FrankNY

I don't know where it's mentioned in the rules, but I'm sitting here looking at an associate's recently issued (01-27-2018) GMRS license renewal in front of me and it states the following.
 
Licensees who operate North of Line A and East of Line C may not operate on channels 462.650 MHZ,467.650 MHZ, 462.700 MHZ and 467.700 MHZ unless your previous license authorized such operations.
 
So it would seem to me that those lines continue to exist.
 
Regards,
 
Frank.
 
P.S. And would someone please notify the FCC that the word megahertz is abbreviated MHz, and to always use a blank space after a comma.

Steve, as already mentioned by Jones, I would suggest taking a look at the BTECH GMRS-V1, which has repeater capability.

https://baofengtech.com/gmrs-v1

The BTECH GMRS-V1 is FCC certified for Part 95A (GMRS) and is therefore legal to use.

If you want to learn more about this radio, Miklor, as usual, has a FAQ on the GMRS-V1.

http://www.miklor.com/BTGMRS/BTGMRS-FAQ.php

The GMRS-V1 can be purchased through Amazon for $54.99 with free shipping, so four of them would run you $219.96, which is well within your $250.00 budget.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWOLZ8L

And if for some reason you happen to dislike the free CHIRP programming software, RT Systems offers its BTS-GMRSV1 Radio Programming Software.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/Articles.asp?ID=619

The RT Systems BTS-GMRSV1 software requires use of an RT Systems USB-K4Y cable, which can be purchased together with the software for $49.00.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/BTS-GMRSV1-Programming-Software-and-USB-Cable-p/bts-gmrsv1-usb.htm

You could purchase four of the BTECH GMRS-V1 radios plus the RT Systems software and cable for an amount that's just slightly over your $250 budget and you would be repeater-ready for the future. If you acquire now radios that aren't repeater-capable and later wish to use them through a repeater, you would have to purchase new radios.

Good luck!

Frank.

Steve, as already mentioned by Jones, I would suggest taking a look at the BTECH GMRS-V1, which has repeater capability.

https://baofengtech.com/gmrs-v1

The BTECH GMRS-V1 is FCC certified for Part 95A (GMRS) and is therefore legal to use.

If you want to learn more about this radio, Miklor, as usual, has a FAQ on the GMRS-V1.

http://www.miklor.com/BTGMRS/BTGMRS-FAQ.php

The GMRS-V1 can be purchased through Amazon for $54.99 with free shipping, so four of them would run you $219.96, which is well within your $250.00 budget.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWOLZ8L

And if for some reason you happen to dislike the free CHIRP programming software, RT Systems offers its BTS-GMRSV1 Radio Programming Software.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/Articles.asp?ID=619

The RT Systems BTS-GMRSV1 software requires use of an RT Systems USB-K4Y cable, which can be purchased together with the software for $49.00.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/BTS-GMRSV1-Programming-Software-and-USB-Cable-p/bts-gmrsv1-usb.htm

You could purchase four of the BTECH GMRS-V1 radios plus the RT Systems software and cable for an amount that's just slightly over your $250 budget and you would be repeater-ready for the future. If you acquire now radios that aren't repeater-capable and later wish to use them through a repeater, you would have to purchase new radios.

Good luck!

Frank.

Steve, as already mentioned by Jones, I would suggest taking a look at the BTECH GMRS-V1, which has repeater capability.

https://baofengtech.com/gmrs-v1

The BTECH GMRS-V1 is FCC certified for Part 95A (GMRS) and is therefore legal to use.

If you want to learn more about this radio, Miklor, as usual, has a FAQ on the GMRS-V1.

http://www.miklor.com/BTGMRS/BTGMRS-FAQ.php

The GMRS-V1 can be purchased through Amazon for $54.99 with free shipping, so four of them would run you $219.96, which is well within your $250.00 budget.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWOLZ8L

And if for some reason you happen to dislike the free CHIRP programming software, RT Systems offers its BTS-GMRSV1 Radio Programming Software.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/Articles.asp?ID=619

The RT Systems BTS-GMRSV1 software requires use of an RT Systems USB-K4Y cable, which can be purchased together with the software for $49.00.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/BTS-GMRSV1-Programming-Software-and-USB-Cable-p/bts-gmrsv1-usb.htm

You could purchase four of the BTECH GMRS-V1 radios plus the RT Systems software and cable for an amount that's just slightly over your $250 budget and you would be repeater-ready for the future. If you acquire now radios that aren't repeater-capable and later wish to use them through a repeater, you would have to purchase new radios.

