Billoftt
Active member
Keeping the stereotypes alive.
my experience with GMRS so far
- Thread starter BigDaveZJ
- Start date
Keeping the stereotypes alive.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
Aside of the legal questions, modifying ham or business radios for use on GMRS wouldn't solve the basic problem as I see it. The move from CB to ham hasn't been easy because by-and-large the users have fallen into one of two categories.
One subset, mostly initial adopters who saw the value in ham, just needed some direction. They perhaps aren't sitting in front of an HF rig every evening making DX contacts but they got the basics quickly with just a few questions. We only had to be Elmers to them.
The other subset didn't really get why other than a vague explanation that it's clearer and better range. There's a lot of upfront explanation and continuing mentoring to keep them operating correctly. They are appliance operators and will probably always be. So the responsibility has fallen on existing hams who feel an ongoing obligation to these folks, who already came along reluctantly, from being nuisances to our other hams who are not into OHVs. The existing ham base has no tolerance (nor should they) for our 4x4 friends using wrong repeater splits, not ID'ing, being off frequency on the channelized phone, etc.
So I see the modifying Part 90 radios as not solving that. With GMRS we (as hams) just say "Buy this Midland radio" and we're done being the de-facto GROL tech for the 4x4 tribe. I mean if it's already getting too technical explaining why some states have 15KHz step and a neighboring one 20KHz do you honestly think getting Motorola CPS up and running and figuring out the right UHF range radio on eBay is going to be easier?
So that antenna looks like a cellular antenna. If so, what are you using as a booster. I have ATT and most of the RV camping destinations around here sport lousy At&T service. I am looking for a setup to support Cellular, Amateur VHF/UHF, and a Weather station on my Camper. Sorry to hijack the thread.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
That was just a Google image I found. Yes, I do believe the antenna shown is actually a cell antenna.
You'll have to ask a more pointed question I think. What you want to do isn't possible with a single antenna.
prerunner1982
Adventurer
Just my experience with my LOCAL groups, nothing more.
Sorry I wasn’t succinct enough. The mast would hold three devices ultimately, a dual band ham antenna, and a weather sensor and directional cell antenna lower on the mast.
dreadlocks
Well-known member
Get a drive over base and one of those those cheap milsup aluminum masts.. If your putting a high gain directional on it, a flexible mast is no longer a viable option as a lil wind could cause dropouts.
BigDaveZJ
Adventurer
Finished installing the MXT115 in my 5th wheel over the weekend. Mounted the Midland 6db gain antenna on the ladder. Haven't really tested it much, but as expected it blew away the handhelds when operated side by side. Going to buy a bunch of the MXT275's next and install them in the Jeeps and tow rig.
BigDaveZJ
Adventurer
So ground plane . . . . I probably don't have much on the roof of my 5th wheel as the roof is not metal. There is a little bit on the ladder, but would I benefit from adding something like this to my setup? https://www.amazon.com/Nagoya-GPK-0...=gateway&sprefix=nmo+ground+pl,aps,228&sr=8-2
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
Can't hurt but is unnecessary to go to that expense.
Is the antenna mounted on a thru-hole? You can use foil under it to make a plane. In commercial and aerospace we use copper tape and foil but aluminum foil or the aluminum tape you find at Home Depot for wrapping things like dryer vents works, too. Lay out a surface under it and make sure the outside of the mount is in good contact and it will be an ideal antenna counterpoise.
DaveInDenver
Middle Income Semi-Redneck
I should have read closer. Adding radials might help with radiation pattern, which I suspect is fairly distorted. But as long as the ladder is conductive and you get solid contact on the ground side of the mount I doubt you need artificial radials to get it to tune. You could also just use a 1/2λ antenna and it'll work as well as anything. You have good height and being above the roof is great.Had a feeling you'd reply Dave, almost just PM'd you instead of posting. The antenna is mounted to the ladder.
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BigDaveZJ
Adventurer
Got the 275's temporarily installed in 2 of the Jeeps over the weekend. My wife is still trying to figure out how she wants to run an antenna on her JK so for now we just have the included stubby mag mount stuck to the top of the windshield frame. Not perfect by any stretch, but working well so far. On my ZJ I'm just going to put an NMO in the roof there. Ordered up the Breedlove stake pocket mount for my F350 as well. Hopefully it gets here soon.
In super non-scientific testing with the JK and the camper we reached 3.6 miles in suburbia with quite a few hills working against us.
Heading back up to the mountains for the 4th and looking forward to testing them out some more. Hoping the Breedlove shows up in time to get it installed before we leave.
In super non-scientific testing with the JK and the camper we reached 3.6 miles in suburbia with quite a few hills working against us.
Heading back up to the mountains for the 4th and looking forward to testing them out some more. Hoping the Breedlove shows up in time to get it installed before we leave.
roving1
Well-known member
As far as hand helds switch to to high capicity lithium AA batteries. The voltage is a little lower over all so theoretically the max range on high could decrease but I don't notice in my use at all.
But with these in a Midland handheld you can leave them on 24hs a day on standby for 7-10 days depending on the model before they die. I don't even know what the talk time is because it takes too long to figure out.
EBL 8 Pack AA Batteries 2800mAh High Capacity (ProCyco Technology) AA Ni-MH Rechargeable Batteries, Battery Case Included https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HSHLC82/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_mIKiDbGVPPXRB
But with these in a Midland handheld you can leave them on 24hs a day on standby for 7-10 days depending on the model before they die. I don't even know what the talk time is because it takes too long to figure out.
EBL 8 Pack AA Batteries 2800mAh High Capacity (ProCyco Technology) AA Ni-MH Rechargeable Batteries, Battery Case Included https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HSHLC82/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_mIKiDbGVPPXRB
BigDaveZJ
Adventurer
The AA's were something I had been considering. In theory it would decrease output by 20% or so (4.8v instead of 6v) but most of the time when we're using the handhelds we're within a couple hundred yards of each other. Any further than that and we would usually have a vehicle nearby with a 15w unit in it.
We played around with the 275 to 115 a bit this weekend. Pretty hilly terrain, some dense forests. As long as we weren't way down in a valley or ravine we could easily reach back to camp. Never ventured much past 3-4 miles, but that was the primary area we wanted to be able to maintain contact within so we're stoked so far.
We played around with the 275 to 115 a bit this weekend. Pretty hilly terrain, some dense forests. As long as we weren't way down in a valley or ravine we could easily reach back to camp. Never ventured much past 3-4 miles, but that was the primary area we wanted to be able to maintain contact within so we're stoked so far.