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This might be a dumb question, but I have a vx-5r, and I was wondering if there are any more powerful or capable antennas that you can attach to it for longer range simplex 2m contacts. I dont know much about the technical side of the radio, or what kind of connector I'd have to look for in a different antenna. I have a longer whip antenna that attaches like the factory antenna, but I was wondering about yagi or other options. Do I need some kind of adapter or does the built in connection allow me to use other more powerful antennas?
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Oct 24, 2015 05:43
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| # ? May 26, 2024 20:19 |
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Prickly Pete posted:This might be a dumb question, but I have a vx-5r, and I was wondering if there are any more powerful or capable antennas that you can attach to it for longer range simplex 2m contacts. I dont know much about the technical side of the radio, or what kind of connector I'd have to look for in a different antenna. I have a longer whip antenna that attaches like the factory antenna, but I was wondering about yagi or other options. Well you need a SMA MALE for any connector. Beware the opposite as its super popular right now for baofengs and pofungs and wouxuns and the rest of them all the new dsp import radios. You can hook whatever you want up to it. Of course it will perform better if you have it into a big antenna but just plainly honest, 2m simplex is hard without a decent omni antenna and a mobile rig ... not handheld.
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Oct 24, 2015 06:26
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I made one of the local repeaters go bleep boop hello good morning, this hobby is cool and good.
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Oct 24, 2015 18:20
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soy posted:I made one of the local repeaters go bleep boop hello good morning, this hobby is cool and good. So you're the kerchunker! 
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Oct 26, 2015 22:49
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Radio Nowhere posted:So you're the kerchunker! Indeed. I would say my call sign there IF I HAD ONE. At least I waited until the freq was very quiet. I've been reading the things and also listening to this: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ham-radio-podclass/id941969630?mt=2 I now kinda understand some more things and why I can't listen to old men talk about their balls on that one AM freq with my HT. My main reason for getting into this is as a fallback communication method for emergencies so I think I'm going to look into doing the out of band mod for my HT, looks easy enough. Mostly just so I can use it as a GMRS/FRS transceiver since I have a bunch of those laying around and it might be nice to yell at my wife with.
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Oct 26, 2015 23:20
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soy posted:Indeed. I would say my call sign there IF I HAD ONE. You shouldn't be transmitting at all yet. In my day we waited for our gall badder surgeon to tell us it was okay to do things. (soon, soon...keep checking FCC online and you'll have one)
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Oct 27, 2015 03:04
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soy posted:Mostly just so I can use it as a GMRS/FRS transceiver since I have a bunch of those laying around and it might be nice to yell at my wife with. You're not allowed to do this either.
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Oct 28, 2015 00:40
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soy posted:Indeed. I would say my call sign there IF I HAD ONE. At least I waited until the freq was very quiet. Please don't transmit on the amateur bands (or any other restricted bands) without a license. A license isn't hard to get, especially if you're just interested in HT-friendly frequencies. Additionally, as PuTTY riot pointed out, don't use a ham HT as a GMRS or FRS transceiver. GMRS requires a license (period), and FRS has a lot of strict guidelines for use. The fact that the antenna detaches on a VX-6 is enough to make it verboten for FRS use. Odds are decent that, if a VX-6 will transmit in the FRS bands, it'll output more than 10 times the maximum permissible wattage in addition to all of the other issues, which means you're causing interference in a huge radius. If you want to chat with your wife via radio, just get a pair of FRS walkie talkies. The market dried up because of cell phones, so they're surprisingly cheap and usually sold in pairs. I got mine for less than $20 shipped and it's a lot more straight forward than any of the ham equipment.
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Oct 28, 2015 01:02
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I would actually suggest grabbing the tyt? Hts that are certified for MURS to run legal VHF unlicensed comms , and still have ham usage for yourself. FRS can get busy fast if there is a reason to use it, due to ubiquity. Range on frs also blows. I have a rat Shak frs mobile which is only marginally better, due to being able to put the antenna outside. I think the ht it's called penetr8or .
