Hi Christy,

Well, now-of-days, a major metropolitan center like St. Louis likely has a 
large number of repeaters and due to recent FCC regulatory changes--I would 
bet that most if not all of the repeaters are using CTCSS (PL tones).  Most 
rigs manufactured in the past decade have PL tones built-in.

As far as a good basic rig, if you're looking for a good duel band (2M/70CM) 
rig, I would recommend getting a used TMV7A from a reputable source. 
Unfortunately, they do not manufacture this model any more, but there are 
still a lot of them floating around on the used market.  I have one I got 
from John on this list over a year ago and it is quite accessible.  It has a 
speech board available (some used models of course may also have these 
boards and some may not) and entering PL tones--while not a cake walk--is 
quite easy if you are used to a bit of logical sequencing.  I regularly 
enter them without sighted help.

I am sure there are a number of other rigs you could get (single band 2 
meter rigs are a little more than a hundred dollars brand new) but the TMV7A 
is a good bet for a duel bander.

As far as indoor antennas for apartments, I had a friend in the same 
situation as you are.  He was on the second (in his case the top) floor, and 
he used a duel band J-Pole (the copper type--not the 300 ohm roll-up). 
Assuming you have the corner of a room or maybe a crawl space that is about 
5 feet or more high, this worked quite well for him.

Now these copper J-poles are only as good as the person constructing them. 
I had a kindly, but elderly guy make one for me and it never worked 
properly.  Then later, I had a guy who was younger and used quality tools 
and was a real master craftsman (or is it craftsperson <g>) and the thing 
worked great.  He later constructed for me a 9 element Yagi beam that cost a 
whopping 23 dollars US.

In any case, you might want to reestablish contact with a ham club and maybe 
there's a master craftsman/person there who will do a bang up job for you in 
constructing an antenna of some sort.

I hope this gives you a bit of insight on the issue.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Christy Schulte" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, November 29, 2006 1:41 PM
Subject: Radio recommendations?


Realizing I may be opening up a can of worms here..

I've been licensed for over ten years now, but haven't been active for quite
some time for various reasons. I'd like to get back into the radio scene,
but I find myself way out of the loop and needing to get a new radio and
accessories. Not having much of an idea of any new things out there, and I'm
sure a lot has changed, I'm looking for any recommendations you might have.
Here's what I'm up against.

I live in the st. louis area, and from what I understand a lot of the
repeaters here use PL tones. I haven't pulled up an actual list of repeaters
yet, that's my next project. I'm still a technician as far as licensing,
though I'm hoping to move up if I can get my hands on some good training
materials. Unfortunately, I've forgotten most of what I knew so I need to
refresh myself first. Right now I'm looking for something that would get me
on 2 meters and 70 cm though, additional bands I wouldn't complain about.
I'd prefer something fairly cheap, but more importantly I need something
that is decently accessible as I don't really have much access to sighted
assistance. That may change once I get up and running and can start
networking with local hams, but for now it's where I am. Being able to set
PL tones on my own is a definite must.

I'm also in an apartment, so am looking for an antenna that could work for
such a radio halfway decently without needing to be outside. Again, I'm not
the most skilled so for now building my own is out of the question.

I guess what I'm looking for is any ideas, suggestions, for someone brand
new to this. Though I'm not brand new I might as well be at least until I
get back up with my knowledge and skills. Don't worry, I intend to do my own
research as well. I just thought I'd throw this idea out there

Thanks in advance for any help anyone may be willing to provide.

Christy, KI4GYH

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