Hey! Let's just build a VHF repeater this morning!

[k9zmd]

What is it with the rash (well, at least a couple of pimples) of new licensee's who want to rush pell-mell into building a repeater? I've seen two recent threads on the topic, each initiated by youngsters who are long on enthusiasm and short on knowledge & experience. One, in fact, was still short of an amateur radio license.

Is it the cool reception that some new operators claim to have received on existing repeaters? As in, "Humph, I'll just go build my own repeater where I can have lots of fun. Take that you bunch of OF's!"

Is it because cross-band repeater operation is so simple that the new operator thinks, "Well hey, a VHF repeater is just a couple of two meter radios hooked back to back . . . what could be so hard?"

Is it because the new licensee believes that two meter FM repeater operation is amateur radio, so the obvious next step up from using a repeater, must be to own a repeater?

Or, is it because the guy who controls the repeater is perceived to have the same kind of power as the 3 KW mush mouth who controls channel 18 or any other dang channel he chooses?

I'm sure I haven't covered it all . . . what do you think the big attraction is?

Gary, K9ZMD

[ab8ro]

What is it with the rash (well, at least a couple of pimples) of new licensee's who want to rush pell-mell into building a repeater? I've seen two recent threads on the topic, each initiated by youngsters who are long on enthusiasm and short on knowledge & experience. One, in fact, was still short of an amateur radio license.

Is it the cool reception that some new operators claim to have received on existing repeaters? As in, "Humph, I'll just go build my own repeater where I can have lots of fun. Take that you bunch of OF's!"

Is it because cross-band repeater operation is so simple that the new operator thinks, "Well hey, a VHF repeater is just a couple of two meter radios hooked back to back . . . what could be so hard?"

Is it because the new licensee believes that two meter FM repeater operation is amateur radio, so the obvious next step up from using a repeater, must be to own a repeater?

Or, is it because the guy who controls the repeater is perceived to have the same kind of power as the 3 KW mush mouth who controls channel 18 or any other dang channel he chooses?

I'm sure I haven't covered it all . . . what do you think the big attraction is?

Gary, K9ZMD

I think it's as simple as "repeater owner = forum moderator." Ego trip. And, well, it's not clear to me that many repeaters are much more than that no matter what the age of the operator.

[w3wn]

I once came THIS close to being a real live repeater owner.

Had the rack full of old GE gear.

Had a 2 meter frequency pair.

Had the location (my then-in-law's farm).

Had the antenna and a pole to put it on.

Thought I was going to be a savior by providing the first repeater in that county.

I was all set... and then my marriage broke up (for reasons unrelated to radio).

Ended up turning the project over to another group. And looking back, it was a good thing... because it became somebody else's headache.

They're young. They may yet learn.

[ab8ro]

I was all set... and then my marriage broke up (for reasons unrelated to radio).


Wives are overrated.

[w3wn]

I was all set... and then my marriage broke up (for reasons unrelated to radio).

Wives are overrated.
They have their moments. But let's stay on topic, shall we?

[wa9cwx]

I think the answer involves a lot of issues, not the LEAST of which is the main characteristic of communications today, simply that it IS simple. It seems 'seamless'.

The idea of discreet 'Parts' of the 'system', let alone discreet COMPONENTS, seems a thing of the past.

The 'repeater' is seen as one thing, the next logical step after you buy a 'radio'.......

For those of us that remember a 'ham station' as consisting of a 'receiver' with outboard 'Q' multiplier, outboard 'S' meter, seperate speaker, power supply and external calibrator, a transmitter with outboard 'VFO', power supply, tuner or 'clip. coil' match system, outboard modulator, outboard keyer, and some type of relay system to redistrbute the voltage and antenna between transmissions..... WE tend to think of a repeater as a big deal.

However, today, it is something that is a box and antenna, and just means selling fries longer on a few weekends.

