Guides

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MeshCore vs Meshtastic vs Reticulum

Which should you actually run? Routing, encryption, whether they interoperate — and the claims from every camp worth retiring.

Read guide → MeshCore

MeshCore IDs & avoiding collisions

What 1-, 2-, and 3-byte Public IDs mean, why collisions happen, and how to pick a clean ID with MeshMapper.

Read guide → GMRS

Get your GMRS license

$35, no test, covers your whole family — every FCC step, start to finish.

Read guide → Amateur Radio

Working amateur radio satellites

Orbits, modes and the active birds — talk through space with a handheld, or chase DX off a dish.

Read guide → MeshCore

Set up your first MeshCore node

Flash the firmware, pair the app, set your region, and get on the mesh.

Read guide → MeshCore

Set up a MeshCore repeater

Flash the Repeater role, lock it down, set 3-byte IDs, and mount it high.

Read guide → MeshCore

MeshCore backup & key security

Back up your node and keep your private key safe — before a reflash bites you.

Read guide → MeshCore

Flash the OTAFIX bootloader

Make over-the-air updates actually work — push firmware to a roof-mounted repeater over Bluetooth.

Read guide → MeshCore

OTA updates for repeaters

Push new firmware over Bluetooth (or WiFi) — no cable, no ladder. OTAFIX required first.

Read guide → MeshCore

The Sensor firmware: weather over the mesh

Turn a cheap LoRa board into an off-grid weather station — which sensors plug in, and how to read the data.

Read guide → MeshCore

Set up an observer node

Flash the observer firmware and point it at RF Lab — feed CoreScope and the analyzers with every packet you hear.

Read guide → Meshtastic

Set up your first Meshtastic node

Flash the firmware, pair the app, set your region, and send your first message.

Read guide → Meshtastic

Meshtastic backup & security

Your private key is your identity — back it up, go private, and lock a node down.

Read guide → Reticulum

Reticulum for beginners

The crypto-first networking stack that runs over LoRa, the internet and packet radio — what it is and how to start.

Read guide → Hardware

Antennas 101

SWR, coax, and where to mount — the fundamentals that actually move the needle.

Read guide → Hardware

A field guide to coax

Sizes, real loss numbers, impedance match, the common connectors and how to weatherproof a joint.

Read guide → Hardware

RF passband filters

Cavity, SAW & ceramic filters — loss, tuning, cost, front-end overload, placement, and the 915 MHz tower case.

Read guide → Amateur Radio

What to do with a Technician license

Past the repeater — weak-signal, the magic band, simplex, satellites, APRS, packet and your slice of HF.

Read guide → Amateur Radio

SSB, explained

Single sideband in depth — LSB vs USB, bandwidth, and how to tune and run it cleanly.

Read guide →