PACNWComms

This post reminded me to add my own location, and even though it being a niche military operational method....I may have to jokingly use "actual" after my call sign. Have a few relatives using GMRS in the area under my call sign.....and under my control. (The chargers sit at home, so the radios must return home as well.)

I use both Part 90 and Part 95 hardware for GMRS.....and while this subject comes up often, I know many people, myself included that will only take calculated risks when violating FCC regulation which could also take away our means of earning a living. This is due to also having commercial FCC licenses, that could be impacted by blatantly doing something that could create an FCC investigation. That being said, I agree with the above poster, there are many Part 90 radios available that will last for years, but do require software to program, knowledge of the particular radio, and may not be as easy to use as a cheaper dedicated GMRS radio. Type certification costs money, and some manufacturers do not see the benefit for some type certification, and for some models of hardware. I also use a Harris XG-100P handheld radio that has "mission plans" that include GMRS and Marine VHF for example, as Harris type accepted this radio, knowing that it might be used for many different use cases. Do not expect every manufacturer to do this, even if the radio is capable. Then there is the fact that FRS and GMRS are so ubiquitous that you have to do something very intentional to be investigated, and fined, after being warned. I myself will continue to use both Part 90 and 95 radios for GMRS.

+1 on a used scanner, as mentioned above. Many handheld and base station scanners from the 1980's and 90's could listen to both VHF and UHF, and scan faster than an older FRS radio on scan mode in many cases. I have even found a few at thrift stores for a few dollars as many people do not know what they are. They will usually have corroded battery contacts, but can be cleaned with DeoxIt, and most of the time still work fine. I have one Pro-39 that had some bad buttons though. If you insist on looking for a FRS handheld, look for older 14 channel only radios such as the Motorola FR50, but then, many of those older radios lack the scan feature. So, happy hunting.

Antennas on handheld radios are already impacted by their design and ease of use. Before replacing antennas, and adding an adapter that may change make breakage easier, it might be wise to test out a "rat tail" counterpoise for use in that 10% time frame. This was discussed a few days ago here on this site.

Have experienced this a lot, and also one of the reasons many contracts and maintenance programs require yearly at the minimum maintenance inspections. Rain, ambient humidity, very hot conditions, any extreme magnifies the weak points in hardware and installation. I know many people that even knowingly slack off on CB radio installs, as it is only a 5 watt radio and AM anyway.....instead of realizing that any issue in installation or quality of materials is magnified due to the low power and AM modulation. Higher power GMRS (mobile) radios allow for some leeway, and may not expose the systems limitations as much as a CB radio. Great point you made there, WX can be a huge problem.

Great info......I was once told by a member of my crew, while stationed in Iraq and in charge of a military radio shop, that we were out of UHF antennas, but had many VHF antennas as spares. Then I introduced these younger and less experienced personnel to the art of antenna cutting. These were magnet NMO (New Motorola) style mounts and Laird VHF whip antennas. An Internet search led to the UHF antenna cutting chart and we were back in business. Magnet mounts were used, as many vehicles were locally procured Toyota pickup trucks and Mercedes sedans.

Have heard for years the comments about J-pole antennas working better than.....insert some other type.....but then find out it is just someones opinion as well. In ten years of providing emergency communications services to the oil industry, hurricanes Katrina, Wilma, Rita, oil spills, forest fires, and floods, many sites ended up buying or making J-pole antennas for their offices, with many being in attics and upper offices. However, in many cases Laird, Antennex, Cushcraft, and many other antennas worked just as well, provided they had a good ground plane, and were not placed in attics with metal roofs. The metal roof aspect happened several times, as many commercial buildings use them for ease of maintenance and durability. Some sites also used VHF, with everything from Shakespeare fiberglass antennas and Morad based loaded antennas being used. Reception and transmission also involve a lot of variable, and the attention to detail on installation, coax, connectors (no adapters), ground plane, length of coax, other electrical items that may interfere. The antenna is still one of the most important aspects of a radio system. Glad the J-pole worked for your use case.

Have mostly used Motorola hardware for GMRS, along with my recent GM-30 and Radioddity DB20-G mobile, but may dust off some of my old EFJ radios that have been stored away......parting gifts from my time at Zetron, then a part of the JVC/Kenwood Group. Have heard many people state they prefer the EFJ mobiles, but have yet to use mine for anything in several years. Thank you for posting.

Have never used one of these antennas, but came in to see what others had experienced. WRFP399's comment may make me buy a couple for hiking and camping use. Like that they are lightweight but can get out a bit. Have strewn wire into and between trees many times though.

Welcome to the site. San Antonio has a lot of UHF radio traffic. I administer a radio network in that city that will be expanding, but in the commercial UHF band and Motorola Trbo series radios. On the note of Trbo series Motorola radios, they also work well for GMRS use, but require the programming software and higher price of entry.

