STARS--New Talkgroups

[dtscho]

(Let's try to make this the single thread where we discuss new talkgroups popping up on STARS...)

This afternoon I heard 2909 on the Thornburg tower. Units called themselves DFP. The talkgroup was referred to as Ops 1. I'm thinking it's Department of Fire Programs, since I notice this is one of the agencies that's supposed to be participating in STARS.

Dave

 

[Webodisk]

I believe you are correct DFP is the shortcut to fire programs thats how they Ident most of their correspondance. Nice catch ! all the STARS sites in tidewater are offline

 

[garmanjs]

Hey... New to the Forum..... Help!
Have a Uniden BC796D in Hampton Roads. Trunking fine in all areas but STARS. Cannot figure out the config with the VHF config asking for base freq, spacing, etc.

Anyone help???

 

[Webodisk]

this seems to work
freq step offset
151.0050 7.5 380
154.0050 7.5 380
158.0050 7.5 380

 

[OnePcDoc]

think stars in tidewater will be back up soon ???

 

[fmon]

think stars in tidewater will be back up soon ???

Hope so. I've updated the Hampton Roads Scanner Pages with a new Virginia STARS link in the State Frequencies pulldown. Towers and freqs only at this time.

 

[gcgrotz]

Hi VACOP, welcome.

Spend some time going back through the old posts on STARS here in the VA forum. There was a bunch of good stuff from when it was first starting up last year.

Keep in touch, this is a great bunch on here.

 

[tuttleje]

At 14:35 on 05MAR07, on talkgroup 4131 through the Williamsburg site (152.0675), I heard "411" call "412" on "TAC-M". They were talking about a stream and small island. Sounds like Marine Resources Commission...and the talkgroup number is consistent with their numbering system "41xx".

 

[OnePcDoc]

new tg 00015 talking about phone lines and sticky phone buttons wierd ?

 

[freqhopping]

new tg 00015 talking about phone lines and sticky phone buttons wierd ?

I heard this TG via the Fork Mountain site about a week ago. Sounded like radio techs then.

And overnight ID Tracker logged TG 2017.

 

[OnePcDoc]

getting richmond tg's on hampton tower right now

 

[dtscho]

Another new talkgroup today on the Thornburg tower--4637. I think it may be the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy, but have not confirmed this.

The units seemed to be trying out their new radios--they commented on how crystal-clear they were. They talked a lot about all the radio training they've been doing recently.

They discussed how VDOT does their oil changes, and they get upset if the oil change is done late...

One of the units must have been northeast of Richmond, because he talked about hitting the Warsaw and Burgess towers. Another unit was down in Surry, and said he was hitting the Williamsburg tower.

The units discussed how they were supposed to identify themselves on the radio to State Police--using either their radio number or their badge number. They said the badge numbers were in the format "MMO"--that's why I think these may be Mines, Minerals and Energy units.

This was monitored around noon, and they've been quiet for a while now.

Dave

 

[n4jri]

Very interesting. That's one agency that I wouldn't have anticipated having access to State Police TG's--or a badge-carrying component. Gonna have to visit their website...

 

[tglendye]

How's the 396 tracking STARS now? Also, I have an active signal for the control channel on Fork Mt.- I didn't realize I was able to receive this being in Western Rockingham. Is there any talk group activity on this (Div 1)? I don't have a digital scanner yet.

 

[n4jri]

Supposedly, Fork Mountain is a key site to throw signal into the Shenandoah Valley. Most of what I've heard on it is TG 0001, since it has a lot of throw to the south and east. Could be that some Game Wardens and prison transports are also affiliated with that site. I think we have a trooper on this board who lives in Fluvanna and may be able to help.

I'm still chafing at the bit to see if South Hill is in full swing.

73/Allen (N4JRI)

 

[N4FTN]

FYI.... No Prisoner Transports active yet. First radio installs due next week and then they'll gear up in June big time......

 

[W4UVV]

Stars & 796D

Hey... New to the Forum..... Help!
Have a Uniden BC796D in Hampton Roads. Trunking fine in all areas but STARS. Cannot figure out the config with the VHF config asking for base freq, spacing, etc.

Anyone help???

For various technical reasons the 796D cannot properly process STARS in a trunked scan mode. Table entries will not work. Only the 396 and 996 Uniden scanner models will properly process STARS in a trunked scan mode. You can program all STARS division 1 site voice frequencies or selected site frequencies excluding the primary control channel frequencies in a dedicated bank and scan conventionally. However some STARS voice frequency repeaters have a long hang time or transmit data before they drop if at all. In that case you will have to temporary lock out the appropriate frequency. Dispatcher/comms may or may not correctly relate but it's something compared to nothing.

 

[gcgrotz]

Supposedly, Fork Mountain is a key site to throw signal into the Shenandoah Valley. Most of what I've heard on it is TG 0001, since it has a lot of throw to the south and east. Could be that some Game Wardens and prison transports are also affiliated with that site. I think we have a trooper on this board who lives in Fluvanna and may be able to help.

I'm still chafing at the bit to see if South Hill is in full swing.

73/Allen (N4JRI)

Hi all:

Yes, I was told that story 20+years ago that Fork Mtn was built to cover the upper Valley area after the NRAO quiet zone rejected several other sites. And it was the troopers on here that first advised us of the pending STARS site there. It was built to help cover the western fringes of Div 1 and it does carry Richmond traffic. I believe that site also has the old Culpeper on 159.165 so it will get crowded up there when they build STARS in Culpeper division. If you do a radius search on the FCC you will see how much stuff is there, including several Ham repeaters.

 

[JESSERABBIT]

Does anyone have any idea how far north in the Valley that the Fork Mtn. site reaches?

 

[freqhopping]

Does anyone have any idea how far north in the Valley that the Fork Mtn. site reaches?

I can hear it in Loudoun Co. and that's over 60 miles.