SteveShannon

I don’t believe it would be useful. In fact I think it would be a drain on emergency services and do more harm by creating a false sense of security. How would it work? Strictly a voluntary simplex/peer to peer effort or something officially established? How would it interface with public services: 911, police, fire? How would it be monitored? Remember, GMRS regulations have no government agency licensing. All licensees are individuals, so every person who might have to communicate with the GMRS radio would need their own license. For public service employees that would also mean an additional radio to be carried. Given finite tax dollars, which other emergency services would receive less so GMRS users would have their own emergency channel? That’s not to say that having GMRS might not be be helpful in an emergency as a last resort. I just think it’s foolish to rely on it when planning a risky endeavor, unless you create your own response system.

That must mean I’m a random person

Yeah, when the temperature gets higher I hope to do my truck and 4Runner but the headliner is the thing that intimidates me. I haven’t done that before.

Good idea.

The antenna I use for ham radio is 2.15 dBi. I’ve communicated thousands of miles on 50 watts with it. Gain matters, but the nulls in the propagation pattern have more of an effect. Don’t obsess over the extra 1.5 dB. Instead, look at the pattern of the antenna. Are there nulls? At what angle do they appear? Then do the trig to figure out how much higher or lower than you a station would need to be in order to be in a null. I doubt you’ll ever see that happening.

Or put it on scan.

One of the real self-gratifying myths of radio, not just GMRS, but also ham radio, is that in an emergency (or the SHTF scenario people get so giddy about) it will save you. Unless you have already arranged for someone to actively monitor for you to send a SOS on a specific channel, it’s really just BS. The fact is these frequencies are not actively monitored in most places.

Exactly. When the commission released their interpretation that made it clear they were against linking repeaters, they listed the harms done by linking repeaters: In my opinion (worth nothing), streaming the sound for the sole,purpose of listening does not have any of those negative consequences. But I can’t predict how the FCC might rule. I wouldn’t be afraid to try it though. We all know that a person would simply receive a letter first anyway.

It is a good question and you also make a good point. In the United States the limitations on monitoring signals are very limited. Almost all of the regulations are aimed at transmitting.

I don’t know, but I was apparently wrong in my interpretation of the actual rules anyway. This sentence from the commission’s interpretation might indicate that sound cannot be streamed:

It’s really difficult to advise you. I have my opinions but so much depends your personal situation. I live in the mountains and I find that a 20 watt Radioddity db20g and some hand held radios is all I need. Having more power won’t necessarily get you much more range, but it definitely costs more and drains on the battery. But if i did want 50 watts the radio you’re looking at is probably the only one I would recommend. As far as antennas, the Midland mxta26 on a magnetic mount is ideal for me. But the magnetic mount doesn’t work well on a plastic Jeep roof. You might be best getting an inexpensive handheld first, just to learn the basics like setting tones, and when you need them. What an offset is, and etc. Watch a bunch of YouTube videos by Notarubicon. They’re pretty good and cover everything you need to know about GMRS. Everything you learn on a Baofeng radio or Wouxun kg805g (one of my favorites) directly translates to using a mobile radio. Welcome to the forum.

Welcome!

It might be impractical. The 6 db antenna might be a 5/8 wave antenna and the lower gain might be a quarter wave. If you want to see what it takes try simulating the high gain antenna and then see what it takes to make it into a quarter wave. Personally I would try the antenna you have. If it works well enough just use it. Otherwise sell it and buy the antenna you want.

Well, I’m assuming some things based on squinting just right and experience with friends’ Siri transcribed sms messages. I really don’t know.

The other post sought frequency information:

The person whose GMRS license posted this message (Darre Fisher in Lynchburg, Virginia) is a petite lady who teaches at a Christian pre-school. I suspect someone else used her name to obtain a GMRS license or looked up her license and used the public information to register here. Another similar poorly worded post appears elsewhere on the forums. The poster appears to be desperately attempting to call a Walgreens truck driver back. Hopefully this gets straightened out, but I don’t think there’s anything we can do to help.

In fact, neither “weatherproof” nor “waterproof” actually mean anything in the absence of quantitative data. They’re marketing words, meant to attract customers rather than tranquilizing them with the language actually used in standards. For instance, “waterproof” means nothing without some kind of data about water quality, water pressure, and period of exposure. Fortunately, Amphenol knows the value of standards and they included the standards the two N connectors comply with. The “weatherproof” one has passed mil std 202, method 106 which is very stringent. It’s a short standard, totaling only a few pages describing the torture to which these connectors have been exposed. https://landandmaritimeapps.dla.mil/Downloads/MilSpec/Docs/MIL-std-202/std202mthd106.pdf The other N connector, which Amphenol attaches the marketing phrase “Extreme Exposure” to has passed IP67, which means it can be immersed in fresh water for thirty minutes at a depth of up to one meter. Now I don’t know Leo’s exact circumstances, but I doubt that mast on top of his building ever experiences the extremes reflected by either test listed above. Certainly if the connectors are immersed he has problems worse than SWR. And I agree that the connectors should be covered with glue lined heat shrink if they’re going to be mounted permanently. I’ve never said different and neither has tcp2525. So let’s stop arguing over the meaning of marketing language and take away some actual knowledge.

There is a law. Actually there are several in the Communications Act of 1934 and the amendments from 1996. https://transition.fcc.gov/Reports/1934new.pdf The law says follow the regulations or be fined.

Or one of the radio manufacturers (or both) saved money on a less expensive CTCSS circuit.

His was a Hustler antenna that was struck by a bird. Here’s the thread:

Alright, I’ll quit looking. If I come across it somewhere in single quantities I’ll let you know, if you want.

I’m not sure if you’ve seen this and perhaps the STUF just isn’t available anywhere, but this map might help you find a distributor near you. http://crossdevices.com/cross_devices_website2018_022.htm

Ahh, bummer. Sorry about that.

ARS still lists it for $8/tube. https://amateurradiosupplies.com/products/stufsealant-stuf-dielectric-water-proofing-sealer

Good point!