tweiss3

You need the antennas to be 25' apart, one directly over the other, to achieve the isolation of a duplexer. That is 25' from top of bottom antenna to bottom of top antenna. If they are not directly 1 over the other, you loose your isolation. For horizontal separation, you need 2000'+ apart to get the same isolation as vertical separation, or a duplexer. 40' apart and at slightly different elevations is not enough, you are getting desense, which is 1 reason you are getting no range out of the repeater. As for 30W vs 40W, the difference in the field is minimally noticed, you are still limited in range by height you get the repeater, not wattage. When figuring height for how far the repeater can reach, you need to use the bottom elevation of the bottom antenna.

The wrong steps will do that....... For what it's worth, my Kendwood D74 did receive air and ok, but it was significantly quieter than FM signals.

Airband is AM modulation, as opposed to FM modulation. AM can sound quite or appear to have an echo, but the reason it is used because you can hear two signals at the same time, as opposed to FM where one "wins" the battle for the air, and weak signal work is easier in AM. AM won't ever sound as clear as FM, with open and closing squelch. Also, you may or may not hear the pilots, since it's all simplex, not like monitoring a repeaters. Your sound issues might be related to antenna, or just bad sensitivity on the radio. The best AM reception radio I had was a FTM400, and it picked up the airport from quite a ways out. It could also just be the cheap speaker on the radio that doesn't respond well with AM.

There is already a GMRS repeater in Brunswick. Also look into Medina County ARES https://ohioares10.ad8g.net/medina/. It would probably be a good idea to not duplicate efforts/protocols to increase the chance of making meaningful contact. Perhaps reach out to see about including GMRS as a secondary line of communication.

The real reason is because we agreed in the 50s that Canada can do whatever they want and we can't interfere. I know people in the industry that had to replace aging towers by building a new one 50' to the side, when updating the coordination Canada said "we now have a system on that frequency, too bad so sad" even this previous tower/coordination had been there for 30 years prior. Wrecked the project a good 12 months for re-coordination. I applaud the question and inquiry. It's always good to learn more. It took me a good 3 months after pouring though the Part 90 regs and all it's references, and coming up empty handed, before I found that agreement where it's pretty much buried that there is a 5W ERP limit before Canada gets a say. I think it was 2 years ago, I posed the question on a amateur radio net I was running, who knew what Lines A & C were, where they were located, and how it affects amateur radio. The answers were all "what are Lines A & C". It was sad, considering the area of the net is pretty squarely centered on Line A. Hint, look up information about the 70CM band (Part 97.303).

That's an interesting response. Expect any change to take decades. The US is still bound by international agreement with Canada, anything above line C, exceeding 5 watts ERP, must be coordinated with Canada, regardless of FCC "service" (industrial/business, public safety or federal) or end user. Page 10, item 4 (a): https://transition.fcc.gov/ib/sand/agree/files/can-nb/above30.pdf This is why there is a Line C comment on itinerant business licenses over 5W stating "Location X Special Condition: Area of operation is restricted to south of Line A and/or west of Line C" and the note on itinerant business licenses of 5W or less stating "Operation on this frequency is on a non-interference basis to Canadian operations and you must accept all interference from operations in Canada. Licensee is responsible for resolving any complaint of interference to Canadian systems arising form operations on this frequency, including, if necessary, cessation of such operations." After discussions with the FCC, it's a Catch 22, because itinerant cannot and are not coordinated by definition, thus you are stuck with the restrictions. This is the same with GMRS, without revision to the previously coordinated 50W channels, or reduction of the allowable power to 5W, we are stuck with Line A & C. I can wish it would be changed, I don't see it happening. It does beg the question of why those 2/4 frequencies were not previously coordinated, as well as the itinerant frequencies, but the Government rarely makes sense.

I see there is a plugin for SDR#, you could try to see the difference between both radios, but it will still require you acquire a dPMR446 radio for testing.

I'm seeing zero documentation between 446 license free and Mode 1/2. You don't happen to be getting a license free radio as well? I would think it may be as easy as some attempts between programming to figure it out. You can look at the manual for a dPMR446 radio, like the Icom IC-F29DR2: https://www.icomjapan.com/api/download.php?post_id=1747&fl=JTJGdXBsb2FkcyUyRnN1cHBvcnQlMkZtYW51YWwlMkZJQy1GMjlEUjJfSU1fTXVsdGlfMmEucGRm Page 13 outlines frequency/common ID:

It is a great radio, but in my mobile use case it falls short. I was hoping to get over the few issues, but I'm annoyed enough that I'm looking (not really finding) for something else. 1) Typical Yaesu, actually operating the radio (changing modes, VFO to memory, etch) is horrendous, and I consider it bad enough it's not useful while in motion. 2) The memories are a pain. Changing groups is ridiculous, and they won't allow repeater offsets to change. 3) I can't get the large/small steps for frequency tuning to work the way I want. It does for a short time, then i screw it up again (reference no. 1).

