Looking to Upgrade from a Baofeng UV-5R

[Snyperx]

Wanted to mention, too, that you can get a dual band amplifier from MFJ and extend your range for an HT considerably. I use it for public service events when I'm out in the boonies and need dual band capability. Add an external antennae to an HT and you're golden. Oh, and the draw is 8 amps. A little pricey, but compare to what you get.

I can also speak from personal experience, MFJ stands behind their product.

Mirage

I can also speak from personal experience, don't key up without an antennae connected :evil:

Good luck and 73's,

Never really considered doing an amp with my UV-5R. I looked up the BD-35 on eham.net, it seems the reviews are hit and miss. Some people have great luck with it other seem to have them die right away:-( Regardless another option to ponder. Thanks.

 

[Ed_Seedhouse]

So for my "base" setup I am looking at this gear:


ASTRON RS-12A | 12 AMP SUPPLY


Thoughts?

The unit is specified to draw 14 amps at full power. I have a 15 watt Astron supply that seems to work OK at full power so long as I don't ragchew for hours. I generally run at the low power except for distant repeaters.

12 watts is a bit dicey and below the specified requirement.

 

[Ed_Seedhouse]

Wanted to mention, too, that you can get a dual band amplifier from MFJ and extend your range for an HT considerably. I use it for public service events when I'm out in the boonies and need dual band capability. Add an external antennae to an HT and you're golden. Oh, and the draw is 8 amps. A little pricey, but compare to what you get.

I can also speak from personal experience, MFJ stands behind their product.

Mirage

I had that unit for a year or two (still have actually), but I started getting complaints early last year about my signals splattering all over the bands, so I retired it and bought the Kenwood mobile unit.

 

[PrimeNumber]

About 10 - 15 miles from the repeaters.

This is generally doable with 5w on a decent base antenna, but a little more power will help when conditions are rough. Getting an external antenna up 20' or so will do the most good.

 

[Snyperx]

This is generally doable with 5w on a decent base antenna, but a little more power will help when conditions are rough. Getting an external antenna up 20' or so will do the most good.

So let me toss this out there. If I buy a Diamond X30A or X50A antenna and mount it to a Max Gain 25' fglass telescopic pole, use a pigtail from my UV-5R to hook up to the antenna, would that do what I want?

 

[MTS2000des]

Any external antenna like that will be miles above a rubber duck or "intenna". One thing you might encounter with the Chinese radios like the UV-5R that are all based on "walkie talkie on chip" circuit design with such a high gain antenna is front end overload.

Most low cost Chinese HT's are designed on this WOC platform, and they don't play well in high RF environments. So you may experience some de-sense or weird images from out of band signals, cell sites, etc.

I STRONGLY recommend a MOBILE RADIO w/power supply and decent vertical mounted OUTSIDE for fixed operation if this is going to be your PRIMARY operation. For one, the little SMA connectors on modern radios are not designed nor intended for frequent connect/disconnect and will wear out. Two, you will get MUCH BETTER performance, especially on simplex, or working distant repeaters, with the 25 or 65 watts the TM-281A or similar radio can provide. You'll also have a superior receiver with crystal filters in the front end that won't overload easily.

You'll have much more fun with your hamming on a "for real" radio than trying to get by with an HT as a base radio. That setup may be an only option for apartment dwellers, travelers, or at the office, but it is far from ideal.

 

[PrimeNumber]

MTS2000des is right in this, in the long run you'll probably be happier with a mobile radio for a base. At 15 miles with a decent antenna and 5w, you will usually be able to hit these repeaters, but sometimes times aren't usual. I can sometimes hit a 300' repeater 25 miles away on only 5w with a copper pipe slim jim, but sometimes it takes all 75w.

But if you're just trying base antennas out before you buy a mobile unit, you can likely do 15 miles with a 5w HT. It's good to have an adapter that can connect it as a backup anyway.

 

[popnokick]

Another reason to use an external, outdoor antenna: You want to get your transmitted RF outside your "ham shack" or radio room. This is true not only for receiver de-sense reasons and possible ill effects on your radio, but also considering that most hams now have computers in or near their ham gear... even if the "computer" is only a smartphone. But chances are you have one or more computers near your ham gear, and you want to get all of the RF outside and away from the computer stuff. The computers don't do well in the presence of RF, and the ham gear and other receivers, scanners, etc. don't do well in the presence of the EMI generated by computers, routers, switches, etc. So don't consider anything less than an antenna somewhere very distant from your operating location, and a good grade of coax to that antenna.

