You Can Build The Cheapest Repeater in less than 5 Mins! GMRS/HAM Less Than $100 - Repeater TUTORIAL
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- Опубликовано: 2 апр 2024
- In this video, I show you how anyone can build a very simple simplex repeater. Using just a single handheld radio and a recording "parrot" repeater controller. You can build this yourself for as little as $100 including the cost of a dedicated handheld radio. It will work for both GMRS/HAM and VHF or UHF (2m/70cm bands) It is incredibly easy to do and works extremely well. I build, I test, and show the results. This is intended to show what is possible with just stuff laying around the house. Rubber bands, twine, and a little radio gear.
Affiliate Links:
SureCom SR-112 Recording Repeater Controller
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Dacron Polyester Line
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Baofeng DM-1701 Dual Band Dual Time Slot DMR
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BAOFENG 5RM Two Way Radio Multi-Band Ham Radio
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Quansheng UVK5(99) Multi-Band Ham Radio
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Xiegu G90 HF Radio
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Icom IC-705 HF/VHF/UHF All Mode Portable QRP 5W/10W Transceiver
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ABBREE GMRS Radio Antenna 42.5-inch
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Genuine Nagoya NA-771
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Special Acknowledgments:
www.vecteezy.com/
bluemoji.io/
illustrateai.designbundles.net/
George, Katie, and the rest of the tortured souls who endure me. 
Хобби
DIdid not hear you ID on the radio at all.
Charlie
*Yes and that's intentional.* (Muted out) I ID on the radio, not for RUclips. Being a super sexy RUclips star, the last thing I need is to be stalked at home. Even though my GMRS info is secured with GMRSRegistry.com, My business license is not and I don't need some enterprising person cross-referencing my FRN only to show-up to my home and suddenly they receive an "accelerated case of lead poisoning".
Radio Police on patrol.....
sad HAM alert!
@@jkg6211😂
@@Commodiumall I have to do in order to determine your identity, physical location, eye color, food preference and astrological sign is to contact a reputable psychic, hehehe
Exactly what I was looking for, since I am not a genius on Ham radios this is simple enough. Thank you
You are welcome! Glad I could help!
Now if you have discovered how to crossband repeat a baofeng, you are a genius! I want to see that.
I am interested to see your follow up videos.
Not only will it crossband, but it will crossband with using a single radio! That video is coming up next.....
nice short and sweet video. good info. thanks !!
Glad it was helpful!
Great vid!!
If you have any old 3.5mm camera av output the fuse or de-noising device works great for a passthrough filter if you want to build a 2 radio, dual frequency repeater, Mine was made by canon, I spliced in the 2.5mm end so you can do a group to group repeater from GMRS to MURS, no delay and no internal batteries and no Delay.. try it out I think I heard ya while messing with my antenna in SoMD..
Sounds interesting. Have to send me some info and details on that.
Thanks ! Well done.
Thank you!!
Different tools for different jobs. Nothing wrong with this option
Nope, great for a quick temporary field installation or beginner just trying it out
I need to know where to get the counterpoise and the tactical elastic restraint.
LOL! Another viewer mentioned "Ranger-Bands" which are damn fine EDPM rubberbands.
The counterpoise I make from 10ga *silver tinned* silicone jacketed wire. Seal and heat shrink the far end. The radio connection is a tinned copper spade connector that's heat-shrinked after crimping. It's then optionally painted with a camo pattern. The length should be about 20.375" from the tip of the spade to end of the wire. *I do sell them as well.* But honestly, they can be made with any wire. It does have to be expensive silver tinned 10ga. I try to use the absolute best when making radio accessories/antennas when possible.
I thought that 2 handhelds programmed and wired together with a 10$ connector cable was cheaper, but I do like this idea a lot I’ve dumped a lot of money into radio gear haha
Yeah... You'd think that would work good!? But, it doesn't really.
It works as well as removing a phillips screw with an undersized flat-head. Yes it technically works, but def the wrong tool for the job. But it can work, just not well.
Not with these cheap chines radios. They desense each other something awful. The radios are great for the price but their intermod rejection is nonexistent.
What did you use for the counterpoise (counterbalance)?
I use 10ga. stranded silver tinned wire. Heat-shrink cap on one end, spade connector at the other. Lengths vary, but 19-1/2" to 21-1/4" will work best.