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Oct 28, 2015 12:07
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Was just planning on unlocking for emergency use only and yelling at wife during emergencies. I was surprised to learn I've been breaking GMRS license law for years, had no idea it even had license system. Not worth it to me to get one, it's silly that its only good for 5 years. At 50 bucks I'd like it to be perpetual.
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Oct 28, 2015 15:02
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The OP should have a section called "Don't be a loving dingus" full of information about not TXing without a license.
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Oct 28, 2015 19:45
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Yeah came to reply that not only can I not find the "penatr8r" and those other radios, apparently they're no good for MURS due to them having a requirement to be MURS only. Recall that "yelling at your wife in an emergency" is both unlikely to be useful, and still not legal in most instances of "emergency". What actually is license free and reasonable to use in a small environment would be grabbing some old Nextel phones, like the i880 or i325is, and using them for "Mototalk". It is a localized 900MHz spread-spectrum system. If you can find replacement batteries so the phones are good to go, you need a SIM card to throw in then select the mototalk app and boot into that mode. This feature can also be added to some of the Boost phones but you need iDen LAB RSS , which is probably impossible to find in this day and age. I think the i725rs also does this. Probably doesn't go too much further than FRS however these are both durable devices, unobtrusive, and, for the most part, you are not going to find anyone to interfere with you. I'd probably actually bet on it. Other than that, you can grab a couple of these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-Very-S...fQAAOSwl9BWMGtC and keep them in the car or house with an adapter for a quick option for FRS.
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Oct 28, 2015 20:50
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Never underestimate the power, time, and effort of a dozen grumpy retired dudes with basic rdf skills
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Oct 29, 2015 00:15
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Someone mentioned Tyt, a few years ago a bunch of people I know bought Tyts at a ham fest (both mobiles and HTs). The next few weeks I couldn't understand anything said over the local repeater since everyone was using these radios with the worst sound quality I have ever heard, nothing but muddled mumbling came through. They might have fixed it slightly now, but the Wouxun radios I've heard were much better, even the Baofengs were good compared to Tyt radios ca. 2013.
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Oct 29, 2015 19:53
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Hamfest treasure
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Oct 31, 2015 16:57
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Current station buildout progress: * Erected my 2m/70cm vertical omni today (Diamond X-200) on some chain link fence top rails - 1 and a half, about. Ground radials above the crest of my roof:  And yes it's hard to tell in the noisy dusk photo but I did paint the antenna save for the chrome bits with a green-gray spray paint to help it be less 'In your face" to people driving in the street. So now my station is back on 2m, finally! 
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Nov 1, 2015 03:31
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Not gonna pretend I'm not jealous of that sweet HF rig. Yesterday I did manual VNA measurements using a scope, it was a lot of work, but I now know the approximate impedance/phase of a mystery-filter I bought.
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Nov 1, 2015 11:17
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Sniep posted:So now my station is back on 2m, finally! Nice! I just did the same. I had built a j-pole a few years back. I didn't have what I really needed and used some cheap RG6 that I directly soldered on the antenna. I ran it down to the inside of that wall in the barn so I could have an HT that would actually work inside (metal building). Since then I've built an office on the other side of that barn and it's turned into my shack, so I got some 9913 and a chassis-mount N connector and did it right(er):  Here it is in all it's glory (yes, I really do need to re-side that barn sometime soon - it looks terrible):  Also, obligatory gear shot: 
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Nov 1, 2015 17:33
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Passed my tech exam today. Surprised how many people were sitting for it. Didn't have time for general because kid but thats ok, probably years away from building an HF station.
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Nov 1, 2015 21:12
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I've had a ic-735 and a 20m dipole I mad up since... maybe a week after field day? Some club members helped me tune it up on field day. Anyway, I just now finally made my first contact. ~760 miles from north MS to MN. This hobby is the best.
