As the Keene GMRS repeaters (WQKQ332 Repeater) level of activity is increasing significantly, I thought it might be helpful to document some further information and make some suggestions to the new users.

The best advice I can give anyone is to improve your station!

If you don’t want to be frustrated over and over again that stations are having a hard time receiving you, improve your station! The repeater works well, very well in fact, but it can only do so much. You need to give it a useable signal to begin with. Again, improve your station!

The GMRS frequencies are within the UHF (Ultra High Frequency) band. This means that there are behaviors or conditions that have an impact on propagation, or how well you get into or hear another station. For what it’s worth, the higher in frequency you go, the more “line of sight” it becomes. This also means that obstructions typically will have more of an impact as well.

Some of those obstructions can be buildings, mountains, trees, even rain, snow and fog. And trees, especially hardwoods are even worse when the leaves are green and full of moisture. Moisture and rain acts just like a prism, disbursing radio waves all over the place. The more they are disbursed, the weaker they become.

Metal also has an impact, both positive and negative. You can use metal as reflectors to direct or re-direct radio signals, especially in the microwave bands. However the largest negative that we all can relate to is using an HT inside a car.

For example, most repeaters are in upper elevations such as a tall building or on a mountain top or tower on the mountain top. This means that most of the time, a repeater is going to be higher than you are. If you’re in a car using a portable with its rubber antenna, your signal can only leave the car out the glass openings of that car. If you look out of those openings, what do you see? Trees, buildings, other cars. What I’m saying, is your signal is getting bounced all over the place and some will eventually make it to the repeater, but nowhere nearly as well as it would if you have an antenna mounted on your cars roof, in the clear. Sure your signal is still going to see the same things, except that part of your signal will go up, unlike when the antenna is covered by a metal reflector like it is inside your car.

Terrain is another huge factor! I was listening to a station reporting that his friend lives in a nearby town just can’t get into the repeater. That station is only about 12 miles away. Not far at all, considering we have regular users from the Deerfield Mass area that get into the repeater just fine. Now, I don’t know what the 12 mile station is using for equipment, but I’d pretty much guarantee that it consists of just a handheld. From where this station is located, I only know the town, not the exact location, if they’re on the back side of a ridge of mountains, it’s going to be difficult to get the repeater. There are several mountain ridges directly between that town and the repeater. They range from 1200 feet to almost 1600! Now the Deerfield station, I don’t know exactly where they’re located either, even though he’s 3 times farther away, the terrain isn’t as severe and much more line of sight. Consequently, a much better signal.

Now let’s talk about using a portable inside your home. If you’re quite a distance from a repeater, or just another station you’re trying to talk to, and you’ve run some tests, you’ve probably found that you get out better outside your house. Why is that? It’s much different than a car you say. Well, yes, it is, sort of, but did you ever consider what’s inside your walls? Electrical wiring, metal reflectors. Pipes, metal reflectors. I lot of homes use foil backed insulation…right, metal reflectors. If your house is essentially wrapped in foil, kind of acts like a car, doesn’t it?

Anyway, my point being is that if you’re interested in GMRS, it’s absolutely fine to try it out with just an HT, and if you’re close enough that might be all you ever need, but, you should seriously consider getting yourself a real mobile radio and/or base station. They’re not that expensive if you look for surplus commercial radios.

Also get yourself a “real” antenna. For starters, just doing that step alone to connect your HT to will make a huge difference. And if you really want a decent signal, consider a yagi, directional antenna. Just aim it at the repeater and you’re good to go. Also use some decent feedline. The higher the frequency and the smaller your feedline, the higher your signal losses will be. 25 and 45 watt mobile radios, (which you can also use as a base station) are perfect!

If you should happen to find some of the older Motorola GM or CM series, Radius, Maxtrac, Spectra, anything like that and you live in the Keene area, I can probably program them for you. I’ll provide some examples of surplus equipment below.