User Panel
Posted: 8/4/2015 12:08:08 AM EDT
In a few days I'll have my call sign, and I am looking to buy an inexpensive handheld. I have a buddy who has an Icom 2M mobile/base radio he's giving to me and I'll set that up at home.
But what hand held to start with? The two I was looking at are the Baofeng UV-5R V2+ and the BF-F9 V2+HP. They get otherwise good reviews from what I've found and the VE's recommended them, among a couple more expensive options. They are near identical in many ways and specs except that the BF is a tri-power. Should I pony up a few more bucks for the 8w model or just stick with the 1w/4w UV-5R V2+ model. FWIW, I will be picking up an aftermarket antenna and an external mic. Of those two options, what would you choose? Anything else I should consider? Thanks |
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[#1]
If I were in your shoes, I would start with this while I got my feet wet:
http://www.amazon.com/Pofung-Newest-Walkie-Talkie-5-watt/dp/B00BXVOKTW After that, if you want a quality hand held, look into this: http://www.amazon.com/Yaesu-FT-60R-Handheld-Amateur-Transceiver/dp/B004P4PDAO |
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[#2]
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[#3]
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[#4]
Get both!
FT-60R is a mighty fine radio and can be programmed by hand. That Amazon price above isn't bad either. Usually I see them running about 199. shipped. Extended receive that covers AM aircraft band. Baofeng UV-5 series are the bic pen of radios. Not something "normal" people can program by hand. I have both. The 60 is my go to radio (along with the Icom ID-51+, but thats the next step). The 5R series is a radio I use IF I think theres a chance that it might get wet or lost. They also get pressed into service around the house for my IRLP node. If/when it dies I have a spare and am only out $30.00. Now if you told me I could only have one of the above, I would go FT-60R. Welcome to the hobby! |
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[#5]
Quoted:
If I were in your shoes, I would start with this while I got my feet wet: http://www.amazon.com/Pofung-Newest-Walkie-Talkie-5-watt/dp/B00BXVOKTW After that, if you want a quality hand held, look into this: http://www.amazon.com/Yaesu-FT-60R-Handheld-Amateur-Transceiver/dp/B004P4PDAO View Quote FPNI, and you don't need an aftermarket antenna. The UV-B5 seems to be the best of the Baofeng/Pofung HTs. |
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[#6]
FT60R. It's all the things the Pofung is, but with actual manufacturer support.
It's a little more expensive, but if you look around you can find them for a cool c-note most of the time. |
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[#7]
You will learn after a few weeks that a handheld is nothing but a secondary form of communications. And that a mobile radio that is used as a base unit is the way to go.
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[#9]
As said before, HTs are of limited use as is. An outside antenna coupled to one will increase range by several times
Regarding the Icom mobile transceiver -- do you have a power supply? You'll also want an antenna for your fixed station, be it HT or mobile rig. They're easy to make and a good starting point for "homebrewing", building your own equipment. Serious hams are into it big time, especially for antennas. There are many plans on the Internet. A 2 Meter Ground Plane is a good entry-level project. While you're in study mode, go ahead and get your General class license. It literally opens up the world for you. |
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[#10]
Normally I ask folks if UHF is even active in their state before recommending a dual band anymore: there are so many inexpensive, extremely high quality options if you can get away with 2m only. Colorado is not one of those places - tons of UHF activity, even on the Western slope. PM me if you'd like more details and/or local info - I'm hesitant about a VE team that's recommending tri-power Baofengs.
As others mentioned, the FT-60 remains a solid choice. If I was starting over, I'd also consider the Alinco DJ-500T, which is cheaper, IPX7 compliant (can have it out in the rain, don't use it as an anchor) and comes with a lithium battery. I'll echo the recommendation to whip up a simple 2m quarter wave ground plane antenna - cheap, effective, simple to deploy. Feed it with quality coax (shortest possible run of RG-8X or better) and get it as high as practicable. If your budget is extremely tight and you need to buy coax and/or power supply and/or antenna mast for the 2m Mobile you're getting, the UV-B5 has a better front end and comes with an antenna you don't need to replace. |
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[#11]
If you skip the FM junk and buy an all-mode HF rig now, you'll stand a good chance of keeping your testing momentum and getting your General sooner. You'll always have plenty of time to bore yourself on VHF/UHF FM, and you'll thank yourself for getting past the milestones of the HF radio purchase and memorizing the next exam. Yes, yes, my two cents only, but HF provides incredible capabilities and fun, while the $20 HTs can be an afterthought rather than a priority. In the mean time, ten meters is an awesome band and you can work SSB on 28.3 - 28.5, or even some CW on 14, 40, or 80. I know. I know. Walkie-talkie. But hey I'm just sayin'.
