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GMRS WEB Magazine

Barriers to Getting a
GMRS System On the Air.

The major barrier to getting on GMRS is the cost of UHF transceivers, and the antenna system. Equipment for use in this spectrum is far more sophisticated than CB or Amateur radio equipment. Persons interested in building a repeater must search for a frequency pair that is little used and then coordinate CTCSS and DCS tones with other repeater owners. One also must sit down and complete the newly simplified FCC license application for GMRS. It is no longer necessary to specify the frequencies you wish to use or the latitude and longitude of the repeater or base stations. Building the radio system however is no small task. It is far more exacting and difficult than setting up a CB radio and antenna. The following are the major concerns people seem to have when they decide to consider GMRS as a family communication medium.

GMRS was not intended to be a hobby-type radio service, neither was CB for that matter. One could say that 27 MHz CB degenerated into a wasteland because there were no barriers to getting and staying on the air. (That and the ability of 11 meter radio waves to travel around world eventually caused CB's demise.) The culture that grew up around the CB wasteland is not something people are anxious to see on GMRS. Citizens and businesses with valid communication needs use GMRS radio channels everyday. That can't happen if the frequencies are used for hobby communication. The good news is the barriers to getting on the air are not as difficult as they once were. There is also lot of help available.

GMRS already contains many commercial users that were licensed on these channels when licensing requirements were different. (Before 1989 commercial and public safety licensees were allowed to license their systems on GMRS frequencies on a shared basis.) This means you may have to share the channel you have chosen with a company that has a sophisticated commercial communication system. Those that seek to change the scope of GMRS by relaxing license requirements fail to understand the implications of modifying a radio service in which thousands of people and businesses across the U.S. already have a significant investment. While commercial users can no longer upgrade systems or make license modifications, they can still operate. Moving them off the GMRS channels isn't going to happen simply because a special interest group wants the channels for a new hobby style CB service.

GMRS does have a different character. It isn't quite CB and it isn't entirely the personal radio service as described in the FCC rules. Along with business users, there are still grandfathered REACT or public service groups that have FCC authorization to operate under one license. Building a GMRS system for your family is an investment in your family's communications infrastructure. Knowing what you are getting your self in for ahead of time will allow you to weigh the costs and benefits against each other before you take the leap.

Can you think of barriers to GMRS? How do we over come them? Join us in the DougWeb GMRS/FRS Mailing List and lets talk about it.

• The FCC license fee is high.
  • Pay the fee. If you really want this license it isn't so high you can't pay it. Given how much the government has cut the FCC budget why complain. It is my personal opinion that people tend not to appreciate things they get for free. The license fee is an artificial barrier.
• Form 159 is real pain.
  
  • If you are on the government's deadbeat list form 159 was designed to find you. This form is required of all new licensees. If completing the form strikes you as more bureaucratic government waste , write your Congressman. The FCC didn't ask for the form, Congress did. It is a nuisance but it is one we can live with.
• The FCC license application is difficult.
  • Not any more. Your best source for current licensing information is the Personal Radio Steering group website. PRSG has a prominent link on every GMRSWEB Magazine page. Why? Because they are one the biggest advocates for GMRS in the U.S.A.
• UHF commercial equipment is expensive. Antenna systems are expensive.
  • Try the used market. Shop around. (Ask our advertisers.) Also look over the links on the previous page. Prices seem to be in the $175-289 and up range. A respectable antenna system including feed line and hardware could run you as much as $500 or more. You cannot use inexpensive coaxial cable like RG-8 varieties commonly available for CB and Amateur Radio. Even connectors used on coaxial cable should be of the N type instead of the common PL-259 type. The major reason is signal loss. You need the more expensive Heliax(tm) and in some cases LMR400 types of cable even in home installations. Having reliable communication from a base station to mobile units on UHF requires a great deal more expense than CB to do it correctly. It is possible to find used radios, cable, and connectors.
• The used equipment market is difficult to find and what am I really getting?
  • Find others like yourself and talk to them. Use the websites. Talk to a local commercial radio shop. Check out the on-line auction sites like eBay. Join other magazine readers in the GMRS forum of the magazine bulletin board and ask questions.
• There are no real GMRS radios.
  • Radios designed for GMRS are scarce. UHF radios intended for the commercial market are the best choice at present.
• Sharing a repeater. How do I find one?
  • Repeater owners in your area have NO obligation to share their repeater with you. You can ask but you can't force them to accept you as a user of their system. Because they own the repeater they can also control how and when you use it. They can also ask you to pay a fee to help defer maintenance costs and site rental. ( By law they cannot make a profit on such fees. Fees are much lower on systems with more people. A fee of from $5 to $10 a month is about right. If you pay any more than that you should get a cellular phone. Remember that by supporting your user group you can keep your repeater on the air using the best possible equipment.) If you are not a joiner and consider following rules annoying don't bother asking. The best ways to locate repeaters near you is to listen on the channels you are licensing on and record the call signs you hear. Consult the FCC on-line data base for the address of the licensee and write for permission. The new FCC rules do not require you have written permission any longer. verbal permission is fine, but it does show that you respect the personal property rights of repeater owners if you ask in writing. It certainly can't hurt. Another terrific source of repeater information is the Personal Radio Steering Group Repeater Guide.
• Setting up your own repeater.
  • You have this option if no one will share with you. When you put up your own repeater you have added one more repeater to an already (potentially) crowded channel in your area. Your operation will have to be tight so you don't take up all the air time available with your users. You also just spent a fortune. This is not an option for many GMRS licensees.
  • Mountain top repeater site rental is expensive. Do you have a place for a repeater radio to sit and run 24 hours a day at your home? Can you get the antenna in the air? Height is everything!
• Sharing the channels with business users.
  • I don't think people are really aware of what this means. The GMRS frequency pairs are occupied by many business radio licensees that were grandfathered into GMRS. How that might affect your operations is not clear. One could assume that hobby type communication typical of the CB band won't be welcome by business licensees. Frequent casual use of a GMRS radio channel might be challenged. Whether the business user has a right to do that to you is a matter of opinion. Just expect it. Be happy to share this valuable resource.
• Frequency coordination.
  • You should probably coordinate your proposed operation with other local GMRS users. This step minimizes interference between systems. Coordinate input and output tones.

FCC

PRSG

Last updated June 24, 1999