Good luck!

Frank.

Steve, as already mentioned by Jones, I would suggest taking a look at the BTECH GMRS-V1, which has repeater capability.

https://baofengtech.com/gmrs-v1

The BTECH GMRS-V1 is FCC certified for Part 95A (GMRS) and is therefore legal to use.

If you want to learn more about this radio, Miklor, as usual, has a FAQ on the GMRS-V1.

http://www.miklor.com/BTGMRS/BTGMRS-FAQ.php

The GMRS-V1 can be purchased through Amazon for $54.99 with free shipping, so four of them would run you $219.96, which is well within your $250.00 budget.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWOLZ8L

And if for some reason you happen to dislike the free CHIRP programming software, RT Systems offers its BTS-GMRSV1 Radio Programming Software.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/Articles.asp?ID=619

The RT Systems BTS-GMRSV1 software requires use of an RT Systems USB-K4Y cable, which can be purchased together with the software for $49.00.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/BTS-GMRSV1-Programming-Software-and-USB-Cable-p/bts-gmrsv1-usb.htm

You could purchase four of the BTECH GMRS-V1 radios plus the RT Systems software and cable for an amount that's just slightly over your $250 budget and you would be repeater-ready for the future. If you acquire now radios that aren't repeater-capable and later wish to use them through a repeater, you would have to purchase new radios.

Good luck!

Frank.

Steve, as already mentioned by Jones, I would suggest taking a look at the BTECH GMRS-V1, which has repeater capability.

https://baofengtech.com/gmrs-v1

The BTECH GMRS-V1 is FCC certified for Part 95A (GMRS) and is therefore legal to use.

If you want to learn more about this radio, Miklor, as usual, has a FAQ on the GMRS-V1.

http://www.miklor.com/BTGMRS/BTGMRS-FAQ.php

The GMRS-V1 can be purchased through Amazon for $54.99 with free shipping, so four of them would run you $219.96, which is well within your $250.00 budget.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LWOLZ8L

And if for some reason you happen to dislike the free CHIRP programming software, RT Systems offers its BTS-GMRSV1 Radio Programming Software.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/Articles.asp?ID=619

The RT Systems BTS-GMRSV1 software requires use of an RT Systems USB-K4Y cable, which can be purchased together with the software for $49.00.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/BTS-GMRSV1-Programming-Software-and-USB-Cable-p/bts-gmrsv1-usb.htm

You could purchase four of the BTECH GMRS-V1 radios plus the RT Systems software and cable for an amount that's just slightly over your $250 budget and you would be repeater-ready for the future. If you acquire now radios that aren't repeater-capable and later wish to use them through a repeater, you would have to purchase new radios.

Good luck!

Frank.

Mine wasn't set to expire until mid-July, however I renewed it a couple of days ago, just prior to reading WT Docket No. 10-119.
 
I suspect that the proposed doubling of the license period from five years to ten years will be approved and go into effect about 90 days subsequent to the approval date, but I would also expect that the fee will also be doubled - from $70 to $140 - so I don't think, at least at this time, that I missed out on a potential $70 saving.
 
If one wishes to keep their currently-assigned call sign, I would think that it might be best to not allow their license to lapse.
 
Frank.
 
P.S. I do hope that everyone here has read the FCC Report and Order document by now. MyGMRS.com is mentioned several times therein!

Mine wasn't set to expire until mid-July, however I renewed it a couple of days ago, just prior to reading WT Docket No. 10-119.
 
I suspect that the proposed doubling of the license period from five years to ten years will be approved and go into effect about 90 days subsequent to the approval date, but I would also expect that the fee will also be doubled - from $70 to $140 - so I don't think, at least at this time, that I missed out on a potential $70 saving.
 
If one wishes to keep their currently-assigned call sign, I would think that it might be best to not allow their license to lapse.
 
Frank.
 
