wayoverthere
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Posts posted by wayoverthere
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Thanks for the info...the power supply was one of those back burner ideas that I never got around to testing....guess I won't hold my breath on it.Using an old computer switching power supply likely won't work. First they are electrically noisy and will kill your receiver sensitivity. Second the designs use one of the low voltage outputs for regulation, 5 VDC - 3.3 VDC - ???, while the rest float around a bit. If the regulated output isn't loaded down enough it may not even start.
We use a number of off the shelf switching power supplies where I work for some industrial controls. I have one right now in my office loaded down with a fat power resistor on the 5 VDC rail just to get the thing to turn on so I can use the other outputs for testing a project.
About using it to charge a lead acid battery may not work well, if at all, since the high voltage outputs are a "nominal" 12 VDC on the computer power supply. You need around 13.5 VDC to 13.8 VDC to charge a "12 VDC" lead acid battery. Then there is the different charge stages to keep from damaging the battery, bulk - absorption - float, which is normally done by a smart charger. There is a bit of a difference between liquid filled, gell cell and AGM lead acid types on the charge and float voltages to content with.
I am using (and will continue to use) actual battery chargers for the car battery, though. For occasional use, a small float charger has been sufficient so far, though I have a couple bigger models around too
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Like FfxCo15, I have one, but still fairly new. That said, there's been some other discussion and hands on experience, though the thread title doesn't give it away.
https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/1663-right-under-our-own-nose/?view=getnewpost
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I'll have to look for the thread, but I saw a mention of the Tucson gmrs club having something set up for desktop/mobile app access to the repeater to join the net.
edit: the thread i was thinking of is: https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/1777-gmrs-net/?hl=tucson&do=findComment&comment=15251
there's also this about the larger level net that gets going: https://tucsongmrs.org/index.php/gmrs/national-gmrs-net/
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The family aspect of the licensing (vs individual) is a definite plus, as is the fact that you can find some decent plug and play equipment off the shelf.
Similar situation here, was eyeing ham, but the family aspect made gmrs a better fit for an immediate need; finding how much is really out there looks like a great complement alongside ham, which i still plan to pursue
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(Relative newbie here as well)
On the Rept vs gmrs, are you talking about menu settings or channels? If this is channels, yes, both radios would need to be set the same to have a chance of communicating.
The regular gmrs channels, the radio transmits and receives on the same frequency, for talking direct to another radio.
Repeater channels, it listens on one frequency, but transmits on a different one (5mhz higher, if I remember right...not enough coffee yet this morning), with repeaters set up to listen on the higher frequency, and retransmit on the lower one. On these, you don't talk user to user, you're going through the repeater as an intermediary (usually with tones required for the repeater to "listen" to your transmission).
Chirp will help with the settings; I'll leave that explanation to someone more familiar with that radio, and suggest searching the forum as well....there's a wealth of information, and the v-1's have been well discussed, so the answers may already be here -
https://qrznow.com/usa-conducts-first-all-online-ham-radio-exam/
Stumbled across this in the Google news feed. Appears to be in the works toward some form of online testing offering, especially important in this current situation. Been dragging my feet getting licensed, and my local options were already shrinking before the whole coronavirus thing hit the scene, so this is a very intriguing idea to me.
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Another alternative that came to mind, not a solution, but perhaps clarifying things a little, if the Kenwood dealer isn't able to help at the moment.
I remembered some radios offer the option to scan for the CTCSS/DCS tones (Miklor has some info on doing with a uv5r). If i had time to kill, i'd be tempted to get my hands on a radio that can do it, and see if i could nail down what the kenwoods are actually transmitting.
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He has tagged the article as BTECH V1. I think he means see above tag. ...right at the top of the page, under the title.
That was my thought as well, saw the tag earlier on desktop, though it doesn't show when browsing now on my phone.
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Are the baofeung handhelds legal to use with a gmrs lic ?
as far as i know: (others, feel free to correct me if/where i'm wrong)
it depends which handhelds you mean. the GMRS-V1, yes, since it's certified for GMRS use.
most others (uv5r, bf-f8/f9-hp, uv82, etc), no, primarily due to lack of certification required for legal gmrs use.
