quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
Yea, I figured the superset was the right way to go.

It's odd - the CCR's seem to offer ham radios that will also Tx on GMRS freq. But, unless I'm missing it, Yaesu/Icom/Kenwood offer hams that may receive GMRS but not Tx. Too much jargon and too many models. I guess I need to spend more time looking at each model. Pretty tedious - I guess they assume some prior knowledge before looking at their products.

If they really don't offer ham with GMRS capabilities (it's not even clear if they offer GMRS only radios), then maybe I'll get both: sounds like Kenwood and Yaesu are the preferred ham brands (Icom also good) and then get the Rugged for GMRS only.

The market for ham radios is small in the grand scheme of things. I wonder if GMRS just isn’t a big enough market for the big 3 or 4 to get into. They don’t generally make inexpensive products. Kenwood just got back into the market, post Covid, with a $700+ handheld, for example. And they are on back order everywhere.

I have about 10 handhelds that I use for different purposes. Two GMRS, a DMR ham radio (digital radio), a Yaesu that does System Fusion (another digital mode), and so on. We have a great system of linked repeaters here in tornado alley. Having access to all of them is advantageous. The idea of having to buy both a ham radio and a GMRS radio is a natural thing to me. I think the money is worth it in these times and the times to come.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
a second thread- one that's more of a tutorial/information repository.

I think that'd be a great thing. This thread is moving so quickly, it's tough to absorb it all and keep the thoughts organized.

A "new user's step-by-step" guide would be mighty handy for a lot of us radio-newbies.

quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
and then get the Rugged for GMRS only.

An FYI; apparently the Radiodditty GM-30 is the same radio as the Rugged GMR2 Plus, but at 1/3 the price. Both obviously made in China.

Thanks for the tip. I'll look into it more but on the face of it, assuming that the GMR2+ and the GM-30 are the same radio, just different branding, I'm going to guess that that the original is Rugged and the GM-30 is pirated by company R, which also sounds like a chicom company with a US presence. If so, strong no-go for me.

^^^^^
The Rugged/Radioddity is the same as the Revitus RT-85 as well. One Chinese manufacture, and I don't think it is "Rugged", makes a radio and other companies put their brand on it. All three seem to be good Chinese GMRS radios (they are ALL Chinese), so one over the other makes no difference, except price.

Rugged seems like an american company that has been around for a few decades making comms products. That being said, it could be misleading. And/or it could be that a chicom company designs and made the radios that are just being branded by Rugged, et al. Or it could be that Rugged designed, had it made in chicom upon which it was pirated and rebranded by other chicoms.

I don't know what the truth is, just going superficially and taking things at face value. I'll dig deeper. If Rugged really isn't an american company and/or is just rebranding a chicom product, then Rugged gets removed from the list. In any case, Radioddity and Revitus don't make the list.

Regarding the odd issue I was having with not being able to hear NOAA broadcasting on 162.55 MHz with the Abbree UHF/VHF antenna-

I was able to hear a bit of the broadcast by standing near the large window facing my patio, and even more of it by going outside, but it was quite dependent upon my exact position in my yard and driveway. Moving a couple of feet one way or anther caused the signal to appear or disappear. This was the same with either of these two Abbree antennas. They are just not as sensitive at that frequency as he stock UV-5R antenna, so it's not a matter of a defective part.

It's somewhat discouraging because it demonstrates that not much of this stuff is cut and dried; there are vagaries at every turn with this radio stuff, and there are a million turns.

The military schools for this job are months long, and all that gets you to is an apprenticeship level. We are only scratching the surface of the analogue side of it. it gets much deeper with digital and encryption and software defined radios. learning a little at a time is the key.

sounds like you may be on the edge of the transmission area and could possibly benefit from changing to a different station freq. go to this site to see the transmission area coverage maps.

https://www.weather.gov/nwr

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Regarding the odd issue I was having with not being able to hear NOAA broadcasting on 162.55 MHz with the Abbree UHF/VHF antenna-

It's somewhat discouraging because it demonstrates that not much of this stuff is cut and dried; there are vagaries at every turn with this radio stuff, and there are a million turns.