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Nov 2, 2015 16:09
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I really need to start up again. I'm not a big chatter, so I've been liking JT-65 for some of the crazy far contacts you can get with it. It also breaks down any language barriers with DX since it's just a callsign exchange and a signal report. One of my favorites is from my home in KCMO to Ushuaia, Argentina. Probably as far south as I could possible get without hitting some scientist in Antarctica! After I made the contact, I was wondering why the town sounded so familiar, then I remembered it was the town Top Gear was trying to get to before they got run out of Argentina. Made me wish it was PSK-31 so I could ask them how they felt about British motoring shows. 
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Nov 2, 2015 17:26
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Today's Ham project: I installed a 90° bent PVC pipe dealie to act as a standoff to hold the ladder line up and over away from the aluminum gutter, mayyyy have over-engineered the task:
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Nov 9, 2015 03:33
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Nah, that's engineered just right. The only long term issue I'm seeing is the zip tie. It's black, so it has the possibility of being UV resistant but unless you're 100% positive it is (like you spent good money on a batch of specifically UV resistant ones) throw a wrap of self sealing silicone tape or whatever you have/are using to protect antenna connections from water so it doesn't go all crusty and break on you in a year or so.
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Nov 9, 2015 17:14
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We pulled some ~5 year old white zip ties off the office lights at work, they just crumbled in our fingers, was pretty fascinating to see that even standard tubes would emit enough UV to completely destroy them. Anyone know of a good way to divide a high frequency clock by three? I picked up a box of VCOs that cover ~930-1030 MHz, if I can divide by 3 or 1.5 they would be pretty useful for a project. Checked the standard ECL components and I could build a divider with flip flops, but that's probably more expensive than getting a fixed frequency oscillator + cheap mixer and BPF.
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Nov 10, 2015 16:14
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I am officially a licensed huge nerd! KK6YRD
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Nov 11, 2015 00:26
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soy posted:I am officially a licensed huge nerd! KK6YRD Excellent. Next up: getting your general!
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Nov 11, 2015 00:42
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You shouldn't post your callsign on the forums though.
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Nov 11, 2015 02:02
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SperginMcBadposter posted:You shouldn't post your callsign on the forums though. Check the first post. Lots of goons don't mind sharing their call sign. The important thing is to know that, if you share it, anyone can figure out who you are from the FCC database.
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Nov 11, 2015 02:05
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Motronic posted:Nah, that's engineered just right. I was kinda expecting it to just crumble when it does and i'll just put a new one on, its a 1 story ranch so its not hard for me to get up to the roof line where that is. That said, I used Scotch Super 88 for my antenna coax antenna connections - is that alright vs. silicone tape?
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Nov 11, 2015 02:25
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poeticoddity posted:Check the first post. Lots of goons don't mind sharing their call sign. The important thing is to know that, if you share it, anyone can figure out who you are from the FCC database. Yeah I've been doxxed before and I just found it amusing, there is nothing embarrassing or interesting about me and if you want my address you can just pm me we can meet up and kiss.
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Nov 11, 2015 02:47
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Sniep posted:That said, I used Scotch Super 88 for my antenna coax antenna connections - is that alright vs. silicone tape? People say so, but I'm not totally sold on the idea of it lasting. It's failed on me before, which could be for any number of reasons including poor installation. Silicone tape just doesn't care. It sticks to itself no matter what you do to it. Including underground, where I would never count on any kind of electrical tape (even the nice stuff like 88). But if that's a 1 story......I wouldn't worry about it. Way easy to inspect/replace. See how it does until next year.
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Nov 11, 2015 15:11
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poeticoddity posted:The important thing is to know that, if you share it, anyone can figure out who you are from the FCC database. although I knew this would be the case, and haven't shared my call with folks I don't know too well, i've been pretty amused at the amount of ham related junk mail that's suddenly coming through. Instantly subscribed to any of a dozen mailers that goes out, regular letters begging I join the ARRL (including several after I did so), flyers for advertising local repeaters, etc and the other day, one for some convention that's been happening in Orlando for like 70 years? I have no idea why but the way they hyped up the RV parking gave me the impression that the event is at least partially one big grey-haired swingers party.
