SteveShannon

I don't think you need a "more powerful antenna." 7.2 miles isn't terribly far. Any reasonable outdoor antenna up on your roof (maybe in an upstairs window even) should be able to do that. Try removing the tone squelch on receive on the repeater channel. Do you hear the repeater?

10*log(700/50) = 11.4612803568 dB So you would need an antenna with about 11.46 dB of gain. The problem is an antenna with that much gain in one direction is that it pays for it by reducing the ability to transmit and receive in other directions.

Usually you would only need one at the top of the cable to carry its weight. Then you would use cable staples or screw in clamps fastened loosely enough that it doesn’t crush the cable. At that tension they might not actually keep the cable from sliding through, but they keep it from flapping in a wind.

DX Engineering, Ham Radio Outlet, Gigaparts, Max Gain, R & L Electronics, and Amazon all have a wide variety of adapters. Until you gain more knowledge your surest option might be to go to a nearby radio dealer or amateur radio club with your radio, antenna, and transmission line and get some personalized help. Edited to add: no forgiveness is necessary for your lack of knowledge. We all started out with little or no knowledge at some point in time. I think what’s making this more challenging is that you are introducing several different extreme levels of technology at once, like expensive hardline and cheap NanoVNAs. You’re trying to determine whether hardline is good but without a background that would make it easier to discuss. We’re making it worse (unintentionally) by using jargon, or speaking in technical shorthand that probably is just word salad to you. We’re saying things that might end up costing you lots of money in tools you might not even need. When I was getting started I ended up buying a large assortment of SMA adapters from Amazon. I never used most of them, but because they were extremely cheap I didn’t care too much. So, let me back up a little: What tools do you actually have that might be helpful? Do you have a plain old electrical multimeter with an ohmmeter or continuity tester? The most important tests you can initially do for a used cable of unknown quality can be done with your eyeballs and an ohmmeter: First, visually inspect it to make sure it’s not skinned, pinched, crushed, kinked, or any other kind of obvious physical damage, Then use the ohmmeter to make sure the shield is continuous from one end to the other, Next, make sure the center conductor is continuous from one end to the other, and Finally, put one lead on the center and one lead on the shield and check to make sure that they are not shorted together. An ohmmeter will use DC for this test, so you should see a very high impedance, probably in the mega ohms range. Using a NanoVNA (or an antenna analyzer that covers the correct frequency range) will allow you to test more conclusively, but really, if you’ve passed the above basic test, hooking it up to a radio will tell you if it works or not. Next, let’s figure out that connectors that you included in the photograph. You actually have two connectors screwed together in that photo which appears below. The large connector on the bottom has been cut off the hardline. The small connector on top may be unused or may have been removed from a piece of smaller coax, possibly LMR400 or RG8, I can’t tell. The photo shows a finely knurled section. Unscrew the knurled collar from the piece immediately below it. They should be separated at the red line. Then show us what two connectors you really have. I think the upper, smaller, connector is probably N male and the hardline fitting should be N female.

Look, I had the same problem understanding your question that they did, so I simply ignored all the bullshit about radios and antennas and answered your hearing aid question (or at least what I interpreted as the question.) A wise person once told me "If you're not getting the answers you want, maybe look at how you asked the question." You included a bunch of confusing bullshit, whether as an attempt to be funny or perhaps you thought we would understand some analogy. You removed your antenna and inserted the symbolic 1500 foot mountain between you and us and now you’re upset that we cannot hear you. Don't take it out on this forum because you posted a bizarre unintelligible plea for help.

The easiest thing might be to simply create a new account for your new login, especially if you don't have very many posts or messages.

This sight (mygmrs.com) has a classified ads section for its premium members. I think everyone can see it, but only premium members can post ads.

Great! Thanks!

Some people hate to hear them. Many of us simply don’t care. We were able to diagnose one of our member’s microphone issues because we recognized his Roger beep. It’s your radio, as long as you’re following the rules operate how you want.

Is everyone alright?

Smart people do. Smart people also understand that there’s a lot more to the science than meets the eye, that limited data and shallow assumptions are not the same as science, and that scientists must always be willing to admit that they don’t know what they don’t know.

How does that affect a glass mount antenna, good or bad?

Good luck bro!

Get a good power supply rated to provide 13.8 vDC at least 30% more current (amps) than you think you need. I like Samlex. Others on these forums have had good experiences with Astron and Meanwell.

LMR400 has a foam dielectric which is easily crushed. The cable clamps shown above can be used if you use enough and don’t tighten them excessively. But for long vertical runs cable grips are better: https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/tmv-hg-400t?seid=dxese1&gclid=CjwKCAjw3P-2BhAEEiwA3yPhwBQFfsHloWHuY750CdbwhKPstOsOuQFcAUln4HS7V3X9C65I_PFpuBoCIysQAvD_BwE

Maybe you’re not really seeing the repeaters that you think you’re seeing.

If you can see them but cannot contact them there’s something wrong. Try just listening on the right frequencies with no tones/no tone squelch. Once you have listening figured out then work on transmission.

In many cases this is because we have little money. We are not allowed to charge for any amateur radio services (rightfully so) and the reason we become a club is to share enjoyment in the hobby. Members often pay for things out of their own pocket just in order to make things happen while the majority of the club membership sit back and enjoy the club activities. The OP might be better off donating some tower space in exchange for a tax deduction.

If this is a serious question, and I think maybe it is, you should find an independent hearing aid center and ask them to diagnose your hearing aids. If they both stopped working it is possibly related to wax blockages in both. I assume you tried new batteries, but maybe that is a bad assumption and maybe you even have the new hearing aids that do not have replaceable batteries. If you get them fixed that’s great, but if not, Costco and other places have hearing aids for a much more reasonable price and don’t believe the marketing hype that says the difference in price is worth it. Look at Consumer Reports to see if they have published a review of hearing aids. Radio #1 guy needs to put the antenna back on. The second word in your story is correctly spelled “two”. You can click the three dots and edit your post.

Exactly! At least a sense of humor, even dry, is enjoyable. That other person is more like the obsessed person who stands on the street corner shouting at passersby and waving a sign that says “Repent, linked repeaters! The end is nigh!”

Great to know. Thanks!

Thanks, I would appreciate it.

I agree; I want to avoid buying from an unknown vendor. I’ve seen that Haloid has them for right about $1,000. I’ll look int used-radios.com also. Thanks!

Respectfully, I disagree. Although using the cigarette lighter jack is convenient for very temporary use, that also constrains you to a radio that has lower RF output power. I would simply add PowerPoles to the power cable to make it easy to remove a radio and take it into the house.

After hearing a few recommendations for the Motorola Quantar, a repeater that’s no longer in production (afaik) where is the best place to buy it?