Think about this concept: your rubber ducky is only half the antenna. Your arm/body is the second half. Your hand capacitively couples to your radio circuitry to effectively make the antenna connection. How you stand and how close the radio is to your body can affect weak signal reception. RF and antennas are a bit of black magic. Most of it you don’t need to worry about and the rest of ham radio is a fun.

Look up “ham radio tiger tail” or “handheld radio tiger tail” on YouTube someday for ways to improve your reception some. Not a big deal at this stage though.

quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
<<snip>>
I don't know what the truth is, just going superficially and taking things at face value. I'll dig deeper. If Rugged really isn't an american company and/or is just rebranding a chicom product, then Rugged gets removed from the list. In any case, Radioddity and Revitus don't make the list.

Did you watch the short video posted earlier about which radios are made in the USA and which are foreign? If not, here is the link (sorry, I haven't figured out how to embed YouTube yet and don't want to experiment here):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf4lFru8UIY

Spoiler alert... they're pretty much all Chicom!

^^^Here it is...Again!


Here's another that might inform on the subject.



Acquiring a Radio (especially a GMRS Radio!) needs to thought of like acquiring a cell phone...And we all know where the vast majority of those are made!

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
<<snip>>
I was able to hear a bit of the broadcast by standing near the large window facing my patio, and even more of it by going outside, but it was quite dependent upon my exact position in my yard and driveway. <<snip>>

Para, any chance you know or can determine the distance from your nearest NOAA station to your house? Are there lots of hills or buildings in the way?

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
It's somewhat discouraging because it demonstrates that not much of this stuff is cut and dried; there are vagaries at every turn with this radio stuff, and there are a million turns.

Yeah, that is the biggest disappointment to me also! I jumped in with both feet, as I normally do, and now am taking possession of my 3rd set of radios tomorrow afternoon. I'm still using the original UV-5R set, but no matter where I turn, I find SOMETHING about my choice that is unsatisfactory. No doubt I'll do the same with the newer set I'm getting (UV-5R 8W) as they're basically the same as the original set, but with a bit more wattage, larger batteries, and more accessories, and the special price I got ($55.00... which was one day only) was less than adding all of those accessories individually. Oh well... next time I'll get a Yaesu or similar and have more to complain about!

quote:

Originally posted by bronicabill:
Did you watch the short video posted earlier about which radios are made in the USA and which are foreign? If not, here is the link (sorry, I haven't figured out how to embed YouTube yet and don't want to experiment here):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf4lFru8UIY

Spoiler alert... they're pretty much all Chicom!

Thanks. I guess I make a distinction between chicom company (BF) making products in chicom. Versus american company (midland) making products in chicom. I will absolutely try to avoid the former. Sometimes there is no avoiding the latter but if possible I will.

1. USA/Japan/EU company making products in USA/Japan/EU

2. USA/Japan/EU company making products in non-chicom

3. USA/Japan/EU company making products in chicom

4. Chicom company making products in USA (ie - Milwaukee)

5. Chicom company making products in chicom. AVOID.

After consideration and wanting to use my solar generator mainly when power is out to power my amp, I went with a lesser frills power supply. The Amazon Warehouse item was even cheaper. All this RF stuff has me well down the rabbit hole of science, history and war. There's a Movie on YouTube "Fail Safe" that's got some good actors and lots of WWII videos on antenna science. The best part is I have mostly been distracted from just about all the other BS going on around me, that I can't do anything about.

Pyramid Universal AC-DC 12V Power Supply Converter: Dual 115/230V AC Input, USB Port, Car Cigarette Lighter Socket Screw Terminal, Cooling Fan - for Home and Lab Use https://a.co/d/0vzvlJx

Para, not sure if you have seen this or not but this is a map of all the NOAA towers in GA, their frequency and location and how much power they are broadcasting with. Yes lots of variables, I pick up Thomaston better than Atlanta, even though closer to Atlanta. But Thomaston is broadcasting with 1000watts whereas Atlanta is using 500.

link

Okay, I still don't really know what I'm buying but from what I could understand of what I've read over the past few days and some offline advice from some ham radio owners, I think I've narrowed my brand to Yaesu. And primarily these 3 models (open to other suggestions but these 3 seem to be top runners):

1. FT-65R - sounds like this is the top recommendation. Not sure why but perhaps it's the best value for novice and emergency use.

