How much FM simplex activity is there in your area? What bands are being used?
Here in the Indianpolis area, it seems that most chit-chat is on repeaters. A lot of hams don't have the ability to put up much of an antenna, so they seem to gravitate towards repeaters. However, there are some pockets of 2m simplex activity among fixed stations with reasonable antennas.
When I lived in the Lexington, Kentucky, area, I found that local repeaters were quiet. The locals hung out on 2m simplex, usually 146.520 MHz, in the evening.
Where terrain is mostly flat, getting a 2m antenna with a little gain up to 10 or 15 feet above grade will typically get you county-wide coverage. You may not hear low-power mobiles, but communication between base stations with similar antennas is certainly do-able.
So, what's simplex like where you live?
Here in the Indianpolis area, it seems that most chit-chat is on repeaters. A lot of hams don't have the ability to put up much of an antenna, so they seem to gravitate towards repeaters. However, there are some pockets of 2m simplex activity among fixed stations with reasonable antennas.
When I lived in the Lexington, Kentucky, area, I found that local repeaters were quiet. The locals hung out on 2m simplex, usually 146.520 MHz, in the evening.
Where terrain is mostly flat, getting a 2m antenna with a little gain up to 10 or 15 feet above grade will typically get you county-wide coverage. You may not hear low-power mobiles, but communication between base stations with similar antennas is certainly do-able.
So, what's simplex like where you live?