At 05:39 PM 12/17/03 +0000, you wrote: >Well I'm not really sure I need the 100 watts, it would be nice but >probly overkill. What I'm trying to do is create a repeater on a >bussiness band frquency for use around my camp 20-30 watts would >probly be enough. I have a 50 foot tower I am going to use, and I >need to be able to cover a 15 mile radius. I want to use VHF >bussiness band because of the foilage in the area and non-hams would >be useing it when they are there hunting or camping and I have 10 >handhelds on VHF bussiness band, plus there is no repeaters that I am >able to hit from camp. I have AC power available. The repeater will >only be on and in use when we at at the camp and thats maybe twice a >month on weekends, plus I am limited in funds. Any suggestions??? I >was going to use a cross band ( MURS/FRS ) simple repeater, but found >out it was illegal ( only if you get caught, LMAO ), I dont want to >push my luck - cant afford the fines or the time.
Yup, 100w would probably be overkill for a summer camp. Is the tower on your property? Do you have regular access to it? I'd suggest that you take the handhelds you have and one day when the camp is occupied have one person climb the tower (with appropriate safety equipment) and using a simplex channel see how much coverage the handhelds (I assume they are 2w or 4w) give you. Start with a few people at 1,000 feet from the tower and have them hike outwards on major points of the compass until the signal is half strength and have them report their location. I did a similar project 20 years ago at a church camp and we discovered that the 60' tower they had allowed a person with a 5w handheld to talk all the way to the property perimeter and a bit beyond. If the above test yields positive results you could start out with a 10w highband base station (i.e. a good antenna on the tower, and good feedline connected to a low-end mobile on a AC power supply) and that may be all you need. If so, then upgrade as funds permit to a actual repeater, perhaps with an autopatch. But buy the GOOD antenna and GOOD feedline in the beginning - you could have the worlds best radio but if it's hooked to radio shack coax and a non-performing antenna it won't talk 500 feet. When you are ready for a repeater talk to Kevin or Scot about a used GE MVP configured to your needs. See http://www.repeater-builder.com/rbtip/custombuilt.html Don't forget you will need to license the repeater. You might want to file for a license as soon as you make a decision, and bag yourself three frequencies - two far enough apart that you can use one of the inexpensive high-band duplexers you find on ebay (they require a multi-megahertz split to be usable, so hams can't use them on the 600khz split they have), and a third so that your users have a alternate frequency to talk on (simplex) if the repeater is in use with a phone call. Maybe even a 4th channel for a second alternate channel - use one simplex channel for camp operations, the other for housekeeping, etc. You might want to comment as to what make and model your current handhelds are, how many frequencies, and what frequencies they are currently on, and if they have PL. My comment above assumed they are programmable. More notes in the text below. Mike At 08:01 AM 12/17/03 -0700, Chuck Kimball <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: (snip of paragraph describing PAC-RT) >Not really very useful in the standard configuration, the RF was >based on a portable radio, The Motorola MH-10 low-end handheld >and only ran 2 watts or less for most units. Actually the normal MH-10 ran 2w, the PAC-RT was a special version without the transmitter final transistor - they were rated at 250mw (a quarter of a watt). After all, all they needed to do is talk from the patrol car to the officer's handheld. In most cases the maximum distance encountered was from the patrol car to the table at the lunchtime restaurant. >[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > > >Hello everyone, > > I am a newbie here, I admit it, I know knowthing! So please dont > >make fun of me. I have been a No-Code Tech for almost 12 years, but > >never really learned much. Now here is where I need help, I want to > >setup a 100 watt repeater near my camp . I have a Motorola Fm Mobile > >Repeater Radio PAC-RT and the key that opens the case. I have no > >wires or instructions. On one side it says it is on a frquency of > >154.695, I know this is a State Police frequency in most states so I > >cant use it as is. Inside it has a label with "Recvr1 42.74". This label implies that your unit may have had the optional second receiver. Or may not. The PAC-RT came in a number of configurations. >Could you please tell me what I have and is it possible to reprogram this >to a different frequency in the 154.*** band Transmit and Receive. The PAC-RT's RF boards are crystal controlled. If you did try and use them you'd need to buy crystals to move them to a usable channel. >Or do I have junk and forget about it. The PAC makes a half-decent doorstop. >Thank you in advance. > >Dad1Boy1Girl >Jay >n2orw Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Repeater-Builder/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
