WRTT642

I was replying to your "think-of-the-children" remark. Of course my comments do not deserve a response from you! Just put me firmly on your ignore list and be done with me. And no peeking!

Also update there is a new repeater listed in Palmer and one open net in Fairbanks. 

I decided that I am building a 20x20 shop in the spring with power and heat to it. Great time to make a dedicated repeated spot I think for Wasilla/Palmer 

It looks like the myGMRS node 177 "formalized" and separated itself from the mid-west 169 node.  A fair amount of nodes and repeaters popped up in the PacNW. They hold a simple check in net every 2 weeks on Tuesdays at 6PM Alaska Time.  They call for people to check in state by state including Alaska. They usually just ask for your Callsign, first name and what you are talking on (IE a handheld with 5 watts or a mobile radio with 15 watts etc).  At the end they open it up to general convo but usually there is none.

I make every attempt to connect into this net using the EagleRiver 575 repeater. The last one was 11-15-2022 and the next will be 11-29-2022. 
 
Here is the audio from 11-15-2022 when there were only a few people. 
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19nlg_xlVQhvwjVHga7N08XYHHke9oseb/view?usp=share_link

I was wondering what the coverage is like in Anchorage and the Palmer area I will most likely be in Palmer sometime next year early to midsummer for training for a job I'm currently applying for was wondering what gmr's frequency and tones I would need to communicate in those areas if somebody could please help me that would greatly appreciate you can email me at fire_rescue14@yahoo.com that would greatly be appreciated I would like to bring my radio with me when I go I have radioddiyy UV 5G I have the chirp software to program the tone guards if somebody could help me thank you very much

Frequency change. The EagleRiver 625 is now 575.  I also decreased it's output power. 

The antenna is a Laird LG4603. The "0" gain version is FG4500. The "5" dbd gain version is FG4605. 
 
You can link the RT97s together using the myGMRS network. The RT97S has a port (DB-9) on it to connect the myGMRS node to where at the original RT97 doesn't.
You can get the RT97S at myGMRS.com:
https://shop.mygmrs.com/collections/featured-products/products/retevis-rt97s-portable-gmrs-repeater
Or direct from Retevis:
https://www.retevis.com/rt97s-full-duplex-portable-gmrs-repeater
 
The linking bundle is found here but is sold out due to the chip shortage.
https://shop.mygmrs.com/products/repeater-linking-bundle?variant=31585827848227
 
Obviously the myGMRS linking relied on the internet, so when the internet fail the links fail and it is a stand alone system at that point.  If you have a building at the place where the repeater is and it has access to power, I would very much recommend going with a better repeater. Something like a Vertex would outperform the RT97.  
https://www.ebay.com/itm/195289552939?hash=item2d782a182b:g:zMQAAOSw8Tpi-wXQ&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAoBnQJ%2BCKPCwO8wardYyOb521OxW0d6orfX8eY9KcgYKx4DpoViV%2FtMX5qtLirHrlfZAOLOdDk6fZI62JsC2N%2BDTNZs6XotXvWzN90Bq3guAwQmGTE%2FUNKp3QDRo9%2BkxmGmUrNCfCOsozXmC4dp3zanOq%2B4BvaAlXBkiHGduTrEovYZ20wEFPPluGBheHkbrgE5X%2Fgv8XF9wHwBXNqE%2Fpdh8%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR_6q88zVYA
 
https://www.ebay.com/itm/115365686337?hash=item1adc54ac41:g:4KsAAOSws7dibT1j&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAAoAzUUUGmyw9qbzeLy4dJ40OWasd7odjVwBdCf1%2BZyOASOg6GL8QbEqfoeFvqw3jAzc5zIvy1irSL1CD0eeUk870A%2Fo6dsRCkX5MWIxOHobzUWq3K5rjiZ43PRhkxHYHcEjJol9h4FcKDHgMttnleCQ0CM4PNlsj2HmRFENwEN%2BEme%2FYjBS4VXo6YSm2VrgmfETl9BHnrsBWR2mKM2hKbs64%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR7C4_8zVYA
 
 
The Anchorage 700 repeater is probably up on Flat-Top and part of the Anchorage Amateur Radio Club. 
 