Congratulations from three-land. I wish you a lifetime of enjoyment on the bands! |
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[#12]
Quoted:
As others mentioned, the FT-60 remains a solid choice. If I was starting over, I'd also consider the Alinco DJ-500T, which is cheaper, IPX7 compliant (can have it out in the rain, don't use it as an anchor) and comes with a lithium battery. View Quote nice alternative! |
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[#13]
Instead of copying and pasting all your quotes (on phone now), I'll address them sequentially.
fattyfat, that's another Baofeng I had looked at briefly. I might check it out again. Many of the VE's recommended the Yaesu for a better quality hand held. MCSquared, there might have been a UV-B5, but I did not see one. Most, or all of them were the UV-5R & V2+ models from what I could tell. Rockyriver, I agree and so did the VE's. The hand held's are just to "get the feet wet", but having a mobile or base equipment is where "it's at". piccolo, I will. ;-) Frank_B, I believe the Icom does have a power supply. He said it will also come with the mic, but that I'll have to fab up my own antenna. PowerPointRanger, I am on the western slope, just outside of GJ. I should've clarified my statement. The VE's didn't endorse that particular model of the Baofeng HT's persay, (as I said before, most or all of them had the1w/4w models), but they did say that for an inexpensive HT, they (Baofeng HT's) are a good option because it'll hurt less if I break it or lose it, etc. And again, they did recommended the Yaesu and a couple other HT's if someone wanted to drop more coin on a better unit. ThreeLander, I think I'll "keep my momentum" and go for the general license in the near future. The stuff some of these guys are doing is pretty cool. ;-) While I wait for the Icom to show up, I'm gonna read up on some DIY 1/4, 1/2 & 5/8 wave antenna builds. I'll probably pick up either the UV-B5 or the UV-5R V2+ model to start, just because both are relatively inexpensive and that'll leave a few bucks for a better antenna, extra battery or bigger battery, mic, cable, etc. (going to be using CHIRP). I appreciate the input. thanks guys |
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[#16]
Quoted: In a few days I'll have my call sign, and I am looking to buy an inexpensive handheld. I have a buddy who has an Icom 2M mobile/base radio he's giving to me and I'll set that up at home. Of those two options, what would you choose? Anything else I should consider? Thanks View Quote Neither. As those aren't good choices. Look for a quality, new or used FT60. Stay away from cheap Chinese crap. |
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[#17]
Thread hijack...and hoping the answer is 'No'...is there a HT that can actually scan in VFO mode for activity? The Baofengs cannot do this. |
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[#18]
Echo. There is cheap, and there is inexpensive. FT-60 is the winner of inexpensive. Solid radio and easy to use, it might be the only HT you will ever need.
Baofengs, like they say, are super wonky. And I have never paid attention to how they play reliability-wise. I would just assume, for the money, not to expect a whole lot. And 5W vs. 8W is nothing. I come from the time when the standard Hi power setting on a HT was 1.5W and really, the practical difference between that and 5W is darn little. |
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[#19]
I'm still going to pick up a Baofeng. The cost is low and I won't cry if it breaks or else.
And in accordance with ARF doctrine, I'll probably get a Yaesu soon as well. |
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[#21]
As someone who has played around with a couple baofangs and one of the other popular china radio's I would say buy a nice yeasu and be done with it. when you are starting out isnt the time to try to decode a non-exsistant Chinese manual and try to sort out what their thing is similar to our requirements as hams are.
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[#22]
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[#23]
Spent the time to Compose and Post, then forget to share......maybe a little late, but here you go:
Where to Start |
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[#24]
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[#25]
Baofeng UV-82HP is solid for cost if youre stuck on a cheap HT. It suffers from poor strong signal intermod / issues, as should be expected in this pricerange & plagues all of the cheap Chinese HTs. Sensitivity of the receiver is good, it can pick out fairly weak signals when in areas w/ low RF noise, but dont confuse this sensitivity with signal selectivity (as many folks do). In an urban environment w/ lots of RF noise, Id rather have good selectivity, rather than good sensitivity. In the middle of nowhere w/ low RF noise, the UV-82HPs good sensitivity does very well. The additional few watts of the UV-82HP does make a noticeable difference in reach. The difference won't peg an S-meter; however, it can mean the difference between un-intelligible gibberish vs intelligible w/ annoying static; important if youre relying on this as backup comm.
