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How to Make a Homemade Repeater From Handhelds

A repeater increases the range of your transmissions by repeating sounds that enter a receiver as they pass into a transmitter. Although this may sound complex, modifying a receiver and transmitter to create a repeater is a fairly simple operation. What you need to do is some hardware reconfiguration of two radios to make one a receiver and the other a transmitter, while also programming them to operate at the proper frequencies and power. After you have completed this operation, you can broadcast whatever words or music you wish to a bigger potential audience than ever before.

Things You'll Need

2 Icom IC-F200 series radios
2 Icom OPC-617 accessory cables
2 DB-9 male connector assemblies (including connectors and hoods)
One 5-conductor cable (6-to-8-inches long)
Phillips screwdriver
Soldering iron
Solder
Precision knife
CS-F100S (or any other Icom IC-F200 series compatible ham radio programming software)
OPC-1122 programming cable

Instructions

Preparing the Transmitting Radio
- 1
  Choose one radio to be the receiving radio and one radio to be the transmitting radio.
- 2
  Remove the bottom cover of the radio that will be the transmitter.
- 3
  Find the jumper location labeled "F" on the microchip in the radio that will be transmitting. Place a bit of solder on this jumper location and melt it on to block this connection.
- 4
  Insert one of your OPC-617 accessory cables into the sixth slot from the bottom of the white plastic socket on the right-hand side of the microchip (the "J6" connector).
- 5
  Use your screwdriver to put the bottom cover back on the radio. If necessary, use a precision knife to cut away the plastic where there is a hole for a cable in the radio's casing to make room for your accessory cable.
Preparing the Receiving Radio
- 6
  Remove the bottom cover of the radio, using your screwdriver.
- 7
  Insert your other OPC-617 accessory cable into the sixth slot from the bottom of the white plastic socket on the right-hand side of the microchip (the "J6" connector).
- 8
  Use your screwdriver to put the bottom cover back on the radio. If necessary, use your precision knife to cut away the plastic where there is a hole for a cable in the radio's casing to make room for your accessory cable.
Connections
- 9
  Connect your 5-conductor cable to your DB9M pins so that from one of your DB9M pin interfaces one cable runs to pin 3 to 4, 4 to 3, 5 to 6, 6 to 5, and 9 to 9.
- 10
  Plug the ends of your OPC-617 cable into your DB9M sockets.
- 11
  Connect your repeater to your computer with your programming cable.
Configuration
- 12
  Click on the icon for your radio programming software on your desktop or in your "Start" menu.
- 13
  Follow the configuration guide included with your software, or run an Internet search for "DIY radio programming" to find an online guide.
- 14
  Run a transmission through your repeater to test it and have a receiver set up outside of your usual range to test your repeater.

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