SteveC7010

VFO is illegal for GMRS. No radio that has VFO capability is type accepted for GRMS. Too much potential for off frequency interference. Modern synthesized radios that are programmed via computer are far less susceptible to wandering off frequency especially with someone manually tuning in the field. The amateur bands are specifically allowed VFO.

Before you try to access a repeater, you should make sure you fully understand repeater versus simplex operation and know exactly how each channel in your radio is programmed. Simplex operation means you and your wife both transmit and receive on the exact same frequency. (For GMRS, it's UHF 462.xxxxx frequencies.) Repeater operations are split between two frequencies. The mobile and portable units transmit on one frequency and receive on another. The repeater listens to the field units and simultaneously re-transmits on the other frequency. In GMRS, the field units receive on 462.xxxxx and transmit on 467.xxxxx. The repeater is the exact opposite. Now we stir in privacy codes, also known as PL (private line). These are sub-audible tones transmitted along with your voice. If PL is used, the radios all need to be using the same PL. If you're not using PL, it's called carrier squelch (CSQ) and the radios hear everything on the frequency including distant stations not in your group. Repeaters usually require PL on the receive side to prevent unauthorized access and to keep distant stations from interfering with the repeater's intended users. Now, if you are using "bubble pack" radios, you can't run PL on transmit and CSQ on receive. It's all or nothing. Since you and your wife can communicate, you are obviously either using CSQ (no privacy code or PL), or you've got both radios set for the same code. Very few bubble pack radios are able to access repeaters because they are exclusively simplex; transmit and receive on the same frequencies. So, before you can access repeaters, you must know what the capabilities of your radios are and exactly how they are programmed. It's back to square one. Read and study the manual that came with the radios. Learn exactly what your radios can do. Now, the only way we can help you beyond answering general questions about GMRS and radio operations is to know what make and model radios you have. When you ask questions, it's more that a little useful to furnish enough info for use to fully answer you. Without knowing what radios you have, none of us can answer your basic question as to whether or not you can access repeaters.

There are no "allocations" by the FCC to prevent multiple repeaters in the same area on the same repeater pair. Part 95 simply defines 8 repeater pairs for GMRS. Two of them have geographical restrictions regarding proximity to Canada. As far as I know, there is no formal coordinator system in GMRS, at least certainly not authorized or required by the FCC who has the only legit jurisdiction in these matters. As Corey pointed out, GMRS repeater operators geographically close to each other tend to work these things out between themselves. Part 95 never grants exclusive rights to a frequency, in fact it's quite the opposite. GMRS users are required to share the channels. There is no exclusivity in most LMR services. Here's a link to an easy to read online version of Part 95. It should answer most of your questions. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/part-95 There are many other resources for Part 95; do a google search using fcc part 95 and you'll get plenty of useful hits. Also, using the search function here on mygmrs.com will locate many previous discussions on the same topics.

The good news in that is the fact that most bubble pack radios only put out about a watt and a half on the "high" power setting which means that they're only a bit more annoying. Luckily, serious GMRS users have real radios; 4 watts portable and up to 50 watts mobile or base.

Try clearing your browser's cache first. That should fix things.

How are you entering each frequency? Are you entering 462.500000? You may be entering too many zeros. Try it with only 4 decimal places.

Bill, there are no type acceptances for Part 97 to my knowledge. Unlike most of the other services, the onus is on the licensee/operator to prevent spurious emissions, keep the unit on frequency, etc. When you and I were young, many hams built their own gear from scratch or modified other gear. That's still allowed today, but with the vast proliferation of ready made equipment in all the bands, there's very little home brew anymore. Thus almost anything can utilized in the hams bands. Some hams prefer commercial gear and I am one of them. All of my Motorola 2M and 70CM portables and mobiles are totally legal for Part 97 use even though they are only type accepted for Parts 22, 74, and 90. I do share your concern about the lack of response from Bridgecom. If they had something in writing on hand, one would think that they would pass it on to you right away.

