Handheld HAM Radio

[Court Hubbard]

I'm in the market for a hand held ham radio as the topic title states. I would primarily be using it around the house to keep track of things around this area and maybe throwing it in the car with me for local chases when I don't feel like using my Icom-2200H. I was looking at the Yaesu VX-7R coupled with a Diamond SRH77CA antenna to replace the stock antenna for better reception/transmitting. I do understand that the 5 watts of power is a limiting factor, but that doesn't bother me. Just wanted to get some recommendations from people that I know are ham operators. I'm not looking to spend a fortune as the VX-7R is about at the limit of my budget(~$300). Thanks!

 

[John Erwin]

I'm in the market for a hand held ham radio as the topic title states.

That's a nice radio Court, but you should ask yourself if you need 6m (and 222 on some models) on your radio. I personally find 6m to be useless on handhelds in most situations. There is the dual receive feature though..

I would compare against the Yaesu FT-60R (2m/70cm, 5watts) which runs about a hundred dollars cheaper to see if it would meet your needs. It also has the NOAA freqs preprogrammed and there's wide-band coverage on the receiver too.

When looking a couple years ago I ended up settling on the FT-60R and have been very happy with it.

 

[Andrew Herron]

My father swears by the Kenwood TH-F6A handheld. It features dual receive along with tri-band transmitting.

I myself am in the market for one when I can spare the cash, perhaps I'll find one at the annual Father's Day Swap.

 

[Court Hubbard]

That's a nice radio Court, but you should ask yourself if you need 6m (and 222 on some models) on your radio. I personally find 6m to be useless on handhelds in most situations. There is the dual receive feature though..

I would compare against the Yaesu FT-60R (2m/70cm, 5watts) which runs about a hundred dollars cheaper to see if it would meet your needs. It also has the NOAA freqs preprogrammed and there's wide-band coverage on the receiver too.

When looking a couple years ago I ended up settling on the FT-60R and have been very happy with it.

I forgot to mention that is another radio I am definitely considering. I did read one negative review on it about it being hard to use some of the buttons because they weren't all labeled or were hidden??? I did ask myself if it would really be worth it to spend the extra $$$ to get the tri band and I'm starting to doubt it would because all I mostly do with my 2200H is listen and transmit on 2m. I just may go ahead and get that FT-60R, thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Cris Schroeder]

Are you specifically looking for dual-band? I use a Yaesu VX-170 2m handheld. It has been nearly indestructable despite my attempts otherwise. It has the weather band receive/alert function and has great audio.

I live too far from a repeater for it to be useful around the house, but I hook it up to my external trunk-mount antenna on the road and use it for the weather alert and/or simplex QSO's. I just don't have enough room in my current chase vehicle for a true mobile FM rig.

Back to your original question, I don't know about the VX-7R specifically but I've had good luck with Yaesu products overall.

 

[Ben Holcomb]

I can vouch for the TH-F6A. I've beat mine to death over the past 3-4 years, and it still works like a charm. Dual VFO, Tri Band works great. 5 watts on 220.

The only thing it's missing is the APRS stuff, but that is covered in another Kenwood model.

You will not be disappointed with the TH-F6A

 

[John Erwin]

I did read one negative review on it about it being hard to use some of the buttons because they weren't all labeled or were hidden???

That was likely somebody who didn't spend a lot of time figuring the radio out; Yaesu tends to have their own way of putting the menu items together which, like anything, takes some time to get used to.

It would probably be a good idea to compare with the other companies offerings too; if you only need 2m overall than a single-band model would save you even more. I will say that Yaesu's build quality on their portable equipment is tough to beat though. Good luck!

 

[Tim Shriver]

(VX-5) VX-6 or VX-7 (get the black one) are good choices. I have
had both and they have worked with no real issues.

Good aftermarket antenna will do wonders of the stock
rubber duck though.

Get extra batteries though..

Tim

 

[Eric Friedebach]

Here’s another vote for the FT-60R.

One thing I would suggest to make your life easier is the G4HFQ programming software.

 

[Jason Foster]

I'm in the market for a hand held ham radio as the topic title states. I would primarily be using it around the house to keep track of things around this area and maybe throwing it in the car with me for local chases when I don't feel like using my Icom-2200H. I was looking at the Yaesu VX-7R coupled with a Diamond SRH77CA antenna to replace the stock antenna for better reception/transmitting. I do understand that the 5 watts of power is a limiting factor, but that doesn't bother me. Just wanted to get some recommendations from people that I know are ham operators. I'm not looking to spend a fortune as the VX-7R is about at the limit of my budget(~$300). Thanks!

I think your right on track with the VX-7r. I've borrowed my friends just to see what it's like, and I liked it. I'm not a big Yaesu fan, but this one was done well.

My favorite portable radio, especially for storm chasing is a used Icom IC-W32. It still has the BNC connector so accidental breakage isn't hardly an issue. I easy to get additional batteries for and is commonly used amount ham who are part of the emergency management programs in their area. So that means if you're not sure about something, some can help you out.

Good Luck.

 

[Steve Bottkol]

I have a VX-6 for on the go and a couple of 7800's in the truck. Love em all...oh ya did I mention the vx-6 is waterproof

Steve
KE5IOB

 

[Brandon Sullivan]

I can vouch for yeasu and icom.. love them both.. i loved my VX 5r.. I now have an icom t2h sport.. which is 2 meter only with 6 w output.. 6 w is uncommon now.. but the radio is really pretty new..

I would say just get a nice VHF or if u have 440 locally then get a dual bander... if u are using it in the car, it would be no prob to hook up an amp to 100 watts.. then u would be pushing more than your 2200 anyways...

just a thought..

but yes, the 7 is a sweeeeeet radio

 

[Bill Hark]

For the last few years, I have used a Yaesu VX-5 for simple 2 m transmission/receiving. I needed a portable device since I fly out to the Plains. The radio is coupled with a magnetic mount external antenna. Although the range is not quite as good as some of the larger mounted systems, I have no difficulty. I do use a small antenna (for portability) and that reduces my range.

The Yaesu has many functions that I do not use. I keep it very simple. Sometimes, I can accidentally hit the wrong key and have to refer to the instruction book to get the radio back to simplex. The radio can get rather warm if I have been transmitting alot. The batteries are rechargeable and I can usually get through one chase without recharging. You can also use a car or ac adaptor.

I definitely recommend this little radio and since the model has been discontinued, you may be able to find it for less or possibly get a used one.

Bill Hark

 

[Steve Polley]

I guess I will chime in here. I would suggest at the minimum a dual band HT. For the money, the FT-60R is hard to beat for the price. Last time I checked, it was around $189 at HRO. Only downside to it that I can see is that it will only do one band at a time. UHF comes in handy for those chaser convergences.

 

[Jesse Risley]

I've been using the Kenwood TH-F6A and the Yaesu FT-50R for about six years now and both are solid HTs. I would personally recommend the Kenwood TH-F6A, although many of the newer handhelds have WX alert features that are nice to have as well.

The TH-F6A has 224 MHz capabilities, which is a nice, quiet band if you have one or more persons in your area who utilize that often underused portion of the ham spectrum.