Radio Programming
To use this repeater, your radio should be programmed for 147.105 MHz with a +600 kHz offset and 103.5 Hz CTCSS tone encode. Optionally you may wish to program your radio to require 103.5 Hz on receive. This will prevent other distant repeaters, local noise from various sources, etc. from being a nuiscance while you are monitoring for activity on this repeater.
Three Minute Transmission Timer
This repeater employs a three minute time out timer. This is an FCC requirment for all repeaters. No user transmission can exceed three minutes in duration. If a user attempts a longer transmission the repeater will shut down after three minutes. It will resume normal operations when the user stops transmitting. At this time it will send a series of three question marks in Morse code at a speed of 20 words per minute [hear it]. This lets the user know the repeater timed out and some portion of his transmission was not received by the other party.
Courtesy Beeps
This repeater employs a "courtesy beep" after the end of every user transmission. The courtesy beep lets you know the other station is done transmitting and that the three minute time out timer has been reset.
The normal courtesy beep is a Morse code letter K with a pitch of 400 Hz sent at a speed of 25 words per minute. [hear it]
If the repeater is operating on battery power the courtesy beep is a Morse clode letter K with a pitch of 800 Hz sent at a speed of 25 words per minute. [hear it]
If the repeater is in "weak signal mode" (see below) the courtesy beep is a Morse code letter S with a pitch of 400 Hz sent at a speed of 25 words per minute. [hear it]
Weak Signal Mode (user function)
Normally this repeater operates in "dual squelch" mode. What this means is that the repeater must detect the 103.5 Hz tone on your signal and your signal must be strong enough to open the carrier squelch. Carrier squelch is the old fashioned type of squelch where only signals of sufficient strength (as would be seen on a S meter) will come through. This dual squelch mode has advantages, such as eliminating the annoying "squelch crash" (burst of noise) that would otherwise be heard at the end of every transmission. However, under certain conditions the carrier squelch may tend to "chop" the user's audio if the signal into the repeater is weak. If you are trying to receive transmissions from someone who is weak and noisy into the repeater and their audio keeps cutting out, you can temporarily disable the repeater's carrier squelch. Please be aware this may or may not help. It depends on the specific characteristics of the user signal strength and any noise or interference that might be present at the repeater. In some cases, it does help. Note: if you are the one whose signal is weak and choppy, you will probably have to get someone else to turn weak signal mode on for you. It is unlikely the repeater will hear and understand the command sequence from a very weak station.
To activate this special mode, you must transmit the folowing sequence of DTMF tones: ***
If the command is successful (you transmitted the correct tone sequence and the repeater clearly heard all three tones), the repeater will respond with a three-step
series of tones ascending in pitch, followed by high speed Morse code "WS ON" [hear it]. The repeater courtesy tone changes to the Morse code letter S.
To cancel this mode and return the repeater to normal operation, send the following sequence of DTMF tones: ###
If the command is successful, the repeater will respond with a three-step series of tones descending in pitch, followed by high speed Morse code "WS OFF" [hear it]. The
repeater courtesy tone changes back to the normal Morse code letter K.
It will be appreciated if you turn this special mode off when you are finished using it but if you forget or are unable to do so, don't worry. After 60 minutes the repeater automatically resets to normal mode. If you should need weak signal mode for more than 60 minutes, you will need to re-enable it after 60 minutes.
The ascending and descending tones are your key to whether the command was successfully received. It is understood that most repeater users won't be able to copy the high speed Morse code messages. They are to let the repeater owner or control operator know what function was turned on or off. This way the same ascending/descending tones can be used to notify uers of on/off acceptance for future functions, while having different Morse code messages so the control operator knows what functions are being used.
Last update July 6, 2014