Considering a Yaesu FT-897D, any input?

[burquedoka]

Out of frustration toward not being able to truly rely on a UHF/VHF radio to be able to communicate with someone out side of repeater range, I'm considering making the jump to general. My research of a good mobile HF rig keeps steering me back to the yaesu FT-897D. It is an all band HF,UHF,VHF with a lot of great functions. It is small enough to mount in an over head console of my UNIMOG with the ability to remove it fairly easily and do a pelican box mount for outings in the Gelaendewagen. Does anyone here have any experience with this radio? It seems like the bee's knee's to me, but I'm still fairly new at this stuff.

On a side note, there is a post here talking about using an HT radio to communicate with a satellite as a repeater. Very cool stuff and presents an avenue to call for help in the middle of nowhere with pretty basic gear and a tech license, but it is still not with out difficulties as the window to talk is short and you need to know where and when the sat will be. Still, VERY cool.

 

[DarioCarrera]

I have used the 897D and I find it to be a great radio. Very reliable. Its a nice mix between portable/mobile rig. For the uses you are presenting, its a very good option. also for a newbie its a very good start. I'm sure you'd be happy with your rig. In mobile rigs I im biased towards the Yaesu's, for a base rig I lean more towards the ICOM or other brands.

Some recomendations:
-Look at it carefully, because the batteries, tuner, filters, and other accessories tend to make it an expensive radio in my opinion... but still a good radio.

I Own an 857d in my Land Cruiser and I use it almost daily on VHF and HF. Both radios are a good buy. In an Unimog the 897 would probably look better...

PS - I would not rely on SAT communications as repeaters. The are great for doing some cool Dx's but not as regular use repeaters. As you say the window to communicate is short, people are usually waiting to Dx with it and frequencies change regularly. if you don't have a PC on you with a whole lot of info, like frequencies, Aquisition of signal, Loss of signal, doppler effect, tracking software, relying on Satellites is quite hard.

Welcome to the HAM world!!!!

 

[bj70_guy]

If you have a brick and mortar store nearby, it'd be good to see one side by side with an 857D and play with them both.
The 857 is essentially the same radio in a smaller package, without the ability to add the (expensive) batteries. You might find the 857 a better fit for your needs - or not.

Anyway, the radio is the easy part... deciding on your mobile HF antenna is the hard part!

 

[gary in ohio]

Out of frustration toward not being able to truly rely on a UHF/VHF radio to be able to communicate with someone out side of repeater range, I'm considering making the jump to general. My research of a good mobile HF rig keeps steering me back to the yaesu FT-897D. It is an all band HF,UHF,VHF with a lot of great functions. It is small enough to mount in an over head console of my UNIMOG with the ability to remove it fairly easily and do a pelican box mount for outings in the Gelaendewagen. Does anyone here have any experience with this radio? It seems like the bee's knee's to me, but I'm still fairly new at this stuff.

On a side note, there is a post here talking about using an HT radio to communicate with a satellite as a repeater. Very cool stuff and presents an avenue to call for help in the middle of nowhere with pretty basic gear and a tech license, but it is still not with out difficulties as the window to talk is short and you need to know where and when the sat will be. Still, VERY cool.

I would not select an 897 for a mobile radio, its to big, doesn't have a detachable head, While it might fit in a big overhead on a mog, you might want to look at the little brother the 857, this is a true mobile, detachable head, same features/functions of the 897.

Other options are the Icom 706MKGii (no out of production but available new) or the Icom 7000 (replacement for 706).

 

[damaged110]

i have an 897 and use it regularly in my land cruiser. it is in a pelican style box. i have used the 857 and 706 mk2g and if you were going to mount it to your dash those two would be your prime choices. but since you have the room i would use the larger 897. the buttons are bigger and menus are a little more manageable. as for add-ons for filters i have not purchased any in the three years i have owned it, other than a tuner and i don't have any issues making contact with anyone. if you have any questions on the radio or mounting just ask,

 

[xtatik]

The 897 and 857 have identical circuits. They are not close to identical.....I mean they are precisely the same. If you plan to work mobile at all, I would suggest the 857. The only difference between these radios is with the 897 having an internal battery. This battery will not serve you well in most instances. With the 857's compact size and detachable face feature...it works great as a mobile. Also, having a flip down bail it works equally well as a portable or desk radio.
As with most mobile HF rigs, most of the menu items are of the "set it and forget it" type. The menus on the 857 do not take long to master...certainly no longer than any other make or model of similar function.

 

[Corey]

I bought the 857D a few years back after researching radios, and I was told if I was going to buy a radio and wanted it to grow with me, it was the one to get.

 

[burquedoka]

Thanks for the input guys.They all look like excellent HF rigs, and the Icom is down right sexy:Wow1:but talk about a lot of cash. It's interesting, with my set up, having two primary expo vehicles, I try to outfit each as much as I can with equipment that crosses over from one to the other. I already have a Yaesu 7800 in the G hard mounted and nothing yet for the UNIMOG. So, in my mind it makes most sense to go with a mobile HF that has the capability of 2M and 70cm ( i guess they all probably do) to use in the Mog. But if it is hard mounted, then I would have to duplicate for the G, and the cost of a HF set up is way too much to duplicate. So..... I think the 897 is still a great set up for me, plenty of room in the mog in an over head where it could be used on the trail, and small enough for a pelican case to use at camp while on G outings. I'm going to think about more before I jump. Now the cost of add ons, at least as far as I see it, only really needs to include the antenna tuner and, of course, two antennas. The internal batteries are not included, and I don't have any interest in them anyway.

