Posted: 4/27/2015 8:34:18 PM EDT
Got this Kenwood TM-271 for free from a buddy. He isn't a HAM but it was given to him by another friend who thought it was a CB. I've only been licensed for about a month now so I don't know much about radios ( I have a Baofeng) but I figured I could put this in my truck. Is it any good? From what I found on google it's the old version of the 281, right? Any info about it is appreciated! ETA: I told him to keep it and get his license, but he had no interest. |
It's a horrible radio. Send it to me immediately for proper disposal. 
I have the 281 and like it a lot. They're great basic radios. The manual is available on line if it didn't come with one. Getting the programming cable and software will make life a lot easier. RT Systems |
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It's a horrible radio. Send it to me immediately for proper disposal.
I have the 281 and like it a lot. They're great basic radios. The manual is available on line if it didn't come with one. Getting the programming cable and software will make life a lot easier. Do you know if you can program it with Chirp? I'm kinda familiar with it from my Baofeng. |
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Do you know if you can program it with Chirp? I'm kinda familiar with it from my Baofeng. Quoted:
Quoted:
It's a horrible radio. Send it to me immediately for proper disposal.
I have the 281 and like it a lot. They're great basic radios. The manual is available on line if it didn't come with one. Getting the programming cable and software will make life a lot easier. Do you know if you can program it with Chirp? I'm kinda familiar with it from my Baofeng. I think so, let me check. ETA: Yup. The 271 is on the CHIRP list. |
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Big step up from the HT you have been using. I had been using an HT through my Slim Jim at the house and finally picked up a regular 2m rig, Icom 2300. Night and day difference. it opens up a whole new world, simplex options and repeaters you couldn't get before. With my $20 N9TAX slim jim hanging in my attic and some coax i can hit anything around me on 2m and a little bit of power.
Congrats on the score. |
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I'm excited to start using it! Any suggestions for mobile antenna setups for a 90's F150? NMO in the roof. What do you define as 90's. There were 2.5 body styles. 89-91 were a little different from the 92-96 but overall the cab was the same and the body panels aren't all that different. Then you have the F150 I still consider to be the weirdest body on earth (97-04) even though I've had 1 and been issued 4. |
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Great Score!!
An "NMO" mount is a particular design from Motorola. They come in a couple of versions... One requires a drilling a hole in the roof, fender etc. and snaking the feedline to it. Another has a magnetic base to hold it in place but ya still have to get the feedline into the vehicle. They are considered about the top of the line for mounts! A quarter wave whip for these is about 20 inches tall.. a 5/8ths wave is much taller. Most online ham stores will carry these. Prices vary so dig around a bit. Good Luck with the new rig! You'll find the extra power is going to put the HT's to shame.. ..FN.. |
After some research on other forums it seems like a 1/4 wave roof mount would be ideal for my situation. I'm reluctant to start drilling holes though  Any alternatives that would be just as good? Thanks for your help! Everyone on ARF is much more friendly than most of the HAMs I have met in person!
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I bought a crappy chinese 1/4 wave mag-mount and put it on the roof. I later checked the SWR and it was bonkers (but stiill worked 'OK'). Unscrewed the antenna itself and replaced with a piece of #12 solid copper about 20" long and it has been gangbusters. Works so well I haven't tried to improve it with some more length (it was just what I found handy to try). |
| Honestly drill the hole. The antenna performs better and does not damage the paint. It is dead simple with the ford trucks. Pop out the top taillight that is on the cab and pop out the dome light. That gives you plenty of room to work and fish the coax down the pillar. |
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I was given a "free" radio like that, but the screen illumination bulb was burned out.
The bulb cost me $2. A castle nut was frozen, so I used a spring-loaded center punch to encourage it, while making the poor decision to use the left handed kitchen table vise. The ER visit for X-Rays and pressure irrigation of my self-inflicted puncture wound through a finger joint was $1000. That was a very expensive "free gift." 
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Honestly drill the hole. The antenna performs better and does not damage the paint. It is dead simple with the ford trucks. Pop out the top taillight that is on the cab and pop out the dome light. That gives you plenty of room to work and fish the coax down the pillar. GMC, too. You don't even need to pop the dome light if you stay close to the rear. I had to work around a sunroof that limited me to the rearmost area of the roof. This truck was not remotely inexpensive, and I bought it new. It may have been a month old when it met the step drill bit. 
