| W0BKR |
Rating:      |
2018-09-11 | |
| Good Fun Radio |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Acquired an FT-101EX from a local. Told me it had the processor in it (didn't), told me it would work 160M, (had the crystal but little power out). So when you get one "working" be aware it likely will require some "work". After doing some adjustments, got the 160 to put out 100W (doubt I will get on 160) and got the S-Meter to read relatively well.
Fun radio to use and set up. Only nit to me is the backwards dial and band switching from other radios but more of a learn it and live with it.
Get great audio reports with my stock hand mic and 100 watts, frequently topping the pile ups. Great.
Anyway, a heavy beast, so pack well if you ever ship it. |
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| W9WZJ |
Rating:     |
2013-03-19 | |
| Old friend |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I have used this rig since 1977. What can I say? It puts out 100 watts on HF, has an AM filter that sounds great, terrific side rejection, and hears deep into the noise.
But wait, I don't use it much on HF, I use it with an FTV-901R transverter on 6, 2 and 432 ssb with great results, so I just need the mW drive and a great receive.
It does lack ease of band changes on HF, hell, ease of moving very far down the band with out tuning SOMETHING, and the NB is marginal. But, alas, I love it. Might love an FT-901/2 as well, but this rig is my childhood friend and will never leave my side.
Most have been CBized and rode hard, but if you can find a decent old rig, scoop it up. It might out last you.
Time owned: 36 years
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| KH6TA |
Rating:      |
2012-02-28 | |
| Great "Vintage" Radio! |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
Had one of these as my 1st hf xcvr back in 1979, sold to get a newer model but always regretted it.
I find myself using the 101EE instead of my IC-7600 because it's just fun to op one of these great old radios again. Gets GREAT signal & audio reports, runs at 120W on 40m with carrier control on 8, FTB is 140W (too much!). Rx is great for a radio this old, but it has been "cleaned up" electrically. Very reliable and a kick to operate. Best $400 I've spent in awhile. NOT a radio for appliance ops!
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| YD0NSI |
Rating:      |
2010-10-16 | |
| Oldie but Goodie !! |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
| Got the 101F from Ebay USA a few months back..Replaced the finals and did some minor alignment..It now generates just over 100 w PEP output on all bands and a little lower on the 10m band..Great for local ragchewing and worked many DX stations on the 40m, 20m, 15m and 10m bands..I also have a 101 EX and the 101F is, in my opinion a little more sensitive in RX than the 101EX..Just worked K6HP and other stations from the West Coast of USA this morning on 15m..Good audio reports I got from them and RX was great too running only barefoot and using a simple rotary dipole antenna on a tower about 25 metres from the ground..The only downside is if we like to QSY to different bands frequently..73, de JOY/YC0NSI. |
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| KB0HAE |
Rating:    |
2010-10-10 | |
| not so great |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I ran an FT-101E side by side with a Kenwood TS-520 for about a year. Both were in very good condition. While the FT-101E was not a bad radio, the TS-520 was clearly superior in all respects. RX and TX audio were better on theTS-520. Both sensitivity and selectivity were better on the TS-520. The TS-520 does not have AM mode (and so is less popular with 11M ops). The TS-520 uses 6146Bs which are much more rugged than the 6JS6 TV sweep tubes used in thr FT-101E.
The FT-101 series radios are very overpriced today because of their popularity with CBers. Many have been converted to 11M use. The FT-901/902 series radios are the best radios Yaesu ever made. The FT-101ZD series were not bad, but the other FT-101 series radios were not as good as the Kenwood TS-520 series. There is an excellent yahoo group dedicated to the Kenwood Hybrid radios. |
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| KJ4NOO |
Rating:      |
2010-09-12 | |
| Great performer |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| An FT-101EE was my 1st rig when I got my ticket. I had to clean the switches to get it working but once I did it performed great. I worked Antarctica with it and a G5RV at 30' ! I have upgraded to an FT-990 as my main rig but I'm keeping the 101 as my backup rig and still like to use it ocassionally to keep it in good working condition. I added the WARC band kit with great results and look forward to many years of solid performance from the radio ! |
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| K9FON |
Rating:      |
2008-11-15 | |
| like an old friend |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I have owned and used the FT 101B, E, EE and the EX. In fact, i have owned 3 different FT 101Es and 2 EE's over the years and NOT ONE of them has dissapointed me! They are easy to use, work on and they just sound GREAT on the air. Not to mention they have the BEST AM TX audio of ANY multi band HF rig made to date! Long live the Yaesu FT 101 series!!!! |
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| N4FZ |
Rating:      |
2006-11-27 | |
| Still going after 28 years! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| First Novice rig, (1978) Built like a Sherman tank! Original finals were recently replaced after 28 years. There may be better rigs out there, but the FT101EE still has a special place in my shack! Gene |
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| W8AAZ |
Rating:     |
2005-09-27 | |
| Fun backup or basic rig |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| I am on my third 101, an EX. Sold my last one maybe 15+ years ago. Got this one on ebay for 177$, recently, as a backup to my super microchip rig that croaked. This one is very clean, but is functional and nostalgic for me. Needs to be dusted a little and the switches sure need cleaning, but that will happen when the other rig gets back. No problems operating-just got to get used to tuning it up again. But I leave the filiments off to just monitor. Get used to VFO drift until it warms up, and maybe even after. But the newer problem of synthesizer phase noise is absent here. Clean RX and good audio. Be sure the finals are good-very expensive to replace, usually. Mine are fine and that is why I leave the filiments off as much as possible. This is a heavy rig and built like a battleship. Also the power cords are a little scarce, so get them with the rig or adjust your price. I have been having fun for sure while my super tech rig is out, you will too, if you get a decent one. Maybe avoid one used by a CBer or other untrained radio hacker unless you can be sure of it. They tend to muck about inside and also abuse the finals a bit. Don't bother with a beater, get a clean example for a little more money, there are plenty about, until the collectors start getting after them. Plastic on front adds some value,(to fussy collectors) but is not a big deal in practical terms as long as the faceplate is in good condx. Visit FOXTANGO to get the rundown on the different versions! Pair it with a Shure 444 or maybe 450 mike and it is perfect on TX. |
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| N6AJR |
Rating:     |
2004-11-22 | |
| Yahoo 101 ZEE DEE |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I have had several 101ee's a 101 e, a plain 101, and a 101zd. of all I really liked the zd best. this was truning ito a really great radio at the end.
You had to know how to dip the plate and max the load, ( then you figured out this also is where you hit max out on the gopod old cross needle swr/power meter) , and carrier insertion and mike level and such, and always turn them on an hour before you need them, by then they would only drift up about 10 cycles a minute. They were / are a lot of fun, and probably worth a couple hundred bucks today.
one note , leave the power and heater switches on all the time, and plug it into a 110 volt zip strip to turn on and off. The power and heater switches were the first thing to break, and a pain to fix, so this solves the main problem with the 101's Now lets talk about the siltronics ( Read that Henry) rigs...
another note, the legend is that at the time there were about 500,00 hams and over 1 million of these were sold in this country, but Never to a CB'er..hi hi. |
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