mbrun

I don’t like the hosting services. When a user deletes something or changes their hosting services is messes up the links in the threads they are used within. Having done this myself in the past, I prefer to upload to the forum site. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

[mention]SkylinesSuck [/mention][mention]kidphc [/mention] I was using 467.6125 MHz. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Good Day sharonsell. Welcome to myGMRS. Enjoy the forum. There is a lot to read, a lot to learn and many good folks here. As your knowledge grows, pass it on. Again, Welcome. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

I thought I would post this little nugget of information for any technical nerds in the crowd. Recently I was doing some experiments that necessitated creating a very low-level FM signal. Using what I had on hand I decided to try and see if I could achieve said signal by using a radio connected to a dummy load. Knowing that a dummy load is a poor antenna and it eats most incoming RF for dinner, I theorized I may be able to achieve my goal by using a radio set to low power and transmitting into it. So I tried. In my testing, I set an HT set to 1/2 watt, connected it to a 100w dummy load and keyed up indoors. The resulting RF signal was too strong for my purpose. So I did this multiple times at various distances. It was not the low level result I was hoping for. So I moved outdoors. When outdoors I did the same thing. Only this time I used a rubber band to key up the radio. I announced myself, put the radio in front of a NOAA weather radio in a box on the ground, then started walking and listening on my HT. To my surprise I received the signal reliably and with very good intelligibility out to 1/8 mile in my tree-dense area. I continued walking until I could no longer pick up signal at all. That was at 1/3 mile. Curious, I called a local GMRSr and ham on the street to see if he could receive the signal. Indeed he could. Using his base radio and external antenna he was receiving the signal reliably 1/3 mile away but in the opposite direction. So, if you have never done this, this should give you a sense of how much RF still leakage from your dummy load still gets out when you are are using it. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Good Morning Terry. Please clarify your comment. On one hand I could interpret it to mean the radio is DAO. On the other, I could interpret it to mean the radio works fine but you simply don’t here any activity on the GMRS airwaves. Yet on still another hand I could interpret you are frustrated with the radio, but for reasons unknown. Standing by for clarity. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Well, let me be the first on myGMRS to congratulate you. Way to Go! Make sure to add your callsign to your signature. I am a General myself and currently working towards my Extra. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

I cannot see what the antenna is doing while I am driving. The only time I hear noise from the antenna is when I hit a tree branch or forget to remove it before pulling into the garage. I know I have traveled a lot at 70MPH and have not heard anything unusual. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

This is not an uncommon occurrence when the software is not signed with a valid security certificate. I have developed apps on my personal computer and have had the AV security software flag/delete my own program until or unless I signed it. Yes, some AV software will allow you to override protections for a single file. I do wish however that the importers of the radios that need this software would force the manufactures to sign them with a valid certificate and send the program to the AV software providers to inspect for malicious code. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

I must tell you all that while you may get a tad more range (perhaps 5% or so in my case) when using the longer antenna, I have found the added length to be more of an annoyance than real benefit. So I have reverted back to use of the stock antenna and the shorter 701. In my everyday carry use of my radios I found that the extra inches if range distance mattered so little in practice that the hassle of the longer antenna was not warranted. I will certainly keep it in my tool box, and I will use it on special occasions, but its days of everyday carry use are over. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

There are no equipment regulations for amateur radios like there are for Part 90 and 95 radios. While the radios may in fact be better in some cases, they are not FCC certified as better. No, the radios are not allowed to interfere with others outside the amateur space, but the amateur bands are miles wider that the GMRS band. If a GMRS radio splatters a little it is more likely to adversely affect commercial licensees or public service (bad). In an amateur radio splatters a little it is most likely only going to affect other amateurs (not as bad) Also two sets of rules for Amateur and GMRS. Just because you have an amateur license does not mean you know the GMRS rules and vice versus. Many out there choose to disregard the rules and do what you are asking about. Also, much amateur equipment on the market is not capable of limiting the power to the GMRS limits, particularly when it comes to the 467 interstitial frequencies. So there are a few reasons for you. There are others too. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

You are on the right track. Mine is the 100watt, 1-GHz equivalent of what you linked. I went with 100 watt because it accommodates all radios I have, with headroom. I went 1-GHz again for headroom, plus it would likely be closer to 50-ohm mid range.

A dummy load is required when you want to get accurate power measurements from your power meter. A dummy load can help confirm your SWR meter is (at least partially) calibrated. A good dummy load connected to the output of the SWR meter (in place of the antenna) should cause the SWR meter to always read 1:1. If it does not, you either have a defect meter or a defective dummy load. No question is a dumb question if you don’t know the answer to it. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Fantastic! Isn’t it amazing what range we can achieve when there is no earth and other serious obstacles in the way? Enjoy. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

