Newbie Ham Radio Selection Questions

[dms1]

Me and my wife are studying for our Technician licenses and hope to pass the tests in two weeks. I want to get a mobil and handheld radio to start out and am thinking of getting the Yaesu FT-7900R Mobil and the Yaesu FT-60R Handheld.

Does this look like a good combination?

I plan on mounting the Yaesu FT-7900R in a portable box so I can move it between both of my 4Runners (85 & 99) and my RV - I will hardwire the electrical connections and ground using dean's connectors and use a separation kit in each vehicle (hopefully I can make my own) so I can easily move the radio box and head unit to each vehicle. Does this sound doable?

I am also looking for antenna recommendations for each vehicle.

Thanks

 

[AKRover]

Some of the Yaesus are coming with a separation kit as a promotional offer right now. After seeing what they are they would be really easy to make yourself, the only thing that would be difficult is the mounting bracket. Velcro just doesn't cut for me. I emailed Yaesu today to see if I could purchase a bracket separately so we'll see what they say.

Good luck on your test!

 

[Rallyroo]

Hey Dave,

I have the FT-7800R and FT-60R (also got the FT-857D for HF). I can bring them by on Sat and we can rag chew about ham radio.

I think all the brands offer a free remote bracket now days.


AKRover, you can try finding the mount on Ebay. A guy used to offer them in the $12-15 range. Then you can make your own cables. I bought a mount from the guy (they were original yaesu ones) then made my own cables.

 

[bj70_guy]

Assuming the 7900 is the same size head unit as the 7800 you could pick up this for $20:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yaesu-FT-7100-F...BPSS%2BCRS%2BIT%2BUA&otn=1&ps=33#ht_898wt_941

I have an 8800 in my BJ70 and a 7800 in my BJ74. I prefer the dual band/dual receive of the 8800, but the 7800 is a really nice radio. It's really simple to operate, and the backlit buttons are really nice. I doubt you'd be disappointed with the new 7900...

I like the Larsen NMO 2/70 for a dual band antenna. You could buy an NMO mount and coax cable for each truck, then move the antenna back and forth. Get a cover for the whipless mount.

 

[gary in ohio]

I plan on mounting the Yaesu FT-7900R in a portable box so I can move it between both of my 4Runners (85 & 99) and my RV - I will hardwire the electrical connections and ground using dean's connectors and use a separation kit in each vehicle (hopefully I can make my own) so I can easily move the radio box and head unit to each vehicle. Does this sound doable?

I am also looking for antenna recommendations for each vehicle.

Thanks

The radio units are good choices. Depending on how often you change vehicles I think you will find that it will be a PIA to move it often. The separation kit is easy to make but finding the head mounting bracket separate will be an issue. Whatever you do, good heavy guage wire for power.

For the antenna the Larsen NMO 2/70 is a good antenna, just make sure you get the open coil version it will take the flexing and limb smaking you will find offroad.

Gary

 

[AKRover]

Hey Dave,

I have the FT-7800R and FT-60R (also got the FT-857D for HF). I can bring them by on Sat and we can rag chew about ham radio.

I think all the brands offer a free remote bracket now days.


AKRover, you can try finding the mount on Ebay. A guy used to offer them in the $12-15 range. Then you can make your own cables. I bought a mount from the guy (they were original yaesu ones) then made my own cables.

I saw mounts for the 8800 and 7800 range on ebay but I don't think they are the same. I'll be keeping a look out one.

 

[AKRover]

I just got an email back from Yaesu regarding the face plate bracket. For my particular model they sell them for $1.95 + shipping so I'm sure the price would be similar for the other models. The problem for me is they prefer UPS shipping and to Alaska that 2 dollar bracket would cost $20 to ship. If I can talk them into dropping it in the mail I'll probably get one. Below is a copy of the email with all of the details.

Hello Mr. Miller
Thank you for contacting Vertex Standard, please read the information below.

