What is the oldest still-in-use ( by PD / FD / FED ) Motorola portable radio ?

[mbnv992]

I created a thread like this on Batlabs WAY back in the day and it was quite fun. Turned into many pages long and pretty fun banter.

So - what is the oldest Motorola portable radio still in service ?

I’ll start - back in CT, Glastonbury PD is still using XTS2500’s on an 800MHZ conventional P25 system.

There’s gotta be some xts5000’s still in service or heck even dare I say XTS3000/Astro Sabers ?!?

 

[jeepsandradios]

Our SAR team is still using HT1000 in VHF. We have a few XTS2500 models for VHF but the go to radio is the HT1000.

All the counties around us still use the XTS1500/2500/5000 on TLMR systems. I wouldn't call them way old but they are still using them.

 

[KE4ZNR]

We still have XTS 2500s and XTS 5000s in service used by public works on our system....they are using them as a stopgap measure until they can get APX series radios purchased, shipped in and programmed. Our system is P25 Phase 1 FDMA so no worries about TDMA at this time.

 

[chrismol1]

A couple years ago I saw an FD still on lowband with MT1000s in the mix with newer HT750/1250s

Lots of Astro25 XTS are still in service around here and especially units bought around the time of last order to 2014 I believe was the last year of the 2500. They were supported for another 5 yrs after that

 

[mbnv992]

The MT1000’s were work horse radios for sure. I still have one with the MDC front plate that I use for GMRS and still works great to this day. Radio is going on 30 years old now.

 

[MTS2000des]

We still have XTS 2500s and XTS 5000s in service used by public works on our system....they are using them as a stopgap measure until they can get APX series radios purchased, shipped in and programmed. Our system is P25 Phase 1 FDMA so no worries about TDMA at this time.

Still have 300or so XTS5000 and XTL5000s in use by some of our smaller cities. Most of them are 2004-2006 build, they are being replaced with TDMA capable hardware as funding allows, and their talk groups are DDM until every last legacy radio is off the system. We set a "soft" date of 3Q 2025 but that may change (beyond).

 

[KE4ZNR]

Still have 300or so XTS5000 and XTL5000s in use by some of our smaller cities. Most of them are 2004-2006 build, they are being replaced with TDMA capable hardware as funding allows, and their talk groups are DDM until every last legacy radio is off the system. We set a "soft" date of 3Q 2025 but that may change (beyond).

Oh we talking mobiles too?
I thought we were just talking portables! Yeah we have a bunch of XTLs (W7 and O5) still in use by both our PD & city FD but, like y'all, they are migrating to APXs (6500s either console or remote mount).
Thankfully the VIPER folks at the state have given folks to 2025 to have TDMA ready & programmed radios. We are a secondary user of VIPER (mutual aid use only) which means we have a little more time to get our public safety folks ready but still have to flash a bunch of radios that were not initially purchased with TDMA in the FC.

 

[EWC_BDN]

XTS2500s are old? I bet there are FD's calling those "our new radios"

I've seen HT600s in use by a FD. For mobiles I think I've spotted a MAXAR 80's in brand new Fire trucks. If ever there was a time to get a new radio guys.... With a big square DTMF mic. Like nearly a Galaxy note sized mic on these things.... They don't know that they can be replaced.

Where I'm from the GTX mobile and portable were in near universal use with FDs until 2020. Plenty of XTL1500s that people bought with dreams of upgrading them to P25 in a few years. Whoops... that can was kicked down the road so far that XTL upgrade support disappeared.

I was asked "does anyone have a programming cable for MCS2000s?" in like 2021 too. For a University PD or security.

 

[mmckenna]

I've got a few HT1000's and MTS2000's still in our cache/mutual aid/backup radio pool. I really want to retire those.

 

[MTS2000des]

XTS2500s are old? I bet there are FD's calling those "our new radios"

I've seen HT600s in use by a FD. For mobiles I think I've spotted a MAXAR 80's in brand new Fire trucks. If ever there was a time to get a new radio guys.... With a big square DTMF mic. Like nearly a Galaxy note sized mic on these things.... They don't know that they can be replaced.

How are they using HT600s on part 90? Or Maxars? Neither of which are narrowband compliant. Must be T-banders

 

[KevinC]

How are they using HT600s on part 90? Or Maxars? Neither of which are narrowband compliant. Must be T-banders

Or not in the USA.

 

[EWC_BDN]

158MHZ Just Canada things. Though honestly, If Canada had narrow banding. I don't think they would go away. There isn't enforcement for LMR stuff in Canada. At least where I worked.

Sorry about all the 154.1000 stuff in the northern USA. That's our CB Ch19 here. We aren't the best radio neighbors.

GE exec IIs are practically common as repeaters and bases still.

 

[FFPM571]

I've had a few places bring in HT1250's in for work.. We just tell them they are too old and unless its batteries, antenna or knobs, it's not worth fixing..

 

[ElroyJetson]

Does a security detachment for a .gov contractor corporation count? If so, they were still using HT600s just a few years ago, and were having some issues finding new batteries for them. They had already found alternates to handle the knob issues. Don't know what those knobs they were using came from, but it wasn't a Motorola product however it worked.

Despite being told of the narrowband compliance mandate, they wanted to stick with what they had as long as possible.

I have no doubt that somewhere out there, there's a department that still has some MT500s or HT220s in their reserve/emergency radio cache, though the odds of actually USING them are pretty low.

 

[mbnv992]

Does a security detachment for a .gov contractor corporation count? If so, they were still using HT600s just a few years ago, and were having some issues finding new batteries for them. They had already found alternates to handle the knob issues. Don't know what those knobs they were using came from, but it wasn't a Motorola product however it worked.

Despite being told of the narrowband compliance mandate, they wanted to stick with what they had as long as possible.

I have no doubt that somewhere out there, there's a department that still has some MT500s or HT220s in their reserve/emergency radio cache, though the odds of actually USING them are pretty low.

Sure that counts ! Funny enough I saw a pamphlet for a Government Contractor ( Tripple Canopy I think ? ) that had a picture of one of their armed guards wearing an MT1000 with a speaker mic. And this picture was taken like within the year ( 2021-2022ish )

 

[dispatch235]

We still have some Radius P1225's and quite a few M1225's still doing well that we issue for entry level firefighters. I bought a couple collections of parts for sale online which has helped keep them going. I still use one myself that looks/functions same as new when i need to be away from the base to let the dog out or when I'm at my "paying" job. Also use a couple M1225's for our 2 911 county systems along with my Tait for our main dept. channel.

 

[buddrousa]

We still have a HT90 that was in the Department in 1983 when I joined that will still RX TX.
I know it is not used in service and yes it is WIDEBAND and not NARROWBAND that is why it is on DISPLAY ONLY but it will still power on and work.

 

[Quickcall]

A few MCS2000's running around

 

[DeoVindice]

A VFD near me was using a GR1225 until its controller got fried by a lightning strike about a year ago. A mix of HT1250s and BF-888s (wish I was kidding) was in service for portables. They've since gotten grant money and acquired some Harris XL-series radios, which sort of work. Due to firmware issues and difficulty obtaining RPM2, I firmly believe that department would have been better off with EFWood or Motorola.

An industrial contractor here uses HT600s. Narrowbanding was more of a suggestion than something that actually happened with certain users locally.

 

[AFD103]

Since the subject was "portable" radio, the only nomination I can offer up is the P200. One of the departments I work with still has a bunch in service. Yes, they are daily drivers.

If we were to expand to mobiles...
That same department still has a couple of Motracs in service - one on their brush truck and one on their tanker. Yes, lowband is still very much alive in some parts of New York.