Welcome, and yes, GMRS is great for use in the woods, even though UHF and pine needles do not necessarily mix well together. I am further north in WA State, but still manage a mile or so in the woods with handhelds, but also carry Motorola 1 Watt DTR410's as some places in my area, everyone is using FRS/GMRS. Welcome again.

I usually use commercial Laird and Comprod antennas that are for 450-470 MHz with little SWR or problem over time. Ed Fong makes great antennas as well, very big in amateur and emergency response use cases.....having students cut them for specific frequencies. His influence on many Tecsun radios is appreciated as well.

Never heard of the ZipTenna before this, but have used wire for a counterpoise many times. Also liked the Micronta Field Strength Meter in the video, has been a few years since seeing and using one of those. Mine has been missing the original piece of wire for the antenna for years, and at some point I added a battery holder and blue LED to backlight the meter for the cool factor. When I need the range/efficiency, I often add a counterpoise to my handheld radios, except at work......there I have simulcast assisting me.

Very nice. Some people give me a little bit of flak for using a Harris XG-100P, a radio I used in the oil industry and emergency management comms, with one "Mission Plan" loaded for GMRS as well. Enjoy that APX radio, any way you decide to use it. Some may consider it overkill, but that may also be jealousy talking too.

Very true, handhelds are already less efficient. What gets me are the UHF RDM series Motorola radios that have GMRS frequencies in them, but need to be programmed for what each channel uses, sold for up to $400 that seem to have proliferated corporate use. Find of few of those and admonish the users as they could have had an XPR series handheld that meets internal standards. My employer tries to keep to standard models for ease of repair and service, as well as licensing. There is one site I put on mobile radios for everything, and they do not need repeaters, and I never get the complaints of sites trying to use handhelds for everything. Luckily, those people do not leave their site, so they do not gripe about the lack of portability with their mobiles.....

I see a lot of Motorola RDM20X0 series radios in use in y area, 2020/2050/2080 radios. Every now and again I see a reprogrammed HT-750/1250 though. I know that even on low power some HT-750/1250 radios can become a little unstable, and may actually be putting out slightly higher than 2 watts output, but they do work well for this purpose (MURS).

This comes up often in some use cases, such as the bridges of ships, where the radios are mounted overhead, and the antennas are only a few feet above them. The higher the power of the radio, the more separation you want between the radio and its antenna and any other radio/antenna combination that could interfere with it. More so with radios that have plastic cases and minimal shielding often only being the heat shield fins. You risk damaging the radio by using them too close to the antenna or another radio and its antenna. As for cable, thirty feet is not much, and as long as it is shielded with low reflected power, checked with a meter, that power is going out the antenna....you do not want your radio next to that.

In my area, I recall when Cert (Community Emergency Response Teams) bought blister pack Motorola Talkabout FRS/GMRS radios, and taught people how to use them in their community, along with having a survival (then a 72 hour kit). I now see many Baofeng radios, and dollar store or thrifty survival kit items, of course new in the wrapper. My inject here is to go camping, or without power for a day, and see how the gear works. Can you stay warm, hydrated, fed, and sane. The local public utility replaced a transformer and there was a known 2 hour outage, and one neighbor of mine ran a generator the entire time to watch football. (No health issues or medical devices that need power, just wanted that TV). I know people that need that television, or latte, and any interruption could be a problem for their survival.

I have experienced the scrounging, budget conscious builds as well, mostly when making portable repeater "flyaway" kits during hurricanes: Katrina, Rita, and Wilma in 2005. I also swore that I would never buy a Chinese Baofeng radio, untill all of my Yaesu, Icom, and Kenwood amateur, and Motorola and Harris commercial radios failed and parts were no longer available. Then I went to work at Zetron, a division of the JVC/Kenwood Group at that time. There was EF Johnson, Viking, and some interest in Tait, with affiliation with Harris for a few months, until they went of to find another affiliate to collaborate with. Icom America was right across the street. New Zetron engineers with little to no radio background (Zetron also makes call taking systems for Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP's) and SCADA equipment as well), often bought Baofeng radios to get into the radio hobby. Then they would buy something better once that radio failed, or they realized it performed like a cheap radio. This appears to be happening again now, and even with those on this site, more are coming into the fold due to cheaper hardware, even if it may not last. This state EOC could have bought slightly used XPR4500 mobiles, one VHF and another UHF (about $600) instead of buying the $250 DB25-D Anytone, and maybe they will at some point. Another issue I have experienced, was an Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) site that put all Motorola radios in a van as a mobile communications suite / radio van. However, they also put the same 800 MHz antennas on the roof, connected to 800 MHz radios, as well as the VHF and UHF radios. They spent the money on great hardware, but messed up the final execution. In the end, anything is better than nothing, but I will strongly recommend that if life safety is involved, spend the money and do it right. If it is for fun and hobby use, do whatever you want.