 

Be nice to have a small network of repeaters, If I could do it at my place in wasilla I would 
Rick 
WRME688 

WRFP399, Thanks for keeping your repeating up and running. I was wondering about your repeater. It seemed like it was performing better in the Anchorage area. Now I understand why - new antenna. What is the gain on that one? I have ideas about setting up an RT 97 in area of Birch and O'Malley. I'm hoping my daughter will allow me to set up the repeater in one of their out building. It's your system that has got me interested taking on the project. 
Thinking ahead a bit, would you be interested in linking your repeater and mine, Or, is it even technically possible with the RT97's?
Thanks,
Jim WQCG563
 
 

Hello All,
Name here is Jim. GMRS call WQCG563. I agree with WRTT642 about having a club to get some more repeaters up and running in the Greater Anchorage area. Personally, I would like to see repeaters linking Homer to Fairbanks and all points in between. However, that would take great deal of time and money. We would need to get lots of folks from many locations interested in funding these repeaters. But, if we could get Anchorage and the valley linked up with good coverage of the whole area, we just might see a lot more interest across the state.
WRTT642 if your willing to start up a club, I'm willing to help out as much as I'm able. I have several family members who, I believe, would be willing to help in some way.
I have a question for the group. There is a repeater in Anchorage operating on 462.700/467.700 (Ch 21) with tone of 100 HZ. I appears to have good coverage in Anchorage. But, I have no idea who owns it, because there is no ID transmitted. This repeater is not to be confused with the repeater WRCA670 had operating on the same channel. His system has been down for months. I have made many calls on this unknown repeater and have never received a response. It's strange that a repeater like this one would be installed and no one using it? So, anyone out there have any info on this repeater. If we could get a few folks using it we just might find out who is responsible for it. It would be great if this repeater could remain operational and possibly linked to other repeaters in Alaska.

sounds like spring/summer should be good times. Anyone know a shop to help me install my new 50W in my 1997 Dodge Adventure Ram. We are building up a slightly tame overlander and of course GMRS will part of it. 

FYI. Anchorage 625 is down for now. Something went sideways at winter solstice. I am unable to get to it to trouble shoot it until spring.

Nice! Ive been hoping for more gmrs people up here, it's practically radio silence on the peninsula except for spernard builders supply or the odd snowmachiners with a rugged radio. So where are you on the 19 or 20 travel channel debate?

Hi guys thought I'd say hi to the fellow Alaska GMRS guys. Just started in the GMRS world for communication in the local Anchorage area though I'm from Eagle River. My brother in law wanted to sell me on getting a HAM license but figured I'd start with GMRS in my Jeep. So hoping to hop on the E.R. repeater and hopefully hearing some traffic. Channel 20 has had some traffic, but otherwise its been pretty quiet.  Hope to hear from you guys and thank you WRFP for setting up repeaters that's super cool and handy.

It's up for the evening as just a simple "throw down" repeater. I would assume Palmer, Alaska is blocked a bit by some terrain features but who knows. Give it a shot.
 
I will be collecting this tomorrow.

The main 625 repeater is "off" as it ran low on power from all the "abuse" I was putting it through. While that is off and charging I am thinking about putting up the second RT97 tonight near Mt. Baldy to see how it works with that national net. Just gonna drop it on the ground somewhere with a battery and roll up J-Pole stuck in a tree. 

Nice to see more Alaskan people here I'm down in the kenai area

excellent I will do that. 

If it is worth anything I try to connect into the national net on Sundays from around 4PM to 9PM Alaska Time. If you drive into the coverage of the ER repeater you could participate.

