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| Reviews Summary for Icom IC-2GAT |
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Reviews: 8
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Average rating: 4.4/5
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MSRP: $(missing—add MSRP)
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Description: 2 meter HT from late 1980s and early 1990s. 7 watts output. Also featured 4GAT 70cm, 12GAT 23cm, and 32at 2/70cm versions
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More info: http://www.icomamerica.com
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You can
write your own review of the Icom IC-2GAT.
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KO0KY
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 17, 2007 08:50
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I have two, and I love them
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had two of these radios since the late 80's. One was an original purchase, and the other was won by a friend at a hamfest in Charlotte, NC. He didn't want it, being a computer person and not a ham, so I got it at half price!
I love every feature, especially since I have very large hands. I also have an IC-T81A, a more modern 'micro' rig, which is hard for me to use. That is a problem with every hand held made today however.
Believe it or not, I use the original battery packs, and they have not been rebuilt! They just seem to keep on going forever. As far as the comments above regarding not being able to use 12 volts directly, the battery pack has inputs for the wall charger and 13.8V direct, so you can use your car power defacto, if not directly. No diff as far as I'm concerned. That's how I ran mobile for years.
If you can get a good one off of eBay, go for it. I highly recommend it.
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KC8HXO
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 30, 2007 15:05
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built like a brick!!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Works well. Only HT I can work my local repeater from home with. Very simple operation. Batteries hold up well, and for a long time. You CAN run directly on 13.8V. You need an adapter that slides on in place of battery.
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VE8AA
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 15, 2006 18:49
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More
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I almost forgot, I tested this unit with a Bird Watt meter, which was calibrated, and I received almost 8.5 Watts out of it. This was of course on High power, and with a 13.2 volt battery pack fully charged. The unit is large, but as I said in my last post, this was just as the simaller HTs were coming out, and they were MUCH more expensive. As a side note, W & W associates still carry battery packs for these radios, and will rebuild existing packs, if you can't source them locally.
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VE8AA
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 15, 2006 18:10
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Simple and Rugged
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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A VERY sturdy rig that is simple to use for the novice, or anyone that likes the KISS principle.
No complaints since new in 1993. Excellent feature is rebuildable battery packs (mine are NiCad, and since I have NiCad fast charger, I stick with those rebuilds. I also have the 6 X AA case. The Rig is very easy to use for packet.
I can't fault it for anything it was designed to do. There were radios with more bells and whistles (this was when dual band 2M and 440 were becoming popular) but this is a GREAT radio for what it was designed for.
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N4OKG
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Rating: 1/5
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Apr 25, 2005 17:02
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Grossly over-deviated and nobody could fix it, not even Icom!
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I bought an IC-2GAT new in the late 1980s, 1988 as I recall, and after numerous complaints about "wide audio" or harsh audio, I made several attempts at having it repaired, including sending it to Icom and having a local technician give it a go. The deviation was adjusted by means of the mic gain and was extremely sensitive. Adjustment would go from no output to a deviation of 8-10 at even a hit of pressure on the adjustment. I sent it to Icom and it came back with a "Problem could not be duplicated" note. I have a rather deep voice and they said that perhaps my voice was the problem! How am I supposed to fix that? I finally sold the unit at a hamfest with the buyer fully aware of the rig's background. He got it at a deeply discounted price and was apparently happy with it. Apparently I got a lemon since others seem to be OK. I present have an Icom IC-T2H that I'm quite pleased with.
Al Turner, N4OKG
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W8ATT
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 14, 2005 21:40
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Good Solid Radio
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned a 2GAT for quite a while and have never any complaints about the radio. Works good, has 7 watts output, rugged, and the batteries can be rebuilt. If you want a small radio this is not the one for you but if you want a radio that performs under many conditions...this is a good choice.
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KE7BIO
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 26, 2004 22:35
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Great first handheld!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I purchased this radio from a family friend; it was his first as a ham back in 1991. It operates flawlessly using a 1/2 wave antenna that extends to about 36 inches or so. Had the original BP-70 NiCd battery pack rebuilt. Local repeaters are hit with no problem, even upstairs in the house! Audio is excellent; yes, case gets a little warm on HI power, it's used as a heat sink. I'd recommend this workhorse anytime!!
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NE0P
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Rating: 4/5
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Sep 12, 2003 15:07
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High powered HT!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I picked up one of these HTs recently from ebay for a decent price. My main HT is a Kenwood TH-F6A, but I have been playing with the 2GAT off and on the past week or so, and it does a good job. First off, this is a BIG radio. Much bigger than my TH-F6A. Those of you who don't like small HT and small buttons will love this radio. The display is on the top, which is different than most HTs I have owned before. That takes a little getting used to. I guess this radio is the same size as the 2at and 02at, but it seems larger.
This is the high power HT, though. It is rated at 7 watts out, but the ARRL testing showed over 8 watts out! And the supplied BP-70 is a 12 volt battery, so you can get high power out of the box-no need to buy an additional battery. Of course the radio will eat the battery pretty fast at this power level. Low power is 1 watt, which is unusual for Icom (the only other Icom HT I know of that does 1 watt on low power is the T2H). Most Icom HTs have low power settings of 500 mw which is fairly useless-so you have to use high power anyway. I have been using this HT on low power most of the time with good results.
The receiver audio is LOUD! Perfect for noisy environments and mobile work. A separate volume knob, and a real squelch knob-not some menu setting. The 2GAT has 20 memories, which is enough for most of us, and has a built in tone encoder. Programming memories is very easy on this HT, easier than most current Icom HTs. The tuning is a little unusual, where you have a separate up/down switch for the megahertz, 100khz, and the 5khz positions. This actually works pretty well, though. There is no way to enter the frequency from the keypad. Like the 2AT, the keypad is for DTMF tones and nothing else. The display is backlit, but the keys are not. Still the backlighting is a pleasant green color.
You cannot run this HT directly off of 12 volts, as there is no jack for DC in, as there is on the 02AT series. This is too bad, as it would make a very nice mobile setup. Battery life seems pretty good at low power, as I used it several days without having to recharge it. That is pretty good considering the BP-70 is a pretty low capacity battery. There are higher capacity versions available, as this HT uses the common BP2/4/5/7/8 series-and these batteries are everywhere.
Overall, this is a pretty neat HT, and will make a nice backup for me. If you are looking at a good cheap way to get on 2 meters, this will do it, especially if HT size is not important to you. If you need CTCSS decode, there is an optional unit available, but they are probably hard to find. If you live on the fringe of the repeater area, and need some power, this is the HT for you, although I understand that the case gets pretty hot at 7+ watts.
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