There was a lead time last I checked, but I found one at a hamfest for about half the price. The inclusion of 80m is a big plus as well. I've heard the ATAS can be injured by tuning while in motion. Either way, having HF mobile is a huge plus. Now I just looking for something better than the 891.

Get the little tarheel ii and autotuner, works better and can tune while in motion

I submitted comments because I don't want to loose 902 for amateur radio.

Squelch tones weren't always a thing. Also, the use of non-standard tones have been used as an effort to manufacturer lock systems without writing it specs as single source. A practice that is still going strong even as pubic agencies all drift to trunked digital systems. It should also be noted that most manufacturers don't care at all if their packs of radios are compatible with another manufacturer, they would rather you buy another pack of their radios due to "incompatibility". I haven't spent any time testing with nonstadard tones, but I know Harris will allow any time typed in. I'm sure there may be a problem with selectivity between 141.8 and 141.6. it would be an interesting bench test. It's easier to either: 1) Make sure every one in your party knows their own radio and service a standard for your group, or 2) Carry enough radios you can hand one out (pre programmed) to everyone.

If I remember correctly these don't charge correctly on the smart chargers, they charge fully then go straight to reconditioning.

That's what I was missing. I forgot the setup/install manual was part of the service manual for this radio. @Skunkworks Go through that manual starting at page 16, go through every item for your setup and install. Then go through the programming and make sure all the options match your hardware setup (speakers, remote head, etc.)

KCRK-5 or KCRK-6DH? Where is the speaker connected to? The DB25 or the 9 pin square connector? For GMRS, this should work just fine, but they are super inefficient for amateur radio, and do burn out the PA about every 8 months unless you build and install a massive heatsink. These are a bit difficult due to their age and software changing from DOS to windows. I haven't personally messed with one in a long time. I would think that there is something inside that RF deck that isn't right, especially with the busy light.

If you are just listening, the Motorola XPR7550e has one the most sensitive receivers, the can be had for around $300 if you look for the right deal.

I did help setup. When I left, all the antennas were up, and all but 1 had the final run of coax connected to their radio. I did make a time lapse of the antenna erection, but I haven't had a chance to review it yet, I did get uploaded/backed up to the gopro server, just waiting on me I guess...... Boy was it a hot weekend.

I'm helping set up for our club, but that is it, I have 8 other things scheduled this weekend, that I'm going to be elsewhere before operating even begins.

How far out does your wife hike in the mountains? As much as I would love to say "radio is exactly what you need", if she goes over the peak or out too far, radio isn't going to help without some infrastructure beyond what you setup. If you really are in a place where there is no cell service at camp and hiking, you will probably be better off using something like Garmin Inreach (you can message between devices and track each other). There is a subscription cost, but it's the only way to guarantee you two can communicate. If it's not very mountainous, or you are ok with large deadspots, I agree with the above. Get the largest push up mast you are comfortable with and stick an antenna on top. 25-40 feet will get plenty of range. You can also use a trailer hitch mast mount, then the only trick is some guy lines to keep it stable.

1/4 wave in all directions from the antenna. For UHF that is approximately 12" diameter, for VHF that is approximately 36" diameter.

I think its the only way to stay legal on the few very-narrow frequencies that require 6.25kHz spacing.

Not to derail this topic too far, but as far as Part 90 is concerned, under repeater use the mobile units will never need to identify. But under simplex use, which is actually not a small part of the Part 90 users (especially with itinerant use), atleast 1 unit is required to identify (instead of the repeater) for the user base, in the clear. It seems like its easy to pull off, but in asking around, other then Kenwood (in NXDN personalities only), its not possible, and usually ignored. FYI, the NXDN CW ID has it's own emissions, 4K00F2D. Back the the question from the OP, yes it would be legal, both from a recording (since GMRS is not encrypted/scrambled) and from radio generated CW.

I'm still not sure why Kenwood only allows this on it's NXDN "personalities". I wish the offered it on analog, P25 and DMR personalities as well. To use it for GMRS, you have to make the personality NXDN, but input the channel as analog, but it does work.

I can see this both ways. Both as a "does it matter if I spend the least possible" and "does it matter if I spend hundreds". The real answer is spend what you are comfortable spending, as long as it has all the features for your situation. And remember, GMRS is BYOC (bring your own contacts), so you pretty much have to be ok with buying at least 2 of everything to talk to your wife/kids/granchildren/etc. That being said, ignition sense in the commercial radios is a huge advantage. My wife's car, it just comes on when it's started, and turns off 10 minutes after the car turns off. With the right settings, she hears nothing but me when needed. I don't have to instruct her or get her to remember anything. Grab the mic and respond is it. Worth spending the few extra bucks for the setup in her car.