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GMC, too. You don't even need to pop the dome light if you stay close to the rear. I had to work around a sunroof that limited me to the rearmost area of the roof. This truck was not remotely inexpensive, and I bought it new. It may have been a month old when it met the step drill bit. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01190825_zps3cb6911c.jpg http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01193810_zpsfdb86e8f.jpg Quoted:
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Honestly drill the hole. The antenna performs better and does not damage the paint. It is dead simple with the ford trucks. Pop out the top taillight that is on the cab and pop out the dome light. That gives you plenty of room to work and fish the coax down the pillar. GMC, too. You don't even need to pop the dome light if you stay close to the rear. I had to work around a sunroof that limited me to the rearmost area of the roof. This truck was not remotely inexpensive, and I bought it new. It may have been a month old when it met the step drill bit. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01190825_zps3cb6911c.jpg http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01193810_zpsfdb86e8f.jpg You'll have to walk me through that one. I ended up doing two 07-13 GMC's for some friends and ended up going about two inches behind the dome light (no sunroofs). I looked at going around the 3rd brake light but didn't see a decent way through. Not as nice looking as the all of the 92-14 Fords once you get the cargo/3rd pulled and look in there. 
OP, NMO is the defacto standard in the industry. It's been around for just shy of the last half-century. Easy to install and more importantly it is easy to install properly. It sports at least two seals keeping water and moisture out. Also installation does not require the removal of the headliner unlike many other mounts out there. It can even be installed in vehicles with double walled roofs (older pickups and some M1008/M1028 trucks). |
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You'll have to walk me through that one. I ended up doing two 07-13 GMC's for some friends and ended up going about two inches behind the dome light (no sunroofs). I looked at going around the 3rd brake light but didn't see a decent way through. Not as nice looking as the all of the 92-14 Fords once you get the cargo/3rd pulled and look in there. http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg586/zap_uh_lack/Farm%20Install/330964C6-BB50-4D96-BC34-1B621EA8EB35_zpsxgo3uvz0.jpg http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg586/zap_uh_lack/Farm%20Install/5C4E8A4A-496B-4267-A956-9CC0B6D1D94F_zpsmyfgygli.jpg OP, NMO is the defacto standard in the industry. It's been around for just shy of the last half-century. Easy to install and more importantly it is easy to install properly. It sports at least two seals keeping water and moisture out. Also installation does not require the removal of the headliner unlike many other mounts out there. It can even be installed in vehicles with double walled roofs (older pickups and some M1008/M1028 trucks). Quoted:
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Honestly drill the hole. The antenna performs better and does not damage the paint. It is dead simple with the ford trucks. Pop out the top taillight that is on the cab and pop out the dome light. That gives you plenty of room to work and fish the coax down the pillar. GMC, too. You don't even need to pop the dome light if you stay close to the rear. I had to work around a sunroof that limited me to the rearmost area of the roof. This truck was not remotely inexpensive, and I bought it new. It may have been a month old when it met the step drill bit. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01190825_zps3cb6911c.jpg http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01193810_zpsfdb86e8f.jpg You'll have to walk me through that one. I ended up doing two 07-13 GMC's for some friends and ended up going about two inches behind the dome light (no sunroofs). I looked at going around the 3rd brake light but didn't see a decent way through. Not as nice looking as the all of the 92-14 Fords once you get the cargo/3rd pulled and look in there. http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg586/zap_uh_lack/Farm%20Install/330964C6-BB50-4D96-BC34-1B621EA8EB35_zpsxgo3uvz0.jpg http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg586/zap_uh_lack/Farm%20Install/5C4E8A4A-496B-4267-A956-9CC0B6D1D94F_zpsmyfgygli.jpg OP, NMO is the defacto standard in the industry. It's been around for just shy of the last half-century. Easy to install and more importantly it is easy to install properly. It sports at least two seals keeping water and moisture out. Also installation does not require the removal of the headliner unlike many other mounts out there. It can even be installed in vehicles with double walled roofs (older pickups and some M1008/M1028 trucks). This is a 1500-size crew cab pickup. The roof does have two walls that narrow about 10-12" forward of the 3rd brake light. Once you remove the light, it's pretty easy to see where to put the mount. This was my first-ever radio installation, and I was pretty nervous about it. I removed the brake light and went as far forward as I could before the walls met and/or sunroof mechanism got in the way. Once the centerline was found, it was a simple matter to center punch the hole and slowly drill it to diameter, then deburr with a screwdriver. I passed the NMO mount up through the hole and attached it, and the coax fairly easily threaded along the C pillar and rear window to the underseat radio. The only thing I had to remove was the brake light, and I tried to keep my whole install fairly low profile. 99% of the time, I have an antenna cap covering the mount since the display mount has been a PITA to keep mounted without drilling holes in the dash. My goal was to make an install that would leave almost no trace except the nearly OEM-appearing NMO with low profile cover when it's time to sell the vehicle. Thence the liberal use of zip ties, hidden holes in grommets, and avoidance of drilled holes. It was a conscious sacrifice in installation permanence. More pics to follow. It should be noted that I've spent far more time messing around with the installation than I've ever spent on the air.
I also have one of these that mount to the hood hinge bracket. It's pretty easy to install, and I've not bothered to remove it. The underside of the mount is exposed to the elements, so I slathered it in RTV. 
