GMRS Is NOT A Hobby! Difference Between Ham Radio & GMRS - Amateur Radio Vs. GMRS

In this video I explain some of the differences between GMRS and ham radio. I talk about the intended usage of GMRS and how it is different from amateur radio, and how "ham radio" is a hobby, but GMRS is not a hobby. I also discuss how to spot a ham-radio operator trying to use their GMRS radio like ham, and what normal GMRS users can to do stop them.
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[KeystoneInvestigations]

It's interesting you refer to yourself as a "queen"!
Now we know what kind of disgusting sub-human you really are!

[OverlandOne]

I am just here to watch for spurious emissions.

[rongeissr]

You nailed it! I can see why SomePeople get triggered by your videos. I knew there was a good reason I chose GMRS, but couldn't put it into words until you deconfukulated things.

[vicrod]

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 - Am I the only one that finds this guy entertaining? He's awesome!

[kchaney]

I chose GMRS for this very reason. I still listen to HAM and talk sometimes but GMRS users are much easier going.

[dennisbrummett]

For me GMRS is my reliable communications with friends/neighbors and home base family in my secluded area where cell coverage is spotty at best and non-existent down in the hollers... a lifeline to help should this old 74-year-old get hisself into a fix he can't get out of as I putter around the homeplace or while riding the trails around here. Spent 34 years as a big city cop where the radio was my lifeline. Still is on the mountain.

[thetravi]

Radio dork here. Radio is my hobby. But GMRS is the working side of my hobby. It’s way more user friendly and easier to get into than ham. I always advise potential future radio dorks to start with GMRS then maybe move on to ham. So far no one I have told this too has gotten their ham license but use GMRS every day. I’ve made a bunch of friends on my favorite GMRS repeater and we even started monthly meetings. Kinda like a club some would say. From my first Boofwang to my latest Yeasu, I owe it ALL to Randy. (I am also a ham now, but a happy one)

[dillinger]

CB, GMRS, HAM or whatever, just get out there and enjoy life. I have all three in my vehicles.

[Dazdigo]

Knowing the NATO Phonetic Alphabet is incredibly useful. I taught myself it because I was getting frustrated with how our work phone system really distorts English letters making them all sound the same.

[GarySchiltz]

WTF did I just watch? I guess the only benefit I derived is adding the word "confuckulated" to my vocabulary.

[Stan_Rich]

Another good vid Randy. GMRS plays an important role with our family & friends as we spend alot of time together fishing, hunting, camping, off-roading & more. Since early 70's, (up until 2020) CB's were our comms in the same outdoor activities we enjoy now and with many of our same family & friends with the addition of Kids and Grandkids that have come into into the mix. Now even our mid elementary school grandkids are on the radios in our outings. About the only time I connect with someone I may not know, is when I call for a radio check.

[squallywally]

Is there an affiliate link for the grinder app?

[mh]

Randy The Great. Please Bestow your Glorious Information!

[MOzarkMike]

I have GMRS for farm work. I am an extra class ham which lets me yack with folks in far away lands about weather and what kind of rig they are talking on.

[eemiii]

Well said! I use both ham and GMRS. Ham on HF frequencies is a “hobby” with roots in electronics tinkering for making random contacts to inconsistent locations. Ham on UHF/VHF frequencies is mostly local line of sight contacts to sad or happy hams unless using digital modes (another topic). GMRS is mostly more purpose driven for local line of sight communication.

[ihfrd]

1st, GMRS could be considered "ham radio light", if you're only comparing the cost of the equipment (GMRS $-$$ to ham $$$-$$$$). But it is true. I heard people on the ham repeaters just calling out, begging for someone to start a conversation. Checking your signal, sure, let me talk to you for a half hour while you're trying to set up your rig. But on the GMRS repeaters around me, it's mostly someone calling someone else directly, call sign to call sign, people that know each other. And yes, GMRS is more "utility", especially since your whole family can use it. I get together with the in-laws somewhere, I have GMRS radios to hand out. If there's a repeater nearby, conveniently my call sign is written on the radio for them to use. I find radio interesting and have both GMRS and ham. But the money that I would have used for that tri-band $1, 200 ham radio, I've put towards my GMRS base station, antenna, and HT's. Why you ask? Because comms with my family trumps comms with strangers. Coincidently my GMRS base station can scan through important ham frequencies and other frequencies worth monitoring for information, but that's all I really need during an emergency from ham, to listen, and not SHTF emergency where rules don't apply, more like hurricanes. I've also been finding that "Happy Hams" usually posses a GMRS license as well. So keep up the good work explaining the confucularities with your ofactions Randy. Keep em coming.

[beerbuzz]

Boy you got (SOME PEOPLE) cranked up.Gotta love it

[davidallen]

Thanks to your happy gmrs videos and reviews. I now own too many tdh3 radios, a handheld cb and a few wtf from the old hag. Going to the mountains!

[DM-qmsc]

GMRS is my favorite thing to do! I have found so many rare GMRS's already even though I just started. A guy I was talking to while GMRSing told me I must be really good at GMRS and I should come over to teach him, so after dinner im gonna go over there!

[ScottWanasek]

I'm dying here😂 Thank you for the entertainment and laughter