Looking for suggestions on good HAM radios

[Trail Runner Bowser]

My wife and I are heading home from the Ozark rally and have been discussing the need for something beyond the CB radio in my truck. With so many options for HAM radios available, it's hard to make a decision based on what the reviews say when they may not be what we are looking for.

So what do y'all recommend?

 

[Prerunner1982]

Do you want dual band? Remote head? APRS?
What is your budget?

 

[Trail Runner Bowser]

Do you want dual band? Remote head? APRS?
What is your budget?

We don't know much about the first three things you asked (still researching), but the price max would be $200-$250

 

[Trail Runner Bowser]

Do you want dual band? Remote head? APRS?
What is your budget?

Ok so went and researched (read: wife googled and read up on things) and the answer is yes to all of the above. Dunno if we can get that in the price range I originally posted though.

 

[Ubiety]

We don't know much about the first three things you asked (still researching), but the price max would be $200-$250

Keep researching - that is the fun part ;) The price range that you give should be fine for a used or Chinese radio; you will spend a little more for more features and/or brand name. You can get started with an HT (handheld) Chinese radio for VERY cheap; take a look at Baofeng on Amazon - passable radios for $25-$30. HTs don't have the coolness factor of a mounted mobile radio, transmit power is typically not as high as a mobile and they can be frustrating to use (lots of features and lots of small mostly-unmarked buttons) - but can be taken outside of the rig, are cheap and can be handed to another operator (have to be licensed to transmit but can listen while unlicensed). Getting your ham license is easy-peasy - its a gov't test which means the entire pool of multiple choice questions is available for study. Get to know them all and you will pass easily.

• Dual band - has two transceivers (or at least receivers) so you can listen in on two bands and transmit on two bands (or at least one at a time with mic)
• Remote head - detachable face plate. Allows most of the electronics to stay hidden and the smaller display to be conveniently mounted. In my JK the main unit is mounted below the driver's seat and the display is up above the sun visor. Just a convenience.
• APRS - Automatic Packet Reporting System. This allows you to send and receive short digital messages including your lat/lon so that others can see where you are. Dual band radio would be important for this so one band could be the one that you yammer away on and the other is dedicated to APRS traffic. There is a lot more going on with APRS than I'll illuminate here - APRS was why I got into HAM radio and I use it to this day. Let me know if this interests you and I'll gladly give a brain dump.

If APRS gets you excited then a dual band with built in GPS would be the way to go - but this will cost you.

 

[Prerunner1982]

There are mono band (operates on one frequency), dual band (2 frequencies), etc.. 3, 4, and all band radios.
A remote head is the control/display part of the radio that can be separated from the radio body and more easily mounted while the body of the radio can be mounted out of sight.
APRS is a tracking, messaging software transmitted over ham radio. Some radios have them built in, some you can use a tablet/phone connected to almost any radio.

Within your budget though you can get a new Yaesu FTM-7250r dual band radio. Most dual band radios have a remote head, however this particular one does not but it is within the budget.
There are cheaper Chinese radios or to save a few dollars you can get a name brand (Yaesu, Icom, Kenwood) mono band radio. Don't forget you will need coax and an antenna as well.
I prefer dual band because it never hurts to have the option (and there is also a large repeater system here in Oklahoma on 70cm/440 Mhz) but I know people that get by fine with just a 2 meter radio.

Much of the communication in off roading/overlanding that happens on ham radio is on 2 meters (144 Mhz-148 Mhz). 70cm (410 Mhz -450 Mhz) is also sometimes used and most repeaters in the country are either 2m or 70cm.
2 meter, 70cm, 6m, 10m etc refers to the wavelength of the frequencies and you will hear frequencies described by wavelength or by frequency.

You won't be able to also do APRS within that budget, but you can always upgrade or add an APRS radio later.

 

[Prerunner1982]

We also have a Communications section full of information: Overland Communications

 

[AZmtn04]

I understand that this is for off road but amateur radio has all kinds of other uses. My suggestion would be you get your license if not already and get some inexpensive handheld radios. Then you will know what you need. Not trying to push you away. As a new ham I had no idea. I got my license then I knew a bit more. Got a handheld and figured things out from there. I now run a Kenwood TM-V71 Dual band radio. The main part of ham radio is the learning and experimenting as well. So it is its own adventure. A dual band cross band radio would be helpful to use with a handheld as a personal repeater while you are away from your rig. Have a great day. KI7FAN.