Those are the only real pics I have of the antenna installation. You already know how to do the rest, but here are some pics of how I did the rest of my install: Kenwood 710a brain under the rear seat. The bracket is attached to an existing hole in the seat frame, fastened by a wing nut. This makes the box easily removable for portable/shack use. 
Power line from the battery (fused properly of course, then running into an underseat Powerwerx voltage-controlled relay). In the loom, away from moving door hinge parts, punching through firewall on the back side of the door electrics grommet, then oversealed with RTV. 
The small wire rope at the bottom of the power control box isn't part of the install. It just fastens a lockbox to the frame to deter smash & grab. On the seat mount, you can see the wing nut holding the L-bracket I made. 
2 briefly visible wires for remote display and microphone. I opted for this instead of cutting carpet & fishing underneath. Most wires are hidden behind trim for convenience. 
How it looks inside the cab: 
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Do you know if you can program it with Chirp? I'm kinda familiar with it from my Baofeng. Quoted:
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It's a horrible radio. Send it to me immediately for proper disposal.
I have the 281 and like it a lot. They're great basic radios. The manual is available on line if it didn't come with one. Getting the programming cable and software will make life a lot easier. Do you know if you can program it with Chirp? I'm kinda familiar with it from my Baofeng. Kenwood GIVES you a free program to use when programming this rig. I have one and like it A LOT. Kenwood MCP-1a You always have to figure in the price of programming software when you buy a rig. Kenwood distributes it as a FREE download. |
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This is a 1500-size crew cab pickup. The roof does have two walls that narrow about 10-12" forward of the 3rd brake light. Once you remove the light, it's pretty easy to see where to put the mount. This was my first-ever radio installation, and I was pretty nervous about it. I removed the brake light and went as far forward as I could before the walls met and/or sunroof mechanism got in the way. Once the centerline was found, it was a simple matter to center punch the hole and slowly drill it to diameter, then deburr with a screwdriver. I passed the NMO mount up through the hole and attached it, and the coax fairly easily threaded along the C pillar and rear window to the underseat radio. The only thing I had to remove was the brake light, and I tried to keep my whole install fairly low profile. 99% of the time, I have an antenna cap covering the mount since the display mount has been a PITA to keep mounted without drilling holes in the dash. My goal was to make an install that would leave almost no trace except the nearly OEM-appearing NMO with low profile cover when it's time to sell the vehicle. Thence the liberal use of zip ties, hidden holes in grommets, and avoidance of drilled holes. It was a conscious sacrifice in installation permanence. More pics to follow. It should be noted that I've spent far more time messing around with the installation than I've ever spent on the air.
I also have one of these that mount to the hood hinge bracket. It's pretty easy to install, and I've not bothered to remove it. The underside of the mount is exposed to the elements, so I slathered it in RTV. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21194956_zps0b501ea9.jpg Those are the only real pics I have of the antenna installation. You already know how to do the rest, but here are some pics of how I did the rest of my install: Kenwood 710a brain under the rear seat. The bracket is attached to an existing hole in the seat frame, fastened by a wing nut. This makes the box easily removable for portable/shack use. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21190029_zpsc5b6919c.jpg Power line from the battery (fused properly of course, then running into an underseat Powerwerx voltage-controlled relay). In the loom, away from moving door hinge parts, punching through firewall on the back side of the door electrics grommet, then oversealed with RTV. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-13202452_zps9c9329c7.jpg The small wire rope at the bottom of the power control box isn't part of the install. It just fastens a lockbox to the frame to deter smash & grab. On the seat mount, you can see the wing nut holding the L-bracket I made. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21185625_zps28c7b33e.jpg 2 briefly visible wires for remote display and microphone. I opted for this instead of cutting carpet & fishing underneath. Most wires are hidden behind trim for convenience. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-13202353_zps36d55fa4.jpg How it looks inside the cab: http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21195048_zps5cad4c07.jpg Quoted:
Quoted:
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Honestly drill the hole. The antenna performs better and does not damage the paint. It is dead simple with the ford trucks. Pop out the top taillight that is on the cab and pop out the dome light. That gives you plenty of room to work and fish the coax down the pillar. GMC, too. You don't even need to pop the dome light if you stay close to the rear. I had to work around a sunroof that limited me to the rearmost area of the roof. This truck was not remotely inexpensive, and I bought it new. It may have been a month old when it met the step drill bit. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01190825_zps3cb6911c.jpg http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-10-01193810_zpsfdb86e8f.jpg You'll have to walk me through that one. I ended up doing two 07-13 GMC's for some friends and ended up going about two inches behind the dome light (no sunroofs). I looked at going around the 3rd brake light but didn't see a decent way through. Not as nice looking as the all of the 92-14 Fords once you get the cargo/3rd pulled and look in there. http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg586/zap_uh_lack/Farm%20Install/330964C6-BB50-4D96-BC34-1B621EA8EB35_zpsxgo3uvz0.jpg http://i1245.photobucket.com/albums/gg586/zap_uh_lack/Farm%20Install/5C4E8A4A-496B-4267-A956-9CC0B6D1D94F_zpsmyfgygli.jpg OP, NMO is the defacto standard in the industry. It's been around for just shy of the last half-century. Easy to install and more importantly it is easy to install properly. It sports at least two seals keeping water and moisture out. Also installation does not require the removal of the headliner unlike many other mounts out there. It can even be installed in vehicles with double walled roofs (older pickups and some M1008/M1028 trucks). This is a 1500-size crew cab pickup. The roof does have two walls that narrow about 10-12" forward of the 3rd brake light. Once you remove the light, it's pretty easy to see where to put the mount. This was my first-ever radio installation, and I was pretty nervous about it. I removed the brake light and went as far forward as I could before the walls met and/or sunroof mechanism got in the way. Once the centerline was found, it was a simple matter to center punch the hole and slowly drill it to diameter, then deburr with a screwdriver. I passed the NMO mount up through the hole and attached it, and the coax fairly easily threaded along the C pillar and rear window to the underseat radio. The only thing I had to remove was the brake light, and I tried to keep my whole install fairly low profile. 99% of the time, I have an antenna cap covering the mount since the display mount has been a PITA to keep mounted without drilling holes in the dash. My goal was to make an install that would leave almost no trace except the nearly OEM-appearing NMO with low profile cover when it's time to sell the vehicle. Thence the liberal use of zip ties, hidden holes in grommets, and avoidance of drilled holes. It was a conscious sacrifice in installation permanence. More pics to follow. It should be noted that I've spent far more time messing around with the installation than I've ever spent on the air.
I also have one of these that mount to the hood hinge bracket. It's pretty easy to install, and I've not bothered to remove it. The underside of the mount is exposed to the elements, so I slathered it in RTV. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21194956_zps0b501ea9.jpg Those are the only real pics I have of the antenna installation. You already know how to do the rest, but here are some pics of how I did the rest of my install: Kenwood 710a brain under the rear seat. The bracket is attached to an existing hole in the seat frame, fastened by a wing nut. This makes the box easily removable for portable/shack use. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21190029_zpsc5b6919c.jpg Power line from the battery (fused properly of course, then running into an underseat Powerwerx voltage-controlled relay). In the loom, away from moving door hinge parts, punching through firewall on the back side of the door electrics grommet, then oversealed with RTV. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-13202452_zps9c9329c7.jpg The small wire rope at the bottom of the power control box isn't part of the install. It just fastens a lockbox to the frame to deter smash & grab. On the seat mount, you can see the wing nut holding the L-bracket I made. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21185625_zps28c7b33e.jpg 2 briefly visible wires for remote display and microphone. I opted for this instead of cutting carpet & fishing underneath. Most wires are hidden behind trim for convenience. http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-13202353_zps36d55fa4.jpg How it looks inside the cab: http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t151/sleepdr/2011-09-21195048_zps5cad4c07.jpg Go get some 20 lb double sided 3M tape from the hardware store of your choosing. Clean the surface (alcohol works best) and apply the head. It takes some work to peal off later, but it won't leave any residue. I kept a FT-2900 on my dash for 2.5 years with 3M tape. It never went anywhere. It also holds the Motorola that replaced my 2900 on top of my dash as well as the Icom F221 affixed to the side of the OEM console. My Jeep has a remote head secured with the stuff as well. |
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Go get some 20 lb double sided 3M tape from the hardware store of your choosing. Clean the surface (alcohol works best) and apply the head. It takes some work to peal off later, but it won't leave any residue. I kept a FT-2900 on my dash for 2.5 years with 3M tape. It never went anywhere. It also holds the Motorola that replaced my 2900 on top of my dash as well as the Icom F221 affixed to the side of the OEM console. My Jeep has a remote head secured with the stuff as well. Thanks. I'll go look for some, since the double-side 3M I've been using gets enfeebled in hot temps. |
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Thanks. I'll go look for some, since the double-side 3M I've been using gets enfeebled in hot temps. Quoted:
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Go get some 20 lb double sided 3M tape from the hardware store of your choosing. Clean the surface (alcohol works best) and apply the head. It takes some work to peal off later, but it won't leave any residue. I kept a FT-2900 on my dash for 2.5 years with 3M tape. It never went anywhere. It also holds the Motorola that replaced my 2900 on top of my dash as well as the Icom F221 affixed to the side of the OEM console. My Jeep has a remote head secured with the stuff as well. Thanks. I'll go look for some, since the double-side 3M I've been using gets enfeebled in hot temps. What about hot? Both the tape and the radio survived their little bake session with the sun. 
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