P.S. I do hope that everyone here has read the FCC Report and Order document by now. MyGMRS.com is mentioned several times therein!

Welcome to the forums and welcome to the world of GMRS.

If I were you, the first thing that I would do, especially easy to accomplish since you have two radios, is to get together with a friend or whoever and do some testing to ensure that both of your radios are working properly. Do this while separated by some distance, a hundred feet or more would be great.

Try various frequencies in both the FRS and the GMRS, using simplex (non-repeater) channels in the case of GMRS.

Also do some tests where each radio is set to an identical CTCSS frequency or DCS tone to ensure that that particular functionality is working properly, as you'll almost certainly need it when working through a repeater system.

If all of those tests end with positive results, then check the main portion of this site (not the forums) for repeaters in your geographic area and contact the owners for permission to use their machines.

If you get the okay, then you're on the air, so to speak.

And yes, you're correct that digital voice modes of operation are not permitted on neither the FRS nor the GMRS, although I do on rare occasion hear digital transmissions on a GMRS channel here in New York.

I don't know where you're located and thus don't know how much GMRS activity you may have available to you. It may be quite quiet or it may be quite busy. This does seem, at least from all that I've read, to vary quite a bit by locale. And in some areas, there seem to be few to no GMRS repeaters.

Please be aware that the range claims made by the various manufacturers of (especially) FRS radios tend to be rather overstated, and that's putting it mildly. Unless you and the person with whom you're communicating are both on mountain tops with true line-of-sight between the two of you, don't expect great distance.

Personally, I feel that this is an area where the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) should step in and set some legal guidelines governing advertising claims, sort of like they did many years ago with regard to power output claims made by manufacturers of hi-fi power amplifiers.

Antenna heights and terrain have a great effect on UHF communications.

And here, in case you haven't seen them, are three Wikipedia links that may be of use to you.

Family Radio Service
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_Radio_Service

General Mobile Radio Service
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Mobile_Radio_Service

Repeater
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repeater

Good luck!

Regards,

Frank.

Rich, thank you so much!
 
Not only was I able to correct my post in the above referenced thread, but I was also able to edit the first post in this thread - something that I wasn't able to do earlier.
 
Thanks again!
 
Regards,
 
Frank.

Ken, for amateur radio related information, don't forget the ARRL site, but do note that their publications can sometimes be purchased at lower prices through Amazon.
 
And if you haven't seen it yet, be sure to check out the Ham Nation shows on TWiT TV.
 
Regards,
 
Frank.

Ken, for amateur radio related information, don't forget the ARRL site, but do note that their publications can sometimes be purchased at lower prices through Amazon.
 
And if you haven't seen it yet, be sure to check out the Ham Nation shows on TWiT TV.
 
Regards,
 
Frank.

You're very welcome. Ham Nation is a part of the ever-expanding Leo Laporte NetCast Network.
 
By the way, if you like the ARRL Web site, the RSGB site may also be of interest. Like the ARRL, they offer some very useful publications.
 
Frank.

You're very welcome. Ham Nation is a part of the ever-expanding Leo Laporte NetCast Network.
 
By the way, if you like the ARRL Web site, the RSGB site may also be of interest. Like the ARRL, they offer some very useful publications.
 
Frank.

quarterwave, the question of whether closed (Private, Paid, Members Only, etc.) GMRS repeaters should appear in the MyGMRS.com repeater list is a different question from whether such repeaters should exist in the world.
 
Personally, I feel that closed repeaters should be listed in the repeater directory if only for the purpose of alerting others (who may be in the process of thinking about setting up a new repeater, for example) that the given frequency is in use and that some coordination will be required in order to avoid potential interference.
 
As to the issue of whether closed GMRS repeaters should even exist, I can only point to the amateur radio community where a certain number of repeater systems are closed. These are often repeaters that were installed by and are being maintained by a local ham radio club where members are expected to pay annual dues and where one of the benefits of club membership is use of the club's repeater system. This is legal for hams to do, as it is for GMRS repeater owners.
 
I would prefer that no repeaters were closed, but I'm not in charge of the world.
 
Regards,
 
Frank.

And a mobile is for talking your way back to a (nice and warm and cozy and well-fortified and provisioned) base?