passed my tech ticket, time to radio shop.. handheld or mobile?

[mparker]

There are so many radios available and I just can't decide. Should I get a mobile or a handheld, a 2m only or multi mode. i. Would guess I cand go wrong with an icom or yeasu.

I ask because I don't wana have regrets when I move from tech to gen and then onto extra...

[N1BHH]

This has been discussed ad nauseum here and all kinds of boards. I have both mobile and hand held radios in use. Dual band radios are the way to go since there are plenty of repeaters to operate through. The best thing to do is go to the Universal Radio website as they have a good display of each radio and it's features.
Amateur Mobile Transceivers
Amateur Handheld Radios

As for antennas, you will need a good quality antenna, not some cheap imitation.
Amateur Mobile Antennas
Amateur Base Antennas

It's the antenna that makes your radio heard. Roof of the car is the best place for one. Roof of the house is also the place for one as well. Although I have a mag mount on my air conditioner, it works for what I want to do. As you can see, I use Yaesu. Others like Icom.

I don't work for Universal but their site is the best for looking at the various models and finding what you want, with many pictures to choose from. Check with the locals for repeater and simplex activity. I use both and have lots of fun doing either.

[W9RXR]

Since the OP's location is Columbus, Ohio, I will heartily recommend that he visit Universal Radio which is on the east side of Columbus just off I-70. The staff there is friendly and won't put a lot of pressure on you to buy. If they aren't busy, I'm sure they will let a shopper try various radios to see what they like.

Among the "big three" (Icom, Kenwood, Yaesu), the radios are all pretty good technically. What it comes down to, in my opinion, is the user interface. No test report or online "review" will tell you which radio suits your operating style or the way you think. If a radio is not intuitive enough for you to do basic tasks (setting a frequency, setting the repeater offset, setting the CTCSS tone, saving a memory, etc.) then it's not the radio for you.

[mparker]

Originally Posted by W9RXR

Since the OP's location is Columbus, Ohio, I will heartily recommend that he visit Universal Radio .

i was just going to say that... i go there often for my scanner needs... they are great folks.. i figured i would drop by and talk to them about this same question... i just like to get different opinions...

as for my first thoughts... handheld i think would be fun... just the mobility of it and being able to transmit wherever whenever sounds exciting to me... but the downside is the antenna (from what ive been reading).. thats why i thought a mobile would be nice... but then i would have to buy a power supply to use it at home and a portable power supply to take it into the field... sounds like a lot of stuff to carry...

the vx-7r on paper looks AMAZING...

[canav844]

1. As far as regrets go down the line, unless you want to shell out $$ for a radio that can do all the bands, it's probably going to be a multiple radio thing as you progress over the years, tech is VHF and up, Gen is entry to HF and extra is everything (or even more HF).

2. Right now you've got the book knowledge, but you'll really start to become a HAM, after you start doing it, and using it, and learning a ton about it everyday on an entirely different scale than is needed for passing the test.

3. Think about what you want to do in the next year with HAM radio, do you want to take part in ARES/RACES/SKYWARN, chat on your local repeater (what is in your area for repeaters, bands range clubs etc), talk to people around the country on road trips, make cross ocean contacts, talk to space, get into packet radio? What your answers are here will impact what's the best choice for you and what features you'll want.

4. If you're going to get a mobile, I'd suggest getting a power supply and antenna to make it a base for a few months first so that you can learn the radio and it's features and be comfortable using it without all the distractions you'll face in the car (or the alternate solution for me was to go sit at the local park in the car and mess with it while repeater chatting, but the parks here close at sunset)

5. Plan for a good antenna and SWR meter. (And if you're like me the HT I got about a month after getting the mobile, so that I didn't have to put the conversation down just caus eI was getting out of the car)

6. Don't get caught up in the "stuff" aspect of it all, get on the air and have fun, you didn't get the ticket so you could spend your hard earned $$ you got it so you could enjoy HAM radio.

Since you're already into scanning you ought to have a leg up on #2 and #3; and shut off the pub safety bands for a while and listen to the HAM traffic now so when you've got the radio you'll already have "heard" the formats and ettiquette in use and be able to jump right on!

(and remember if you go HT you can get a mobile antenna and base antenna, and some spare batteries and a charger and turn that HT into a mobile or base, you just wont see the same power output as the other radios)

[Bill_White]

Originally Posted by canav844

1. As far as regrets go down the line, unless you want to shell out $$ for a radio that can do all the bands, it's probably going to be a multiple radio thing as you progress over the years, tech is VHF and up, Gen is entry to HF and extra is everything (or even more HF).

FALSE:
Amateur radio operators holding a Novice or Technician class license
DO indeed have operating privileges on the flowing HF frequencies:
80 Meters - 3.525-3.600 MHz: CW Only
40 Meters - 7.025-7.125 MHz: CW Only
15 Meters - 21.025-21.200 MHz: CW Only
10 Meters - 28.000-28.300 MHz: CW, RTTY/Data--Maximum 200 watts PEP
28.300-28.500 MHz: CW, Phone--Maximum 200 watts PEP

Here is a handy cheat sheet:
http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/reg...ands_color.pdf
__________________________________________________ _____

mparker,
What kind of budget are we talking about for your first radio??

[mparker]

That is certainly a lot of info to consider.... I know already that from just reading that post that talking to the ISS, making contacts across the world, and making contact while I travel (my wife and I like cruising). I think I am going to look into a multi band handheld and a decent antenna. I've already got a discone in the attic for the scanner so maybe with an antenna switch and some adapters I can make use of it when I am at home with the handheld.

I really like the vx7r... but I still need to research and maybe even play with a few instore and see which feels right to me to operate.

[pasadenamd]

What hand held would be good for ARES/RACES with a tech license?

[Codejockey]

I'd also like to know this.

[W9RXR]

Originally Posted by pasadenamd

What hand held would be good for ARES/RACES with a tech license?

First, find out what bands and frequencies are used by your local amateur radio emergency communications group. Then buy a handheld that will communicate effectively on those bands and frequencies.

In general, a VHF (2 meter) handheld is the basic radio that you would need. But if your local group is using the 440MHz or 222MHz bands, then you would need a radio for those bands.

The correct answer really depends on what's being used in your local area.

[mparker]

Lets stay on topic please