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have one on the way, but it's looking like it'll be late april before they ship. some hint of that before i ordered might've been nice, though.
i do see the wider range of receive only frequencies as a plus. been pondering repurposing an old computer PSU for base duties. been running things off a car battery for short term usage, and letting it charge when not in use.
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I have no interest in the handheld units. I assume it has a single antenna port but doesn't really say. If so it may be a good temp repeater for stuff.
They do offer it on its own as well if you don't need the handhelds, at $399.cool little plug and play comms package though. Also, I kind of wonder about duty cycle in that small package, and didn't see it listed.
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I would speculate that it is not in the radio because it is in not one of the original standard 38 or there was something in the original radio design that didn't like 69.3. It's possible the decoder is not accurate enough for narrowly spaced tones (selection).
guessing as well, but thinking either the first or third option is spot on. neither my mxt115 or my gxt1000 have that tone as an option, they both skip from 67 to 71.9. the wouxun i have (kg-805g) has it though.
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If it were my employee, I'd just get him the cheapest phone and plan available and call it a day. Good luck.
$15 a month (prepaid on either a 3 month trial, or a year) gets you unlimited talk and text, and 3 gb of high speed data with Mint Mobile (on tmobile's network).
had them as a little extra data alongside our main lines when we had limited data; only reason i dropped was we went unlimited on the main lines, so the second became redundant. mint was actually doing better on speed and signal than postpaid verizon.
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Id like to see more on the linking stuff. As you said fixing the out dated repeater listings is a large task. I tend to come here only for GMRs stuff which i like. Most of the other online forums for radio stuff is all over the place. I know this is mostly GMRS so i tend to come here daily.
One thought i did have and maybe its been done but a spot on "license" encouragement would be nice. I wish places like midland would do thia also but they want to sell a product and not deal with this. having a page spelling out the reasons and how to get a license, with a link to start would be cool.
not to rain on this idea, as i think it's a good one.
i WILL give midland a little credit, though, as they DO actually have an article on the licensing topic (and include "license required" in the product descriptions, at least for the micromobiles, though you have to "read more" to see it), and reasons to get licensed. as you said, though, their primary focus is selling product, so it isn't particularly easy for the average person to find. i did a lot of digging and reading before i pulled the trigger on radios, and stumbled across it.
https://midlandusa.com/why-do-i-need-a-gmrs-license-how-do-i-get-it/
i definitely think there's still room to expand on the topic, and make the information a lot more accessible than they have (get it more up-front), also know it's a balance being careful not to "borrow" or end up too similar to theirs. this site (and forum) are one of the places i did a lot of reading before jumping in.
on the main thread topic, though, one small idea that comes to mind...maybe i missed it, but i didn't see an actual designated spot for "(New) Member Intros", just a few scattered in the general discussion and the private discussion areas.
- rdunajewski, Felixdacat, gortex2 and 1 other
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I agree this is VHF. I see you mentioned this was some stock photo you found, can you get a photo of the actual antenna? Most UHF dipoles will cover 450 to 470 so if the actual antenna is UHF it would be usable for GMRS.
A UHF Dipole will have lobes like this
Adding photos below, but i'm seeing the same; what i see definitely has bigger lobes than the UHF in your photo. I'll add a couple links of what i was looking at, but what i found in FCC's databases, shows both VHF and UHF at this site, while the other site (#4 on the fcc link) was VHF only. if the UHF isn't there, that definitely adds a hurdle or three. it might still be worth reaching out and seeing if i can get some concrete answers on what's there before writing it off.
i'm kind of curious what the actual setup of everything was when it was operational, as there was VHF in both sites, and only this one with UHF. this one is a bit closer to the hills though, and pretty much the tallest thing around for a few miles. given the dual frequencies here maybe there was a repeater involved here after all?
Also run a FCC search for the coordinates. You mentioned the license was cancelled. Back in my shop days we did a lot of LMR and a few times would add a site like this to our license especially if we had a chance to sell other on the system in a fringe area. Once you determine there is nothing connected to the antenna and it is indeed UHF find someone to sweep the antenna for Return Loss and DTF to verify the line and antenna is good. Once that is determined and a deal can be made with the owner, then start assembling your parts for a repeater. As I have said other times if you do build the repeater yourself image is every thing. Most customers/site owner dont want to see mobile or portable radios wire tied to a sheep of metal or power supply. Make it neat. Quality jumpers for the duplexer with no adapters and you will have a decent repeater.
