A few months ago there was still a shop in the back building in the corner full of radio and electronic parts, but I didn't see anyone manning it.A few years back I was told there is a guy that sets up at the Milton Flea Market who is a wealth of knowledge. Never pursued, but maybe he's still there?
I actually have a repeater in between me and my son.I can say from personal experience, VHF/UHF are pretty much line-of sight. Gonna be hard without a repeater but upping the wattage will give you some added range. Good luck.
I'm guessing they are more concerned about power output and the potential to interfere with airfield systems operating on microwave frequencies. Maybe cell phones are the better option?Yeah, if anyone is willing to do a radio test for us, it would have to be at our location, as local conditions probably affect the range. Besides line of sight challenges, we are also right next to the airfield, which may be affecting our radios. And being right next to the airfield is the reason why they say that we can’t use a repeater, although I don’t know if there is any logic behind that.