2M/440 - jump start needed pls

[KC3DOO]

I got my General ticket mainly to use Winlink from our sail boat. Aside from the P4 limitation (RM11078 slowly creeping through the FCC - insert vein-bulging rant here) that's worked well. Any voice traffic has been existing nets, operating as /MM or /C6A. Until now.

I literally inherited a Baofeng UV-5RE Plus from a now SK. Put all of the "Chinese junk" aside, it's what I got. And I don't know diddly about 2M other than the questions I answered on the exams. ARRL's book Operating Manual is equally ...um... helpful.

Looking the NW suburban area of Philadelphia, I've identified potential repeaters of interest. I even figured out which are open (e.g., one in Valley Forge, PA, one in Perkasie, PA, etc.). But past that, I'm baffled. +600 or -600? Needed tones (freq. and format)? Narrow or wide?

The Baofeng manual is ...um... somewhat opaque. I've figured out that CHIRP and a data cable are going to be a help in setting up the radio. But I'm stuck on what to feed to CHIRP to feed to the radio.

I need a jump start to get started.

 

[902]

I got my General ticket mainly to use Winlink from our sail boat. Aside from the P4 limitation (RM11078 slowly creeping through the FCC - insert vein-bulging rant here) that's worked well. Any voice traffic has been existing nets, operating as /MM or /C6A. Until now.

I literally inherited a Baofeng UV-5RE Plus from a now SK. Put all of the "Chinese junk" aside, it's what I got. And I don't know diddly about 2M other than the questions I answered on the exams. ARRL's book Operating Manual is equally ...um... helpful.

Looking the NW suburban area of Philadelphia, I've identified potential repeaters of interest. I even figured out which are open (e.g., one in Valley Forge, PA, one in Perkasie, PA, etc.). But past that, I'm baffled. +600 or -600? Needed tones (freq. and format)? Narrow or wide?

The Baofeng manual is ...um... somewhat opaque. I've figured out that CHIRP and a data cable are going to be a help in setting up the radio. But I'm stuck on what to feed to CHIRP to feed to the radio.

I need a jump start to get started.

Welcome to ham radio!

I still get confused trying to figure that out. Some radios will do it automatically (and may not be correct), but here's the trick I use: if the + or - 600 kHz takes the radio out of the ham band, that's the wrong one.

Try this list first: ARCC Coordinated Repeater Database - by Location

There are also some reference guides that will outright tell you + or - and the shift. Keep in mind that ham radio also has some frequencies where they use 1 MHz + or -.

Basically - 145 MHz frequencies are -600 kHz.
Common 146 MHz frequencies are -600 kHz (and if that doesn't work, try +600)
Some 147 MHz frequencies are +600 kHz, and
Odd frequencies may be 1 MHz separation.

Most current repeaters should be "wide." Some places are pushing narrow operation, but it's not very popular. Your tones are listed on that page I linked to before. Some repeater owners will only use a tone on their receiver (your transmit frequency), and not on their transmitter (your receive frequency). If you encounter one of these repeaters and don't program your receiver in carrier squelch ("no tone"), then you may not hear anything coming back to you, even if people answer.

Good luck and have lots of fun with that - keep our repeaters active!

 

[KC3DOO]

Thanks! This is what I'm looking for. I'll try programming for one of local repeaters by hand. If that doesn't work, I'll wait for the data cable and try again through CHIRP.

 

[SCPD]

Don't be too deterred, KC3, about programming the little BaoFengs.... like all radios today with their own specially set up microprocessors, each has its own quirks. There are some excellent YouTube videos that will walk you thru the process without having to resort to using a computer to program them.
You are right to avoid the manual- it will only confound you.
.
Also, I'll add- I wouldn't be to put off by all the bad reviews they seem to get. Where I work I purchased a whole box full of them to hand out to our office (when one of my engineers dropped her expensive, non floating Vertex handheld forever down a pit toilet.....
Me, I have absolutely no complaints ... and we have looked at them for spectral purity, receiver sensitivity etc. and not found a-one lacking.... well, Motorolas, Vertex's they're not; but for less than $25 each, that's quite a bargain
..................... (though I don't think I'd see if they float...... )
.
.................................CF

 

[KC4RAF]

Here's a website that will help you out a lot.

As you will note, they have quite a few of the Chinese models:

Miklor Information Site, VHF UHF Handheld Radios

BTW, your UV-5RE IS the same as the UV5R model he shows. There's several letter add-on, but they are the same.