The whole entry to this hobby is so simple that anything WITHIN the hobby must be just as simple, especially if all those dumb OLD guys could do it ...:D

[WA6MHZ]

I have also wanted to build and run a repeater. I live in a radio location that would be great for a repeater too, at 1650 ft! But in Southern California, there are NO Frequencies available on ANY band. Especially 2M! These are all carefully controlled and guarded by TASMA, and you have to know someone or someone has to die and will the repeater frequency to you to get one. Same with 222 and 450. SCRUBBA controls them and no one can have a repeater unless you KNOW someone. I suppose back in Iowa where you have 100 miles between towns, you can just choose a frequency and put a repeater up. Must be nice. I guess there are some frequencies available here on the 10 Ghz band available, just not alot of traffic.

[N5FOG]

There are a couple of reasons why some new hams want to build a repeater. For some yea its the ego trip but for others its a fascination and learning experience.

What made me decide to put up a repeater when I was 16 was I liked to talk politics at night with a few other guys on the local repeater. We didn't get into anything edgy but the repeater owner would shut off the repeater at random with no notice if he didn't like the topic. He wouldn't even fess up to shutting it off just all of a sudden you would hear some DTMF tones and it was off.

So since the other guys were not too far away I decided to build a UHF repeater at the house. Well after a couple of years I moved down to where I am now and there was no UHF repeater servering the area. So I found a commercial site that was about 250' tall and my repeater has been there going on 8 years now.

So yea my repeater was born out of a issue for control, but over the course of it I learned allot about repeaters, diplexers, desense, ETC.

So if someone wants to spend the money, learn something along the way and put up a back yard repeater whats the problem ???



FOG

[kc4umo]

Has to be no more than a power trip if anything. Being able to say" I own this repeater".

Let me say this (as being a past repeater owner) to anyone that decides to throw up a repeater thinking it is not nothing to it.

First thing is , is it really needed?
Will another repeater help the community?
Are there no local repeaters in the area?
Do you not really like the crowd that handles the other repeaters?

If you answer, no. no, yes, I can not stand them, then you are wasting money and time.

If there are no repeaters in your area, then you may be on to something.
Then you need to get a repeater pair coordinated. You really need to do your homework there. I would not just pick a pair and start it up. If you do, then you may be asking for trouble. Then there is a location to find. Height is important. Either you run split antennas or a duplexer. Not really a lot of difference in the cost, Both are pretty high. Most commercial towers require you to have expensive insurance to even climb them. If you go with a self owned or individual owned, then your coverage area is probably going to be slim.

Then there is the repeater itself. Home brew, store bought, or commercial rebuilt. My first was a Hamtronics kit RX and TX board with a home brew controller. Later added a Hamtronics controller and a CW ID board. But the thing had bad desence on the split antenna system. So I built a repeater using a GE Mastr II mobile. It was a lot better but still had limited coverage. I later stripped the unit down, the the RX and TX boards in separate enclosures, built individual power supplies and bought a Cat 300 controller. It was a little better but still, there were problems. I ten ordered a Hi Pro repeater from Maggiore Electronics. Just to find out it was really no better than the others I had. Don't get me wrong it was a great machine, but had the same problems as the other cheaper built stuff I had.

After all that time on the bench building and testing, and all the money that came out of my pocket, no one ever told me that 80 foot vertical was not enough separation between the two antennas. Me and my co partner then bought our first duplexer (900 bucks). The repeater ran like a charm. Good coverage. In fact we ran all three repeaters to determine which one was best and the only difference people could seem to notice was the Hamtronics had CW id and no automated controller.
After all that the problem was from desence. And we were not educated enough to know the difference and to proud to ask for help.

Just from where I am I can use 2 dozen 140 MHz repeaters with no problem. I can even work the ones that are in Raleigh, Greensboro, and Newport. Thats over 80 miles in either direction. This is not counting UHF, 220, and 6 meters. Heck you could say we are repeater poor here. But the bad thing is I can program all the repeaters in my scanner, put it on scan, sit in the shack all day, and the only thing I hear is the ID of the machine.


