All-band options for mobile and base station?

[zuren]

I'm doing some research around mobile, all-band "shack in a box" type radios and am hoping to get some recommendations and comments on what I have found. This will spend most of its life as a base station, but also want the flexibility of having it set up so I can grab it for mobile in a vehicle or man-packable. I'm looking at the following:

- Yaesu FT-991a - Current HF/VHF/UHF option at around $1000. It is bigger and heavier than past options, but supposedly very nice. I've read this pulls more amps as well, so maybe not a great manpackable option if you are scanning for extended periods.
- Yaesu FT-857D - This seems to have been the standard for a small mobile/manpackable HF/VHF/UHF for many years. Been discontinued for a while now and used options in decent shape sell for more than it was new. This seems to be a sore point with some HAMs (gouging people on used gear) but I guess this is supply and demand. I just watched one sell for $1300 (with extras).
- Icom IC-706 MK IIG - Also discontinued. Prices are $600-700 it seems.

There is the Yaesu FT-818ND but it has lower power output so I'm not considering it. Are there any others I should be looking at?

I'm leaning toward the FT-991a or the IC-706, unless I can find a FT-857D for a reasonable price. My other radios are a Yaesu FT-7900r (2m/70cm - discontinued) and a Yaesu VX-7R (Tri-band HT). I don't have a General license, but maybe playing around listening to HF will encourage me to do it.

Thanks for any input!

 

[wirenut]

I had a Yaesu FT-100D for a while. I ran it mobile in an 18 wheeler and then in my pick-up for a while. It had a false high SWR indication on 10 meters but otherwise was a good radio.

 

[zuren]

Thanks for the response!

So I went in a different direction. After a lot of research, I purchased a used Yaesu FT-891. Seems to get good reviews, is mobile in size, is still a current model, and is not terribly expensive (even new).....so it seemed that I could not lose. It is HF only, which is the major deviation from what I was seeking. There is a lot of advise out there to stay away from the "all in one" radios, unless you have a specific use case that needs all bands in one unit. The advise was to get a HF as one radio, then VHF/UHF in a separate mobile or HT unit. Since I already have the 7900r and the HT, it seemed to make sense.

There also seems to be some love/hate with people and all band radios .

 

[Ozarker]

My Icom 706 has won regional contests over Field Day! It's dependable, trouble free and a big bang for the buck. I have used as a base and mobile rig, with a Comet stick and a homebrew 3 element beam and the J pole. 🥰

 

[Rallyroo]

I had both a IC-706MKIIG and FT-857D before and I sold off both. They were okay and I've made HF contacts around the world, but trying to adjust settings on the fly required a lot of deep menus. I decided I much prefer operating HF at home with a base station with knobs and many buttons. Now my rig only has VHF/UHF.