I bought one of those floating I-whatever 34 models today to replace the M-whatever 72 I somehow managed to lose a couple years ago. Figured if I had bought a floating unit in the first place I wouldn’t be buying one now. Then I got home and opened the package and found out how big this beast is. Back to the store to shell out and extra $50 for an I-whatever 72.
no point to floating
you need a lanyard regardless and with a lanyard it will never end up in the water. May as well be small which no floating unit would be.
ICOM M-72 is a really good VHF
I’ve had one for over 4 years now (wow, been that long?). I have only used it in saltwater, which is seldom ever flat, and while it hasn’t been seriously dunked it does get a bit of spray on occasion. I keep it in a nylon case on my pfd when paddling so that helps. The battery still holds a good charge, it still works great … and it always stays attached by lanyard and biner clip to my pfd strap.
+1
tip: disconnect battery after post-use rinsing. Otherwise water can be trapped between battery contacts and corrode. Otherwise it can survive very nicely.
I had one
Or I thought I did…
I honestly dont know what happened to my old one, it disappeared. My latest theory, 1.5 years after the fact, is that it fell out of my pfd pocket when I did some rolling at my friends lake house at Thanksgiving 2009. But I dont remember ever seeing it after I left home for my friend’s, 200 miles away.
Its the most plausible explanation though I’ve only recently come up with it.
Crap!!!
I spilled olive juice on the owner’s manual…how do you remove canned olive juice from owner’s manual? Maybe they won’t notice…
m72 to m34
funny…I did the same thing but for my sailboat. Lost my beloved M72 over the side on what was just a bad day, then the M34 (pre Li-ion) just had batteries that went dead too quick. 2 Base units aboard, one a 20 year old Icom M45 (?), so I just bought a cheap Cobra handheld for $35 from Defender.
never say never
Even with a lanyard, the radio can end up floating (or sinking) away from you. Happened recently during a rescue. Lanyard apparently snapped. No more radio.
Mark
of course
– Last Updated: Jul-19-11 7:49 PM EST –
but given I have it in PFD pocket with a lanyard to PFD D ring it would take a situation too rare to worry about. And most of those rare situations would likely also mean that a floating model would be swept away to who-knows-where. Too many other things way more likely to ruin my day.
Your lost one was in a PFD pocket also??
yep
Just bought the ic m72 last week. Love the 6w transmit, the speaker vibrator and the LOUD speaker. Looked at the floating models for about 3 seconds and decided no way, too fat. I have been using a non-floating waterproof camera for 4 years and haven’t lost that so I’m not so worried about losing the radio. Tether, tether, tether.
maybe
Thats where I usually kept it. I have no recollection of whether I put it in my pfd that day. In fact I didn’t notice the thing missing till after I drove the 200 miles home after the weekend. It could have fallen out in the snow when I stopped along the way there, I dunno. I just know it left home with me.
and one more
– Last Updated: Jul-19-11 11:39 PM EST –
I have one and it's rock solid, after three years. Battery life is rated in decades and it's big enough to keep me from losing it.
No point to floating
like other people said; attach a reliable lanyard and keep it in the pocket or on the shoulder strap (requires a clip or DIY small pocket).
What I can’t figure out is how to prevent the Volume/On knob on Icom from incidental activation. Happened more than once to me - radio turns on in the pocket, water sounds block soft hum coming VHF, and by the end of the day (or next day" lithium battery is dead. I stopped carrying other items in the same pocket - like sun block etc, but it still turns on occasionally - apparently I hit it somehow on me or when PFD is laying around the camp.