Ham radio repeater load

[fourwd1]

That is weird...
Make sure your serial to USB dongle isn't bad... clones have a lot of problems vs legit FTDI dongles.


...

THIS ^^^^ for sure.

Also, if you're using Win 10 it creates more problems.
Win 10 has a lot of issues when it comes to these cables and drivers.

Win 7 works better , and Vista even more so.
I have a Win 7 laptop that I use to program my ham and scanner radios.

 

[Bumbo]

THIS ^^^^ for sure.

Also, if you're using Win 10 it creates more problems.
Win 10 has a lot of issues when it comes to these cables and drivers.

Win 7 works better , and Vista even more so.
I have a Win 7 laptop that I use to program my ham and scanner radios.

I am using Windows 10, but the key take away is make sure your dongle comes from a reputable manufacture that is certified for the OS you are using.

The one I have is awesome... plug it in, Windows 10 immediately recognizes the device, drivers come from Windows update, and off you go.

The problems come from the FTDI chips, and the Chinese manufactures that clone/counterfeit them. The issues come from drivers as time progresses as they are counterfeit serial to usb converters and things don't always match up.

 

[Offcamber]

I got everything working last night! It was definitely an issue with the COM port assignment. As soon as I made the change, MCP picked it up and was able to read the transceiver data. The instructions state that the transceiver should be turned off, but MCP was only able to communicate with the transceiver when it was turn on.

On to programming...

 

[DannyLlama]

Might be heading out to Mojave at the end of the month. Any repeaters recommendations?

 

[Bumbo]

Might be heading out to Mojave at the end of the month. Any repeaters recommendations?

No offence but if I keep spoon-feeding you repeaters, you won’t learn which essentially becomes wildly counterproductive when you are in a situation where you need to grab and go with your own research…

Use one of these Grid Square locators... find your exact location, or a couple general areas you might be. Write down the GRID SQUARE.
Amateur Radio Ham Radio Maidenhead Grid Square Locator Map
https://www.qrz.com/gridmapper

Download the repeater book app I mentioned earlier in this thread which is basically a GPS based grid square locator.


Go to settings, turn off Auto Location, Type in Grid Square code into field.

Congratulation… you now have all the repeaters in a 50 mile radius, or whatever radius you choose to have.

You can then add that to the programming data I already gave you and ur ready to rock and roll before you even arrive in Mojave.

 

[DannyLlama]

No offence but if I keep spoon-feeding you repeaters, you won’t learn which essentially becomes wildly counterproductive when you are in a situation where you need to grab and go with your own research…

Use one of these Grid Square locators... find your exact location, or a couple general areas you might be. Write down the GRID SQUARE.
Amateur Radio Ham Radio Maidenhead Grid Square Locator Map
https://www.qrz.com/gridmapper

Download the repeater book app I mentioned earlier in this thread which is basically a GPS based grid square locator.


Go to settings, turn off Auto Location, Type in Grid Square code into field.

Congratulation… you now have all the repeaters in a 50 mile radius, or whatever radius you choose to have.

You can then add that to the programming data I already gave you and ur ready to rock and roll before you even arrive in Mojave.

Thanks for the help on this i programmed some mojave repeaters before going but no luck hitting them.

I did program a Barstow repeater on the fly and was able to have some chats on the way back.

 

[ZOMBRNR]

[MENTION=75328]DannyLlama[/MENTION] - If you're looking for a batch of general repeaters in our area, check out Gordo's Top 100.

http://www.gordonwestradioschool.com/attachments/Gordos_Top_100_For_Baofeng_UV5R.pdf

 

[Bumbo]

Thanks for the help on this i programmed some mojave repeaters before going but no luck hitting them.

I did program a Barstow repeater on the fly and was able to have some chats on the way back.

It get really hit/miss out there sometimes… I had a camp site once that was really canyoned in; I had no problem hitting those repeaters from the trail head, no luck at camp.

Glad you were able to get some use out of that.

 

[Bumbo]

[MENTION=75328]DannyLlama[/MENTION] - If you're looking for a batch of general repeaters in our area, check out Gordo's Top 100.

http://www.gordonwestradioschool.com/attachments/Gordos_Top_100_For_Baofeng_UV5R.pdf

Not that I really care, but I just find it funny that Gordon West who writes good school and training material for amateur radio books used for testing who tells you to follow the law, is the same person who lists frequencies that are not permitted and illegal to use on non-type accepted ham radio equipment… way to go Gordon.

That said, it is a very versatile list of frequencies, especially for emergency use. Just be aware that transmitting on FRS, GMRS, MURS along with some other public service channels would be illegal to use on a regular ham radio.

 

[DannyLlama]

Found a really great resource for repeaters in my deep web search.

Google map-like of repeaters across California

http://www.levinecentral.com/repeaters/google_mapping.php?State=CA

Enjoy