utah-jk

So, I have my Technician Class license. I just bought a new Icom 2 meter handheld. I program in the repeater frequency and the subaudible tone frequency. I can hear the repeater every 15 minutes sending out Morse Code identification. Occasionally I hear people talking on the frequency. But I can never make contact with anyone. I think there is one critical step I am missing to access the repeater. What am I doing wrong?

AK4Dave

Yes.....you'll need to know for sure what the split is and program your handheld accordingly. There is a good chance the split will already be programmed into your new rig, you just have to turn it on. Some repeaters also need a "subtone" to access. You will know when you've keyed the repeater correctly as you should hear a tone, or hear the repeater keyed up for a couple seconds after you unkey. If you don't know the split or if it needs a tone or not, if you know the call sign of the repeater, you should be able to look him, or the club up on the internet, and find the info there. For instance if I operated a repeater, you could go to QRZ.com, look up WL7CMG, and detailed info should come up with my call sign page. Of course a local HAM will know it as well. There is also a US repeater manual that lists the repeaters all over the US. The local Radio Shack might have them, or if not you can get one through the ARRL.
Good Luck....

CJK

You may not be "hitting" the repeater with your low power handheld. Even though you're receiving a signal you might not have enough power to reach the repeater depending on range and line-of-sight obstructions.

utah-jk

My home apparently is in a dead spot. After figuring out to set up the split properly and program in the correct subaudible tone, I went out into the center of the valley and was able to use the repeater to talk from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas. I'll try some other repeaters to see if they work better in my home. Thanks for the info.