|
New to Ham Radio?
My Profile
Community
Articles
Forums
News
Reviews
Friends Remembered
Speak Out
Strays
Survey Question
Operating
Contesting
DX Cluster Spots
Propagation
Resources
Calendar
Classifieds
Ham Exams
Ham Links
List Archives
News Articles
Product Reviews
QSL Managers
Site Info
eHam Help (FAQ)
Support the site
The eHam Team
Advertising Info
Vision Statement
About eHam.net
|
| Reviews Summary for Hallicrafters FPM-300 MK-II |
|
Reviews: 6
|
Average rating: 2.7/5
|
MSRP: $(missing—add MSRP)
|
|
Description: Hallicrafter's last HF XCVR. 80-10 meters SSB/CW, AC/DC, solid-state except driver and final. 250 watts input.
|
|
More info: http://
|
|
You can
write your own review of the Hallicrafters FPM-300 MK-II.
|
VE2ITZ
|
Rating: 1/5
|
Feb 28, 2008 13:53
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Heavy, ugly and good for a dump
|
Time owned: 6 to 12 months
|
I had one that my brother acquired in a garage sale and it cost him about 20 bucks.
It was my first HF Radio and well since it was free i did not complain.
Terrible, Awful, the worst i have experienced in my life. (It gave me headaches and stomach nausea looking at its gray color).
It awfully reminded me of that early 70's era. All square and gray and ugly!
I think the only thing that was cool was the fact that it was a "Hallicrafters"
It was drifting and was off frequency by about 20 khz! LOL
I had the impression i was transmitting with an International Harvester's "Scout".
But what the heck; i did have some contacts on it, and pretty far too!
I ended selling it to a fellow for $175.
|
|
N0XE
|
Rating: 5/5
|
Aug 23, 2007 08:08
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Worked for Me
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
|
This was my first real radio after my initial entry in to ham radio via a Heathkit HW 16. I was a Novice in 1975, if it was such a bad radio I sure did not notice it. I was limited to CW yet worked so much DX there was not space left to put up any additional Qsl cards so I just started tossing them in a drawer. I was in Alaska and that probably helped with my Qsl rate but I really had no issues with this radio. I also purchased this on a close out with AES , maybe I just got lucky, but mine worked very well and my antenna was pretty poor, a ground mounted vertical in the high artic tundra and no radials, yet worked most of the USA as well Europe, Asia and even S. America. It may be a dog by todays standards but for a novice in 1975-76 I was in heaven, hi, 73 Jim N0XE
|
|
K5UJ
|
Rating: 1/5
|
Apr 17, 2007 08:37
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Give us a break is right
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
I'm writing in the Mk-II column because I owned the FPM300 mk 2. This rig was a total dog from the get go. It was made by Hallicrafters after they were purchased by Northrop Grumman and it shows. No ham could have ever designed this rig.
1. There was no cw offset. Amazing but true.
2. A PA cooling fan was not stock. Without a fan, you had to be real quick when tuning up the rig. Put a small fan on the back, turn it on and listen to the VFO immediately drift several hundred hertz.
3. The VFO knob was a cheap hollow piece of plastic.
I owned this rig back in the 1970s and I have thankfully forgotten a lot about it over the years, so I can't give a complete list of its problems, but if you see one in a flea market, run from it. It was not even in the same ballpark with other rigs of its day such as the TS520, FT101 or TR4.
|
|
W8ZNX
|
Rating: 1/5
|
Jan 21, 2006 14:34
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
end of Hallicrafters
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
the worst tube type hf xceiver
ever had the misfortune to own
poorly made bad paint job
push on top cover and she shifts freq.
even after one hour warm up drifted worse than any other ssb xceiver iv ever owned
even the Swan Cygnet runs rings around it
this radio
was one of the nails in the Hallicrafters coffin
mac w8znx
|
|
KM5CU
|
Rating: 4/5
|
Jul 20, 2001 22:36
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
Good rig
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
|
This has been a good little rig. When I got it in 1995 it looked like it had undergone some major repairs, but it has never failed me. Unfortunately it came without the 10 m Xtals and without the DC cord. This radio has a buit in Inverter basically, and can be operated off of a 12 V battery. I am still looking to either get that cord or somehow rig me one up! Sometimes the rig will just go silent. I heard that this is because of the (new at the time) FET technology and hypersensitivity to electrostatic discharges. It does drif a little and sometimes the balanced modulator and the final DC bias needs to be adjusted, but other than that it's still kicking! All these little quirks makes for a fun evening playing around with the dials and adjusting this and that. Thanks for the forum!
|
|
WB0FDJ
|
Rating: 4/5
|
May 15, 2001 17:52
|
Send this review to a friend
|
|
A Fine Rig...
|
Time owned: more than 12 months
|
In 1975 I ran one of these, almost daily, for the better part of 3 years. It was purchased new as a closeout (closeout!, heck they went out of business!)for about $375. I recall that the original FPM-300 had a bad rep, and the mark II spiffed up the rig albeit too late to save it from extinction.
This was a fine, basic radio. On SSB it held it's own alongside Swans and Tempos. I don't ever recall anything "wrong" with the radio. I took it on field day 1976 and my ham buddies are still talking about it.
Only complaints: no filters. Today I would get a simple outboard audio filter, esp for cw. The top of the rig easily flips up for easy access to stuff like side tone adjustments, etc. It never required any service and never had any significant glitches.
|
|
If you have any questions, problems, or suggestions about Reviews,
please email your Reviews Manager.
|
|
|
|
|