I'd go for a decent Mobile radio as a 1st transceiver, rather than a HT. Ive got an Icom ID-51A+ HT; however, Id rather use one of my mobile rigs when given an option because they sound better & transmission is solid. A mobile rig w/ external antenna will let you reach out within your area MUCH more. Look on Craigslist, bet youll find a decent Icom, Yaesu, or Kenwood mobile for around $100-$150; bought my 1st setup from a local ham clearing out unused stuff; Yaesu FT-2900 & Samlex SEC 1223 PS for $100. I see similar deals a lot in my area Craigslist. If my 1st radio was a Baofeng UV-82HP (which is good for what it cost), Id likely have dropped Amateur radio as it doesnt hear much inside my house even with a variety of Negoya, Diamond, & Comet HT antennas. It does perk up when hooked to a 1/4 wave RadioShack antenna (Part # 20-176); however, any mobile rig will dominate in reach by several orders of magnitude w/ the same antenna. You can find this antenna for ~$20 (ST-3 from AntennaCraft); it measures 1:1 SWR on all of my antenna analyzers on VHF & UHF w/o any impedance matching BS other antennas use for good SWR. |
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[#26]
Get the $8 antenna... I had a UV-5R I thought was dead until I swapped antennas.
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[#27]
Quoted:
Baofeng UV-82HP is solid for cost if youre stuck on a cheap HT. It suffers from poor strong signal intermod / issues, as should be expected in this pricerange & plagues all of the cheap Chinese HTs. Sensitivity of the receiver is good, it can pick out fairly weak signals when in areas w/ low RF noise, but dont confuse this sensitivity with signal selectivity (as many folks do). In an urban environment w/ lots of RF noise, Id rather have good selectivity, rather than good sensitivity. In the middle of nowhere w/ low RF noise, the UV-82HPs good sensitivity does very well. The additional few watts of the UV-82HP does make a noticeable difference in reach. The difference won't peg an S-meter; however, it can mean the difference between un-intelligible gibberish vs intelligible w/ annoying static; important if youre relying on this as backup comm. I'd go for a decent Mobile radio as a 1st transceiver, rather than a HT. Ive got an Icom ID-51A+ HT; however, Id rather use one of my mobile rigs when given an option because they sound better & transmission is solid. A mobile rig w/ external antenna will let you reach out within your area MUCH more. Look on Craigslist, bet youll find a decent Icom, Yaesu, or Kenwood mobile for around $100-$150; bought my 1st setup from a local ham clearing out unused stuff; Yaesu FT-2900 & Samlex SEC 1223 PS for $100. I see similar deals a lot in my area Craigslist. If my 1st radio was a Baofeng UV-82HP (which is good for what it cost), Id likely have dropped Amateur radio as it doesnt hear much inside my house even with a variety of Negoya, Diamond, & Comet HT antennas. It does perk up when hooked to a 1/4 wave RadioShack antenna (Part # 20-176); however, any mobile rig will dominate in reach by several orders of magnitude w/ the same antenna. You can find this antenna for ~$20 (ST-3 from AntennaCraft); it measures 1:1 SWR on all of my antenna analyzers on VHF & UHF w/o any impedance matching BS other antennas use for good SWR. View Quote I bought one of those at a closing Radio Shack store for $1.50. I was planning to use it as a scanner antenna. I figured it should work well when I put it at about 60 ft above ground and use a low loss, 75 Ohm, cable TV coax that I got for free. A few years ago they ran a temporary coax to fix my Internet access problems. It was about 400 ft long. They let me keep the coax when they installed a new, permanent line. |
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[#28]
The cheap chicom radios are good learner radios. Or something to toss around and not worry if it gets broken.
To move up in quality get a Yaesu or Icom. To get something that is durable, can be beat around and still work, get a Motorola. |
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[#29]
Thanks for all the advice.