Sorry for the long drawn out post, but there is more to it than just throwing something together.
If you want to do it for a learning curve go for it, but if it is to be another dead machine, walk away...

[N5FOG]

First thing is , is it really needed?
Will another repeater help the community?
Are there no local repeaters in the area?
Do you not really like the crowd that handles the other repeaters?

If you answer, no. no, yes, I can not stand them, then you are wasting money and time.




If we don't like the crowd that handles the repeater then we are wasting time. Let me tell you about what happened here in Houston with a local repeater and why a new one was put up because several of us didn't like the people in control.

There is a local ham club that had a repeater for years that allot of us talked on. Well the club board decided to make a "repeater club" to protect the repeater from a bunch of hams coming in and voting everyone out and taking the repeater. Sounded like a ok idea

Well a couple years later the repeater started suffering allot of problems due to its age and the club sent out letters requesting money for the purchase of a NEW repeater.

Well after the club collected several thousand dollars people started to ask when they were going to buy a new repeater. Well after pressure the "repeater club" bought a $150 old micor VHF radio and put it in saying it was "new" to the repeater.

Well the performance problems continued and finally everyone had enought and a new repeater on a different freq and location was put up because we couldn't stand how the "repeater club" was running the repeater.

So just a blanket statement of "Do you not really like the crowd that handles the other repeaters" is not a good reason to put one up doesn't hold water.

It all depends on the reasons you don't like the crowd that handles the repeater.



FOG

[kc4umo]

So just a blanket statement of "Do you not really like the crowd that handles the other repeaters" is not a good reason to put one up doesn't hold water.

It all depends on the reasons you don't like the crowd that handles the repeater.



FOG

I will say you made a very good statement there. Maybe I should add "If the club or association is not sticking it to you....
Thanks for calling me out on that one. I do agree.

Let me add this. The local repeater group here has been great. When I was using their repeaters I donated to the group. After I put up my own machine I still donated to them. But they sent my checks back. Along with a note that I had my repeater to maintain and feel free to use thiers.
Thought that was nice of them..

[WA6MHZ]

We had an "Open" repeater here in the early 80s, the SANDBOX, that was one of the few on the air at the time, and because it was open, anyone with a license could talk on it. Everything went fine until a motley band of codgers seized the frequency and completely monopolized it. And they weren't even members of the supporting club! They did everything they could to egg on the anonymous commentars, JAMMERs as they became known as. Of course, most if not all the "jammers' were properly licensed hams who just love to tease these OFs! Things went on and on, and got very nasty. No one could drive these people off, and an all out war erupted. It took almost a decade to calm things down, as the OFs became silent keys or moved away. That was back before repeater owners could get the FCC to order people OFF of a repeater. With the dissidents gone, so were all the Jammers and everything returned to normal (yawn, and uninteresting) again. It sure was exciting listening during the war!

[KB1PRQ]

Maybe they like building things, maybe they just want the thrill of running their own, maybe they have some cash burning a hole in their pocket.....maybe a hundred different things but most importantly, why do you care?

[kd8hho]

if i was going to build a repeater ..........naa wouldn't want the headache

[KC9JIQ]

:eek:I think it's as simple as "repeater owner = forum moderator." Ego trip. And, well, it's not clear to me that many repeaters are much more than that no matter what the age of the operator.


Repeaters are awesome, setup a repeater at your home, you are sured to get reliable comms via moble to your family and stuff, even when cell phones don't work.


Is it a power trip? Not unless you got a good user base. I find most Club repeaters BORING, because the owner cannot come on the radio(the club owns the station), and give someone some advice "elmering":p

it puts you into a position to be the macho man, hey Bozo no CB talk!, this is my equipment, you play by my rules, the FCC rules and you will not get a certified letter asking you not to use the KC9JIQ cordinated repeater!:eek:

If it was a repeater, it would have to be a 100w 6meter repeater at my QTH. Somthing other than "another 2m repeater" once I can buy the cavities, the big expense for me is over...desprately need a 6m repeater in this area.:cool:

One thing, tho Repeaters are like airplanes, constant upkeep and maintenance!!!!!!!

