Just got a tech license RADIOS????

[axledobe]

Bill, thanks so much for asking this question. I just passed the Technician exam TODAY and had the same questions. I've been looking through a Ham Radio Outlet catalog since I got home from the test (Rocky in the VA office has always treated me VERY well on scanner purchases). I'm thinking that I want a dual band with wide band RX so I can listen to public safety and TX with the same unit. I've read good things about the Yaesu FT-60R and some Icom's, as well. I don't want to bite off more than I can chew but don't want to master something quickly and "want more" in the near future either (I plan on buying a HT first for sure). So, I'm hoping for an easy-to-use radio with an extended range of features. I'm certain there will be a learning curve but I'm willing to spend the time to master. Good luck to you. I'd love to hear some other recommendations, as well.

Jason

 

[Grog]

Soon, I can say "73's" and mean it!!!

Someone will say it, might as well be me :lol:


"73" means "Best regards" so "73's" would be "best regardses"


Even better would be to use "Best 73's" as this is redundant, and would translate into "Best Best Regardses" :lol:



Ok, with the fun out of the way. Congrats on the ham ticket, and the FT-60 is a really great, useful, rugged radio. One advantage it has over some other radios is the AA case lets you operate at full power if you need to use it with AA batteries, such as a power outage.


Have fun and relax, ham radio can be very serious or just plain fun, whatever you want to do with it. Sorta like a woman

 

[N8IAA]

Bill, thanks so much for asking this question. I just passed the Technician exam TODAY and had the same questions. I've been looking through a Ham Radio Outlet catalog since I got home from the test (Rocky in the VA office has always treated me VERY well on scanner purchases). I'm thinking that I want a dual band with wide band RX so I can listen to public safety and TX with the same unit. I've read good things about the Yaesu FT-60R and some Icom's, as well. I don't want to bite off more than I can chew but don't want to master something quickly and "want more" in the near future either (I plan on buying a HT first for sure). So, I'm hoping for an easy-to-use radio with an extended range of features. I'm certain there will be a learning curve but I'm willing to spend the time to master. Good luck to you. I'd love to hear some other recommendations, as well.

Jason

FT-60 is a great choice. Have one and enjoy it. Got it mostly for it's out of band rcv. Does well on vhf, uhf, and with the addition of an aftermarket antenna (MFJ 1713S) performs even better. I use it for milair, vhf, uhf PS, railroads, etc.. Don't always like to take a large scanner with me. Only thing it doesn't have is 30-50 mhz and broadcast radio (wfm, am).
Larry

 

[eorange]

Ditto on the FT-60, especially on the AA battery case, which I use with spare rechargeables.

The FT-60 is not whiz-bang like the VX-7R, but it is simple, rugged, and will do the job. Built very solid. I also use mine for satellite contacts with an Arrow handheld satellite beam, using the cross-repeater function (listen on 70cm, transmit on 2m).

I like the options for output power, too : 0.5W, 2W, 5W. Some other handhelds favored the low end, like 0.2W, 0.5W, and 5W! Nothing in between there, unlike the FT-60.

Finally, there is a free programming package called FT-60 Commander which is pretty good, if you want to use a computer to program the radio.

 

[N1SQB]

Welcome To The Ham World!

Congrats!
I am Happy for you. When I got my Ham ticket I was so pumped up. I could not wait to get my first radio. You are lucky in the sense that there is a site like this where you can ask the right questions and benefit from the experiences of others. I personaly love portables. The main reason is that they are pick-up-and-go items that are self powered (IE... in case of power outages) and can be used almost anywhere without the need for wires. I have to agree on the FT-60 comments. I had one, sold it to upgrade to a VX-7R and now wish I still had it. In fact, all this talk makes me want to out and get another one. You cant go wrong with that radio. Get yourself a portable, get to know the different ways to get on the repeaters and things,experiment with the bands, THEN move up to a mobile or base. Thats my opinion anyway. I did it that way and it helped me tremendously. Good luck on whatever you choose and once again, Welcome To The Ham World! Hope you have a good job. Once you get "the Bug" it gets expensive!........

73!

Manny

 

[JESSERABBIT]

Welcome to the Amateur Experience. In addition to the other posters, I echo the comments of KC4JGC about the Kenwood Th-f6a handheld. Great little tranceiver/receiver. It is a tri-band unit-144mhz, 220mhz, 440mhz transmit (with several power settings) as well as a wideband receiver. It is computer programable. You may want to check out the features on the Kenwood Site. However,with the accessories it can become very expensive. I cannot comment on the other dealers, but I have always had good service with Ham Radio Outlet. They have stores in serveral locations throughout the U.S.

73s de WD4HDC

 

[axledobe]

Great info! And I would like to graciously thank everyone who replied to mine and Bill's question. I saw the Kenwood FH6A on HRO's website and loved the features on paper. It's more than $100 more than the Yaesu FT-60R but love the idea of dual band simultaneous RX. Can someone comment of the real life "ham" value of the dual receive or radios such as Kenwood/Icom? Is it truly worth the cost difference? Being new, is this a feature you need to 'work' yourself into or just an added bonus?