Ebay's rules and policies greatly favor the buyer. If someone feels they got ripped off, it's likely that they did not follow through with Ebay's procedures for that sort of thing. I have 6 Motorola mobiles and 5 Motorola portables that I purchased on Ebay. All of them were at least as good as the seller represented them if not much better. But, I did my homework and knew exactly what I was looking for. If the seller doesn't furnish all the info I want to see like model number, serial number, more than one or two pics plus affirmation that the radio works and that the codeplug is not password protected, then I ignore the listing and move on. Fully 75% of satisfaction on purchases on Ebay is the buyer's ability to tell the good from the bad. You can not blame the sellers for all of the problems. Just read some of the negative feedback that buyers try to foist on sellers.

Bill, as you know, there is a huge discussion on this topic over on RR. At least one person has a written inquiry in to the FCC for clarification. I am wondering if the gent at Bridgecom could actually furnish written confirmation from the FCC on this. What concerns me here is the same reasoning being applied in the RR discussion: Manufacturers submit type acceptance applications for radios and include which parts they want covered. If you look at enough grants, you see that radios are quite often type accepted in several Parts of the rules, and some including Part 95. I have several different Motorola radios here, one is Type Accepted for Parts 90 and 95a, and others are Part 90 only. The transmitter specs that matter for Type Acceptance are all the same in all of the radios, but only one is actually Part 95a. This suggests to me that the manufacturer did not bother to apply for Part 95a and therefore the radio is not Part 95a. Like others, I am hoping that clarification from the FCC comes through. The kicker in all of this is that Part 90 now requires 12.5 channel spacing while 95a is still 25. That's an unknown at this time.

It's not necessary and most folks don't bother. This is not ARES or RACES where they are a bit overboard on these things. Even other hams don't use phonetics day to day. As a long time police, fire, and ems dispatcher and instructor of same, I always told my students to use phonetics only when needed. Uncommon spelling of names, interference or background noise, and weak radio links are examples. My advise is to use phonetics only when obviously needed.

No. FCC rules requires these pairs and only these pairs for repeaters in GMRS.

Your radio should transmit on 467.700 with pl of 141.3. You should set receive for 462.700. PL on Rx is kind of optional unless you have interference from other stations. I usually leave Rx on CSQ. The offset is 5 Mhz, but unlike the amateur channels, GMRS is cast in stone: For all eight repeater pairs 462.xxx is always Rx for units in the field, and 467.xxx is always Tx for field units. Repeaters, of course are the reverse. I generally don't bother specifying an offset in the programming. Instead, I just enter the two numbers as appropriate. But my radios are multi purpose beyond GMRS and I don't always need the offset as I use a lot of simplex on GMRS and on other services. Also, a small point, you can run simplex on the eight 462.xxx channels if you want, but the 467.xxx are reserved just for repeater input, at least according to GMRS rules. My wife and I use simplex a lot around town and when we caravan on camping trips.

Helpful suggestion: If possible, no larger than 640x480, please. Anything bigger will screw up the display of the forum for many users on computers.

Most amateur radio clubs can steer you to classes and testing. Many offer either or both as part of their club programs. My club up here in Fulton County has a testing session every month prior to our regular meeting. Most clubs have a web presence so you should be able to easily find one or more near you with a simple google or yahoo search.

There's no one single rule. You have to communicate with the owner of the repeater to get these questions answered for that specific repeater. No one here can give you a single answer that fits every repeater. Your mother is covered under your GMRS license. Read Part 95 for more details.

If the repeater is listed in the database here, there will be information about it such as open, permission required, etc. There's also info on contacting the owner of the repeater for permission if they allow access. Some repeaters are privately owned and operated and not open at all to the general user. Some simply want you to ask permission so that they have a record of who is using it. So, it's valuable and important for you to learn how to make maximum use of the the database here.

A quick google search shows it to be repeater access tone.

What part of the state? The club here in Fulton County tests every month.

The FCC no longer mails paper licenses unless specifically requested. Your digital copy is full authority to operate within the scope of the license. This info is easily read on the FCC's website as well.

The ad in the link is not for dual bander. It is UHF only.