So this would work with a quansheng ukv5 too then?
Yup! Sure will!
Any special licensing for this ? Thanks
Not at all. Any licensing requirements are for the operation of the radio. Not the repeater controller.
Will this work with the Talkpod A36SE GMRS Two Way Radio and the other Baofeng GMRS Radios?
Yes as shown in the video it will work with any radio with the kenwood “two prong” style cable. Surecom has other cables compatible with other radios. And if all else fails, you can build your own cable if you know the “pinout” for the radio. For custom cables you would need to identify the mic+, speaker+, ground, and PTT. With those four pins properly identified a custom cable and be made for any radio that uses a “low” PTT signal. For more advanced users, a cable with a transistor, relay, or even better and opticoupler can be made for radios that use a “high” PTT signal. But if you have those skills, you would most likely be using a more advanced repeater controller in the first place.
@@Commodium Thank for the reply Commodium..
So, this appears to be a simplex repeater. Correct?
Yes simplex single channel/frequency "parrot repeater"
Looks like FRS could also use this repeater.
If you set the repeater radio on FRS channels it would do it. Some “self appointed radio policeman” would cite you about 10 paragraphs saying why you shouldn’t, or else… But there isn’t anything in the realms of practical physicality that would prevent someone from using any unlocked radio and a simple repeater controller from making a “FRS Repeater” However the DC overlords would certainly frown upon it.
😱
That's what we here in brasuela call of "PARROT REPEATER" ( _Repetidora Papagaio_ ) .
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
🇧🇷
73 de *PX7G6946*
👀👂
Yes it sure is!
@@Commodium I built a repeater like this, but using an old smartphone and on it the app called ZELLO.
Zello has a feature called (echo).
Through a cable, I connect the radio to the smartphone, and Zello does its part, picking up the radio's voice and then repeating it.
73
Where is Brasuela?
brasuela? oh my dear,, it is right there ,, south america,, right next to uruguay ,, betwin Atlantic Ocean and Peru... It used to be called of Brasil,, but now we are a communist country like Venezuela... LOL hahahah,,
You also can call it Brasuba (Brasil + cuba) , or Brasambique (brasil+moçambique) ,, you can call it simply of Communist country, the bigger here in south america.
meanwhile, our president is sending millions of dollars to communist countries like, cuba, moçambiqueetc, claiming it's humanitarian aid, while our people here suffer in poverty, with never-ending construction projects that are merely a means of embezzling public funds... that's why I now refer to this country as "Brasuela," as it has become a dictatorial country just like its neighbor, Venezuela.
Our president is incompetent, and the dictator here is a minister of the Supreme Federal Court (STF); he's the one pulling the strings.
On January 8, 2023, he arrested around 300 people and sentenced them to 17 years in prison simply for protesting. Over 200 people, including children and the elderly, are still in prison to this day!
Doesn't the media outside show this?
I'm appalled!😵💫
Use ranger bans in place
Those things are great!!!!
Yeah right! I use them for everything
What is the green cable attached to the radio?
That is a small length of 10ga wire. It acts as a counterpoise or ground plane for the antenna. Handhelds are designed to use you holding them as part of the antenna system. Being hoisted up into a tree without an operator, the antenna needs a counter-balance or ground plane to operate as efficiently as possible. The abbree antenna I used in the video requires it on lower VHF 2m but not on the UHF 70cm. If you have watch the "How far can you talk" video I have, it will go a little more in-depth on counterpoises. Thanks!
I second this question. What did you use to make, or otherwise source your counterbalance/counterpoise?
These I make. I use 10ga *silver tinned* silicone jacketed wire. Seal and heat shrink the far end. The radio connection is a tinned copper spade connector that's heatshrinked after crimping. It's then optionally painted with a camo pattern. The length should be about 20.375" from the tip of the spade to end of the wire. I do sell them as well. And honestly, they can be made with any wire. It does have to be expensive silver tinned 10ga. But I try to use the absolute best when possible. @@shawnstimson239
What’s the counter balance for
It gives something for the antenna radiators to work against. Think ground plane. But in reality it’s more like the missing section of a dipole antenna. And is very helpful IF your antenna doesn’t have some sort of internal impedance matching
What is the wattage of the device?
NM I just answered my own question. LOL
How long of a recording can it do?
