i'm returning my handheld VHF

[dremarquis]

today was my first day to try my new hummingbird handheld VHF. I was out of sandy and i'm pretty sure i was talking to boats less than 1/2 a mile away and the static was so bad i could barely make out what they were saying. It was on high (5 watt). I guess i need to get a fixed-mount VHF.

i'm considering the Cobra MR F45, which has 25 watt/1 watt switchable. it's $100 at Overtons, and i can get it with an 8 fott antenna for $130.

Will that be a big upgrade from the handheld?

how important is the antenna or will i be good to go without the antenna. My hesitation about the antenna is i have an old 16' starcraft and an 8' antenna is gonna look hysterical on that little boat (not that looks are that important to me)

anyway - any advice on VHFs is greatly appreciated. I want to be safe, but it would also be nice to be able to communicate clearly with other fisherman - even those a few miles away.

thanks a bunch,

andre

[muskybob]

The 25 watt would be your best bet. Don't worry about how the antenna looks on the boat. It is necessary for the radio to work. I have a 16 footer that I used to use and it was comforting to know that my 8' antenna was doing it's job. Just put a pennant of a naked mermaid on it and nobody will even notice the antenna. :shock:

[ray koziatek]

dont flush that thing too fast your power is only for output and if the boat you were listining to were on low power it would give you low /poor volume ,we had one in my friends house on sodus and were listining to boats 5/6 miles out very clear and on the water i called him(SNAKE) from the shute at sodus and heard him loud and clear from a good distance several miles away ......

[dremarquis]

thanks for your input muskybob and ray; only problem now is that muskybob votes for the 25 watt fixed mount and ray says perhaps the 5 watt handheld is fine. d

Ray - were you using a 5 watt handheld when you were communicating 5-6 miles away?

Do any of ya'll know what the range differences are for 5 watt vs. 25 watt VHFs? Also, what kind of difference will the 8' antenna make>

thanks for your knowledge and advice,

dre

[LongLine]

Dre

vhf's typically transmit 10-20 miles over water regardless of wattage. Max wattage on vhf is 25 watts(Fed law). vhf is line of sight. There are places in I-Bay where you won't talk to anybody except guys directly in front of the bay regardless of what radio/antenna you have. The "line of sight" and the antenna are the main factors for transmission/reception range not wattage. In particular, the height of the antenna.

If you're using a hand-held then make sure the unit is held vertically with the antenna as high in the air as possible for maximum range. It's not like a cell phone that can be held horizontally. The 8ft whip will make a tremendous difference in range and you won't have to stand up in rough water.

Given the same antennas, wattage difference only allows the 25 watt'r to override the 5 watt'r. i.e if two boats 4 miles apart are talking on one channel at 5 watts and the another boat comes between or near them and starts transmitting on the same channel at 25 watts, the original two boats will only hear the 25 watt broadcast. On the other hand if the original two boats are talking at 25 watts and the boat that comes between them or near them starts broadcasting at 5 watts, the original two boats may hear a little interference but still able to carry on their own conversation.

The differences between wattages is a reason that some radio manners are appreciated by all. i.e if you're not a part of the conversation that's going on or contributing to it, then please wait till it's over before broadcasting. (This para is not directed at you Dre. It's intended for a few out there)

The CG can be heard all over the lake. The height of their antenna gives them the range and the wattage of their transmitter overides all converstaions going on out there.

One more thing worth noting is that on some channels, your vhf radio will automatically reduce its wattage (because FCC requires it)

Here's a decent link from "boats":

http://www.boatus.com/foundation/findin ... ostvhf.htm

h.i.h.

Tom B.

(LongLine)

[jimski2]

Antenna height above the water relates to a 6 inches for a mile range when conditions are right. A boat with an 8' antenna mounted 2' above the water should be able to talk to another boat similarily equipped up to 40 miles away "if conditions are best". The Coast Guard's antenna is mounted high on a ridge above Lake Erie where it can reach from Detroit to the St Lawrence River. Their local stations have high mounted antennas. Your 5 watt unit will help when you are within sight of another boat or if your boat goes down and that's all you have left. A cell phone kept in a plastic bag saved a ragboater the other day on Lake Erie when its GPS function was "pinged" by the Coast Guard and his GPS coordinates were obtained.

[ray koziatek]

dont expect miracles from the hand held just better than nutin as you said you had mounting issues with you antenna and boat size, yes we were using the handheld to listen in the house , i must have a bad antenna on my boat cause when i get 10 miles plus offshore i loose a lot of chatter from the inshore fisherman and they gotta be 1 or2 miles off shore so about 8or9 miles is all im getting at best with 8 ft ant. except the coasties they step on ya every where on the lake with there output pwr.....LONGLINE what color is your pocketsaver?????????

[dremarquis]

Thanks for all the input Tom, Ray and Jim - i appreciate your help.

dre

[LongLine]

Dre - The formula for the maximum range you can talk to your buddy is approximately the sum of the square root of your antenna height plus the square root of your buddy’s antenna multiplied by 1.4. Assuming a 3db antenna and negating atmospheric conditions.

Hey Ray – Pocket saver? Nice grouping on the punctuation marks. Glad to see you're finally getting the hang of them. Anyways, next time you want more range from home with the handheld, just climb up on the roof and try it. Also if you want to see the effect of atmospheric conditions, get out on the roof and try it before, during and after a thunderstorm.

:roll:

Tom B.

(LongLine)

P.s. Dre – If you out there and ever see lightening or hear a storm's coming, drop that dam antenna.