 

[KC3DOO]

Better and better! Thanks, guys!

 

[dmaria]

I got my General ticket mainly to use Winlink from our sail boat. Aside from the P4 limitation (RM11078 slowly creeping through the FCC - insert vein-bulging rant here) that's worked well. Any voice traffic has been existing nets, operating as /MM or /C6A. Until now.

I literally inherited a Baofeng UV-5RE Plus from a now SK. Put all of the "Chinese junk" aside, it's what I got. And I don't know diddly about 2M other than the questions I answered on the exams. ARRL's book Operating Manual is equally ...um... helpful.

Looking the NW suburban area of Philadelphia, I've identified potential repeaters of interest. I even figured out which are open (e.g., one in Valley Forge, PA, one in Perkasie, PA, etc.). But past that, I'm baffled. +600 or -600? Needed tones (freq. and format)? Narrow or wide?

The Baofeng manual is ...um... somewhat opaque. I've figured out that CHIRP and a data cable are going to be a help in setting up the radio. But I'm stuck on what to feed to CHIRP to feed to the radio.

I need a jump start to get started.

The frequency of the repeater is usually given for the output of the repeater. In other words, the frequency that the repeater will be transmitting and you radio will be receiving. When the listing for your area says "+600" or "-600", that will be the frequency offset for the repeater to receive.

So if repeater is listed as 146.760 and the offset is listed as -600 then:

Repeater transmits on 146.760
Your radio receives on 146.760

Repeater receives on 146.760 - 0.600 = 146.160
Your radio should transmit on 146.760 - 0.600 = 146.160

The separate receive and transmit frequencies allow the repeater to receive your transmission and rebroadcast it at the same time. This is referred to as a duplex system.

 

[k6cpo]

You might start researching clubs in your area. Most repeaters are put up by clubs and there might be someone that can help you program your Baofeng. Here we have a county-wide council that most clubs are members of and all the member clubs are listed in one location on the internet, making it easier to find them.

Regarding programming your Baofeng, don't cheap out on a cable. There have been many instances of cables sourced through eBay or directly from China not working with the software (Chirp) or the radios. Many have counterfeit chips in them.

The best source, in my opinion, for programming software is RT Systems. Their cables and software works, period. The only cons about their products is that you have to use their cables and their software only runs in a Windows environment.

https://www.rtsystemsinc.com/

 

[dmaria]

Ok,

I will be using a repeater in Pekasie. PA for this example.

For Chirp (I'm using the Mac version) you would enter:

Frequency = 145.310
Name = W3AI
Tonemode = Tone
Tone = 131.8
Duplex = - (minus)
Offset = 0.600
Mode = FM (all amateur repeaters in the U.S. are FM)

Leave all the other fields at whatever the default settings are.

Hopefully this will get you started.

 

[KC3DOO]

That's exactly what I'm looking for! Great thanks.

 

[AC2OY]

KC3 welcome to the revolution!!! There is software called RT systems that virtually programs the radio for you. And the disc and the programming cable is maybe 60 bucks. You can build a working file or a database that you can continue to add to the radio. I own that software for my F6-A and its like child's play most of the settings(offset) it does automatically!!!! The pl tones you do a drop down menu. I would definitely look into it.

 

[W4JKW]

IIRC, both CHiRP and RT Systems software have the ability to import from Radioreference, which eliminates the difficulty figuring out the +/- 600, if you are a premium subscriber to Radioreference.

 

[KC3DOO]

Thanks for the tips. At this point I'm starting to watch my investment in a $30 radio. Between a Diamond antenna, charger (unfortunately we don't know where the original is), and the cable, I've just about hit $30 in "bits and pieces", Once I get the radio back under control, and I get some experience with 2m, I'll look into upgrading for use while traveling.

We have '90 VW Vanagon Westphalia (pop-top) camper, and we're headed to Maine and beyond for a few weeks. Maybe I can work up a QSO with a moose or something? ;-)

Seriously, it'll be interesting to check into some repeaters along the way.

 

[W6SAE]

I found this blog post to be a great help in demystifying manually programming the UV-5R: WP4AOH: Baofeng UV-5R Overview and Manual Programming

It also show the best settings for the radio in regards to the amateur service.

 

[KC3DOO]

Brilliant! Great thanks! May all your grounds never loop, your shorts never get tall, and your RFI stand for really fascinating invention! ;-)