PastorGary

Actually, if you think about it trees ARE grounded - evergreens more so than leafy, deciduous trees. Evergreens usually have active sap present year round which makes a thick-liquid path to ground. :D Monitor your SWR when the wind is blowing and the antenna is wavering... the meter can look like a windshield wiper on really windy days...

William - Thank you for taking the time to check in and to give us your update. Blessings to you for your community involvement. We all do what we can in the face of disasters... to help others and to put our own lives on hold while we do so.

That's fine, Jerry - but if anyone wishes to sell personal equipment here, that advertising is not allowed due to forum liability and other legal issues. Transactions by way of private messaging arrangements and email is acceptable as long as the open forum is not used to OFFER equipment to other members. Members LOOKING for equipment can say so in the open as long as follow-up transactions are conducted off of the open forum.

Thanks to everyone... William's power situation is still not 100 percent... Hopefully this will be resolved by the local power company soon.

At this time, the primary Help Agency in all states affected by the storms since last Friday is The American Red Cross. If you are able to assist financially, please click on the link below. Red Cross first responders are VOLUNTEERS, but they need funding to supply basic humanitarian needs to victims who have lost family members and have lost everything that they own - and that's where you, the general public, can help.... http://www.redcross.org/

It has been my observation in the past that when a Morse ID is transmitted with the repeater owner's callsign, that ANY questionable or unlawful usage of the repeater by either authorized OR unauthorized users, will be the liability responsibility of the repeater owner, since that ID may be the only one available to the Commission while monitoring for improper conduct. In order to keep a low profile and not be the target of a Commission inquiry, do not use automatic ID BUT require that ALL users follow regulation - 95.119(a)(1) and (2) regarding THEIR responsibility to properly ID THEIR communications. There are no regulations REQUIRING Morse ID of the repeater owner's callsign.

Thanks, Steve - welcome back - nice to see you here again.

Guy - The local shop near me uses a Dell PC with XP Pro and Pentium 4 for all their Vertex programming in DOS. Do you have something like that available to you? This RR thread below has the Vertex CE-6 programming software in post number 10 and owner's manual data in post number 11... http://forums.radioreference.com/vertex-standard/285470-vertex-vx-500-a.html This next link lists a programming cable (not USB) that looks as if it will work for you... http://www.amazon.com/Yaesu-Vertex-Mobile-Portable-Programming/dp/B002YZ98CU Looks as if the majority of the storms are finally east of you. Take care and be safe.

UPDATE: I was finally able to reach William in central Alabama. He and the family are OK - they sheltered and also were assisting with emergency communications. They finally got back home around 3 AM today. His power at home is off and on, so he's going to get the generator running so he has basic power for the house. The last wave of storms is firing up in Louisiana at this hour and will be back in the same areas of Mississippi and Alabama later today. Our thoughts are with everyone who has endured bravely in the face of these monster storms and we pray that they are spared any additional losses.

As you all know from reading my unofficial Weather Advisory last Friday and seeing reports on TV, there have been many casualties and deaths in several Plains States as well as in Mississippi and Alabama since Saturday. One of our own, moderator William, "spd641" - lives in an area of central Alabama that was hit hard Monday by numerous super cell storms and many, many tornadoes. We have not heard from William as yet after these deadly storms went through his area, so if you do pray, please keep William, his family and all others affected by these terrible storms in your prayers. Thank you. Pastor Gary ================================================================================================

Russell - Thanks for sharing the video. I'm sure members here will find it interesting. Welcome to the MyGMRS Forum.

Thanks Jerry - We wouldn't want your colleague to get a visit from 'the men in black' for operating outside the power requirements...

Jerry - GMRS equipment - including repeaters - can only have a maxmum RF power at the radio connector of 50 watts. Regulations do NOT limit antenna gain for a higher ERP, but the power regulation is cast in stone. If he has a GMRs license, he should already be aware of the regulation - 47CFR95.135 Maximum authorized transmitting power. (a) No station may transmit with more than 50 watts output power.

I don't use GMRS simplex very often, but if I remember correctly, the unofficial 'standard' is 141.3 CTCSS. I am unaware of any unofficial DPL standard being used simplex nationwide for travelers or emergency comm at this time, but others here may have more up to date info than I have.

The staff moved this thread from the MyGMRS related posting area to here at 'Technical Discussions' where it may get some additional attention and discussion.

