SteveShannon

Thank you for the welcome. I probably looked right past the forum where I should introduce myself. I absolutely agree that lipos would be lighter. However, I have a hundred or so SLA batteries and I thought that I could use them as ballast for the antenna base as well. I might end up switching to lipos after lugging them to the top of the hill a couple times. Or maybe I’ll get one of the younger rocketeers to carry them... ?

Very new guy here, but what I first noticed is the notion that a cheap repeater won’t do what a person wants, but that’s entirely based on an assumption of what that person wants, without ever asking. So, here’s my use case: I’m in an amateur rocketry club, launching from hilly land. The hills make simplex communications impossible when we’re retrieving rockets, even though the range is always under five miles and usually within one mile. However, there’s a tall hill to the east which is visible from most places. I suspect that hill would make a good spot for a temporary repeater in a man portable can. Because it’s BLM property, nothing permanent can be erected. The repeater is only needed one day per month for about 8 hours and total air time is probably under a half hour. There are no GMRS repeaters within maybe 100 miles. This seems like something that the Retevis RT-97 might do well. Because I would have to carry it to the top of the hill, it has to be something lightweight. We may not drive off-road and no roads go to the top of that hill. This would probably be paid for out of my own pocket. Why wouldn’t something like the Retevis, a whip antenna, and a couple SLA batteries in a five gallon bucket be appropriate for my purposes? Thanks for your help, Noob Steve WROM258