Need Ham Advice

[atankersdad]

I want to purchase a Ham radio (s). I need advice on a good starter base, mobile and hand held units. My sons also want to get hand held or mobile units gor their deuces. I know that this site has its share of operators, who can guide us on purchasing some good equipment that fits our needs. I took the practice test and passed it. I will probably go as far as I can until I have to do Morse code. I do not have the time or patience at this stage in my life for dots and dashes (sorry to all of you guys who had do this and then they dropped the standards, is guess is amateur radio affirmative action}. Drop me a PM. Thanks

 

[bugei]

ham radio

i loved my yaesu 757gxII hf transceiver. it was a great sized, kicked ass as a base or a mobile, and not too expensive. had a really nice general coverage reciever (and of course i am not advocating this), very easy to modify to talk darn near any band. with am, fm and both side bands (and the dreaded cw), you could talk to anyone, anywhere. i had the matching auto antenna tuner in the vehicle, so changing bands was EASY. i think i still have the tuner if you decide that you need one.

 

[ida34]

I got a couple of Yausu VX-170 a few years ago. I like the sealed unit for water resistance. It is said to be submersible but I am not trying it. I also like the fact that the buttons light up. They were pretty cheap and have worked great. They are VHF Highband.

 

[atankersdad]

Thanks bugei. It got me looking and researching. Read a lot of reviews and this is a well liked unit. Know anything about a FT-950. They no longer make the 757.

 

[alphadeltaromeo]

I'd recommend the ICOM V8000 for a simple but powerful little 2M radio (75 watts). Mine has been rock solid. Of course you'll need 12V for the radio's. My son has the Yaesu VX 170. This HT (hand held) is rock solid with respect to hardness. The one caveat is that you have to speak directly into the lil mic hole or your voice won't modulate well on it. The reason is that you can submerge it for 30 mins without issue, so the mic hole is protected. It's great for inclement weather and ARES events...additionally, the surrounding noise is greatly deminished because of the design.

Welcome to ham radio!

73

Andy

 

[OPCOM]

For a mobile radio that covers almost all of the ham bands, HF, VHF low and high, and UHF, the Icom IC706 MKiiG is the best. can be tricky to program with limited menus and the audio is tinny, so an external speaker is good. Costly. widely available used for $400-600.

For VHF and UHF mobile, I have found the Alinco DR series (DR-135, DR-435, etc) to be hard to beat. Easy to program, powerful, wideband RF transmit stage, intuitive controls on front and also has many useful keys on hand mike. There is a model for 6 meters, 2 meters, 220, and 440 (70CM). start at about $150 new.

Alinco also makes an HF radio, the DX-70. I have one and like it's performance for HF more than the Icom.

All mobile radios can be used for base. Just get an electronically regulated 12 volt power supply.

Base-only radios are often much more costly but usually come with a regular 120V plug. Performance such as sensitivity, power, and noise is about the same, but base radios may have more technical but less often used features like tunable input filters, etc.

I do not care much for handhelds and I prefer single band units. Too many little confusing multi-menu buttons!! So I will not comment on them, except for a complaint on the kenwood TH-F6 which I own. It is a great performing and high-featured radio, but on high power, the RF will get into the speaker-mike and crash the radio's software at times.

 

[charlessocccer]

I second that the yeasu 757 is a GREAT beginers radio. I got my general class amateur radio license in early december, and my dad gave me his old yeasu 757 for my base. (although, it would still be a good mobile rig).

as far as mobile, i would recomend a yeasu 897D, with a multiband antenna. For a handheld, the small multiband 2m/70cm are very capable, but have can be confusing with all the computer menus, Personaly, i like the Yaesu Vertex VX-170, because its easy to use, but still pretty capable.

yeasu 897d http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hamhf/1897.html

multiband antenna http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/hamantm/5066.html

Yaesu Vertex VX-170 http://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/ht/0170.html


BTW, the is NO morse code requirment for amateur radio.

 

[ETHOS]

what about the 857d from yaesu

 

[n1bnc]

what about the 857d from yaesu

I have one of these nifty DC to Daylight radios and I love it. I have worked into the Pacific on 75 meters, around the world on 20 & 40. Now I use it for my 6 meter station.

It has a lot of bang for the buck. At some point it will come to Brazil with me when I visit the in-laws.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[atankersdad]

Update: I went last saturday and got my Technician license. Took the general exam and missed it by a hand full. I can live with that. Purchased me an Icom handheld, since I use Icom radios everyday for work and am on very good terms with my supplier, if you know what I mean. Now for the mobile/base and antenna. I have never read so much material in my life on one subject and have only scratched the surface. Antenna theory and performance has taken up 6 nights worth of reading time (the is snow and ice on the ground, so after i play on the bobcat till dark I read till 9 or 10). Now after 6 nites, 4 books, and countless internet articles I have been bombarded with variuos ideas and opinions. Then cost is the deceiding factor. At least I am well prepared for the antenna questions on the general and advanced exams.

 

[kc5mzd]

I have used a collinear on a spring mount for mobile and a 4-element beam on 2 meters. They both worked very well. I also have a J pole I sometimes use it was my first antenna and works well on 2m and 70cm. I have never had much luck with any HF antenna I have tried several and none seem to work very well.

 

[ONTOS66]

Congratulations on completing the first step and getting your technician license. Now with the HT you can hit all the repeaters in your area and log some VHF experience. A little more study and you can get your General Class and expand your horizons to HF as well.

Like any hobby, half the fun is in the "research" (shopping, reading, talking about, etc.).

Enjoy!

 

[Chut1st]

Congratulations, Atankersdad, on earning your Tech License! You have joined a great group of folks.

I'll second the recommendation of the Icom IC706 MKIIG. Since I installed one in my pickup, the Kenwood base rig saw so little use that I sold it. With a 102" whip and the Icom antenna tuner, it will cover the HF bands extremely well. It also has a separate antenna jack for the 2m/440 mHz stick. Yes, the internal speaker is a bit tinny but since you can install the main unit anywhere and just put the control head on the dashboard, an external speaker comes in handy.

Hope we can have an eyeball QSO at a SS rally sometime.

73 (Hamspeak for "Best Regards")
Rick
KE4NTI@ARRL.NET