Hi. Im jeff, down in the kenai area. Im a life long commercial fisherman. We've always had tons of radios and coms on fishing boats from cb,2meter,10meter,ssb, vhf, sat coms, you name it, so I've always like radios and after the 2018 earthquake then the covid stuff i decided to get into gmrs for all the options like repeaters and different antennas and not having to get ham tickets for me and the wife. Thats about it for my intro.
Anyone still catching coho?

Hello there, I'm Connor from Eagle River. New to GMRS like the rest of you, but I'm trying to get my local friend group onboard as well. My primary use is for offroad comms and road trips, but I have been trying to monitor the Eagle River 575 repeater during the day.

Yeah for sure. I just found out now how to start a club. I cant seem to find any Alaskan clubs, so ill keep asking around and IM people that I see are from Alaska before I go and try to start something that somebody else has already worked on. If anybody has already made an Alaskan club then great I would love to join and help out in anyway to try to get it going. If not I don't mind starting one and see where it goes. It doesn't hurt to try, if it works out great, if not then at least we can say we tried

Short of interference with medical or law enforcement, why does it matter if individuals are on a channel talking without a license? I understand that there are rules in place to have a license to use system, but at the same time if businesses or individuals are using the system then who cares? I personally don’t agree that we should even have to obtain a license to use this system, kind of a racket if you ask me, but whatever I’ll play along and I’ll even help people get one if they so choose, yet I have read a bit of all these forums and everybody says the same thing, all they hear are crickets in most places. If the FCC isn’t too interested in policing the system then why should it be upon us to do so? Im sorry but I do not have the time nor patience to try and track down individuals or to go to businesses to inform them that they need to have a license to use system. Personally I don’t think any of us should be doing that in any way and putting ourselves in a possible dangerous situation just to inform somebody that they shouldn’t use a radio or how to use one. And to be honest I would much rather have my taxes spent on something more important than to have some government official spending their time trying to track down some kid telling poop jokes or cussing over radio. 

Short of interference with medical or law enforcement, why does it matter if individuals are on a channel talking without a license? I understand that there are rules in place to have a license to use system, but at the same time if businesses or individuals are using the system then who cares? I personally don’t agree that we should even have to obtain a license to use this system, kind of a racket if you ask me, but whatever I’ll play along and I’ll even help people get one if they so choose, yet I have read a bit of all these forums and everybody says the same thing, all they hear are crickets in most places. If the FCC isn’t too interested in policing the system then why should it be upon us to do so? Im sorry but I do not have the time nor patience to try and track down individuals or to go to businesses to inform them that they need to have a license to use system. Personally I don’t think any of us should be doing that in any way and putting ourselves in a possible dangerous situation just to inform somebody that they shouldn’t use a radio or how to use one. And to be honest I would much rather have my taxes spent on something more important than to have some government official spending their time trying to track down some kid telling poop jokes or cussing over radio. 

Hello everybody, 
My name is William (WRTT642), I have lived in Alaska since 2012. As I have said before I am completely new to GMRS and radios in general, but I have been researching more about them and have become very interested in them. What really got me into looking into other forms of communication was last winter when we had that big wind storm down here in the valley and it knocked out my power for 3 1/2 days and the KFC lol! Not fun, especially when my youngest son was only 10 months old! So I started to take a couple things a little more serious and less for granted. Like communications for example, amongst other things. Love to hunt, hike, fish blah blah blah, all the typical Alaska stuff. Funny enough I don't physically own any radios yet. I have ordered 2 Baofeng UV9G and they will be here Tuesday. I do have C Crane CC Skywave SSB and love scanning through all the channels. I have a beautiful wonderful wife and four kids. My oldest son is about to join the Army in a few months so excited about that. My wife is awesome and is actually cool with me doing this whole radio thing. Next week Ill be pre ordering the Wouxun KG-UV9Gx. Cant wait for that. Well anyway got to head to Anchorage. Hope to hear from you all soon. Take care!