I'm still waiting on my call sign. ARRL has had my paperwork since last Thursday, at least, maybe even since Tuesday. The lady said I should have my call sign by Monday...but I'm just not sure which Monday she was referring to though... |
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[#30]
Quoted:
I bought one of those at a closing Radio Shack store for $1.50. I was planning to use it as a scanner antenna. I figured it should work well when I put it at about 60 ft above ground and use a low loss, 75 Ohm, cable TV coax that I got for free. A few years ago they ran a temporary coax to fix my Internet access problems. It was about 400 ft long. They let me keep the coax when they installed a new, permanent line. View Quote I got mine the same way, but paid a whopping $5 for it. Awesome little antenna for scanning, as well as VHF / UHF transmitting, even at retail price. I actually used mine as a scanner antenna for my Airspy SDR & RadioShack Pro-668 w/ a 100ft run of 75 ohm quad shield before I swapped cables & started using it for VHF / UHF transmitting; only sits about 15 ft off the ground w/ big buildings & hills, I can 2-way clearly out to about 45 miles away w/ 75 watts & frequently hear 10-20 miles further than I can transmit. For scanning & receiving, it performs equally to the Diamond Discone antenna I use from high air-band frequencies to the 800Mhz P25 digital systems in my area. Not very sensitive in FM broadcast frequencies & below, which is a good thing for scanning in order to not overload the RF front end of most scanners. For the OP, I would definitely go with a used mobile radio as 1st option. Most hams I know only use their HT when they are in field away from their mobile or base station; unless you live off grid out of a back-pack & pup tent, chances are that the majority of the time you'll be tinkering w/ amateur radio will be in your car or in your house; an HT will likely leave you disappointed depending on your area. |
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[#31]
Quoted:
Thanks for all the advice. I'm still waiting on my call sign. ARRL has had my paperwork since last Thursday, at least, maybe even since Tuesday. The lady said I should have my call sign by Monday...but I'm just not sure which Monday she was referring to though... View Quote For my license, took about 10 days for me to get listed on the FCC database from the time I took the test. You probably have been checking this website daily, but just incase you aren't aware of it yet: http://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsApp/UlsSearch/searchLicense.jsp Search via your name & you'll see everyone with your name. |
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[#32]
Quoted:
For my license, took about 10 days for me to get listed on the FCC database from the time I took the test. You probably have been checking this website daily, but just incase you aren't aware of it yet: http://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsApp/UlsSearch/searchLicense.jsp Search via your name & you'll see everyone with your name. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
Quoted:
Thanks for all the advice. I'm still waiting on my call sign. ARRL has had my paperwork since last Thursday, at least, maybe even since Tuesday. The lady said I should have my call sign by Monday...but I'm just not sure which Monday she was referring to though... For my license, took about 10 days for me to get listed on the FCC database from the time I took the test. You probably have been checking this website daily, but just incase you aren't aware of it yet: http://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsApp/UlsSearch/searchLicense.jsp Search via your name & you'll see everyone with your name. 10-4 Yeah, I check it a few times throughout the day. I'm not in a hurry. I've been in review mode, going over everything I learned in the course, reading the book again, and reading up on radios, antennas, etc. |
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[#33]
I wonder about the newer 8 watt model talked about in the post. I understand there is possibly a 10 watt model coming out. I don't see commerical hand helds with that kind of power output - could there be a reason? I'm not sure if I would want 8 watts right next to my brain on a regular basis.
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[#35]
Quoted:
I wonder about the newer 8 watt model talked about in the post. I understand there is possibly a 10 watt model coming out. I don't see commerical hand helds with that kind of power output - could there be a reason? I'm not sure if I would want 8 watts right next to my brain on a regular basis. View Quote My Personal Opinion regarding the reasons for Higher Power HT's? It's all Pecker-Stretching Marketing....so you can One-Up your buddy since he only has a 5w HT....Save the funds, buy a better antenna! http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_10_22/681534_High_Power_HT_s________convince_me_.html |
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[#36]
View Quote Are they that expensive? I won one at a club raffle and gifted it to a new ham. |
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[#37]
Quoted:
Thanks for all the advice. I'm still waiting on my call sign. ARRL has had my paperwork since last Thursday, at least, maybe even since Tuesday. The lady said I should have my call sign by Monday...but I'm just not sure which Monday she was referring to though... View Quote Called ARRL again just to check status as it's been 15 days. The gentlemen I spoke to said they received the paperwork last Friday and that I should have my call sign tomorrow or in a couple more days. I kinda get the feeling that the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing sort of thing. |
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[#38]
The FT-60 is a great value.......it was my first HT. I added a speaker mike (pyrme) and a Diamond extended antenna. I also have a Diamond "shorty" flex antenna on it (these work fine for local stuff..and they are very handy.) Mine has survived a 7 foot drop and still works. I also have the backup 6-AA battery holder for it, very handy.
Several of the gents in our local club have purchased the chinese HT rigs......cheap and they work. You will need to program them with a PC & software....much easier to program!) If you loose the china rig.....not a big loss........verses a Kenwood, ICOM, or Yaesu high dollar rig. As mentioned, the Alinco DJ-500T is a very good rig for the money also. That being said....my next HT, will be the Tera TR-590........these are made in china also, but are a step up in quality and they are rugged. welcome to the hobby / obsession.....! 73 TexasAg |
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[#39]
FT 60 r
Best bang for the buck. I own a baofeng. They are stupid cheap. They work. They aren't anywhere as good as my FT60r. |
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