Thoughts on initial radio setup

[Marine Airedale]

It would depend upon your intended usage. I would go 2m/70cm dual band mobile first. I have four of them and almost never bring out the dual band HT's. My goal has always been to run mobile HF in the sailboat and the PU as well but have never set it up. These days I spend no time at all in the shack as we travel a great deal and there is always the next trip to prepare for whether it is being a tourist, Wapiti Wackin' or fish slaying. Good luck with the test, the Technician Test is a breeze, General a little more technical but not all that bad.

 

[james2562]

Thank you everyone. In general I am hearing that the 2m and 70cm bands are good for emergency communications. This is valuable information because buying tri and quad bands is expensive. Considering that 50w seems to be recommended the weight, footprint, and cost of a 100w rig is not warranted.

I really am liking the idea of a dual band mobile like the FT-2900 and IC-208H. They are the right size, the right bands, and they dont have any noisy fans.

And thank you justcuz for letting me know about your test. I never had a test before where I was offered the next level up at the same sitting. Not only will i study for the general too, but if its not offered I will ask to take it after the tech.

 

[Hayshaker]

Thank you everyone. In general I am hearing that the 2m and 70cm bands are good for emergency communications. This is valuable information because buying tri and quad bands is expensive. Considering that 50w seems to be recommended the weight, footprint, and cost of a 100w rig is not warranted.

I really am liking the idea of a dual band mobile like the FT-2900 and IC-208H. They are the right size, the right bands, and they dont have any noisy fans.

And thank you justcuz for letting me know about your test. I never had a test before where I was offered the next level up at the same sitting. Not only will i study for the general too, but if its not offered I will ask to take it after the tech.

The general test is mostly the same as the tech ~~ rules and regs with only a little extra electronics involved. Almost ALL exams locations include all licenses ~~ tech/gen and extra @ same time as there are usually people up grading.

 

[ATCclears]

+1 for @Oathkeeper1775 's recommendations.

Go inexpensive just to get on the 2M and 70cm bands with your Tech license, get your feet wet, and then you can look at better-quality gear.

This little Baofeng UV-3R+ works surprisingly well. It was my first radio and I keep it around as an emergency, disposable radio given the low price.
Baofeng UV-3R+ Plus VHF/UHF Ham 136-174/400-470MHz Walkie Talkie Dual Band Radio | eBay

Antennas matter. I recently went to a ham-radio club event and built a directional antenna from PVC pipe and cut sections of a tape measure. +7db gain and it works REALLY well even with the UV-3R+. I live NE of Seattle and with this combo and from home I could easily communicate over a 2M repeater North of Mount Vernon, WA and a 70cm repeater near Issaquah, WA.