SkylinesSuck

I think the OP understands the rules same as the rest of us. The practical everyday usage of callsigns on the frequencies was his question, and I don't think too many people strictly abide by that rule. I don't. I do use them on an initial call or when signing off though. Just depends on if I'm on somebody's repeater or not and if I know the person I'm calling is sitting there waiting for me to talk. I really think the rules are there so the FCC can have something to enforce when people abuse the frequency, not to guide our everyday use. Again, this is GMRS, not ham. Good behavior and courteous use of the frequencies are what matter IMHO.

It seems like a lot of people here also have Jeeps and maybe even it's the reason you are in to GMRS. Just curious who's got what equipment in what rig, how you have it mounted, and what you generally use it for. I have a '98 TJ with a Midland MXT275 and the Midland 6db nmo antenna. I also have the same Cobra 75WXST and Firestick antenna I've had forever and have rarely used. Hopefully the GMRS one will get a lot more use. Planning to install another KG-1000 in the Jeep soon. [image]https://flic.kr/p/2kJQ2bv[/image] https://flic.kr/p/2kJKLyo **This forum is confounding me. I can't figure out how to embed an image. Anybody got any help?

That's a giant area to have to post signs. Although it depends on what part of the quiet zone you are talking about. The inner most core I'm sure is like that. The outermost part of the box touches several states.

TJ as well. And you should know better by now owning a Jeep. $45 is nothing compared to everything else you've already spent on it

I have heard Midland has really good customer service. I'd give them a call.

I wonder how many of us on here are actually Jeep addicts with a radio problem as well

Mine was like 1.8 out of the box. Trimmed it maybe an inch or so and got it down to 1.3'ish. Good enough for guberment work.

I'm not saying I encourage people to use GMRS without a license. Far from it. I rarely hear anybody else at all though except maybe a few people on FRS, licensed or maybe not. While always encouraging people to follow the rules, I don't want to scare anybody off from a potentially fun hobby or useful tool. I think there's a balance. I'm not saying you guys are, but just in general, I think anybody who wants to play radio police should stick to ham. Now people playing DJ on the repeater? Screw them. Other than blatant abuse though, I lean towards a more welcoming approach, especially on simplex. I'll still keep trying to set an example though by using the callsign.

We go off roading inside the one in WV/VA. Never seen any signs or had anybody say anything. I think there are progressively stricter areas of control the closer you get to the actual facility the area exists for. I am an air traffic controller who's airspace extends out over that way. We have kinda crappy radio coverage out there and I'm assuming it's because they've got the transmitters as far out that way as they can get but no farther.

Nobody uses them here in VA, even on repeaters. I do, but I feel like I'm scaring people away from wanting to reply when I do.

I've got no input, but would like to see a zoomed out pic of your GC! Jeep porn ftw

Thanks. I'm just trying to understand the magnitude of the difference. Whenever I settle on a new antenna, I'm hoping it's got an N connector so I have an excuse to redo everything all the way to the radio in N. I appreciate the explanation!

Thank you for the info! If I'm reading that correctly, PL259 connectors contribute to higher SWRs and that's their downside? If I had a hypothetical setup with PL259 connectors but an already very low SWR, it would be pointless to chop them all off and upgrade to N connectors for example, right?

Can anybody speak to the losses in the different connection types as it seems pretty related? I'm looking at different antennas and I'm wondering about the differences between pl259 and N connections. Also, how to guys feel about lightening arrestors with pl259 connections?

Some research answered my question. Looks like the "b" at the end means it's made for 450-470mhz. Any other suggestions? I don't mind dropping some coin, but I want to get performance for my money. While that thing sounds like it performs well, it also looks like it's overbuilt mechanically and aimed at repeater use. Somebody mentioned Laird before? Got a link to a specific model? I have heard Comet brand thrown around as well.

Thanks for the link. Is there a DB404 and a DB404B? Maybe I found the wrong one originally.

I just looked that up. I was thinking $150-$300, not $1000 lol.

Because to get a signal in the house regardless of scanner or radio, I need to get an antenna up and out. Plus I already have several UV5R's that will receive just fine with bonus point for being able to transmit to the kids playing in the yard or wherever. And thanks for the info info on rx gain mrbun.