Site lease/costs is a big unknown. Do some research and talk to the owner. A lot of times you can work something out especially if its a local agency. If its American or Crown walk away as your going topay many thousands a year. When our SAR team first put a repeater online we worked out a deal to mow and maintain the building at an old tower site in exchange for rent. Worked great for years.
FCC was one of the places i was digging (i think i started from antennasearch.com, wondering what it was).
If the links don't work, it's listed under callsign KDW613, and primarily location 2. it's the corner of the parking lot at a AAA office.
https://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsApp/UlsSearch/license.jsp?licKey=1773256
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if you're really against drilling the hole, midland DOES sell a better mag mount (with better cable than what the radio came with); it's a NMO mount, and they currently have a unity gain (6.5") antenna to go with it on clearance for 7.99, or you can do the new 3db gain (3.5" tall, apparently) one for a bit more.
https://midlandusa.com/product/mxta9-unity-gain-antenna/
https://midlandusa.com/product/micromobile-mxta25-3db-gain-ghost-antenna/
https://midlandusa.com/product/mxta12-antenna-mag-mount/
photo is the unity gain next to a 12 oz nyquil bottle (if it loaded); it's very close in length to the stock one, but fatter at the base. (i also have the 3db version that's the same design, but a little longer)
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(moved from the "So you just got your GMRS license and now you want to set up a repeater" thread)
So..a little pie in the sky thinking on this topic; hoping to draw on the collective knowledge and experience of the community (i know there's a bit of general radio, antenna/repeater, and ham knowledge out there) as to how realistic the idea is, any ideas on potential costs, and possible pitfalls. That said, onto the idea:
- How feasible would it be to repurpose an existing site as a GMRS repeater?
- There is a site not far from me that was previously used as a base site for commercial radio (roadside assistance dispatch); the licensing shows cancelled in 2018 from what i can find.
- the antenna and mast appear to still be intact. from what i can find, they were on 452.600mhz and 152.920mhz from this site, with 75 watts output. From what i can find, it'd be a stacked folded dipole setup (found a similar photo online, added below) with a total height of 75.5 ft. i realize this isn't exactly GMRS bands, but is it close enough to be usable?
- Given that it was most likely a dispatch site, repeater hardware probably would probably be needed.
- From the design/permitting/licensing side, how much of previous work could be carried over, since the structure is already in place? Any educated (or wild) guesses on how willing an organization like this might be willing to work with/lease for something like this?
- My area is pretty sparse with repeaters according to the database; there's a couple "permission required" that don't appear to be responding to questions on the listing, and one open that doesn't appear to be operational; the listing hasn't been touched since 2009, and questions posted haven't been addressed. There's a couple others around, but appear to be out of range as well. with that in mind, setting up open repeater initiative compliant is a thought as well
all thoughts and opinions welcome.
http://www.starantenna.com/images/home/Stacked-Folded-Dipole-Omni-Directional-Antenna.jpg
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Edit: moved content to its own post.
https://forums.mygmrs.com/topic/1708-repurposing-for-a-repeater/
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So much for my MXT275.
even the MXT115 has the channel buttons on the mic.
on a side note, i wonder if you could get away using a handheld with a remote mic, such as this one (comes to mind because i have one, and a couple uv5r that work alright for listening) :
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very cool!
kicking myself that i didn't hold of just a hair longer ordering, though i went direct from midland (mxt-115 bundle, plus a mag mount, all on sale).
Repeater Linking?
in General Discussion
Posted
I stumbled across something similar in the ham spectrum in CA...it may be similar to what you're thinking of, and you may dig into whether there is info on how their system is set up (I think I saw mention of echolink). (CARLA - http://www.carlaradio.net/thesystem/pl_ct.php )
It's been discussed in some of the repeater linking threads (and I'll leave the details to those with the knowledge...mine is very slim), but I remember there being some potential legal issue with ham focused software for the linking, or maybe it was that linking between ham and gmrs being forbidden.