vhf radio

Advice
#21

Out and someone has a medical
emergency? One call on the VHF Might well raise the nearest power boater. One call on you cell phone…



USCG recommends the vhf. Do what you like; know what you do.

#22

west marine
How does this one look to everyone? I notice in the specs that it does not give weather alerts. (Excuse my ignorance but can you access weather channels on this unit? I suppose that you need to be responsible and check yourself prior to and during your trip?)





http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product/10001/-1/10001/77272

#23

The WX
button is weather. Be advised West marine must have thought I bought one of their radios(actually I bought another ICOM at West marine) and they were offering me a free plastic vhf bag because their submersible radios were failing when submerged. Perhaps problem is solved now, I don’t know.

#24

thanks
nice to know about the housing.

#25

Close to your shoulder but
Have you noticed that police wear microphones close to the sholder but the radio is on the hip. Radios, the rx x kind (to the best of my knowlage) produce nasty electronic fields that you really don’t want close to your head.

#26

West Marine FYI…
The West Marine catalogue states that they tested the radios from several manufacturers and found that there was an unacceptably high failure rate from water intrusion. They do not identify which brands did well.

Their policy is to offer the bag free with any vhf radio they sell, from any manufacturer, as added insurance.

#27

That is the model I have
works well and is frequently subjected to immersion when rolling and being awash. I have a floater case for it.

#28

Good choice, but do some shopping
If you look around, you can find the M88 for ~$239 at places like Defender.com. Icom also runs $50 rebates on them frequently. If you time your purchase right, you can get one for under $200 after rebate.

#29

Uniden Cobra is expensive???
They’re ~$139. That’s cheap for a decent submersible VHF.

#30

“Urban legends” and carrying radios
The reasons that cops wear mics on their shoulders are the same reasons that having your VHF mounted there is a very good idea; it’s so they can hear better in a noisy environment and operate the radio with one hand. Additionally, police radios are very heavy compared to a typical marine VHF and you need a sturdy belt to support them.



As for all this nonsense about electronic noise, I have yet to see a study that conclusively shows that there’s any danger. You probably do more brain damage by drinking a single beer that your radio would do in a year, if it does any at all.

#31

Quality matters, here’s why
At that price the Midland radio is probably barely water resistant, let alone submersible. IMO, that makes it unacceptable for kayak use.



I can tell you from personal experience that when you really need to use your radio, whether for communication within a group or for a rescue call, the conditions are likely to be nasty. It absolutely has to be reliable and convenient to use. You’re not going to have the option of fumbling around with pocket closures, bags and whatnot, since you’re probably going to be in rough conditions that will make it difficult to spare one hand for more than a few seconds at a time, let alone two hands.



Non-submersible radios require bags. Bags have several drawbacks, such as:



-They make the radio bulkier, making it harder to carry.


  • They limit carry options, since you cannot use the belt clip that comes with the radio. It has to be kept in a pocket or even worse, on the deck.


  • They muffle the volume of the radio, both when sending and receiving.


  • It typically takes two hands to retrieve and stow a radio kept in a pocket.


  • It typically takes two hands to make adjustments (volume, channel, etc.) on a radio in a bag, one to hold the radio and one to make the adjustment. Some bags make adjustments nearly impossible.


  • Bags eventually leak.


  • Even if a bag doesn’t leak, any moisture in the bag can be driven INTO the radio on warm days when air pressure builds up in the bag.



    IMO, the ideal setup is a reliable, submersible radio mounted on the shoulder strap of one’s PFD, as shown in my “Kayak Gear” album on Webshots at:



    http://community.webshots.com/user/brian_nystrom



    That puts the radio close to your ear and allows easy operation with one hand. It works.



    BTW, I would NOT recommend the radio pictures, the Standard Horizon HX460-S, as it’s notoriously unreliable (I’ve had five of them fail and I know many other people who’ve had similar problems). I now carry an Icom M88, which is an outstanding radio that’s built to mil-specs (~$190-$240, depending on sales and rebates). The Icom M1V is just as good for less money (~$169 on sale), but it’s a bit bulkier and harder to mount.
#32

Uniden cobra??
Uniden VOYAGER is $300 Cdn, expensive in my books.