 

[Bilbo]

I read that some overland group had standardized the suggested gear radio with the Yaesu FT-60R as the right balance between price, capability, and quality. You can get them at gigaparts for $160.

I also found this ratings list and noted that the FT-60R had the most ratings and was among the highest rating handhelds with over 100 reviews. The Kenwood TH-G71A also rated very well.
https://www.eham.net/reviews/products/49

Amazon ratings are also very high on the Yaesu FT-60R

 

[Shay]

Keep researching - that is the fun part ;) The price range that you give should be fine for a used or Chinese radio; you will spend a little more for more features and/or brand name. You can get started with an HT (handheld) Chinese radio for VERY cheap; take a look at Baofeng on Amazon - passable radios for $25-$30. HTs don't have the coolness factor of a mounted mobile radio, transmit power is typically not as high as a mobile and they can be frustrating to use (lots of features and lots of small mostly-unmarked buttons) - but can be taken outside of the rig, are cheap and can be handed to another operator (have to be licensed to transmit but can listen while unlicensed). Getting your ham license is easy-peasy - its a gov't test which means the entire pool of multiple choice questions is available for study. Get to know them all and you will pass easily.

• Dual band - has two transceivers (or at least receivers) so you can listen in on two bands and transmit on two bands (or at least one at a time with mic)
• Remote head - detachable face plate. Allows most of the electronics to stay hidden and the smaller display to be conveniently mounted. In my JK the main unit is mounted below the driver's seat and the display is up above the sun visor. Just a convenience.
• APRS - Automatic Packet Reporting System. This allows you to send and receive short digital messages including your lat/lon so that others can see where you are. Dual band radio would be important for this so one band could be the one that you yammer away on and the other is dedicated to APRS traffic. There is a lot more going on with APRS than I'll illuminate here - APRS was why I got into HAM radio and I use it to this day. Let me know if this interests you and I'll gladly give a brain dump.

If APRS gets you excited then a dual band with built in GPS would be the way to go - but this will cost you.

Actually APRS with GPS sounds very interesting to me, thank you for that detailed post. It’s not my post but I would be interested in more information from you on it.

Thank you.

 

[TerryD]

@Kent R Can we get this moved to the coms forum?

Now, I much prefer a dual band, dual watch radio. I've had a few mono-band radios and even a single watch dual band and I wound up dropping the coin on the Kenwood TM-D710GA in the end. It's a massively capable radio with lots of functions I don't understand yet but I'm learning. It has the GPS built in and is fully functional on APRS plus has a fully functional TNC for packet radio use. I know a lot of that doesn't seem like things you need at this point, especially if you're just starting out in amateur radio. But if you are really interested in it and everything it can offer you for both trail coms and as a stand alone hobby, it's something you need to look into.

The dual watch is nice because you can monitor two frequencies at once. I generally have the local wide area repeater on the primary channel and then monitor the local simplex frequency or 146.520 on the other. On a recent OB trail ride, I had APRS beaconing on the 2nd channel while running the 146.460 on the 1st for vehicle to vehicle coms.

From now on, I'm going to be buying Kenwood dual band, dual watch radios. I like the functions they offer like going to reverse easily (usually a button push with no menus involved) and the quality is top notch. I'm looking at a TM-V71a for my pickup in the future to replace the Chinese TH-9800 (Yaesu FT-8900R knockoff) that's in there now. I don't think the TM-G707 that's in my shack will ever go anywhere since it mostly scans local repeaters and is used for the local club net. I haven't found a need for an APRS station at home yet.

So that's my $0.02. Having spent a bunch of money on cheaper mono-band radios and lesser dual bands, my honest advice to anyone is to buy once, cry once and get a good radio. The difference is night and day. Don't forget you can find good deals on used gear at local hamfests! I just bought a Yaesu VX-8R with a bunch of accessories for a great price.

And just to throw that out there, I've had Yaesu, Kenwood and Icom radios. They are all good in their own ways, you have to look at your intended use and see how many features each has that will accomplish what you are wanting to do. I will say that as of writing this, I will just be buying Kenwood mobiles for the time being and I'm looking at an Icom IC-7300 for my next HF rig.

 

[Kent R]

@Kent R Can we get this moved to the coms forum?