 

[xtatik]

Thanks for the input guys.They all look like excellent HF rigs, and the Icom is down right sexy:Wow1:but talk about a lot of cash. It's interesting, with my set up, having two primary expo vehicles, I try to outfit each as much as I can with equipment that crosses over from one to the other. I already have a Yaesu 7800 in the G hard mounted and nothing yet for the UNIMOG. So, in my mind it makes most sense to go with a mobile HF that has the capability of 2M and 70cm ( i guess they all probably do) to use in the Mog. But if it is hard mounted, then I would have to duplicate for the G, and the cost of a HF set up is way too much to duplicate. So..... I think the 897 is still a great set up for me, plenty of room in the mog in an over head where it could be used on the trail, and small enough for a pelican case to use at camp while on G outings. I'm going to think about more before I jump. Now the cost of add ons, at least as far as I see it, only really needs to include the antenna tuner and, of course, two antennas. The internal batteries are not included, and I don't have any interest in them anyway.

If you could buy and find a way to mount the standard cradle mounts in each vehicle, moving the unit from one vehicle to the other might be a simple fix. The big "IF" here is whether or not you have room in each vehicle for the radio in its intact or un-separated config. I did this with an 8900 a few years back. It wasn't much smaller than the 857 that fills the space now. I found some machine scews with knurled plastic knobs which made the dismount-mount procedure fast and tool free. The power taps and grounds were all identical Andersen Power-Poles that were ganged. Basically it was "plug and play" in either vehicle. I also created a 25' zip cord extension for "extra-vehicular" table-top operation just outside the vehicle. I use it now with the FT-450at.
I'd advise against a mobile install that require any tuner other than a screwdriver controller. Here's a website with some mobile install info.
http://www.k0bg.com/
One caveat...the guys opinions are very suspect. Some have suggested "payola" (free money or free gear) from two of the antenna mfr'rs and with Icom. So, you'll have to take his "opinions" with a grain of salt. Other than that, he proffers some good technical info.

 

[AKRover]

I have the 857d mounted under the drawer system in my Range Rover and I used the quick detach bracket from the old ft100 hf radio that Yeasu used to make. You have to make 2 small spacers for the side of the radio but it works great. Then I can easily remove it and use it as my base radio as well.

Something to consider if you want to swap one radio between to vehicles.

 

[Corey]

What about using one antenna with a splitter?
Diamond MX62M duplexer
That is what I ended up with, the Asat 120a.

 

[gary in ohio]

I'd advise against a mobile install that require any tuner other than a screwdriver controller. Here's a website with some mobile install info.
[

Not sure I agree with the screwdriver only option. A proper whip and a long wire tuner make an very good option for the expo vehicle. The key is proper gear. Whip needs to be 12ft plus long and tuner needs to be external and designed for long wire/whips. The crappy internal tuners on many radio are not designed for whips.

A screw driver antenna is another good option and often the best for 80m use, but you need a heavy duty unit to survive off road use.

 

[rambrush]

I run a screwdriver for HF had the whip option but the metal on the canopy was creating problems.
So I switched to Screwdriver to get things above canopy. I used to keep the egg beater on all the time but it finds every tree and branch in sight.
So currently I am using a whip on it and pushing 14 foot have been up in Montana and easily communicated with friends in Arizona.
Still have tuner in place so I can run wire if needed.

 

[xtatik]

Not sure I agree with the screwdriver only option. A proper whip and a long wire tuner make an very good option for the expo vehicle. The key is proper gear. Whip needs to be 12ft plus long and tuner needs to be external and designed for long wire/whips. The crappy internal tuners on many radio are not designed for whips.

A screw driver antenna is another good option and often the best for 80m use, but you need a heavy duty unit to survive off road use.

I wouldn't recommend inboard tuners for mobile use either, but I wouldn't refer to them as crappy. In fact, I can't think of any mobile units with inboard tuners in production. The network construction on inboard tuners is essentially the same as found on outboard units. They're just not designed to be as broad, with a 3:1 match being the best that can be expected. This works fine for me as I'm a big believer in near or fully resonant antennas for portable work. Inboard units are perfect for portable use with the ability to "broaden" near resonant antennas and also to help in limiting the number of pieces of equipment to lug around and set up.
As for mobile...It's just my preference, but I think screwdriver types of antennas with their ability to become resonant themselves is the best way to go. No need for external tuners, just a control box...some with memory presets or versions that are fully automatic. And, they do surpisingly well on offroad vehicles providing you don't ram the antenna body into a tree. I know of several that have been in service on offroad vehicles for years without problems.

 

[burquedoka]

Thanks for all the input guys! After some deliberation I've decided to go for a used 857d I found on eham.net. It's a nice unit, all the filters added, upgraded mic and a bunch of other extras. I'm totally stoaked and can't wait to start playing with it. Now to study for the general so I can really use it. Intsall pictures to come.