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Nov 11, 2015 17:04
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Time to investigate a new situation. I've got a nice car now so I am not putting magnets on it, or holes. I'm either going to have to get something that clips to my t-rail roof rails or is a glass mount. I know glass mounts are pretty rear end but it's gotta be better than nothing. Though the rail is probably preferential. Most of the ham threads I've found on the subject of glass mounts just are full of guys saying to drill holes or use magnets, which, yeah we know they work better, but, we also know most hams could care less about how their car looks. Given that I can remote mount the head I would be curious to see if I can actually mount the radio body itself in some sort of enclosure under the floor pan, which would be interesting. Not helpful for wire routing though. Maybe I'll have to just run cell radio back to a remote base.
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Nov 12, 2015 05:21
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Partycat posted:Time to investigate a new situation. I've got a nice car now so I am not putting magnets on it, or holes. I'm either going to have to get something that clips to my t-rail roof rails or is a glass mount. I know glass mounts are pretty rear end but it's gotta be better than nothing. Though the rail is probably preferential. Opposed to clip mounts to either a door frame or trunk? So far I've had this mount for a year, and on the surface of the car it has done no damage whatsoever. The bottom, it removed the paint from where the set screws were put down pretty tight; but that shouldn't matter.   The only issue I can think of for your idea on where to mount it would be ventilation. Bonus show is my radio and amp in my trunk; since you can't even see where it was drilled from anywhere that matters I just put it at the top right behind the fold down seats. uapyro fucked around with this message at 05:37 on Nov 12, 2015 |
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Nov 12, 2015 05:33
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Antenna work this weekend; Put up rotator on mast with X200a on top and a 6m Moxon above roof peak: Now for 6m to come open a bit...
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Nov 16, 2015 16:05
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X-posted from Aviation at their suggestion. I'm spinning up a flight school and the dispatchers at home base want two-way radio comms with the ops area. There's a ridge in the way. We do have a building in the ops area with power and internet access. I imagine we could lease space on an antenna farm on the ridge and do a licensed repeater, but that's fantastically expensive. It would be way cheaper to site something at our existing building. I could also easily do monitoring only with a scanner and a computer, like liveatc.net does, but 2 way seems to be a requirement. Does anyone know of any solutions that would allow for FCC approved 2-way comms with a VOIP backhaul or something, or even know a company I can talk to with expertise in the space? I'm starting from zero.
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Nov 17, 2015 01:53
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I've heard of companies that will set up a high capacity trunked system somewhere that can cover a large area and then sell access to it to businesses who don't have enough of a need to justify doing it themselves. I'd imagine you can oversubscribe a modern trunk system pretty heavily. Maybe there's something like that already in that antenna farm you mention. Search for two-way radio dealers in your area, they seem to generally be local operations so without knowing where you're looking to do this its hard to give more specific information.
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Nov 17, 2015 04:40
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Well, that makes a lot of sense. Thanks. Was having trouble even knowing what to search for.
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Nov 17, 2015 05:56
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If they have to be radio comms, well, this has been done with a dry pair leased circuit between two points, connected into a couple of "Desktop repeater" base radios. You can also use that for tie with a phone system. Or, use a phone line or a number of other things at that point.
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Nov 18, 2015 16:49
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Next Ham Project: APRS WX beacon since there's not any for at least 3 miles in any direction, and then 4.5 miles in the other direction, im in the middle of a big unrepresented circle so I wanted to toss one up. Step 1 to setting up an APRS WX beacon: Have a WX station. With the magic of Amazon, check.  Step 2 would be the TNC, got that. Step 3 - I have a radio purposed for this, I just need to toss up an antenna dedicated to it, and finally- Step 4 - Some programming glue in the middle to update the BTEXT on the TNC and let it roll!
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Nov 20, 2015 01:39
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