I may have caused confusion by not starting a new thread, sorry. I've shelved the repeater idea for the moment. Thinking of moving the J-pole to the house to connect to a HT for mostly receive duty, then upgrading the KG1000 in the treehouse with a much better antenna, cable, and mast for max range for simplex comms.

So you guys have me reevaluating things a bit. I'm now thinking of slapping the J-pole in the attic above the garage and running it into the laundry room bump-out built in to the garage, then leaving a HT plugged in to it so they can hear their friends calling and head to the treehouse. I'm not concerned at all with the transmit capability of that one. Does the gain of an antenna matter at all for RX? I understand TX. This will give me and excuse to upgrade the antenna/cable/mast on the treehouse. I was thinking of those military surplus aluminum poles to make a mast mounted to the side of the structure that goes up about 20'-25'. I hear you guys always talking about how PL-259 connectors suck. I live in a slightly hilly area but on the top of a small hill. What antenna and connector/cable would you guys choose if cost wasn't a factor (within reason)? Would you recommend a different idea for a mast? https://photos.app.goo.gl/gBum57fLbax3ZmQ99 Not sure how to embed images.

I just got the same unit installed a week ago. Haven't been able to do a lot of testing, but I'm going to keep my eyes (or ears maybe?) open for this potential issue when I do some more testing.

I locked my kid's treehouse radio so they can only transmit on low power on one gmrs simplex channel and monitor ATC so they can hear me at work. It gets them super excited about using the radio and I hope their enthusiasm grows. When they want to call their friends farther away, I will go up there with them and sit with them while they talk on the repeater. It's brief and they understand a lot of people can potentially hear them so they need to behave accordingly. It's still kids chat though asking if they want to come over for a sleepover or whatever. When they are out in the yard/woods around the house, they play hide and go seek with the radios, talk about Pokemon, and whatever else kids so on their little 1/2 watt bubble packs. I still monitor them from inside, but generally they do what they want. The only time I have yelled at them was when one of them tried to play DJ over the walkie. His brother gave him almost as much grief as me just because he couldn't talk for so long. I think they (6 & 8 yrs old) are starting to grasp things.

Sorry, I think very informal family type use is exactly what GMRS/FRS was set designed for. I'm not saying I think kids should be playing around on somebody's repeater, but if you hear a couple 6 yr olds talking about Pokemon on their Snoopy walkie talkies and can't stand it, change the channel, use a tone, or move in to ham.

Not really expecting much from the Boefangs, just giving range data points. But yes, I'm considering a high gain antenna. Just wondering if, considering the terrain and almost 20km, it would actually help or if that hill is just going to stop it from working regardless. It seemed that lower gain antenna might be better in slightly hilly terrain? Maybe I'm not understanding how gain works correctly. Moving the antenna even higher isn't an option unfortunately as it would be in the trees :-)

I love that SCADACore site! I have been spending way to much time playing with it lol. So just to add data and maybe get some input, here's what I got. All of these are with the high point being my kid's treehouse with a 50w KG-1000 and a J-pole mounted about 34' above the ground. The other ends are at my kid's friend's houses with either a) my Jeep with a MXT275 15w and external Midland antenna a UV-5R with Nagoya 701 antenna and c) .5w Retevis bubble pack radio. First up is their closest friend's house. We can hear them loud and clear and they can hear us using the bubble pack to the treehouse. We can just barely hear them break the squelch and they are unintelligible inside our house at ground level though with the UV-5R to their bubble pack. Second is another friend's house a little farther away. Loud and clear to and from the treehouse to the Jeep, pretty good with the UV-5R, and nothing with the bubble pack. Also I can kind of hear them a little inside our house at ground level UV5R to UV5R but they can't hear me at all. Last one is one I've been working on but still no luck. Maybe I'm kidding myself and it'll never work on simplex? No contact on all three radios to the treehouse, but at the time of testing, the radio in the treehouse was a was only a 8w F8HP and the antenna was only about 24' off the ground. I'm hoping to test again soon with the higher antenna and 50w radio. Anybody with any input on that last one feel free to comment. I don't know if a new gain antenna would help or if the 50w radio will blast down there now. Maybe it's just not going to work that far with the terrain I have to contend with. I can hit a repeater about twice as far away in the same direction, but I have no idea what elevation it's at or exactly where it is.