I’ve not tried to time it out, but the documentation says 180 seconds of total record time including any stored messages
@@Commodium that’s a decent amount of time
@@lawrence1md They do a decent enough job for what they are. Be interesting to strap the whole contraption to a drone and range test....
Awesome stuff. Questions: 1) how is the surefire powered when up in the tree? does the Kenwood cable power the surefire? and 2) does the ptt on the baofeng need to be depressed while up in the tree while hooked up to the surefire?
All great questions! #1 the repeater controller has in internal battery. It charges via a USB cable. Even though it's only 900ma, it will last a bit longer than the handheld radio. #2 As far as the PTT control goes, the controller itself will initiate the PTT via the kenwood style cable. So no need for VOX. Basically connect it together via the cable. Setup any CTCSS tones you want to use (always a good idea for a repeater) then throw it in a tree or up on a pole. Dead Easy!
@@Commodium bad the heck ass...i'm gonna give this a test run this weekend at the lake. i knew you mentioned the internal battery; just was unsure if that was what was relied on for the video. possibly, a USB battery brick could be integrated for longer term but this is fun. thanks.
Food for thought... If you have a two-port USB Brick (or splitter), and the radio has a USB-C charging port (5RM among others) you could use the power brick to extend the battery life of both the repeater controller and radio for a few more days of use. @@stewartjas68
@@Commodium You definitely want a tone on the repeater receive radio. I had a microwave tower start tripping the radio on and off and by the time I got back to the car. It had fried the SureCom SR-112. This will work with FRS radios. Amazing when local kids start hearing themselves on the radio. They cleanup their act quickly.
Yes absolutely. The follow up video has tone management and setup. Should be posted soon. @@2148aa
Good idea using a toy radio in case you have to abandon it.
Hence the cheapest repeater you can build. But the 5RM isn't a bad little handheld. It works and for most people that's enough. I have gotten 42 miles with stock antenna into a repeater at about 200ft elevation. Now granted it was scratchy audio, but still usable.
Not a bad quick setup, but with the repeater itself being $60 I think I'd be better off on gmrs just linking a couple of cheap mobile units. I can see some good use though for 2m to test range from my property to my mobile unit. I still may get one for that and just park it on gmrs for the rest of my family most of the time. Add in the 30watt solar panel I got and a cheap buck converter to keep everything charged it hopefully would run for a year or so before something in the cheap chinese bundle broke.
Linking a couple mobiles for GMRS works nicely. If doing an in-band repeater with them, it makes a huge difference having a duplexer with filters. Those get real pricey real fast for anything above 25watts. The transmit radio can swamp-out and de-sense the receive radio. Even with spacing the antenna. Sure it works without one, but missing a good chunk of additional range. And if you already have the mobiles, have the skills, duplexer be damned, do whatever suits your needs. That's what gets me frustrated with "radio experts" always want to be nay-sayers.
And eventually these surecom repeaters fail. I have found it's always the batteries that crap out. But they are easily replaced with more cheap chinese junk and your off to the races again.
Thanks so much for watching and sharing your thoughts!
@@Commodium Thanks for the advice. I don't have a gmrs mobile and will do some research. I just want to put something up cheap on the other side of my property(acreage) where it's 50' higher elevation than the house. I eventually plan to put up a 40' tower over there(no tall trees) but will just use a pole for now. 25 watts of output is fine as the difference between that and 50 is pretty negligible. As far as interfere, I've seen entire hf bands wiped out by a 100 watt signal a mile away so no surprise and will have to get some decent filters. What I'd really like to do is use a Raspberry Pi Zero with rtl-sdr for receive then link a mobile for transmit, but I'd have to get some time to put it together. The surecom would just be a quick solution and hacking some new batteries together wouldn't be a problem. Agreed with the experts, better to have something up than spending thousands to try and do it commercial grade so I can talk to a couple of extra unappreciative crotchety old hams 2 counties away in fm. I can do that on 20, 40 and 80m for a lot cheaper lol
I know its a cheap Baofeng, but my OCD cringed when you put the radio face down on dirty concrete, and proceeded to twist the radio
The Baofengs like it rough....
I've never heard of a counterpoise being called a counterbalance before.
Simplex repeater controllers have been around for a long time.
WOW great info and nonsense turorial