Now, I much prefer a dual band, dual watch radio. I've had a few mono-band radios and even a single watch dual band and I wound up dropping the coin on the Kenwood TM-D710GA in the end. It's a massively capable radio with lots of functions I don't understand yet but I'm learning. It has the GPS built in and is fully functional on APRS plus has a fully functional TNC for packet radio use. I know a lot of that doesn't seem like things you need at this point, especially if you're just starting out in amateur radio. But if you are really interested in it and everything it can offer you for both trail coms and as a stand alone hobby, it's something you need to look into.

The dual watch is nice because you can monitor two frequencies at once. I generally have the local wide area repeater on the primary channel and then monitor the local simplex frequency or 146.520 on the other. On a recent OB trail ride, I had APRS beaconing on the 2nd channel while running the 146.460 on the 1st for vehicle to vehicle coms.

From now on, I'm going to be buying Kenwood dual band, dual watch radios. I like the functions they offer like going to reverse easily (usually a button push with no menus involved) and the quality is top notch. I'm looking at a TM-V71a for my pickup in the future to replace the Chinese TH-9800 (Yaesu FT-8900R knockoff) that's in there now. I don't think the TM-G707 that's in my shack will ever go anywhere since it mostly scans local repeaters and is used for the local club net. I haven't found a need for an APRS station at home yet.

So that's my $0.02. Having spent a bunch of money on cheaper mono-band radios and lesser dual bands, my honest advice to anyone is to buy once, cry once and get a good radio. The difference is night and day. Don't forget you can find good deals on used gear at local hamfests! I just bought a Yaesu VX-8R with a bunch of accessories for a great price.

And just to throw that out there, I've had Yaesu, Kenwood and Icom radios. They are all good in their own ways, you have to look at your intended use and see how many features each has that will accomplish what you are wanting to do. I will say that as of writing this, I will just be buying Kenwood mobiles for the time being and I'm looking at an Icom IC-7300 for my next HF rig.

Done

 

[Erik]

@Kent R Can we get this moved to the coms forum?

Now, I much prefer a dual band, dual watch radio. I've had a few mono-band radios and even a single watch dual band and I wound up dropping the coin on the Kenwood TM-D710GA in the end. It's a massively capable radio with lots of functions I don't understand yet but I'm learning. It has the GPS built in and is fully functional on APRS plus has a fully functional TNC for packet radio use. I know a lot of that doesn't seem like things you need at this point, especially if you're just starting out in amateur radio. But if you are really interested in it and everything it can offer you for both trail coms and as a stand alone hobby, it's something you need to look into.

The dual watch is nice because you can monitor two frequencies at once. I generally have the local wide area repeater on the primary channel and then monitor the local simplex frequency or 146.520 on the other. On a recent OB trail ride, I had APRS beaconing on the 2nd channel while running the 146.460 on the 1st for vehicle to vehicle coms.

From now on, I'm going to be buying Kenwood dual band, dual watch radios. I like the functions they offer like going to reverse easily (usually a button push with no menus involved) and the quality is top notch. I'm looking at a TM-V71a for my pickup in the future to replace the Chinese TH-9800 (Yaesu FT-8900R knockoff) that's in there now. I don't think the TM-G707 that's in my shack will ever go anywhere since it mostly scans local repeaters and is used for the local club net. I haven't found a need for an APRS station at home yet.

So that's my $0.02. Having spent a bunch of money on cheaper mono-band radios and lesser dual bands, my honest advice to anyone is to buy once, cry once and get a good radio. The difference is night and day. Don't forget you can find good deals on used gear at local hamfests! I just bought a Yaesu VX-8R with a bunch of accessories for a great price.

And just to throw that out there, I've had Yaesu, Kenwood and Icom radios. They are all good in their own ways, you have to look at your intended use and see how many features each has that will accomplish what you are wanting to do. I will say that as of writing this, I will just be buying Kenwood mobiles for the time being and I'm looking at an Icom IC-7300 for my next HF rig.

Just wondering you don't like the tyt 9800

 

[TerryD]

Just wondering you don't like the tyt 9800

It's not very user friendly. It takes a lot of menu digging to set tones and save memories where that is all very simple to do with the Kenwoods and easily done on the fly.

I also like the one touch reverse on Kenwood to listen to a repeater input if someone's having issues or you're trying to find out how close you are to them.

The 9800 is an ok radio, I just wasn't very happy with it. A buddy has the Yaesu 8900 it's cloned from and I'm not a fan of it either.

I think it'll be Kenwood mobiles from now on for me.