Newb

I got time to check the expansion on my 3" plug. It expands to 3.25" . With a little work it may go to 3.375" that's a big cup holder! I can tell you, if I tighten it in the cup holder, it would likely pull the top off the console removing it. The Lidoradio looks nice but I use full size commercial radios that weigh 3.5 to 4 lbs. It would be fine if I used a remote kit for the radio. I can't justify almost $300 for the remote cable kit.

My XPR 4550 in my GM truck.

I read through the entire post and found I left out that one of the later plugs that I purchased needed a little plastic safe lubricant added to the inside of the rubber plug so it would expand easier.

The red wing nut on the plug is used to tighten the bottom. The short piece of pvc you add to the top will hold it in place at the top.

Another suggestion would be, check to see if a short section of 3" pvc will fit in the cup holder to remove the slack in any cup holder for any mount that has slack.

I tried the commercial mounts but there is too much vibration on rough roads and off road. I have what looks like a similar GM vehicle and I don't have any problems. I started using heavier radios and had to raise the mount so the console lid would clear. Haven't had any fallout problems. I wanted to use my mobile radios at my base. I'm using 3"/4" stool flanges to make them stable. As you can see, I raised my KW8150 about 6 " and it is stable in the console. The 8150 is a tank so the mounts he is suggesting wouldn't work for me. They would be broken in a week on the road.

What is the FiF-10a used for when programming Vertex Standard mobile radios? Why does a CT-104 work for some programming and not for firmware and and other utilities?

The "paper" that came with the unit written in 8th grade Chinglish didn't have any info as above. I called Amazon and all I got was "send it back". Done.

I have tried it with a GMRS radio attached and with nothing attached. The first time it would only trip the GFCI receptacle when keying the transmitter. I reset the GFCI and just let the power supply run with the radio on but I did not transmit. After about 2 minutes the GFCI tripped and every time I reset it, the GFCI would trip. I unplugged the power supply and everything in the garage including the drill press worked fine.

New 50 amp switching power supply tripping GFIC the minute it is turned on. ?????

Great! Don't forget to turn the plate just under the red nut over, it works better for me that was. Add just a small amount of plastic safe oil or grease to the bottom taper so the rubber will expand easier.

My initial thought was, if I can listen to the to the net by clicking a play button on this web site, why can't one use the mike to talk. We will likely get our repeater back on Saturday.

Smiles are the greatest things in the world! We need way more of them! Reading what people that know WAY more than do, that I can learn from makes me smile! Win/Win!

No need to be sorry, I think my rating got a little boost! ??

Is there a part of the cup holder mount that belongs to D*Star? ??? Talk about a topic that went WAY off track.

Did I read somewhere that Zello was an "Invite only" service? I have read about EchoLink and AllStar but wasn't sure if the same type app is available for GMRS. We only have one linked repeater in the cornfields down state. Chicago has several but none within my reach. I am aware that the link is ROIP but I think the app is home grown as it runs on an R-Pi. I finally got curious enough and emailed the Repeater owner and got an email this morning saying he was hoping to have the antenna up next Saturday weather permitting. I guess I can wait a week.

Is it possible to communicate with the Mid-west GMRS hub from a computer if you area license holder?

One thing I forgot to add in any of my posts, the DB20-G was replaced by an KG-XS20G which was replaced by the f-221-1 iCOM. I went to my local communication store looking for a Motorola to convert to GMRS. The used Motorola radios he had were in sad shape and he is an iCOM dealer and had a pristine f221-1 that he had realigned that I couldn't pass up. I am GMRS only so it was way more than I needed.

I believe the latest model replacement for the f-221-1 is the F5021/F6021 the F5 being VHF and the F6 being UHF. Please pardon my ignorance but, what SAR and MDC. I don't find a viable Google definition for either.

I am a bit of a minimalist so the XS20G had a price that appealed to me. When I put the unit to use I found a lot of "features" that to me, cluttered the display. I don't need the NWS channels, the second display, while driving was confusing and the programming interface doesn't have an insert function (insert key) to move an entire line down to insert a new repeater or simplex channel/frequency. The speaker is an upshot and I wear hearing aides so I have to put a deflector on the top to point the sound toward me. A rattle can lid works well. The iCON has 128 memory slots, 3 power levels and a more logical programming interface with an insert function. It has a forward facing speaker that helps me with hearing problems as pointing the display at me also points the speaker at me. The mic does not have a ton of buttons (just PTT) and is heavier for my big fat hands to grab. The PTT is a solid click when pushed, much better than the XS20G. 8 character alpha/numeric display large enough to read at a glance. I feel like the receiver is tighter than XS20S and has way more squelch level options. (I have it set at 50). I don't worry about it overheating when I become a ratchet jaw. I assume it's the power level, but I have a much wider range of 1.3:1 and below SWR reading with my 5/8 over 5/8 Browning antenna (mostly 1.04:1 readings). A lot is likely personal preference. Even used, it just seems like a better engineered radio.

45 watts on UHF and more programming versatility. I'm in the middle of Illinois where we only have one reachable linked repeater within 20 miles. I'm mobile a lot and don't have a base station. Right now our linked repeater is down so all I have is simplex.

The iCOM is great! Got it for $175 complete with the programing I requested. Purchased a programming cable and software from BlueMax. The radio is solid as a rock and and the initial radio check was all ++++++s. Setting up scan is a little woky not but not bad. Good speaker.

Good info, thanks much!!! Computers I can handle, social media, not so much. LOL ?

https://forums.mygmrs.com/profile/5516-wrbu527/ The white ring is a 1/2" section of 2" schedule 40 PVC. Hit your local plumber up for a scrap OR have him cut you a piece. Center a 1/4" hole in the top of the body of the plug. Reassemble the plug. I used a 3/4" - 1/4"x20 bolt, the two washers and a nyloc nut. The big washer is 1/2" which fits the top of the body snug. The small wash is metric, it will drop to the bottom of the hollow body yet will fit the 1/4" bolt. Use a 7/16" nut driver to attach your radio's mounting bracket to the of the body of the plug with the nut and small washer inside the body.

I have switched from the small light weight radio shown in the first post to an iCOM IC f221-1 which is larger and heavier. I will post the simple mods I made that make it sturdier for the heavier radio. When you get your plug, note that I removed the nut and turned the top cap over as I couldn't see that the taper on the bottom side did any good and the flat side seemed to create more down force on the taper at the bottom of the stem.