RT97 Portable GMRS Repeater Mobile Repeater

As a radio operator with over 30 years of experience and a long-time Retevis customer, I have had the pleasure of using the RT97 GMRS Repeater for several years. I mostly use the repeater during camping trips with my family and Scouts, where portability and reliable communication are essential. I’ve shared my experience with the RT97 through a video and continue to rely on it for our outdoor activities. It’s become an indispensable piece of equipment for staying connected in places where traditional communication methods fail.

I use the Retevis RT97 GMRS repeater for personal use when my family goes hunting or camping in remote areas. In these rugged terrains, staying connected is crucial, and often the only option is to place the repeater on a high peak. This allows us to maintain communication down into the ravines and valleys below, where regular radio signals would fail. In September 2024, our family experienced firsthand just how essential this communication tool can be. Our pack horses got trapped in a dense wooded area under fallen trees, making it impossible to free them. In a situation like this, quick help was necessary, and thankfully, we had the RT97 repeater positioned high on a peak, allowing us to reach our base camp. With the repeater’s strong and reliable signal, we were able to get immediate assistance, and help was sent without delay. Though many around us assumed it was our radios that made the difference, the real hero was the Retevis RT97 repeater, which provided the necessary signal to stay connected in this challenging terrain.

It’s portable, easy to install, and greatly extends our radio range.

I get the RT97 repeater up and running It is doing a good job we’re talking about 19mile from cow camp to home Lots of hills and trees between us is siting around 5140’ and home is about 4100’

The duplexer prevents cross-talk even with 15+ radios online. Pro tip: Mount the unit vertically to prevent dust ingress during off-road vibration.

After struggling for years with spotty comms in the Appalachian foothills, our hunting group deployed the RT97 repeater on a 30ft pine tree with a Tram 1486 antenna. Despite dense foliage, we now maintain clear contact across 8 square miles. The solar-compatible battery lasts 3 days of dawn-to-dusk operation - just enough for weekend trips.

Works great may have to get one more to cover all the nooks and crannies in our twenty square mile mountain ranch. Highly recommended.

If you don't need a lot of power and you want easy setup, this is your device. If you need station ID for allowing public to use, RT97 is the way to go. I have no background in radio and this was super easy to setup with an online video once.

Really helped our portable radios along with increased our coverage in our vehicles from around 3 miles to 9 miles.Really great product and worth the buy.

when used with a Comet 712 efc gmrs antenna on a 40 ft tower in a hilly area using mag mount antenna on trucks we reached out 15 miles

We are running one of these local and it works excellent all around the valley. I decided to purchase my own to set up mobile for camping and such.

Purchased this GMRS repeater to set up an ad-hoc bicycle based repeater network for events where participants may not want to carry mobile devices. Havent put it into use yet, but tests show it works extremely when parked atop a downtown parking structure. Powered by a small lithium battery tge entire system of repeater and vattery fits into a discreet looking backpack.

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Works perfectly FOR LONG-RANGE COMMUNICATION. Easy to use, easy to carry.

A compact, easy to use, easy to program GMRS repeater.

This repeater is an awesome value for the money it works fantastic on our hunting property, I have it connected to a 12-volt deep cycle battery. Built a 20' tall mast out of 2 chain link fence top rails guy wires and a nice GMRS antenna connected with lmr400 coax it's a sweet setup!!! Couldn't be more satisfied with this purchase nice job Retevis I will be purchasing another one for my home property.

Bought it based on reviews on youtube and have not been disappointed - this thing is cool. Set up in a hilly area with a lot of trees and I seem to be getting what would be expected in this terrain and such. Solid coverage over 800+ acres with only a few spots being hit or miss. Has greatly increased comms ability in the area. Using a low-priced Omni antenna as well with no complaints. Shipping direct from the manufacturer was quicker.

Presently I am getting 16 miles of coverage in a mountainous area. This summer I will place the unit at about 7000 feet after the snow recedes and should get 100 miles coverage. The best GMRS Repeater to expand my handheld radios

This mobile and durable repeater works well for the GMRS operator looking for versatility. This repeater increased handheld transceiver range by several miles with even just a small mag-mount antenna. The repeater is even reprogramable. Highly recommend.