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1-10 of 16 messages
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Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a budg
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by KD4HRI on August 22, 2003
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OK, everyone agrees, a nice ft-100D, or IC-706 is the ideal mobile HF rig but ... I'm thinking about a less costly route and I'm thinking about a previous generation of Mobile HF .. or thinking of how to go 20 and 40 meter mobile on a budget.
I've been reviewing the Ten-tec scout, an ft-77, old Atlas rigs and even the new MFJ mini rigs.
What are the best of yesterday's HF mobile rigs that can be had at say, 1/3 to 1/4 of a brand new ft-100D?
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by K0BG on August 23, 2003
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There's a lot to choose from. I'd start looking for a good used Icom 706 or Kenwood TS50 rather than an older Atlas or anything with tubes. The main reason is size. Unless you're driving a big vehicle, finding room in a modern car is difficult at best. good used IC706s and TS50s can be found for under $300 if you shop around.
Alan, KØBG
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by N3ZKP on August 23, 2003
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Another good, low cost, mobile is the Alinco DX-70. I have two of them and much prefer them to the 706 - too much of the 706 is menu driven to mess with while mobile as far as I am concerned.
Lon
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by K7VO on August 23, 2003
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The Ten Tec Scout is an excellent choice: simple to operate, low cost, excellent receiver, and relatively small. The Jones filter will allow you to narrow the bandwidth and reduce adjacent signal QRM easily. A nice one with a mounting bracket and a good variety of modules will run you about $300 to $350. Make sure you get one with the noise blanker installed.
The Alinco DX-70TH is a very good base rig, but the noise blanker is horrible. In some cars that don't generate a lot of RFI they are just fine, but in others they are nearly useless. The DX-70TH is definitely a "try before you buy".
The IC-706 for $300? Where? I've never seen it.
I agree with avoiding the old Atlas rigs. They're orphans, and you are looking at something than will likely need maintenance immediately or at least in the short term. Besides, in that era of radio, the Swan 100MXA or 100MXB is far more rugged and won't cost you more. Still, hold out for something a bit newer if you can fit something that large in your car. In the $200-$250 range you will find rigs like the Icom IC-730, Yaesu FT-747GX, Yaesu FT-77, and Kenwood TS-130S, all of which would be superior choices. Don't sacrifice the WARC bands. 17 meters is outstanding for mobile operation, as is 12 when it's open.
73,
Caity
K7VO
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by KR4JA on August 25, 2003
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I can "second" the vote for a Kenwood TS130S. It was my first mobile radio, simple to operate while driving, and the best noise blanker of any mobile I've used. You can find these for $250-300.
73, Dave
Norcross, GA
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by WD9FSL on August 25, 2003
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I'm just starting out with Mobile HF (been operating fixed base for ~25 years). However, I was just in the same situation as you, and looked at a lot of HF mobile rigs.
If you can find one, the FT-900 by Yaesu is an excellent choice. It has a detatchable faceplate, auto tuner (opt) and separation kit. I just installed the unit in my jeep. Put the faceplate on the dash and installed the rig in the back cargo area.
Bought mine for $500 used. You can find them from about $450 - $650 on the used market. I bench compared it to my base FT-990 and it held right in there.
73's
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by WB2WIK on August 26, 2003
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I prefer the "simpler" rigs for HF mobiling, myself.
Unlike VHF/UHF-FM, which is purely channelized, so once programmed almost never needs to be looked at again, HF-SSB or HF-CW isn't channelized and needs to be adjusted quite a lot. When HF mobiling, I *constantly* adjust things like power output, mike gain, receiver volume, noise blanker, mode (SSB or CW), receiver bandwidth and keyer speed. And I mean constantly. It is rare to have two contacts in a row where the previous settings are the correct ones.
Menu-driven rigs including the IC-706, FT-100, TS-50 and other small, modern radios are not very "make a lot of changes on the fly" friendly. Maybe I'm just stupid, but I don't find pushing buttons to pull down menus, and pushing more buttons to make changes to things like mike gain, receive filter, power output or operating mode to be much fun when flying down the freeway at 75 mph. I'd much rather have a rig where I can take a half-second glance down to find the right knob to twist, and then twist it while I'm focusing on the road in front of me.