[NY7Q]

I think their pimples hurt so bad they must do something else to take their minds off the pimples.

[ve6wtf]

I had a repeater at one time... sold the bloody thing to get something I could use.

For me the only thing I use in my house is a ADI-204 with the crossband turned on so I can use VE6HM when im in the river valley

[W4INF]

Wives are overrated.

So are repeaters. :cool:

[w2ajw]

I helped homebrew, install and coordinate one when I was in college because it was fun, we learned stuff, and simplex wasn't cutting it for our campus comms. It also helped us grow the club and make it more attractive to prospective members, as well as teaching us all a bit more about the radio art. And it was a heck of a lot of fun having our own repeater.

And isn't that what a hobby is all about?

[K7JEM]

UHF repeaters are cheaper to build than VHF ones. You can put together a decent working bare-bones UHF repeater for under $200, including all parts needed, if you shop around and can do some tech work yourself.

You could buy a new UHF repeater for around $1500, again if you shop around and assemble the individual pieces yourself.

The location is usually one of the most important considerations in putting up a repeater. Most users will never know if you are using a $7000 MastrIII or a $50 converted Micor mobile. They only care if it repeats their signal well, and has good coverage.

Joe

[k9zmd]

. . . why do you care?

Thank you for being curious enough to ask. Actually, I was very curious myself, about the thought process that might lead an untutored new radio fan to leap up and say, "I am going to build a repeater!", then immediately ask how to do it on qrz.com.

Such an urge never struck me, but maybe it would've if I hadn't become contaminated by reality. The shop I worked at part-time in the 70's started to put together a commercial repeater. When I left the job months later, the project was just an accumulation of expensive stuff all waiting for the next set-back in a series of disappointments.

Gary, K9ZMD

[wr5aw]

I think their pimples hurt so bad they must do something else to take their minds off the pimples.
Sort of like posting here to take your mind off your roids, huh. :cool:

Had a guy not too far from here do the same thing. Wound up with one of the best repeaters in the area. Still is. Why'd he do it? Because he enjoyed that aspect of the hobby. He also wanted to give something to the community. Takes all kinds.

[W6KCS]

Thank god there are kids interested in ham radio at all anymore, let alone building something. I think it's great when a kid wants to put up a repeater, especially if he gets a few buddies to use it and build some activity. I'm not sure there is much actual building going on anymore, but I think the fascination with repeaters might still be what it was when I got into it. I think a lot of us long-timers forget how "cool" repeaters seemed when we first learned about them.

When I was 16 or so and had just gotten my general, I met a guy who had a remote base. For some reason the idea of a remote station fascinated me to no end, making a relay key and a transmitter turn on from miles away seemed amazing. Then my dad bought me a Drake TR-22C and I was on 2 meters, and having a ton of fun. But I still wanted to build some kind of a remote station. So I started putting junk together with scanner receivers and a $7 GE Prog-line transmitter from a local used equipment ham store. The setup served no purpose but I learned so much about audio, and tuning up receivers and transmitters, and cavities and antennas. I finally bought (with a couple of friends) a UHF GE Progress-line repeater. It was a great-sounding repeater with marginal receiver sensitivity and horrible Cushcraft Ringo-Ranger antennas. I had that thing up on a mountain top before I even had a radio to talk on it with :-) I used to love driving up to the hill on Saturday mornings tweaking it with the ancient generator I had. It was a weird thing for a 17 year old to be doing on saturday morning, definitely, but it was so much fun. I'd drive up at 5 am sometimes. Finally I bought a Motorola HT-200 and I was able to use the repeater! Then I put an Icom IC-20 2M radio on line with a controller made with 567 tone decoders. Man, I was king of .52, at least in my area. I guess that part of it was an ego trip. heh

Thirty years later I'm an engineer doing the very same thing for the State of CA and having a great time! I love this career. All because of ham radio and wanting to build my own thing at age 16.

So that's one data point for the OP.

The only problem with getting into repeaters, and ham radio in general, was that it turned out to be a female-repellent. Do not try to impress girls with anything related to repeaters or ham radio. Trust me, when on a date, leave the radio off. Maybe unscrew the antenna and toss it in the trunk too, before you pick her up. I'm serious about this. If she knows you're into ham radio, you'd better also be in a band, or on the football team, or there will not be any action, guaranteed.

Steve

[w8gtf]

I've always heard that owning a repeater is like owning a boat. The happiest days are when you get it and when you sell it.

[k9zmd]

A good collection of replies, folks, and I am happy to see that you offered motivations that went way beyond my initial - tongue in cheek - suggestions.

Steve, W6KCS said:

" . . . Thank god there are kids interested in ham radio at all anymore, let alone building something. I think it's great when a kid wants to put up a repeater, especially if he gets a few buddies to use it and build some activity."

Fair enough, Steve; I'm happy to see that other replies in this thread also mention that challenge & the opportunity to learn are great motivators. As Andy, W2AJW said, " . . . because it was fun, we learned stuff, and simplex wasn't cutting it. . . isn't that what a hobby is all about?" I agree completely, and I've noticed those postings that exhibit that sort of enthusiasm seem to get more help than those where a chip on the shoulder obscures all else.

Thanks for this post script, Steve: " . . . The only problem with getting into repeaters, and ham radio in general, was that it turned out to be a female-repellent. Do not try to impress girls with anything related to repeaters or ham radio. "

My own experiences definitely support that, Steve. Trust me, a QSL card collection, no matter how colorful, will earn you an eye-roll you'll never forget. To this day, just hearing the name "Annette" reminds me of that moment! I took the lesson to heart, though. Years later and just a couple of days before the wedding, I casually revealed to my bride (not Annette, of course), "Oh, by the way, I have some radios that I play with from time to time." And the XYL does, from time to time, remind me of that understatement.

Frank, WA9CWX said:

"For those of us that remember a 'ham station' as consisting of a 'receiver' with outboard 'Q' multiplier, outboard 'S' meter, seperate speaker, power supply and external calibrator, a transmitter with outboard 'VFO', power supply, tuner or 'clip. coil' match system, outboard modulator, outboard keyer, and some type of relay system to redistrbute the voltage and antenna between transmissions..... WE tend to think of a repeater as a big deal. However, today, it is something that is a box and antenna . . . ."

I take your point, Frank - it may well be simple enough these days that it doesn't seem at all imposing to those raised on plug & play equipment. BTW, you just about nailed every detail of the lash up at KN9ZMD in the early 60's! Wasn't it a trip when all that stuff actually worked? And when it didn't, the challenge was enormous & tended to keep us up 'til the wee hours. Remember that YL who stayed up until 3:00 AM (is there anyone who could forget the picture?) trying to get a busted coax connector fixed so she could listen to her HF radio? Her intensity & drive came through loud & clear in spite of being initially clueless about electronics. I attribute the multiple pages of helpful replies to her persistence and enthusiasm. The picture could've played a role, though, d'ya think?

Similarly, (even sans pictures) there were some excellent, informative, and very realistic replies given to the two nameless beginners that I mentioned in my original post. That is as it should be. Since one of the pair has now loudly announced that his feelings are hurt, I'll add a reminder here that my initial post referred to them only as being " . . . long on enthusiasm and short on knowledge & experience. One, in fact, still short of an amateur radio license". All of which is far from derisive, and even accurately describes any one of us at some point in our lives; however, I'll still add that I am sorry anyone's feelings were hurt.

There are still many aspects of this hobby that fire up my ambition and enthusiasm; it would be time to quit if there weren't. Although I can't find building a repeater anywhere on my personal to-do list, my hat is off to anyone with the gumption to tackle a project like that. After reading the replies posted to this thread, I have a much better idea why someone - even those short on knowledge and experience - might be motivated to plunge into a seemingly endless and thankless project. 73

Gary, K9ZMD


I've always heard that owning a repeater is like owning a boat. The happiest days are when you get it and when you sell it.

[W6KCS]

Trust me, a QSL card collection, no matter how colorful, will earn you an eye-roll you'll never forget. To this day, just hearing the name "Annette" reminds me of that moment! I took the lesson to heart, though. Years later and just a couple of days before the wedding, I casually revealed to my bride (not Annette, of course), "Oh, by the way, I have some radios that I play with from time to time." And the XYL does, from time to time, remind me of that understatement.That's a great story, Gary. And a good lesson :D

This was an interesting topic!

Steve

[N4PRT]

Here in the poverty stricken black hole of Appalachia in which I live, we only have one 70cm repeater. There are so many unused 2m repeaters I cannot count them all, and only a few that get regular traffic. All of the pairs are coordinated--it's astonishing how many paper repeaters there are.

The fellow that runs the 70cm is a fine OM that has a passion for this sort of thing. What is truly funny is when he gets on the air and talks about what he has to do to keep the repeater running and in top shape--and about what is in the tower building that forms its core.

Only about two hams that use the repeater have even a remote idea of what he is talking about. Yet all the rest babble incessantly about putting up their own repeater to serve local needs. The conversation sort of reminds me of Fred Flintstone attempting to discuss adjusting dual carburetors on a Jag...

[ai3v]

Thank god there are kids interested in ham radio at all anymore, let alone building something. I think it's great when a kid wants to put up a repeater, especially if he gets a few buddies to use it and build some activity. I'm not sure there is much actual building going on anymore, but I think the fascination with repeaters might still be what it was when I got into it. I think a lot of us long-timers forget how "cool" repeaters seemed when we first learned about them.

When I was 16 or so and had just gotten my general, I met a guy who had a remote base. For some reason the idea of a remote station fascinated me to no end, making a relay key and a transmitter turn on from miles away seemed amazing. Then my dad bought me a Drake TR-22C and I was on 2 meters, and having a ton of fun. But I still wanted to build some kind of a remote station. So I started putting junk together with scanner receivers and a $7 GE Prog-line transmitter from a local used equipment ham store. The setup served no purpose but I learned so much about audio, and tuning up receivers and transmitters, and cavities and antennas. I finally bought (with a couple of friends) a UHF GE Progress-line repeater. It was a great-sounding repeater with marginal receiver sensitivity and horrible Cushcraft Ringo-Ranger antennas. I had that thing up on a mountain top before I even had a radio to talk on it with :-) I used to love driving up to the hill on Saturday mornings tweaking it with the ancient generator I had. It was a weird thing for a 17 year old to be doing on saturday morning, definitely, but it was so much fun. I'd drive up at 5 am sometimes. Finally I bought a Motorola HT-200 and I was able to use the repeater! Then I put an Icom IC-20 2M radio on line with a controller made with 567 tone decoders. Man, I was king of .52, at least in my area. I guess that part of it was an ego trip. heh

Thirty years later I'm an engineer doing the very same thing for the State of CA and having a great time! I love this career. All because of ham radio and wanting to build my own thing at age 16.

So that's one data point for the OP.

The only problem with getting into repeaters, and ham radio in general, was that it turned out to be a female-repellent. Do not try to impress girls with anything related to repeaters or ham radio. Trust me, when on a date, leave the radio off. Maybe unscrew the antenna and toss it in the trunk too, before you pick her up. I'm serious about this. If she knows you're into ham radio, you'd better also be in a band, or on the football team, or there will not be any action, guaranteed.

Steve

Not if your in the school Marching Band :(

Rege

[wb5ydk]

We have so many repeaters around my QTH also. Except for a few, they go almost unused. You wouldn't even know they were there except for the periodic ID. Even the "popular" repeaters sit idle at least 95% of the time. So, I think it's high time to build another repeater that hams will actually use!!!

My repeater will be the bestest and most powerful repeater there ever was. I'm going to install it inside an all-band EMCOMM trailer (currently in final planning stages) that I will tow behind my emergency vehicle (currently in repair shop). Wherever disaster strikes, either natural or man made, I'll be arriving on-scene to take charge of emergency communications. MY new repeater will ensure that all the other whackermobiles circling the area will remain in constant contact with each other! :D

PS: I might even chase some tornadoes, hurricanes or volcanoes during the drive out to the disaster site.


.

[WB2WIK]

As an old-time repeater owner/trustee/operator (been using repeaters since 1966, put my first one on the air myself in 1973 and it became a powerhouse, heavily-used 24/7 machine in the late 70s), I don't care anymore.

But I do wonder why anyone would think, "I'm going to put a repeater on the air! Why not get on QRZ.com (or anywhere else) and ask people how to do it?"

That is just plain nutty.

You can't teach a kid to ride a bike at a seminar, and you can't teach anything about repeaters on the internet or in any number of books. You can read about sex, but don't know what it's like 'til you've had it, and won't be good at it for a long time after that.

Repeaters are the same way. "Book knowledge" about repeaters gets you just about nowhere, unless you have an infinite budget in which case all you need is Motorola's phone number and come have them install one for you.

Anything else you need to know is learned by years of hands-on experience.

WB2WIK/6

[w8gtf]

The only problem with getting into repeaters, and ham radio in general, was that it turned out to be a female-repellent. Do not try to impress girls with anything related to repeaters or ham radio. Trust me, when on a date, leave the radio off. Maybe unscrew the antenna and toss it in the trunk too, before you pick her up. I'm serious about this. If she knows you're into ham radio, you'd better also be in a band, or on the football team, or there will not be any action, guaranteed.

Steve

That depends on where you go hunting for girls. My yl is a nerd, and graduated from a nerd school (Case Western). We had a party one night and one of her sorority sisters found out. We had a discussion at length about AR. And this girl was an engineer for Boeing.

[WA6MHZ]

Think I would be hard pressed to find a girl excited about seeing a bunch of dusty old radios with tubes in them, or if I did, she would be a Grandmother by now. But then again, My WIFE doesn't particularly want me to try to impress girls. Think the girls would agree with my wife. "Get them out of the house and into the garage or DUMPSTER where they belong!"

[k0cmh]

I am my own repeater. Everytime I say something, my wife says "what?".

[KE5TND]

*edit*

forget it, I'm done

[WA7KKP]

Anyone can build a repeater . . . lots of surplus equipment around to do the job. Motorola/GE ad nauseum.

The real trick is to have a GOOD site, with reasonable coverage, and something more than a party line, such as linking/remote base/autopatch. Then try to debug it, and keep it running.

As most repeater operators have discovered, those hams that complain the most do the least. It is a thankless job.

That's why I prefer simplex. The day you need to build a "repeater" so you can talk to your buddies within 10 miles or so, is the day you need a new brain. I guess it isn't the in thing to operate simplex.

Gary WA7KKP

[KA4DPO]

WA9CWX has me beat.

I had a lot of stuff strung together in my first shack but I never had an outboard S meter..:D The one in my NC-173 receiver was it, not real accurate but it did work.

By the way, this ham stuff was much easier back then. I was just walking down the street one day when some guy pulled me into the FCC building and asked me if I wanted to be a Ham.

I said sure, why not and they handed me a license and told me everything there was to know right there on the spot. We don't do that for the new guys cause we don't want them to find out....

[K8MHZ]

If you and a friend both have cross band repeaters in your vehicles they can be used together to make a single band repeater.

Further experimentation to follow. We are using Kenwood TM-V7As.

[ky5u]

I once came THIS close to being a real live repeater owner.

Had the rack full of old GE gear.

Had a 2 meter frequency pair.

Had the location (my then-in-law's farm).

Had the antenna and a pole to put it on.

Thought I was going to be a savior by providing the first repeater in that county.

I was all set... and then my marriage broke up (for reasons unrelated to radio).

Ended up turning the project over to another group. And looking back, it was a good thing... because it became somebody else's headache.

They're young. They may yet learn.
You should have hoisted the ex up on the pole on the farm. Bet you coulda heard her crying for 5 miles. Reminds me of a friend who (as a kid) tied several helium baloons to the family cat. The idea was to let the cat go then shoot out the baloons over the farm pond. But the wind was blowing and the cat took off really fast. Do you know you can hear a cat meowing long after you can't see it anymore?

[n4tia]

Well, lets start off with I'm a 20 year old college student. I got my license when I was in 8th grade (maybe it was 7th) and I can remember since my first repeater contact I always wanted to know how a repeater worked. I remember my biggest fascination was the thought of transmitting and receiving at the same time using a single antenna and single feed line. That being said, we have a few local repeaters, most owned by clubs and the only usage they ever got was for scheduled nets. If it wasn't a net night you could try to raise someone until you were blue in the face, it wouldn't happen.

All that being said, in High School I guess my interest got the best of me and I started tinkering with old Mitreks, Syntors... Put together a repeater using two ringo rangers as the antennas, RG8 as the feedline and a computer power supply as the station PS. Over the years in High School started adding more and better equipment to the machine. It had a regular user base, we held a weekly "battleship net" (we would all dig out our battleship games and play eachother over the repeater. It was lots of fun and it really tested the repeaters legs) I remember the highlight of tinkering with that repeater was a friend calling me up and yelling at me to jump on the repeater one morning. A few local guys were talking to a mobile ham in Alabama (the repeater is in Florida)


I guess after saying all that, for me the big interest in playing with repeaters is just the magic of taking old discarded parts, sinking in a bunch of money I didn't have and making something that actually worked, and worked well. The driving force behind updating it and sinking more money/time was listening to other stations use and enjoy the repeater. Hearing distant stations jump on the repeater was always a great feeling!


I don't think any (normal) person builds a repeater to "feel the power" of being a repeater owner. If I wanted to feel powerful and tell people it's my way or the highway I'd create a yahoo group! It's free and less time consuming.

I think it's a shame someone would harp on a few youngsters that are interested in putting a repeater up, regardless of age/experience level. Instead of assuming they want to be almighty and powerful why don't you take some of your time, shoot them an email and see where they are coming from. Perhaps you might even try coaching them on the time/monetary investment required in establishing/maintaining a repeater. Perhaps they are just tired of being harped on at their local repeaters for being young and asking questions? I know down here it seems the only dialog thats permitted on the repeater is the daily Doctors visit. While as a pre-med student I think it's fascinating to learn about various medical problems I doubt many other young(er) hams are interested. Maybe these kids are just looking to get out and explore? Who knows, but assuming the worst and acting on those assumptions isn't the wise thing to do. Not to retain those youngsters in the hobby or to attract more of them to the hobby.

I know I for one haven't run across another person my age on the HF bands in a good while!

Alex N4TIA

[VO1GXG]

to install a repeater here we need to have a sponsorship. I think the whole repeater system needs to be cleaned up. The systems are mostly dead and its time to change that and clean it all up.

[KD8BVS]

I started from scratch and built my own mobile 100 watt UHF repeater using a metal computer case, 2 HT's, an amplifier, a couple fans, power supply, a duplexer, and a laptop computer running Echostation to control the thing. The repeater worked great right out of my garage! And keep in mind that I was only 13!:eek:

[WA6MHZ]

You should have hoisted the ex up on the pole on the farm. Bet you coulda heard her crying for 5 miles. Reminds me of a friend who (as a kid) tied several helium baloons to the family cat. The idea was to let the cat go then shoot out the baloons over the farm pond. But the wind was blowing and the cat took off really fast. Do you know you can hear a cat meowing long after you can't see it anymore?

I bet that cat was putting out alot of OUTPUT too! Glad he didn't pass overhead, I know what happens when a Bird passes overhead!