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| Reviews Summary for Icom IC-28A/H |
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Reviews: 14
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Average rating: 4.8/5
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MSRP: $ICOM IC 28H
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Description: mid 80's vintage 2 meter FM mobile, 21 memory channels, ctcss encode, optional D.Sql
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More info: http://
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KB9JIA
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 30, 2009 23:09
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Fantastic and reliable radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned this radio for nearly 15 years and was the second owner. It's been mobile through North Carolina summers and Chicago winters and has never missed a call.
Still to this day I get compliments on the audio quality and I can program it while driving... without referring to a manual!
Short of commercial radio gear, they don't make 'em like this anymore!
Big thumbs up from me!
73
KB9JIA
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W4HWD
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Rating: 4/5
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Nov 8, 2008 13:46
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Sweet rig
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I got mine back in 1990 as a high school graduation present. I loved it from the start and I don't know how many cars it's been moved in and out of, how many states it's traveled thru with me, how many pounds of hot air I've blown into the mic, all I know is it holds a place with me as probably the one rig I have ever had that I have used the most! In 1992 I was talking on a repeater one night and output fell almost to nothing. People on the repeater said I was still there only now I have a little noise with me. I knew right away what had happened - the final blew, and I was talking with the driver. Rig was out of warranty. Icom at that time had a repair shop in Atlanta, and I had to go to test for my GROL so I went a day early, visited the Icom shop and they sold me a final for that rig they had in stock, plus some of that silver goop you put between the final and the heatsink. When I got back home it took me exactly 10 minutes to open it, pull the one final, put the new one in and 16 years later, that replacement final is still going 25W out! Around 1999 the internal speaker stopped working, figure a part in the audio circuit blew but didn't bother fixing it, since plugging an external speaker in fixed that, plus sounds better than the internal speaker anyway.
Me and my IC-28A have been through alot, it's got the most longevity of any rig I have ever had and while it's had a few small problems it has been a real companion.
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AH6RH
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 23, 2007 11:26
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Built like a tank - bullet-proof RF
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I echo the sentiments of the other reviewers. Simple, straight forward radio. Puts out 5 and 50 watts on 2m. A great receiver that's a charm -- it blocks out intermod and is super sensitive. No blips and bleeps.
The reason why I'll never part with mines is during Hurricane Iniki on Sept 11 1992, I brought in my IC-28H to operate the packet radio position at Hawaii State Civil Defense. Unknownst to me, the person doing the operating ramped up the transmit power to 50 watts, and ran 50 percent duty cycle packet radio for over 27 hours!
It may not have been exactly 50% duty cycle, but after 27 hours of operating time, I was getting reports that the packet radio position was failing. I checked the radio, and it was super red hot. You could fry eggs on the radio! I burned my fingers bad. I immediately turned off the power supply feeding the radio. I was glad it has a real heat sink and none of this bogus fan stuff but sadly wondered if my next move would be tossing the rig into the trash can.
I waited about two hours for it to cool down before I could touch the rig and take it home. I checked it out, and it performed superbly! No sign of the BRUTAL punishment it endured. Unstoppable!
I have a second unit. I tried using it for accessing packet satellites, but the PLL TX to RX turnaround was too slow to match the ultra-fast crystal transceiver onboard the satellite. It's the only shortcoming I've discovered.
I wish rig manufacturers built such rock solid rigs, that I could deploy to other EOCs. We had several bought and deployed and could use more of the same solid reliability. I evaluate radios before I recommend them for use in the field, and am could use more "tanks".
Ron Hashiro, AH6RH
Honolulu, HI
State CD RACES Coordinator
Original ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course contributor
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N6NKN
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 28, 2007 18:32
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Super Radio For The Price
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Won this radio at the ARRL Convention in San Diego many years ago, hense the price was FREE.
The radio has nearly 200,000 miles and has outlasted several vehicles. If it continues to perform as it has, I may never buy another 2M mobile rig. Easy to program and easy to operate. A legend among Icom mobile rigs.
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K6YE
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 21, 2007 07:22
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AWESOME
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Time owned: months
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The IC-28H is a great radio to operate. It takes a licking and keeps on ticking. I acquired mine when my dear father, K5LDH, became a SK. I use it in the shack and am moving it to the mobile as it is very compact but can put the power. I really like the display and the WX channel is an added asset. If you can find one at a great price, grab it as you will be totally satisfied.
Semper Fi,
Tommy - K6YE
DX IS
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KK9H
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 24, 2006 06:09
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Old trusty
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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My IC-28H served as a packet radio node for over 15 years. When packet radio died away in my area and the node was no longer used I built an APRS tracker using this radio. It now performs that role reliably connected to a TinyTrak3 as KK9H-9. It had a short visit to the repair shop to replace a misbehaving coil and to be sure it was still within spec, but after all those years of service it earned it. Very reliable, solid 2M radio that has stood the test of time.
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KC2WI
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 23, 2006 20:53
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Solid basic radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I'm about to part reluctantly with my IC-28H (acquired a few years back as part of an estate sale). I've used it in the shack for several years and have been very pleased. The only reason I'm letting it go is that I'm setting it up for an elderly ham that has trouble with the menu systems and microscopic buttons on all the new rigs. If I weren't getting some good things in the trade, I'd never part with it. In fact, if I come across another one in the future at a good price, I'll probably buy it.
This is a great little radio. Good RF performance. Sufficient output power. (I usually only run it at 5W anyway.) Straightforward controls and well thought out front panel. Compact but not so small you can't see the controls or get at them with big fingers.
I don't think there is a radio made today that is any simpler to operate. About the only really useful things it doesn't have that newer radios do is automatic repeater shift and display of PL Tone setting as actual tones rather than tone numbers in set mode, but neither is a big deal.
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W0RMS
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 26, 2005 08:41
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Great Old Radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I Bought my first one (still use it every day mobil) over 20 years ago--no problems until last year when I blew the finals (my fault). It has even been through a crash that distroyed my Chev.pickup and never missed a day of service. I now have a second one (saw at a hamfest ,price was right could'nt pass it up) just in case. I like having a radio you can change the freq. on without having to look up the procedure in the manuel. It does,nt have all the bells etc. the new ones have but if you are looking for a good, simple, easy to use rig you won`t go wrong with the 28A/H!!
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SINDK8
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 26, 2005 16:23
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great radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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i have my tranceiver tested by an elmer here. using spectrum analyser. still in great condition. (still the same results when we bought it). its now 15yrs old now and I still use it as my primary and only VHF-2m-FM rig. very stable, no degredation in output power and very efficient out of band rejection (pager, fire/law-enforcement, etc etc) only problem was the backlight which in time dies. my solution was replacing those mini incandescent bulbs with an Amber colored LED + resistors. (great!!! like new radio) BTW this tranceiver was on for 12yrs or so and external problem was the rubber pads on the control knobs gets loose. anyways! this is one very great stable radio, though cannot be compared with the new breeds. (ctcss/dcs etc etc). for its class, its my choice.
the board layout is great. servicing this radio is bearable and not a headache/no SMT components and block/section arrangement.
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KZ9G
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 30, 2003 18:40
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Won't Stop Working!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've also used a IC-28H for over 15 years, and it keeps chugging along. It's a basic 2M rig that takes the punishment. In fact, it has withstood a few scorching summers while mobile in Biloxi, MS. I'm sure the vehicle temp soared to above 140 deg F on many occasions. It also survived 5 winters in my Bravada in Southcentral Alaska, where the temp dipped to below 30 degrees below zero for a few weeks each winter. They are solid, dependable performers. What more can I say?
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