To that end, the "analog" rigs which are menu-free, for me, are much more mobile-friendly. I use a Ten Tec SCOUT model 555 for HF mobiling. It has no menus, and only has half a dozen front-panel controls, which are exactly the ones it needs. Using those controls, I can adjust RX volume; RX bandwidth; mike gain; noise blanker; keyer speed. It also has a big, fat, bright numeric display I can easily see from almost any viewing angle, even in broad daylight. It does not have a detachable faceplate, but doesn't really need one, since it's a small and very lightweight radio that will tuck in just about anywhere.
Drawback is that to change bands, you need to remove a module and plug in a new one. That only takes ten seconds, but is best done when pulled over, and not zipping down the road. Since I use the Hustler mobile whips and have to get out of the car to change from one to another anyway, the band module issue is a miniscule inconvenience.
The SCOUT is no longer made, but was sold for about ten years and I see them all the time for about $300. Highly recommended!
WB2WIK/6
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by XE1UFO on August 29, 2003
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Several posts are bashing the Atlas. I disagree. I have had the privelege of owning two Atlas 210X rigs over the years. They are excellent rigs!! I have worked over 60 countries mobile with mine, all SSB.
Of course, I added the Heil HC4 mic element.
Also, you might consider if crime is a problem in your area. If you lose a $150 dollar rig, it is not nearly so painful as losing a $500 rig.
The basic things that have gone wrong on my Atlas, I have been able to fix myself. Try that on one of the newer synthesized/digital rigs! Even the finals can be found cheaply here in Mexico at CB shops, where they are often used for bootleg Criminal Band linears. Thousands of Atlas (and Swan, also by the great Herb Johnson) rigs are still in daily use today.
The Atlas is almost as tall and wide, but just half as long (deep) as the Kenwood TS-140S (which I also own.) It is also a great rig for quickly setting up in a motel or campground QTH and will also work on gelcells.
Please check out Atlas+210X on www.webcrawler.com and THEN decide.
I HIGHLY RECOMEND THE ATLAS 210X!!
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by W4KPA on August 30, 2003
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You've gotten lots of great comments here. There are a lot of radios that will fill the bill for you. Mainly it's a function of price. Currently I run an original model IC-706 in a Chevrolet pickup. It works like a charm and you ought to be able to find one around $400 + or -. I used an Atlas 210x for a long time, and it worked very well too. I wouldn't shy away just because the rig is an orphan. They're pretty easy to work on if you can lay hands on the manual. But, they do drift like crazy and receiver performance has come a long way over the last 30 years. If you got one really cheap ($100 or so) it might be worth the investment. Having said all of this, my bottom line recommendation would be a TS-130. They sound great. They can be found for about $300 (sometimes less), and has been said earlier, the noise blanker may be the best in the business -- something you'll really appreciate.
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RE: Yesterday's Mobile HF Rigs or, Mobile HF on a
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by K7VO on August 30, 2003
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Before considering a drift-o-matic Atlas for $100 I chose to put a monoband rig in the car. A Kantronics KT-115 (made by Tokyo Hy-Power) for 15m fit the bill for me. I re-acquired this one for a whopping $75 with the HN-100 noise blanker installed. I also have the mounting bracket, so that plus a cheap Hamstick-type antenna and I was in business for under $100. The rig is stable, has a big, bright yellow/green digital display, an effective noise blanker, and an excellent receiver. The 20W output is more than good enough to make lots of contacts. Tokyo Hy-Power made versions for 6, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, and 80 meters, and Kantronics (or Amp Supply before that) sold them under their own name in the U.S. in the late '80s.
Another good choice if 15 meters is your thing would be the NCG 15M (made by Panasonic). Otherwise, check the hamfests and online boards and find the monobander that suits you.
Oh, and as far as the Atlas rigs being easy to fix: yes, if you are technically competent they are. I don't assume that everyone is technically competent to do their own repairs. I certainly am not.
73,
Caity
K7VO
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