Super Compact UHF/VHF Dual Band?

[kellen302]

I've rewired and changed up the interior layout on my 1960 Series II Land Rover 88 so I am a bit short on space and no longer have the space for my Kenwood D700 that came with the truck. I've got a super compact CB mounted above the gauges in the center of the dash that is great because it is so small ( ) but I'd like to go back to having a mobile HAM setup instead of handhelds. Does anyone know of any new or old true dual tx/rx units that are close to the size of that linked CB?

Remote mounting the display is a last resort as there is not a lot of dash space on the vehicle and no underseat space.

Thanks!

 

[Hilldweller]

Smallest one I've seen

Alinco DR-MD500T Alinco DR-MD500T Advanced Dual Band VHF/UHF DMR Part 90 Mobile Transceivers | DX Engineering

Free Shipping - Alinco DR-MD500T Advanced Dual Band VHF/UHF DMR Part 90 Mobile Transceivers with qualifying orders of $99. Shop Mobile Transceivers at DX Engineering.

www.dxengineering.com

 

[DaveInDenver]

dual tx/rx

Do you mean dual band as in covering perhaps both 2m and 70cm or actually dual tuners?

If you want the later it's hard to imagine a smaller radio than that Alinco Bill shows. It's pretty small. In fact I'm not it isn't the smallest ever. There's been some small radios, the Yaesu FTM-10, FT-1500 and FT-1900 for example, but those are only 2m and/or single VFO 2m/70cm.

But one thing to consider here, and I'm just throwing it out, is that these radios are indeed small and often lack fans. Heat can be a real issue and especially if you mount them *in* your dash and restrict airflow. So just be mindful of keeping TX short and that you give them a fighting chance with heat build up.

 

[kellen302]

Thanks for the recommendations. Covering 2m and 70cm is a must have. True dual band transmit is a nice to have, but receiving on multiple at once is a really nice to have/must have. I'll give these radios a look through and see what might fit.

I don't plan on long transmissions so that isn't too much of a concern

 

[DaveInDenver]

Just my $0.02 but if you want dual band and dual VFO you might be better off assuming you'll need to go remote face mounting. Not that the DR-MD500 is bad necessarily but there's not a lot of history and it's maybe an Anytone AT-D578UV that's been rebranded. So I'd have some concern about it's quality. Although Alinco is a good supplier and might use different firmware and components, I dunno. Yaesu also rebrands a Chinese radio, the FT-4XR being I think an adaptation of the Baofeng UV-6R, but with performance that is improved.

But the quality aside by opening up your criteria you will have a lot more options. There's just not been a lot of radios that cover 2m and 70cm with dual VFOs and the ones that do have almost always been rather sizeable and thus split faces. It's a lot of RF to stuff in a small enclosure and some laws (like physics) are difficult to impossible to break.

 

[mep1811]

Get one with a remote head unit.

 

[Blair G]

Get one with a remote head unit.

I have a 5100 and from what i have seen it is a nice radio. The one thing I dont understand about the Icoms is why they don't place the mic connection on the head unit? Its nice to be able to tuck the main body out of the way but the fact your mic is connected to the main body is a pain. You can buy (of course) an extension for the mic but that ends up being weird as well.

Blair

 

[craig333]

My Icom 2730 has the mic on the head unit.

 

[mep1811]

Simple enough to ask that question to Icom. There are other radios with detachable faces.

 

[Oscar Mike Gulf Yankee]

I came for pictures!

 

[Blair G]

My Icom 2730 has the mic on the head unit.

Looks like its attached to the main body like mine. Not on the remote head.

 

[craig333]

Plugs in on the right hand side.

HAM - Craig Ruth

This photo hosted by SmugMug; your photos look better here.

craigruth.smugmug.com

 

[craig333]

I just reprogrammed my 2730 and you can either plug the mic into the head or the main body.

 

[Blair G]

I just reprogrammed my 2730 and you can either plug the mic into the head or the main body.

That's good to know about the 2730 for people looking for a Remote face option. Unfortunately on the 5100 its not an option and people will need to buy an extension for the Mic if the body is more than a couple feet away.
Blair

 

[rnArmy]

This is what I'm running in my Jeep TJ - a BTECH UV 25x2. It is mounted on top of my CB using a spare CB mount I had sitting around. Small, dual band, non-detachable face, has a cooling fan. Inexpensive. Will also transmit and receive GMRS frequencies.

Link: UV-25X2 - BaoFeng Tech

Pictures for those who came for the pictures: