Part 95 certified repeater

[dgqY5s0d]

Does anyone know of a manufacturer of Part Certified Repeaters?  Model No's?

Thanks, Terry

[OffRoaderX]

I am not aware of anyone that makes a Part 95 certified Repeater.  

[TOM47]

Retevis RT97S Portable GMRS Repeater – myGMRS.com

THIS MAY BE ONE?

The Retevis RT97S is an exciting new UHF repeater certified by the FCC for use on GMRS! The Retevis RT97S has FCC ID 2ASNSRT97.

[WROZ250]

All I can say is don't touch a Bridgecom repeater, despite their Part 95 claim.  The repeater and especially their policies are crap. (Personal/First Hand Experience)

The Retevis is only 5W, so unless you put it up on a mountain or tall building with a killer antenna, it's not going to help coverage much (IMHO)

As I've said elsewhere, while I don't advocate operations outside of the rules, if I've come to any conclusion, it is to not get too hung up on Part 95 type acceptance.

That said, two KG-1000G mobiles can be (easily) connected to form a repeater and they are Part 95.  You'll still need a duplexer which can be $$$ (depending on the quality).

[OffRoaderX]

Ohh, I did not know that the Retevis RT97S is Part 95 Certified!  I have the (older) RT97 (non-S version) and have had great results with just a mag-mount antenna on the top of my car.  You can see how that went in this video: 

and you can see how well it works in hilly areas in this video:

 

I agree with @WROZ250's warning about the Bridgecom - I have not used one, but have read many bad/negative reviews on them (although did not know they had a Part 95 repeater).

I have also built a repeater from two KG-1000Gs - and although it was a great learning experience, its very expensive and not a practical solution for a 'real' repeater.
 

[jgillaspy]

So, there is a difference between the older Part 95 and the newer Part 95e certifications. Back in the day a manufacturer could get an "add-on" part 95 certification for just about any part 90 certified UHF product. That was the Part 95 cert. Now there is a separate certification process and that is the Part 95e certification.

 

I point that out because there a couple of Kenwood and Motorola repeaters that were certified under the old system which are grandfathered in, so we can use them for GMRS. Here are a couple:

Kenwood TKR-820 repeater
Kenwood TKR-850 repeater

Anyway, hope this helps.

JG

[Radioguy7268]

Creating a repeater out of two radios that meet Part 95 does not mean you've got a Type Accepted Part 95 repeater. As mentioned, it is also quite expensive compared to the (IMHO better) alternatives.

Vertex. Motorola. Kenwood. They all made good Part 90 repeaters. Some will put out at least 50 watts at a 100% duty cycle. Used units are available that will outperform a Bridgecom - and do it at a better price point. They also have a history of performance, along with available support (that you will probably never need).

[gortex2]

Personally I think the RT97S is ideal for 90% of the folks who want a quick repeater. Location and antenna is everything. If your only using a 4 watt HT to talk to the repeater it will work just as good as a 50 watt repeater. People get hung up on that part alot. IF you have a great site, good antenna system it will work really well. My sites all run Part 90 repeaters (MTR2000, Quantar and MTR3000). 

[Radioguy7268]

Full disclosure - I've never had a Retevis repeater on the bench to test it out. Judging by the price point (and the design of their portables) it's probably based on a simple Direct Conversion receiver, which are sensitive, but prone to overload.  I'd agree that for a simple "quick and dirty" low elevation repeater, it probably does the job for a majority of users looking for their own specific solution.

The Retevis is at least less than the cost of a good used MTR2000. I'd really ask anyone looking at a Bridgecom or building their own Woxoun repeater out of 2 mobiles to stop and check out the alternatives available. You really can end up with more for less, if you consider used Part 90 gear. And, that used Part 90 stuff has a resale value when you're done with it. Something you won't really see with used Bridgecom equipment.