2. FT-60R - sounds like more feature rich than #1 but used NiMH battery (not a fan).

3. FT-70DR - sounds like more feature rich than #1 (and #2?) and includes C4FM (some kind of digital mode to enhance audio quality). Not sure if it's useful / needed or not.

Any recommendations between the 3 models? Recommend a different model? In the absence of a strong recommendation, I'll probably lean toward #1 (FT-65R) as a good balance of capability and price. I'd probably avoid #2.

Thanks for the help!

Go with the FT-65 for your needs.

Gives you UHF and VHF ham bands, plus NOAA and whatever else is in the 136-174 mhm FM range. You also get the FM broadcast band.

I looked at giga parts for the data on the radios, and get the recommended comet antenna - gives you 2.1 dbi of gain on VHF and 3.5 dpi of gain on UHF. That's about a 70 pct and 105 pct power boost.

So the 5 watts on VHF becomes about 8 watts ERP (effective radiated power), and 11 watts on UHF ERP.

The 2500 mAH spare battery seems like a good option. I keep 2 batteries for my 2 handheld radios.

The 95 bucks for a dual-band radio is pretty good.

The other 2 radios mainly give you a greater frequency receive range, such as the AM VHF aircaft band, and the VHF marine band.

Regarding the Technician Test and 350 questions.

I've been a VE (volunteer examiner) for amateur radio licensing for about 18 years now.

There are 10 versions of the Tech class test - 35 questions each.

If 4 people arrive for a tech class test, each gets a different version of the questions.

So, do not bother to cheat and copy your neighbors answer sheet.

If you fail with 24 or 25 correct (you need 26 or better to pass), we usually feel, you can try again right there - new fee and a different question sheet. Below 24 and study some more.

Do not go take the test until you are consistently passing the free online testing web sites, with 90+ percent correct. At this point you're ready to take the test for real.

I did the same for all 3 of my license class tests and passed first time, each time. You're spared the element 1 5 wpm morse code test at least.

If you pass the tech test, you can for no extra fee at the same test session, take the General class exam. It's just another 35 questions. I've seen a few pass it, most usually do not. Not that hard to study for, but it's your call.

Special note. There is a proposal at the FCC to grant tech class broader HF (high frequency) transmit privileges. Mainly gets a tech class operator access to the higher ranges of several ham bands - mainly where the nets are for emergencies and traffic handling.

Good luck. Lots of fun and self-learning awaits you.

Hand held 5-10 watts radios.

Ugh.

Hams really just use these at events where we are all with in a mile or much less, like an air show. Usually a fixed station with good antenna and base station (mobile rig) that can output 50-75 watts is net control to whom we all check in to. Other times a repeater is used. 5 watts is usually good enough to hit a repeater high on a hill/mountain 20-30 miles away - depends upon your actual location. A closer repeater is always better. 30 or so miles is my best repeater distance with my 5 watt hand held radio.

Many new hams get disappointed with hand held radios. I never use mine, except at an event.

I do use them to listen, but rarely transmit otherwise, as mentioned above.

I did make a 5 mile contact with another ham's hand held on VHF, but I have about 60 feet of elevation over his location 5 miles way and it's pretty much line of sight.

Para's experience in where he was within his property to hear is not that unusual. Usually it impacts ability to transmit a clear single much more. I knew a ham who could only be in one location of his house to get a clean signal to a repeater, 5 or so miles away.

Your location and surroundings impact signals as VHF and UHF. Lots of foliage will impact transmit of 5 watts negatively. If you live in a small depression, what we call can RF (radio frequency) hole, your transmit signal will suck most likely. On the other hand, if you have elevation, it helps your transmit signal - a lot.

The above said, for 35 bucks, the NF radio will allow you to listen in on the ham VHF frequencies so that is still a big plus in an emergency.