[bars] Radio Question

[Richard Heckbert]

Hi all,

Some of you may remember I posted a while ago that I was looking for a primary rig.  Based on recommendations and budget I had settled on either an ICOM-7300 or a Yaesu FT-991A.  I had heard a lot of great things about both but I was leaning toward the Yaesu as it could do VHF (2m) as well.  My Explorer QRZ-1 HT with a SignalStick antenna struggles to be heard a lot of times on the weekly net so I wanted something that might make those contacts a little less frustrating.

After asking around, especially on Reddit, I found most people used at least two rigs, one for HF and another for VHF (2m).  The logic was with a shack-in-the-box you could only monitor one at a time, you had a single point of failure and depending on model you had to deal with antenna issues when switching bands.  There also was some talk the Yaesu’s menus took some getting used to and all-in-one radios were a bit of a compromise but single use radios were more suited for their intended function.

So, I finally decided on a slightly used ICOM-7300. It belonged to a now SK who bought it just before he got sick and passed so it’s in like new condition.  It also came with a nice power supply and an antenna tuner and I got it for a good price.  Hopefully it will be here fairly soon.

Which leaves me with still needing the 2nd half of my shack.  Something that at least does 2m.  People have mentioned various radios like the Anytone AT-778UV as well as TYT TH-9800 (I know, back to the shack-in-a-box) or a Yaesu FT-150 or 300.  Something a bit more powerful than my 5w HT.

What does everyone use for VHF and getting on the weekly net?  Do most people have multiple rigs?  Any recommendations for fairly inexpensive can’t-miss rigs?

Also, any suggestions for a quick antenna until I can put something more permanent, more larger, more taller, more longer, more expensive, etc. up?  Indoors or attic would be ok for now.

Lastly, and this part is key!  Any good arguments I can borrow to explain to my wife why I still need a radio even though I just bought one?   I believe her exact words were “Thank goodness, now I don’t have to hear you talk about which radio to get anymore!”  Yeah, about that . . .

Thanks as always for the great advice I’ve gotten here.

Rick
W1OLU
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