Name:
Shipping Address:
Phone Number
Part Number Description Cost Qty NOTES
RA0472500 QUICK RELESE BRACKET /YSK-857 1.95 1 IN STK
Price(s) does not include tax (only if applied to your state) and/or freight
cost. If you wish to purchase this/these item(s), please contact our Parts
Department via email at yaesuparts@vxstdusa.com or call our office at
1-714-827-7600 ext 6800. Monday thru Friday between the hours of 8:00AM
thru 5:00PM Pacific Standard Time and provide the following:
Our company policy: All orders must be pulled, packed and weighed to
determine shipping cost. Sorry, we cannot quote shipping cost in advanced.
We charge actual shipping cost(s).
Shipping Method: UPS (Ground, Orange, Blue, Red)
(We do not sell parts internationally you can contact export@vxstd.com and
they will refer you to the office you need to contact)
Payment Method (Visa, MC or AMEX which must include Exp. Date and V-code
which are the last 3 digits located on the back of the card in the signature
block to the far right side of the card. Ex. XXXXX-XXX):
-OR-
Money order or personal check, please send payment to the address listed
below. Once payment has been received, order will be processed.
VERTEX STANDARD
ATTN: PARTS DEPARTMENT
10900 WALKER STREET
CYPRESS, CA 90630
Be advised, we strongly encourage shipping method for local states UPS. We
try to stay away from postal delivery for reason being we shall not be
responsible for lost, stolen, damage item or sending to the wrong address
due to uninsured items. Items going USPS goes out once a week on Fridays by
designated personnel, if for any reason they are not able to make scheduled
run to the post office, the packages will go out the following Friday. There
are no exceptions when using USPS.
Thank you.
Beatriz Velarde
Vertex Standard Parts Representative
Vertex Standard USA, Inc. | 10900 Walker St. | Cypress, CA 90630
b.velarde@vxstdusa.com | 714-827-7600 x6800 | fax 714-527-9472
www.vertexstandard.com

 

[Rallyroo]

I just got an email back from Yaesu regarding the face plate bracket. For my particular model they sell them for $1.95 + shipping so I'm sure the price would be similar for the other models. The problem for me is they prefer UPS shipping and to Alaska that 2 dollar bracket would cost $20 to ship. If I can talk them into dropping it in the mail I'll probably get one. Below is a copy of the email with all of the details.

NO WAY!

So you're telling me a person can buy just the bracket alone for $1.95 yet the entire separation kit (bracket + cables) from a ham radio store for $65-70?

So that's like paying $63-68 for some lengths of wires which I can get cheaper and put connectors on myself.

 

[dms1]

Cheap Faceplate Brackets, Cool - I was going to fab up some faceplate brackets for myself, but at that price I will just order a few - now I need to figure out how to make my own separation cables.

Rallyroo, sounds good for Saturday.

 

[dms1]

For the antenna the Larsen NMO 2/70 is a good antenna, just make sure you get the open coil version it will take the flexing and limb smaking you will find offroad.

Gary

Gary and bj70_guy, thanks for the recommendations for an antenna - I know I am still learning, but why do people mount these antennas in the front of the vehicle? I wanted to replace my CB antenna on the 85 4Runner and it is mounted on a bracket I made that ataches to the body at the rear of the 4Runner and was hopeing to make the same kind of bracket for the 99 4Runner (see pic)

 

[bc_fjc]

I have both my VHF/UHF(left) and my HF(center) antennas mounted on the rear of my truck and get good performance with both of them. The better the ground plain the better the performance. I've given up some of ground plain to keep the antennas protected. Antennas and compromises go hand in hand. I've been able to get most of my mounting locations to work well with a little bit of playing

 

[Rallyroo]

Cheap Faceplate Brackets, Cool - I was going to fab up some faceplate brackets for myself, but at that price I will just order a few - now I need to figure out how to make my own separation cables.

Rallyroo, sounds good for Saturday.

Making the cables is simple. I made my own.

Recalling from the top of my head...

To connect the remote head to the mobile rig: CAT5 cable with RJ45 connectors. It's not a straight through cable, on one side you need to flip the RJ45 180 degrees.

To extend the mic: 4-conductor phone cable with RJ11 connectors plus female-to-female adapter. That way you won't have to cut the mic.

To extend speaker: buy a mono audio extension cable. Attach your external speaker to it.

 

[Pskhaat]

...why do people mount these antennas in the front of the vehicle?

The same reason they're mounted in the back: convenience. They should be mounted in the middle of the metal roof.

 

[luckyrxc]

Yaesu

Hi all,

Yaesu makes a fantastic quality radio. One thing to consider with Yaesu HT's is that many people find them difficult to program. For that issue alone you might consider Kenwood or even Icom. I know my comments may start a brand war, and that is not my intent. But I have two buddies who have sold their Yaesu HT's because unless they used them often, they would forget how to program them and needed to consult the manual. Also, those buttons are small and require little fingers and good eyes. But the quality is excellent.

Some features I like and would look for:
Cross band repeat on your mobile.
Ability to use your ht as a remote for your mobile.
Ability to program both the HT and the mobile via a computer.
2m/70cm (or more if desired) on each radio.
Ability to 'open up' both radios. I would never recommend that you do this because it could be agains the law.

+1 on the posts above about building your own seperatin kits for whatever radio you purchase. You should be able to get the wiring diagrams from QRZ.net.

 

[soonenough]

I have a Yaesu 7800 and I really like it so far, although I haven't used it extensively.

As for the programming issues - if you don't want to carry your user manual around with you all the time, here's a place that has a cheat sheet you can buy for fairly cheap - http://www.niftyaccessories.com/Yaesu_cards.htm. They have them for all the major brands of radios. No affiliation, just thought they might help if you need a programming refresher out on the road.