New Radio by Ruggedradios. Cb and ham all in one

[Uscggm]

Whats everyone's thoughts???

Sent from my iPhone using OB Talk

 

[Sean S]

I have the Yaesu FT-8900R and it looks very much like the RM50-MB, which appears to retail for $399 in some places and $449 on their main website. On-paper performance is somewhat comparable too to my Yaesu FT-8900R. I bought mine for $324 from Ham Radio Outlet and have been very pleased with it. It's great and has an excellent set of reviews over the years! I have taken this radio down some very rickety, washboard roads and it has not skipped a beat, unlike me! The only thing that it lacks is the CB radio option but I already had a jeep-mounted CB radio and a CB handheld for that. I have looked but cannot see any long-term unbiased reviews for the RM50-MB. It might be very new on the market. Since I have a Ham license, I would be a bit worried about operating a radio in a certain mode like CB or VHF if it did not conform to the standard laid down by the FCC for those bands.

Oh wait, just came across this new thread on the well-respected Radio Reference website.

From that thread, I took note of the following quote:
"Interesting that the RM-50R 50-Watt Remote Head Dual Band Radio they are selling at $399 is absolutely identical to the TYT-7800 that is selling for ~$196..."

Looked up the TYT-7800 on Amazon and the almost exact same radio is half the price of the RM50-MB. Reviews on eham.net for the TYT-7800 are reasonable and almost a bargain for the price of $196.

I hope that this helps.

 

[TerryD]

Its a blue TYT TH-9800 and doesn't actually do CB, as it only TX on FM where US CB is AM. It will RX AM very nicely though, I listen to truckers with it regularly. It's also not legal to use on CB frequencies because even on low is over the legal power limit for CB and is not a FCC type accepted radio. Rugged Radios is a ripoff in general, selling blue versions of Chinese radios for a huge markup. The TYT sells for about $200 elsewhere. I have the TYT personally and did a short write up of it on here in the communication section. It's only approved in the US for the Amateur 10, 6, 2, and 440 bands. It is a neat little radio though.

 

[Prerunner1982]

Oh wait, just came across this new thread on the well-respected Radio Reference website.

From that thread, I took note of the following quote:
"Interesting that the RM-50R 50-Watt Remote Head Dual Band Radio they are selling at $399 is absolutely identical to the TYT-7800 that is selling for ~$196..."

Looked up the TYT-7800 on Amazon and the almost exact same radio is half the price of the RM50-MB. Reviews on eham.net for the TYT-7800 are reasonable and almost a bargain for the price of $196.

I hope that this helps.

The radio referenced in the original post is the RM50-MB which is going for $578 on Rugged radios website. Still identical to the TYT but likely different firmware. All of their radios seem way over priced though.

Its a blue TYT TH-9800 and doesn't actually do CB, as it only TX on FM where US CB is AM. It will RX AM very nicely though, I listen to truckers with it regularly. It's also not legal to use on CB frequencies because even on low is over the legal power limit for CB and is not a FCC type accepted radio. Rugged Radios is a ripoff in general, selling blue versions of Chinese radios for a huge markup. The TYT sells for about $200 elsewhere. I have the TYT personally and did a short write up of it on here in the communication section. It's only approved in the US for the Amateur 10, 6, 2, and 440 bands. It is a neat little radio though.

They claim the RM50-MB referenced above will transmit on CB as AM. As you noted still not legal to use on CB, but then again they condone using VHF/UHF frequencies without a license so they don't seem to concerned with legal.

 

[TerryD]

They claim the RM50-MB referenced above will transmit on CB as AM. As you noted still not legal to use on CB, but then again they condone using VHF/UHF frequencies without a license so they don't seem to concerned with legal.

I can't find a copy of their manual anywhere and it doesn't expressly say it will TX in AM mode. But if you and all your "Good Buddies" were running their ripoff radios, most people wouldn't know the difference. But yes, it's still illegal and puts all those putzes on bands that I've put a lot of time and effort into having access to...

 

[Graeman]

Rugged Radio makes great intercom equipment and headsets, but all of their radios are copies of other brands and they just put a different color body on the radio. Then jack up the price 2 - 3 times what the original model costs. Look at their version of the Baofeng UV-5R almost triple the original price just to have a blue case and their common (baja racing) channels pre-set onto the radio.

 

[Arizona Overland]

That could get a licensed guy in a lot of trouble couldn't it?

 

[TerryD]

Yeah. All these cheap little Chinese units flooding the market are a double edged sword. On the one hand, they are affordable for most anyone getting into the Amateur hobby and it was one of the UV-5R Baofengs that rekindled my interest. Without it, I probably would still be a Tech who's only radio was still hiding in the drawer.

On the other hand, they cover so many frequencies that they are not approved to operate on and without the added cost that generally kept most yahoos off the Amateur bands, has caused trouble across the country with people pirating Amateur repeaters and generally mucking up the bands at times. We've disabled our local machine a few times when people have tried to use it without being licensed. It's also not uncommon to scan the 2m band here and find hunters on the band.

 

[VCeXpedition]

So, I'm looking into two questions about this radio. I get asked a lot, "isn't there a radio that I can use both Ham and CB frequencies on?"

1. What type of antenna will work *well* with both 2M and 11M AM? The 1/4 wave length of both are so very different, I have to believe the CB antenna is the one that gets compromised. I've heard they use a "special" antenna, but you can't cheat physics.

2. What is the power output of the CB? I haven't been able to note that anywhere I've seen. If it's more than 5 watts, somebody's gonna be in trouble.

This could be a game-changer for some.

Thanks for the link on the TYT brand radio but that doesn't appear the have the CB capability. Rugged is well-known for customizing the cheap chinese radios and charging exorbitant prices (for their service?). People must pay it, have you seen their line-up of toys?

 

[TerryD]

The TYT TH-9800 does Ham 10m and 6m but will tune to the 11m band but only operates FM and with a minimum power level of 5W which is over the 4W limit for CB service. It would take more than a firmware update to get AM out of a FM only transmitter.

 

[Graeman]

I talked to Rugged Radios at the Expo and they said that when switched over to the CB function it does produce only 4 watts. They also recommend the antenna switch to separate the CB from the Ham frequencies for better range. They also said that they only sell the radios and that it is up to you to get the proper license needed to operate the different frequencies.

 

[Prerunner1982]

And just like that.... it was gone.


Not on their website..... press release gone.... youtube video gone.

 

[Bubba Tim]

Howdy Gents,
So it looks like you need two radios, 2M and CB. Next the I am at a ham fest, I think I can pick one up a CB for $15.00

73

Bubba Tim
N2BBT