tcp2525

Now we are getting somewhere. You just solved your own problem. You are assuming, yes assuming, he and I want to avoid paying fees to remove ads. Had you clarified this in the beginning everyone would have understood what you really meant and we could have clarified it better. Totally unbelievable! I don't use adblocking to avoid paying fees to any forum I subscribe to, I use it to keep my screen real estate clean and enjoyable. I financially support many forums I subscribe to. And yes, they have some of the most horribly flashy and obnoxious ads. On my smartphone, I use Brave and there's no need for add-ons as they automatically block the trash. Please do yourself a favor and stop assuming, it doesn't put you in a good light. If you don't like what I have to say, please simply ignore me, we'd both be happier.

1) What is the real problem? 2) What real problems does it mask? 3) Huh? What complexities does it add and why aren't these wonderful browser extensions needed.? 4) Really, bad advice? Please explain the real reason. This comment makes absolutely no sense. I'm just baffled why you feel my advice is of less value than yours, and feel the need to suggest he disregard it. My goal is to offer a general solution to make his overall experience as enjoyable as possible. I'm extremely please the OP took the initiative to become a "premium" member and financially support the forum and didn't want to see ads. He came here looking for a solution and was given two options, yours and mine. Both options are valid and yield the same results, he won't see ads. I don't understand why my opinion is any less valuable than yours. I understand there are people that get their feelings hurt when they are confronted with an opinion that differs from theirs. My goal is to help, not hurt anyone's feelings. If I did this, please accept my apology.

Why? It's the best advice for anyone that uses the internet and doesn't want to see obnoxious ads. He can still be a "premium" member and take steps to make his browsing experience more enjoyable. And if he's using a browser such as Edge, it's definitely his browser.

Well said and so simple. The way I look at it, all these services require a radio, antenna, mic, and a human. All these services are the same. Look at it as a community litterbox. You are than welcome to take a dump in it just as long as you adhere to community guidelines. I don't see any difference in any of them.

Man, I thought I had it rough as a kid. We had to grind our own reeds to make PL tones. Can't beat the old Vibrasender/Vibrasponders. I'm glad I missed the era of the cat whisker.

It's your browser. Firefox with the following add-ons, uBlock Origin and Ghostery, remove all nuisances and makes for a very enjoyable internet experience no matter where you go,

Tell me about it. This all started pre-internet with traffic circles and 4-way intersections with stop signs. The majority of Americans don't have the mental capacity to properly use them. Same with GMRS and other radio services, too many choices. back in the day when GMRS first started you did your research and figured out what frequency you wanted to use and ordered your crystals from Jan Crystal and you were happy. Now with all the choices we have the forum is in chaos with the complexity of what channel and tones to use.

Whether using Linux or Windows I always use VMs for all my radio programming. It's so quick and easy to migrate the VM to whatever host OS you are using.

The moral of the story is you can blow $25 on things a lot worse than quality software. I never had a negative experience with RT Systems.

Let's break this down, even if you only have one radio: Cost -- RT Systems @ $25 vs. Chirp (Free) vs. Supplied Software (Free) Convenience and Time savings -- RT Systems @ Very quick and easy to configure allowing you to save multiple profiles if you travel or have different needs. Chirp @ If available for your radio is okay, but not as efficient to use. Front panel @ Just an unnecessary pain in the ass. Ultimate overall savings -- RT Systems vs. Two bean burritos from Taco Bell, Pepto Bismol, toilet paper, and missed time from work. Everything considered, it looks like RT Systems is a real bargain.

Cool! RT comes to the rescues once again. I'm just curious of what problems they are talking about with the cable? My OEM cable always worked flawlessly. From their site, "For a long while we could not get into this radio for programming only to find out the cable that came with the radio was not right for that purpose." Be brave and take a crowbar to your wallet and buy the software. Like any other RT software, it will be the best $25 you ever spent.

Have you tried the kinetic reset yet? The procedure is generally listed in the back of the manual and very rarely printed in English. When all else fails, I generally take the radio with the power switch on and rap it against the work bench with moderate force. Sometimes it might take several tries. If that fails, take a 20 oz. framing hammer and tenderize it for about 3 minutes. While doing this don't forget to recite a few scriptures from the good book. And lastly, if it's still stubborn, just throw it against the sidewalk and walk away smiling as you finally got the last word in.

Thank you for posting a more concise description of what this thing is really made out of. The link @gortex2 posted wasn't as descriptive and had me assuming, and you know what they say about assuming, that it is that fancy new marketing speak that's so prevalent these days. They didn't even mention plating. This reminds me of going to Home Depot to buy a garden hose with "copper infused" fittings, which simply means anodized aluminum that is colored to look like copper or brass. And yes, I do know what these differences are when it comes to metallurgy. I'm just not proficient posting from a smartphone. Yes, brass is made by alloying copper and zinc. Also, pure zinc or magnesium is used in sacrificial anodes in the corrosion prevention sector. And now that I see that they are using "zinc alloy" which indicates it's not pure zinc, not that it matters in this application. The primary reason these NMO mounts are being manufactured with "zinc" is it's much cheaper than brass, as you indicated. And requires very little machining, if any, as these mounts are die-cast. In my opinion, these are equivalent to Chinese pot metal. That said, I'm confident these mounts are still going to be quality from an electrical and mechanical perspective and one shouldn't have any second thoughts of using one. Call me old fashioned as I've been using quality brass NMO mounting kits for close to 40 years. Plus, I have a nice stockpile of kits to last me two lifetimes. No zinc for me.

Are you crazy? I added two more so that I can be prepared when the main one burns up. Remember, GMRS is all about being prepared.

I still have my two 380s in the drawer all charged and ready to go. Great little radios. They are my tower radios. If I drop one, I'll read a few scriptures from the good book, but other than that it's no big deal.

Brass is, at least yellow brass is 34% zinc mixed with copper. The nickel comes in as plating. Scrap the nickel and you will see yellow brass.

Maybe you are confusing Chinese "pot metal" with quality brass that is alloyed with zinc? I can assure those mounts are quality, definitely from a metallurgical perspective.

Definitely take it apart. I suspect that there is a mechanical issue such as cold solder joint, most likely around the center pin of the N connector. Doubtful you burned out the hybrid resistor. If you did, they are around $20. Get it apart and inspect and take measurements with your meter. Post pics of the insides and someone on here will give you better advice.

It's voluntary. You can put as much in your profile or not. I kept mine blank.

Are the 878s really $300? I paid $200 each for mine a while back. Sounds like these guys are hanging around with the big three Japanese manufacturers. I must say that the build quality, audio, battery life, and features are a great deal for what I paid. I think if I need to replace one in the future, I might be hard pressed to shell out $300 for one. I've always considered all these Chinese radios as disposable. That 168 looks like a nice economical starter radio.

Which is dissipated in as heat.

Generally a poor connection or impurities in the "copper". A poor connection increases resistant, which generates heat.

All that sounds like what I heard as well. The 75 supposedly is slightly better on batteries, but... Sadly I gave up on Kenwood just for that reason. I went with two Anytone AT-D878UVII HTs and haven't looked back. My last HT from the big three was the Yaesu FT2, which was a disappointment due to substandard recieve audio. That's why I always said Yaesu should reverse engineer a UV82, they would learn a lot. I can't say enough good about the 878.

How do you feel the battery life on the 74 is, especially if you transmit? The 75's battery life is said to be slightly better.

Nor will they. Instead of moaning about it on a forum, it's easier to send the radio back to Amazon for replacement or cut it off and hook it up like it supposed to be in the first place.