Jason

 

[eorange]

Can someone comment of the real life "ham" value of the dual receive

Here's one: if you work ham satellites (Google AMSAT, and AO-51), you are sending a 2m voice signal up to an orbiting satellite. This is exciting, and sometimes a little challenging - is your antenna aimed properly? Are you hitting the satellite? So with dual receive, it would help to hear your own downlink to confirm that you are. I don't have any dual receive radios, so I've never had the benefit.

Another reason: you could use your HT to scan local police & fire on one receiver, and have your favorite repeater tuned into the other. If there's any ham activity, you'll hear it immediately.

As far as 220 MHz - in general, there's isn't a lot of 220 activity compared to 2m / 440. So you might want to find out if there's 220 in your area.

 

[JESSERABBIT]

If anyone is interested, check out usrepeaters.com. It has a clickable map of the US for Amateur Repeaters.

 

[W4TF]

Welcome to the world o' Hams There's nothing more I can add to ure question that wasn't already stated, I just want to drop a freindly "welcome" ure way.

73s,
K4VKS

 

[N1SQB]

I just couldnt take it anymore!

Well!
All this talk of radios got to me. I just ordered an FT-60 from HRO in N.H. I should never have gotten rid of the pair I had. Once again, I recommend it highly! Now I hope my eyes are still in good shape to do the Mars/Cap mod.......HMMM

Manny

 

[axledobe]

I'm on the verge, too. I've read every review on the Intranet and spoken again with HRO and they highly recommend the unit. I just can't get this "dual rx" out of my mind. It seems like a very handy option. However, the Icom IC-91A and Kenwood TH-F6A are way more expensive. I'm really torn at this point. For the price of the Icom or Kenwood, I could get the FT-60R, programming cable and software and the rapid drop-in charger (and as most here will agree, I LOVE accessories). I feel lost without them.

On a side note, on convential, non-trunked Public Safety freqs, how do any of these little HT's receive? Just curious, as I'm sure I'll want to program so of the more interesting ones in whatever I get, if that's an option.

Manny> I still haven't found a good, close-up picture of an FT-60R. If you (or anyone) has a digital camera and can take a good pic and post it, I would be greatful! Maybe you can shoot one while unpacking that bad boy....

 

[n211cr]

I just can't get this "dual rx" out of my mind. It seems like a very handy option. I'm really torn at this point. For the price of the Icom or Kenwood, I could get the FT-60R, programming cable and software and the rapid drop-in charger (and as most here will agree, I LOVE accessories). I feel lost without them.

On a side note, on convential, non-trunked Public Safety freqs, how do any of these little HT's receive? Just curious, as I'm sure I'll want to program so of the more interesting ones in whatever I get, if that's an option.

Manny> I still haven't found a good, close-up picture of an FT-60R. If you (or anyone) has a digital camera and can take a good pic and post it, I would be greatful! Maybe you can shoot one while unpacking that bad boy....

I have owned a 7800 for over 3 years, ended up buying a 2nd this past summer. I recently sold one and bought an 8800 for the dual receive...I usually have ham / public safety scanning on either side. Theres only a few drawbacks about the 8800 vs the 7800 that I miss...mainly backlit buttons, otherwise its great. I bought an FT-60 early this fall and have enjoyed it very much.

As far as some high-res close ups...let me know if theres anything in particular you are looking for.
You can see some slight key wear from before I bought the close fitting Kenwood case for it.
http://www.kd8aym.com/pics/ft-60_1.jpg
http://www.kd8aym.com/pics/ft-60_2.jpg

 

[K9GTJ]

I will also add a plug for the 2200H. It is my primary base radio and with a modest outside omni directional antenna (on 2 story house) I can hit repeaters all day long 50 to 60 miles away.

 

[axledobe]

I have owned a 7800 for over 3 years, ended up buying a 2nd this past summer. I recently sold one and bought an 8800 for the dual receive...I usually have ham / public safety scanning on either side. Theres only a few drawbacks about the 8800 vs the 7800 that I miss...mainly backlit buttons, otherwise its great. I bought an FT-60 early this fall and have enjoyed it very much.

As far as some high-res close ups...let me know if theres anything in particular you are looking for.
You can see some slight key wear from before I bought the close fitting Kenwood case for it.
http://www.kd8aym.com/pics/ft-60_1.jpg
http://www.kd8aym.com/pics/ft-60_2.jpg

Thanks so much for the pics. These are exactly what I wanted to see. Unfortunately, I have nowhere to go to see any of these radios so I must rely on reviews and gracious users to assist in my decision.

Thanks again!

 

[n2mdk]

This will give you an idea of the FT-60R actual size. It's next to my BR330T

 

[axledobe]

Just so happens I have a BR-330T and love the size of it. In fact, anything much smaller may be too small for my liking. I'm going to give it a couple more days and probably order the Yaesu. I still really do like the Kenwood and Icom, too.

Thanks again for your guys' responses. I couldn't imagine making a choice without your help!

 

[n2mdk]

Just so happens I have a BR-330T and love the size of it. In fact, anything much smaller may be too small for my liking. I'm going to give it a couple more days and probably order the Yaesu. I still really do like the Kenwood and Icom, too.

Thanks again for your guys' responses. I couldn't imagine making a choice without your help!

I know that's why I used the 330, it's listed in your Sig