Yaesu VR 5000 Questions

[emenari3]

Please help! I've got a used Yaesu VR 5000 and I need some advice on operation. What kind of antenna should I use (preferably under $100). And I need a tuning knob. Can I get one from the manufacturer?

 

[tumegpc]

I called Yaesu just last Thursday to purchase a couple of knobs and the final word was that there were no more parts available. This person seemed to be very thorough and spent a good ten minutes or so checking.

eBay has a tuning knob - Taiwan - NEW Yaesu RA0231200 Rubber Cap(Dial Tuning Knob) 1ea part for VR-5000 VR5000 | eBay

 

[kruser]

The tuning knob appears to be a standard 1/4 inch shaft with a flat. It's one of the most common shaft sizes.
Finding a knob that will fit would probably not be that hard if you don't need the original knobs looks. The knob on eBay seems overpriced but maybe not for someone wanting to restore a VR-5000 to the factory look. If you have any old radios or boomboxes or stereo receivers laying around, there's a good chance you may find a knob that will work.

 

[prcguy]

I think something like a PAR SW end fed would be a good match but if you get too much antenna the radio will overload easily on HF. Same on VHF/UHF and I think a typical scanner Discone would be a good choice.

 

[majoco]

Before my VR5k succumbed to the display lines disease I ran it from a discone and it worked very well on V/UHF - on HF it wasn't too good for general surfing, I guess the front end was nothing special as it did overload on the broadcast bands but it was scanning HF Aero frequencies controlled from software quite well. I ran it from an HF OCFD at the time

 

[emenari3]

Hey Thanks Guys. I did jut that, finding an old boom box in the garage and pulling the tuning knob from it. Works perfectly. Next I'll find some sort of scanner discone. Thanks again!!!