"Untrunking" TK5710-K v2.0

[N5APC]

Our rural county fire departments recently went all Motorola (The decision was way above my pay grade of volunteer, so let's not go there).
Anyway, we now have a few surplus TK5710's available. They are set up for VHF P-25 trunking plus some conventional channels. I have the KPG-95DGN CPS and can successfully read the radios. I do not have the system keys so cannot program them. We would like to repurpose some of the radios for conventional FM to use on interop channels as well as some surrounding FD's repeaters for mutual aid.
At long last, here's the question: How can I neuter the radios on the trunking system and just program analog FM? Is there a "master reset" that can be called or do I have to get Bearcom to delete the trunking? We do not want the Kenwood's on the trunking system and pay the trunking operator the monthly fee.
Radios are TK5710-K v 2.0
Thanks to all.
Mike
Buchanan VFD

 

[Echo4Thirty]

Read the first radio (So kpg will set what model etc of the radio), then do File -> new [EDIT: You only have to do this step on the first radio]

write that file in to the radios, it will blank them and then you can start over with the programming.

As for the system, notify the system manager you are no longer going to use those radios on the TRS and have them deactivate the IDs that were assigned to the kenwoods.

 

[N5APC]

Read the first radio (So kpg will set what model etc of the radio), then do File -> new [EDIT: You only have to do this step on the first radio]

write that file in to the radios, it will blank them and then you can start over with the programming.

As for the system, notify the system manager you are no longer going to use those radios on the TRS and have them deactivate the IDs that were assigned to the kenwoods.

Thanks. They have been deactivated.

 

[N5APC]

Thanks. Apparently I was overthinking the problem. Seems like I tried that before but this time it worked.

 

[Project25_MASTR]

Our rural county fire departments recently went all Motorola (The decision was way above my pay grade of volunteer, so let's not go there).
Anyway, we now have a few surplus TK5710's available. They are set up for VHF P-25 trunking plus some conventional channels. I have the KPG-95DGN CPS and can successfully read the radios. I do not have the system keys so cannot program them. We would like to repurpose some of the radios for conventional FM to use on interop channels as well as some surrounding FD's repeaters for mutual aid.
At long last, here's the question: How can I neuter the radios on the trunking system and just program analog FM? Is there a "master reset" that can be called or do I have to get Bearcom to delete the trunking? We do not want the Kenwood's on the trunking system and pay the trunking operator the monthly fee.
Radios are TK5710-K v 2.0
Thanks to all.
Mike
Buchanan VFD

I thought I had gotten all of those out of there about 5 years ago.

Signed the Bearcom tech who de-Kenwooded most of Western Counties and now works for EF Johnson.

 

[Project25_MASTR]

This reminds me, I ran into one of the former Chiefs of Police for the City of Burnet at the TDEM conference a few weeks back. So much entertainment listening to him debate Motorola (XTS and APX) SUs versus Kenwood (TK-5210 and later NX5200's) SUs. With one of the volunteer fire chief's. Police and Sherriff wanted something that worked, volunteer's wanted something they could afford. At the time the TK's and NX's had some pretty significant roaming issues (actually they were never fixed on the TK's) and it really left a bad taste for Kenwood on 13E as a whole. Many departments won't even consider a solution now if the radio says Kenwood which is why the VM900 in my pickup wears a Johnson labeled VCH and the one at my house instead wears the Kenwood labeled VCH. That former chief now works for Motorola.

 

[KevinC]

This reminds me, I ran into one of the former Chiefs of Police for the City of Burnet at the TDEM conference a few weeks back. So much entertainment listening to him debate Motorola (XTS and APX) SUs versus Kenwood (TK-5210 and later NX5200's) SUs. With one of the volunteer fire chief's. Police and Sherriff wanted something that worked, volunteer's wanted something they could afford. At the time the TK's and NX's had some pretty significant roaming issues (actually they were never fixed on the TK's) and it really left a bad taste for Kenwood on 13E as a whole. Many departments won't even consider a solution now if the radio says Kenwood which is why the VM900 in my pickup wears a Johnson labeled VCH and the one at my house instead wears the Kenwood labeled VCH. That former chief now works for Motorola.

Weren’t the old Kenwoods the ones that took minutes (and I’m serious) to switch between sites?

 

[Echo4Thirty]

Just make custom labels that say Motorola and apply them over where it says Kenwood. They will LOVE the radios then!

 

[Project25_MASTR]

Weren’t the old Kenwoods the ones that took minutes (and I’m serious) to switch between sites?

They just really suffered on roaming in general and didn't decode the control channel as reliably as an Astro 25 or APX subscriber. Just as a quick example, replaced a 5710 with an APX6500 on a Tahoe in the Sally Port of a department. As soon as the vehicle came into the Sally Port, OOR. Pulled the radio and powered up the APX and it immediately affiliated but the RSSI looked funny. Then and only then did I remember I had removed the antenna during the swap as I was going to go to a 1/4 wave antenna instead of the LP fin that was in use but the whole point is the APX was 100% functional without an antenna where the TK was OOR with an antenna.

Lots of other issues like the TK's would pick a site in the next county instead of the one two miles down the road even when they were locked to the site down the road or they just wouldn't roam once they found a site.

 

[a417]

Weren’t the old Kenwoods the ones that took minutes (and I’m serious) to switch between sites?

yes. the x80s we suffered thru could take as long as 3 to 5 minutes to site switch on Passport, in a few areas we had.

The shop went in to a town with a moto portable that re-reg'd in a handful of seconds and that was the end of the presentation.

 

[wd8chl]

Just make custom labels that say Motorola and apply them over where it says Kenwood. They will LOVE the radios then!

Funny, but sad at the same time that there really are people that still think that way. Big M quality has gone down the dumper over the last 30 years. Syntor/SyntorX was really the last radio they made that had what I would call 'Motorola quality'.