Is Mass. metrowest repeater community still alive?

[wheelgun]

It's been about 10-12 years since I was last active on 2 meters. I used to use a Yaesu 227RB back then, and later got a Kenwood TM-231a. Lately I've been thinking of getting back into it again. Both my old radios are broken down, flaky and not really usable. But before I make a decision to buy a new one, it occurred to me, what's the status of the VHF/UHF community in my area (Mass. metrowest)? Are there still a lot of active users?

So I decided to try and fire up the old Yaesu to see. It can't transmit, but the receiver still works. I've been listening and scanning for a couple of days now, and the outlook is dim. I found only three active machines (146.640, 146.955 and 146.970), and even they were rarely active. So it appears there are very few 2m users in my area anymore.

Is this an accurate statement? Would I find more users on 70cm? Looking at the repeater directory I see lots of 2m machines listed as active. But like I said, I hear little or no activity on any of them. Would appreciate any feedback on this.

Thanks.

 

[Realtor MA]

I find a fair amount of action on 2m and 440 throughout the day. There are a lot of repeaters so it seems that the activity is spread out a bit. Lots of the locals use 220 on Tuesdays and 900 on Thursdays but the regulars are always at least monitoring.

 

[Zappa]

I myself rarely ever use 2M in Mass, but there is a lot of regular activity on the band.
Since most people have them in their cars, activity normally peaks during morning and evening commute times.
I see you listed Waltham and Paxton, which are two of the more active repeaters.
I also hear a lot on Boston 145.23 and Quincy 146.670.
UHF is usually less active than 2M, but Waltham 449.075 can get busy almost any time of the day.
I suggest you get one of the new dual banders, such as the Yaesu FT-7900, which goes for under $300 and has more memory than you'll ever need. Just program it up with every freq in the book and throw it in scan, you're bound to find some activity somewhere.

 

[Roscoe]

there was a guy chunking the repeaters in Westford and others preventing any reasonable use if it. He made it impossible do do anything.

Not sure if he's still being a douchbag or not, but it killed much if the use.

 

[Radio]

After a long hiatus the 220Mhz Paxton Repeater is alive again!

Came back on the air today 224.380, no PL

Amazing coverage.

Have at it!