 

[Snyperx]

So my current equipment "wishlist" I have compiled is now the following:

Transceiver: Kenwood TM-281A

Power Supply: Samlex SEC-1235M

Antenna: Diamond X-50A or X-30A

Lightening Protection: Diamond SP1000

Miscellaneous: Samlex cabinet, Max Gain 25' fglass pole, RG8 LMR400 coax

Total Cost: $700

Thoughts?

 

[Snyperx]

After all my "waffling" I decided on just getting the Yaesu FT-60R instead of going all in with $700 of new gear. I figured $150 was a better move than $700 at this time. I also picked up a Diamond SRH77CA as well as the AA battery adapter.

 

[KK4TTR]

Good deal! You can't go wrong with the radio and you'll appreciate the dual band capability.

Consider adding the Mirage BD-35 to extend your range. As I mentioned, MFJ stands behind their products.

Cheers!

 

[AESFTW]

I too have a BD-35 amp and I've had no issues whatsoever with it. Infact it is great as it is dual band.

 

[KK4TTR]

I had that unit for a year or two (still have actually), but I started getting complaints early last year about my signals splattering all over the bands, so I retired it and bought the Kenwood mobile unit.

Maybe we should start a separate thread on the BD-35. Did you perform any diagnostics, or just rely on what you were being told?

I read the reviews on eham.net, and for the purist, yeah, it's Mississippi's Finest Junk. It isn't full duplex or something along those lines, and it doesn't handle sub-zero degree temps, heck, neither does the Alpine stereo in my car. It warms up in a few minutes.

Are you stating opinion, hearsay, or fact?

To the OP, enjoy your FT-60. Everything I read about it says it's a fine HT. I like my baofeng's, and working on powering everything up in the cab.

Ed, which Kenwood did you go with, the 281 or v71-A? Do you use it as a mobile or base? What kind of antenna? Are you retired? Just curious.

 

[techguru]

I'd get a HT plus a amp for it.

This Kenwood looks like a nice tri band: KENWOOD TH-F6A | 2M/220/440 5W HT TRANSCEIVER 1.3GHZ W/ALL BAND SSB RECEIVER

and this amp will work on two of the bands: MIRAGE BD-35 | DU-BAND HT AMP 45W 2M 35W 440MHZ

 

[KK4TTR]

For that kind of money, I'd get a nice mobile. The OP will enjoy his FT-60, although, to be truthful, I have purchased 4 baofengs for the same $.

The one thing that's been difficult is getting an external speaker mic to sound decent. The baofeng mics have a distinctive hollow sound, and none I've tried have sounded good on transmit.

 

[sloop]

Snyperx, you are going to get as many solutions and you get answers. The best rig is the one that meets your needs! For example, where I live there is little activity on 220 or 440, so most of what we do is 144...I have a v8000 for my base and a FT1802 for my mobile. Both basic but solid rigs. I use a ringo ranger II for the base and a MFJ for the mobile. I use an Arrow j-pole (144/440) for portable/emergency work, its cheap, durable & easy to set up. The j-pole with a tri-pod base at 10 feet is enough to access local repeaters even in the most remote (cell phone free, unaccessible HT) locations we have in our area using mobiles powered by batteries. I would suggest as have others...get a mobile for emergency work! Make sure that it is easy to program in the field without a computer! Read the article by Ed Harris "Getting the Most from Your Hand-Held Transceiver". This should be required reading for everyone with a HT doing public service work.

 

[rapidcharger]

The problem most people have with baofengs is not that they are crummy radios but that they are trying to get into a repeater that is too far away from inside their house or car. Hence the need for a mobile or base depending on where you will operate the most. The best HT in the world will still not get you into a distant repeater with obstructions while you are rubber-duckie-mobile in the car.
It doesn't have to cost $700. Not sure where you got that figure.
tmv-281a--$150 (after tax, shipping etc)
lmr 400 coax 25' --$50
x30 or a better monoband omni-- $60
decent power supply $100
Diamond SP1000 $35 w/ tax/s&h
subtotal before beer $395