax fittings and coax cable options to choke a horse. I also now host a weekly GMRS net locally to grow community awareness to GMRS, so yeah, I've got the bug pretty bad!
Asking for a friend. (I run used Kenwoods). I'm too lazy to read the entire thread so looking for an 'in a nutshell' favorite GMRS only radio for my club's mobile needs. A few of the guys are running out and grabbing Midlands; if they asked me I'd steer them in another direction (we have repeaters available to us). One kid is asking now for his rig and with the good luck I've had with my Wouxun 805G HTs I'm leaning him toward the Wouxun brand.
Right track. Sound like a good review here. I'll go over to BTWR and look around but would love some feedback.
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Some debate on this one. I'm not smellin' what he's steppin' in.
In a nutshell he says transmitting w/o Load will not damage a radio.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3r2K96hsGc&t=297s&ab_channel=NotaRubiconProductions
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2 hours ago, wayoverthere said:
It's still there....you'll have to hit the "gear" button at the top left of the map, and toggle the option for "show stale repeaters" or "show offline".
Thank you! Apologies for barking.
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What happened to the Inactive (and the other selection) on the MAP to find repeaters. My local repeaters and many I use in 3 states are no longer viewable from the map. I appreciate it costs money so get the Ad Blocker request but did we need to change the capabilities too.
Thanks folks.
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If I'm correct, 7 x 7" is minimum for 1/4 wave ground plane. I had the 8 x 8 x 1/4" aluminum plate laying around from another project so just primer/painted it. Also, the fiberglass top will not deter RF propagation and unless I run a branch along the top nothing should hit the antenna.
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3rd try
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FWIW
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54 minutes ago, bobthetj03 said:
Just checked your setup. I considered mounting it there, but couldn't come up with an elegant way to route the coax. How did you run it so that you don't have to mess with the coax every time you open and close the back?
Ran the coax down the vertical tower that holds the 3rd brake light, across the bottom of the swing out tire carrier to the passenger side corner, then above the bumper to the vacant area under the tub, above the rubber flap that's behind the rear wheel, then a small hole in the inner fender/tub next to the rear most rollbar mount, along the top of the tub lip and along the rollbar (under the wrap) up to radio mount. I did make my own 239 connection on the radio side so I could thread bare coax through the body while minimizing the hole diameter. Wrapped everything outside the tub in split or flex tubing and it's all secured with either stick on zip tie mounts or aluminum rubber insulated hold downs.
With a small bit of slack at the swing out tire carrier hinge it flexes enough to not bind. It limits my carrier to only open 90* but I have no need to open it further. It clear the raised window.
IMO a 1/4 wave antenna with a decent ground plane is superior to nearly any mag mount or lip mount. Someone questioned whether the brake light tower would flex.. emphatic 'No'. Also, the 8 x 8" x 1/4" thick plate clears the wiper by 1/2" or more when operated.
Ran my aux reverse light wiring along the same route and mounted them on the bottom of the tire carrier.
Pictures to follow.
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On 11/29/2021 at 9:33 AM, bobthetj03 said:
Rather than start a new thread, I'll post my question here since it's Jeep related.
I need to move my antenna from the driver's tail light mount to another location. Has anyone mounted their antenna in another location? I'm considering the driver side cowl using this mount,
and a Tram 1174 antenna.
@bobthetj03I cruised through the TJ forum to find a picture of your TJ to see if you have a 3rd brake light. Check out my antenna mount on my LJ earlier in this thread, maybe it will interest you. Works very well.
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4 hours ago, RCH said:
If the radio shows "searching" it is probably a trunking radio, either Passport or LTR-NET, with proprietary Scholer-Johnson firmware.
These radios can not be read with Kenwood software. They are also usually inhibited from flash firmware changes.
Reprogramming the radio for conventional use requires the SJI software version that matches the firmware and the radio is usually password protected.
The procedure, if you can obtain the software and the password for the radio, is to read the radio with SJI, enter the radio password and go to Edit/Optional Features to clear all Data Passwords and check the box to enable Firmware Programming. Write to the radio and read it again to confirm the changes.
Then you can use Kenwood FPRO to install the current Kenwood firmware. Then you should be able to read and program the radio with KPG89-D. The radio will probably display garbage and not function until it is reprogrammed.
The bottom line is, without access to SJI software, the password, and Kenwood firmware, the radio will only function on it's presently programmed trunking system.
The same general information applies to Kenwood TK-880 trunking radios.
Yup, had the "searching" on an 8180. Friendly member here did his best to help me out but I never could get positive results. Although this particular 8180 was an ebay purchase, I simply contacted www.used-radiios.com and they kindly took the radio and made the necessary changes for a small charge + shipping, and got it back to me within a week or so. Awesome service, but I knew that, having purchased multiple used units from them in the past. I've yet to power it up but I'm sure it will be fine when I get around to programming.
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On 5/27/2021 at 7:28 AM, mbrun said:
All electronics will handle extreme heat for some period of time, but heat is the enemy of electronics. How long is a complete unknown for every product. A radio sitting idle or in receive only mode will not generate as much heat as radio will when transmitting. When the radio is put into a closed compartment it will raise the ambient temperature around it constantly causing the radio to get even hotter when operating. Again how long it will last is a completely unknown and a complete guess.
You may find that radio will last as long as you care to own it under your conditions.
Ask yourself if there is a way to force some air through the console with something like a muffin fan when you get to the point you are transmitting on the radio a lot.
Michael
WRHS965
KE8PLMDidn't want to start a new thread so did the search and found this one.
My remote mount TK-8180 has been shutting down after steady use on the trail. My timeout is set to 30s but often don't give it a lot of rest between TX bursts when on the trail. What I get is power off, blank screen, but a constant click-click from the speaker. It has never done this from idle. After pulling power from the unit and an hour or so of down time, it fires up and operates normally. Dawned on me that the placement under the passenger seat of my Cherokee XJ might have been a poor choice, now realizing that's the path of the exhaust and that I have the heater going full blast at times while hunting, and with folks in the back seat.
I looked through the service manual and it states operating temp to 140* F. What I was looking for is whether there's a High Temp Shutdown or fail-safe on these radios. Did not find that. Regardless of whether it gets that hot under there and rather than shotgunning replacement components, I thought a good first step would be to move the equipment. Prolonged radio life would be a big bonus as well.
"No Ground Plane" antenna on Ground Plane mount
in Technical Discussion
Posted
Any issue installing a "No Ground Plane" antenna (1/2 or 5/8 wave) on a ground plane? Any benefit?
Just brainstorming on a 2nd antenna with some gain to play around with where my 1/4 wave is mounted.
Likely makes more sense to get a ground plane antenna in 1/2 or 5/8 wave, eh?