Thanks, Jake - please disregard the backup email that I just sent to you regarding this thread.

Since the west end of the blue line ends at WQTA313's location, perhaps Jake can tell us what's up with that... i'll send him a memo and hopefully his computer or tablet is operating at the moment.

If anyone is currently using a large, gain type UHF antenna on your vehicle and wish to be a little less conspicuous, I have tested the one in the link below and it is just as effective within my local repeater coverage area as the large commercial antenna permanently mounted on my vehicle. This magnetic UHF mobile antenna has a 100 watt power rating and all you might need is either an SMA to TNC adaptor or a PL259 to TNC adaptor. Link >>> http://www.amazon.com/AIR802-400-480-Magnetic-Plug-Male-Connector/dp/B005SGEBF6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1398196548&sr=8-2&keywords=gmrs+antenna

John V - Welcome to the MyGMRS Forum. ""Quarterwave" provided some excellent info and resources for you. Additionally, any Kenwood, Motorola, EF Johnson or similar commercial two way radio dealer will have personnel on staff that specialize in business equipment solutions. They will also have staff members to assist with licensing and frequency coordination for FCC Part 90 equipment. As stated above, GMRS is NOT feasible for business operations. Check your local 'Yellow Pages' for either 'Two Way Radio Dealers' or 'Communications Equipment Dealers'.

Gregory - Welcome to the Forum. Your narrowband question was answered in your other post. To recap, GMRS is a Part 95 radio service. The narrowband requirement is ONLY for SOME Part 90 radio service frequencies (at this time). Regarding a 'fixed station' - There are only a couple references made to a fixed station in the rules. There is no description specifically for a fixed station in 95.23 or 95.25 as there are for other station types. There is a reference to 'fixed stations' licensed before March 1968 in 95.29g but that does not include a system description either. I'm no law expert, but most GMRS operators follow the regulations in section 95.135a and 95.639a1 regarding output power (not ERP) for mobile or repeater based systems. Perhaps others here may have opinions, but that being said, the rules governing GMRS have been debated for over 40 years and the rules are incomplete at best as compared to Part 90 wording. Others are welcome to weigh in on this.....

Not at this time - GMRS is a Part 95 radio service. The narrowband requirement was applied ONLY to SOME Part 90 radio service frequencies above 54 mhz. - however, every commission administration change brings 'new' ideas to bear, so anything is possible in the future.

Jody - I have a suggestion in your particular case... OPEK has a fine magnetic NMO mount available in the first link below. There are any number of good dual band gain type mobile antennas that will fit right on. One of those is in the second link below. All you need at home is a piece of 16 gauge galvanized steel 12 inches square. Stick the NMO magnetic mount on it for a ground plane surface and place it close to one of your windows at home. This will work remarkably well - I have done this for many years in temporary locations. There are adaptors available to go from your radio antenna jack to either BNC or PL259 on which ever magnet mount NMO you may decide on. Also, you can place the magnetic mount on your car and have a much greater coverage area than just the portable's antenna itself. There are many mounts and antennas available - these are just two suggestions out of countless possibilities: OPEK Magnetic NMO mount >>> http://www.walcottcb.com/opek-am1045b-nmo-magnet-mount-p-1256.html Dual Band Mobile NMO Antenna >>> http://www.hamcq.com/vhf-uhf-dual-band-nmo-antenna-dualbandnmoantenna.html Best of luck with your setups... P-G ==============

Hello, Robert, and Welcome to the Forum. Low band systems these days have much less channel traffic. but with the sunspot cycle as it is lately, low band traffic can be heard for hundreds of miles... just turn on any CB radio during the daytime hours. Thanks for posting.

Jody - Thanks for registering here and Welcome. You are among friends and as soon as the holiday is past, we'll have more participation here to get you started in the right direction for antennas and with any questions that you may have. Are you going to be operating that radio as a temporary base station or as a mobile or both? That may determine which antenna(s) might be applicable to your installation(s). Please feel free to log in and use the search feature at our main website to locate systems in your general area. >>> http://www.mygmrs.com/browse

I'll bump up this thread for viewers - but, if my info is correct, we have very few registered members from the area in question. You may wish to contact one of the Administrators located at the web link below for regional info that is not yet available from our own membership. LINK >>> http://www.northgeorgiagmrs.com/