I would like the tech to back up his assertion by demonstrating to you just how much power the antenna radiates when using more feed-line than with less, all else remaining equal. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Hello Mac, Every operating (transmitting) radio is a station. Every station is required to ID per the 95E rules. A station transmits on only one frequency at a time and each station needs to identify on the frequency being used. When you are using your repeater station and you identify from your handheld station you are transmitting and identifying on a 467.xxxx frequency. Your repeater receives and retransmits it on a differ frequency (462.xxxxx). Because the repeater is a station too, it must identify. Now, when only you (the licensee) and your family are using your repeater, and everyone identifies per the rules, all stations involved in the communications are properly identified according to the rules. The family individuals are properly identified when they give your callsign on the 467.xxxx frequency, your repeater when it retransmits them using your callsign on 462.xxxxx. All this changes when the repeater is used by others however. The official identification of the repeater is and will always be your callsign. Why? Because you are licensee and the repeater is operating under the authority of your license. You are wholly responsible for it. If another neighborhood family uses your repeater, they are responsible for ID’ing their own transmissions. However your repeater must still identify its transmission with your callsign. It cannot officially identify using someone else’s call sign because it is not their station, it is yours. So as a repeater owner your have a choice. You can sit by the radio and transmit your callsign every 15 minutes manually while the repeater is in use by others, or you can install an automatic identification module. The latter is the simplest and preferred approach. So let us boil it down. If you and only your family use the repeater and no one else, the repeater is property identified when you property identify while using it. When you let others use it, the repeater still needs to identify using your callsign. In my view the simplest solution is just to let the repeater always automatically self-identify. Hope this helps. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

I do not know of any step-up “Waterproof” or submersible radios. Perhaps others do. The 805 is IP55 which means it would likely handle light rain. I walk daily and have used it in light and freezing rain this past winter, no issues. There is another model I have that is IP66 which should handle light water spray, but not submersion (withholding model until a technical issue fixed) . I have learned there is an IP67 unit that may be coming later this year that should handle 1-meter submersion. No facts on features or price yet. If repeaters are of no concern to you, have you looked at the Dewalt-branded FRS radios available at Home Depot since GMRS and FRS share 22 of the same frequencies? If I needed short distance, low cost but job-site tough, I think they may be worth considering. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

I will bite again too. Repeaters are private property. If you have one in your area and you have the repeater owner’s permission to use, consider yourself blessed, and respect it as such. No one said that you (or I) will actually have access to someone else’s repeater. What the GMRS does allow us all to do is share the airwaves and it extends us the permission to put up our own repeaters for our families use and to freely share with others as we see fit. On the flip side, if we decide, as a prospective repeater owner, to publicize that we have repeater and allude to the fact we may give permission upon request then it would seem equally respectful to honor the requester with a response. As old saying goes, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” What we owe each other is respect. One final thought. Locally there is a repeater owner that had really hoped to have a repeater in service for area residents to use. The repeater owner listed it on myGMRS. I was gracefully granted permission early last summer, yet a repeater useful to me never materialized. It is online now with about a 1-2 mile working radius. Perfect for the kids in the neighborhood or the neighborhood watch. The person no longer responds to any inquiries. This could be perhaps because he did not achieve the 10-15 mile radius alluded to on myGMRS that he thought he would achieve, or perhaps he did not realize the cost and burden of repeater ownership. Conditions change. Be respectful of that too. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

No. You will need additional electronics for that. Your repeater does not however need to identify if you and your family are the only ones that use it, and your family members self identify per the rules. Since that is often too limiting, since you are likely to also converse with non-family members, you might need to look into a third party controller or announcer to suit your needs. I just recently purchased, but not received yet, a product that you can add to nearly any radio to self identify (ArgentData ADS-SR1). I will be adapting it to work with my base radio to assist with the various range testing I am doing. It can do a lot of things. In my case one of those things will be to transmit my call sign and a message on a schedule while I do my tests. Take a look and see if it may work for you. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Glad it worked. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Success! Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

Hello Drabina. Welcome to myGMRS. I own the KG-805G and three other HT models. The 805 has 5 watts of power (max you are going to get on GMRS HT). It is usable right out of the box and does not require software until or unless you need it to do something beyond the basics. It is nearly as simple to set up and use as the Midland radios. On top of that, it is proving to be a pretty high performing radio for its cost. You can also use it with a mobile antenna in you car or external antenna at your home or campsite if that is appealing. It has fewer controls on the front panel which removes most of the intimidation factor often associated with other radios. It is repeater capable, but there is nothing that says you have to take advantage of that. That feature however is, IMHO, what drives most people to GMRS. Midland sells a GXT1000 radio. Back when I bought mine years ago they were nearly 5 watts. But since I bought them midland has decreased the power down to just over 2 watts for unknown reasons. Do not expect your simplex range to be dramatically better because you switch from 2w to 5w. However, the combination of improvements in radio quality, antenna quality and power together may cause you to experience a little bit better range. But don’t be disappointed if it only amounts to 5-15% increase. I live in a semi rural area that is 60% trees and I can only achieve 100% reliable communication range out to .6 miles with GRMS HTs (ranging from $35-$700 each). Yes they will go further in different directions and environments, and you experience may be different. Just trying to provide tempered expectations. One feature of the 805 that you may like is the ability to lock it to prevent accidental changes. This can be done via the radio if necessary. If you need a more advanced lock, you can use the software it so the user cannot make any changes except volume and channel. Perhaps that will be of some benefit to you. Hope this helps. Regards, Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

It often prompts for a reduction of image resolution to one of three different sizes. I always choose the largest of the three and have been content with the outcome. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

MacJacK and Skyline, I use the TapaTalk app on my iPad and iPhone for this forum. Photo’s can be embedded easily with the app. Click Image, select Images, click done. The app makes working this an many others I belong to super friendly. IMHO it is worth the .99 cents a month fee. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

https://mygmrs.com/repeaters Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM

They are mutually exclusive. One or the other, not both. Michael WRHS965 KE8PLM