Cobra Marine vhf from WallyWorld is $89 Cdn. A chunk, but no biggie if it pukes after a year or two. As far as reception goes, I can’t tell the difference. A kayaker with a Cobra paddled alongside me on the weekend, and when his cheapie Cobra squawked, so did my Voyager and v/v.

#33

Simple - 3 choices
If you want the best and sized right for kayak use:



Icom IC-M88 (if you can get it at the price mentioned above plus rebate - a no brainer!)



http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product/10001/-1/10001/81550/10001/542/64/3



Second runner up (I have and has been very good): Uniden Voyager (Also one you can find deals on). A bit slimmer.



http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product/10001/-1/10001/78440/10001/542/64/3



For a budget contender from West Marine -skip the one you linked and look at the ones ICOM is making exclusively for them. Of those -skip the Ni-Cd battery and fork over the extra cash for the Li-Ion battery version - more than worth the difference. I haven’t recharged my Li-Ion Voyager since - well I can’t even remember so maybe a year? (no kidding)- and it still has a full charge.



http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product/10001/-1/10001/151890/10001/542/64/3



West Marine had another recently that looked OK too, but it seems to have been replaced.



If you plan to wear it on PFD - stick to one of the first two. Price wise, when you shop a bit - these get close enough in price to not skimp.



I carry mine about half the time (no bag - I pay for submersible I expect submersible) - and after the novelty wore off I leave it off and in my nearly always damp underdeck bag. It’s just there for backup - I never use it to chit chat -and don’t usually need to hear the traffic.



As Brian said though, if you need help you need it right away, and that means from other boaters. Odds are more likely I’ll use to to call for help for someone else - and that’s a big reason I carry mine. Can’t get immediate assistance with a cell phone (which I usually also carry - but to let people know I may be late and such - or if I need a pick up somewhere - and and as backup for VHF - I also leave off in it’s bag).

#34

uniden voyager?
Has anyone else had either good or bad experiences with the Uniden voyager? For $139, it seems a great deal, especially compared with the Icom M88.

#35

My opinions on the two…
I used a Voyager for two years and the M88 for just under one year now.



The M88 has twice the battery power of the Voyager, a real plus on long trips where re-charging may not be an option.



Controls on the Voyager are smaller and noticeably more difficult to manipulate with gloves or cold hands.



After submersion, the Voyager speaker tends to distort due to water retention, much more so than the M88. This can be cleared somewhat by blowing forcefully into the speaker grill to clear the water but that is not an ideal tactic when a rescue scenario is under way.



The M88 is slightly bulkier than the Voyager but it is built like a tank. Just handling the two radios quickly demonstrates which one will take the greater abuse and still keep ticking.



I would classify the Voyager as an excellent recreational VHF and certainly a great buy in terms of FABs vs. cost.



I would classify the M88 as the current best radio for serious rough water paddlers who are rescue oriented. The M88 is the ‘Hummer’ of the small handheld marine VHF radios.



Holmes

#36

“Urban legends”

– Last Updated: Aug-14-05 11:19 PM EST –

"Urban legends" ????
"You probably do more brain damage by drinking a single beer that your radio would do in a year, if it does any at all."

I don’t know about you, but "Probably do more brain damage" isn't a real comforting statement to me. I need all the brain cells, real or perceived that I can, just ask my wife. But on a more serious note, as an active HAM Radio Operator, I was taught that RF fields are real. You can take your chances if you want but I wouldn't.
Just my $.02

Paul KG4PWO

http://www.qrz.com/ib-bin/ikonboard.cgi?s=645a82a23280bc8a5fbc02ef35a0695f;act=ST;f=5;t=99033

#37

FCC on Radiation
If that link doesn’t flick your bick, try checking out this pdf from the FCC



http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Engineering_Technology/Orders/1996/fcc96326.pdf

#38

So Page in item 46 says

– Last Updated: Aug-15-05 11:01 PM EST –

for controlled environments (meaning in my mind, an in the mind of leading ham associations,"use by non-morons") devices under 7 watts, and antennas more than one inch from the body the IEEE and ANSI guidelines don't sweat it.

Of course engineers also to told us that nuclear energy would be "too cheap to meter".

#39

Garmin 725
what is the verdict on the Garmin 725???

that’s the one I carry but THANK GOD have never used in an emergency.

#40

My Voyageur broke
True had it for a number of years, but in last year took it out of its case. In two months it stopped receiving! No radio is perfect but I will replace it with the ICOM.