Advice on VHF please

[PaulRainbow]

In some sort of order of importance : IMO

Fixed DSC VHF
Handheld DSC VHF
PLB (especially if you're single handing)

I put the HH VHF ahead of the PLB, but it was a close call. If you've suffered a failure that renders the main VHF unusable a HH is more use than a PLB. If you're totally in the shit, the HH would still be more use, if you could reach someone. The PLB would be last resort. If on a budget, start at the top and work down.

You still haven't said what electronics you currently have onboard ?

 

[gunman]

In some sort of order of importance : IMO

Fixed DSC VHF
Handheld DSC VHF
PLB (especially if you're single handing)

I put the HH VHF ahead of the PLB, but it was a close call. If you've suffered a failure that renders the main VHF unusable a HH is more use than a PLB. If you're totally in the shit, the HH would still be more use, if you could reach someone. The PLB would be last resort. If on a budget, start at the top and work down.

You still haven't said what electronics you currently have onboard ?

Excellent, thank you.

With regards to electronics, very little. I am using a Garmin GPS 72 (on 12v and battery backup), up until recently a Midland Pacific HH VHF and a Garmin fish finder. The personal navigator won't connect to a fixed vhf so I either will need one with built in gps or a fixed GPS as well, which may be no bad thing anyway.

The reason I went for portable GPS and VHF in the first place was that I had this boat and a sailing boat so I transferred the kit between the 2. I now only have the fast fisher so fixed is now more of an option.

 

[PaulRainbow]

Excellent, thank you.

With regards to electronics, very little. I am using a Garmin GPS 72 (on 12v and battery backup), up until recently a Midland Pacific HH VHF and a Garmin fish finder. The personal navigator won't connect to a fixed vhf so I either will need one with built in gps or a fixed GPS as well, which may be no bad thing anyway.

The reason I went for portable GPS and VHF in the first place was that I had this boat and a sailing boat so I transferred the kit between the 2. I now only have the fast fisher so fixed is now more of an option.

A chart plotter wouldn't go amiss then, which kind of influences whether you should pay the extra for GPS built into the VHF or not. Your budget obviously comes into play too. Standard Horizon make a very nice HH with built in GPS and DSC, will possibly do what the Garmin does for you, if not providing a good backup, It's the HX870, nearly £200, but a cracking bit of kit.

 

[Redfox226]

Excellent, thank you.

With regards to electronics, very little. I am using a Garmin GPS 72 (on 12v and battery backup), up until recently a Midland Pacific HH VHF and a Garmin fish finder. The personal navigator won't connect to a fixed vhf so I either will need one with built in gps or a fixed GPS as well, which may be no bad thing anyway.

The reason I went for portable GPS and VHF in the first place was that I had this boat and a sailing boat so I transferred the kit between the 2. I now only have the fast fisher so fixed is now more of an option.

I think you will find that the Garmin has an NMEA output which can be fed to a DSC radio. The interface is old and requires a 4 pin plug available here: http://lynks.co.uk/pplugs.html and you can incidentally use the same plug to power the GPS. I had this arrangement from an old Garmin 45.

 

[gunman]

I think you will find that the Garmin has an NMEA output which can be fed to a DSC radio. The interface is old and requires a 4 pin plug available here: http://lynks.co.uk/pplugs.html and you can incidentally use the same plug to power the GPS. I had this arrangement from an old Garmin 45.

I have a power cable with the 4 pin plug on it so can probably use that then, To be perfectly honest, the Garmin 72 does everything I need it to and I can't really see the advantage in upgrading it right now. Years ago I had a garmin 38 and I think I still may even have a 4 pin data cable for it somewhere. In the days before sat nav was common, I had it hooked up to a laptop running auto route. Those were the days!

 

[Redfox226]

..... In the days before sat nav was common, I had it hooked up to a laptop running auto route. Those were the days!

similar.. Except I used a Psion!! Sorted then!

 

[ShinyShoe]

I am using a Garmin GPS 72 (on 12v and battery backup), <snip>The personal navigator won't connect to a fixed vhf so I either will need one with built in gps or a fixed GPS as well, which may be no bad thing anyway.

Au contraire

The 72 will interface to NMEA with relative ease (the forum will help you if your stuck) - Its the preferred bit of kit for interfacing if people basically just want a dumb GPS for the DSC. So I'd buy a £100 SH fixed unit, plus antenna, and then look at what the remaining £60 would buy you. A second hand SH/Icom HH VHF is not impossible to find in that range!

 

[gunman]

Au contraire

The 72 will interface to NMEA with relative ease (the forum will help you if your stuck) - Its the preferred bit of kit for interfacing if people basically just want a dumb GPS for the DSC. So I'd buy a £100 SH fixed unit, plus antenna, and then look at what the remaining £60 would buy you. A second hand SH/Icom HH VHF is not impossible to find in that range!

Sounds like a plan then. The basic SH unit is £100 which sounds like just about all I would need then. Even with the antenna kit it is only slightly more than the Icom HH unit I was looking at.

 

[Sailingsaves]

I possibly have over thought (or researched) this one. I've read a lot about the 25w making little difference as it's still line of sight and the height of the antenna being the greatest factor. As for high gain, from what I can tell that's a bad thing on a small boat as when it pitches\rolls the narrower band will limit range.

There's so much conflicting info out there.

Edit - PaulRainbow, you're right, there's a lot of boats out there.

My opinion:
Get a good handheld. Buy a decent whip aerial (e.g. a Metz), buy the connectors that allow you to take stubby aerial off and connect co-ax to decent whip aerial and you have the best of both worlds.

I reached Dover coast guard the other day from the River Blackwater on 1 Watt energy setting. (was a mast high aerial and they also have high aerials of course).

 

[William_H]

With regard to your existing HH radio. You say the auto squelch is faulty. The question is can you receive other stations?
Squelch is often badly understood. It is not a name for the hissing noise but a name for a system in the radio which cuts out the noise until a signal is received. This squelch usually can be disabled by button pushing to give continuous hiss which in fact is the setting for hearing very weak signals. If you can not hear signals then the receiver or more likely the antenna is bad. But it should be possible to stop the hiss as I said. Maybe the old HH is OK so you can go ahead and get a fixed radio for belt and braces. good luck olewill

 

[skipmac]

Probably as well as the flat battery in the HH that you don't use routinely either!

Oh but the Standard Horizon HH units have adapters to use standard AA alkaline batteries. So carry a spare set with the HH and you're always ready for just in case.

 

[duncan99210]

Just a thought on the VHF range side of things. I used to do a lot of diving in Northern Ireland, using a RIB. It was fitted with a fixed VHF and a whip antenna on the gantry at the stern, so about 6 feet above the surface. When we were operating to the north of Belfast Lough, we could routinely talk to Belfast CG, even as far north as Rathlin Island. To the south, we could sometimes raise Belfast but often failed: then Liverpool CG would respond and take our traffic. So real world not theory, there's cover available throughout the coastline from a small boat perspective with a fixed VHF.

If I were the OP, I'd fit a fixed set first, then add a gps feed later. DSC is great and well worth having but when the budget is tight, that's how I'd be looking at it.

 

[jwilson]

What would make you think I don't have one? I have an aux engine, 2 separate main fuel tanks and spare fuel for the aux in a separate can. I also carry a pair of paddles, even though I don't see them being of much use in the sea. I don't see how that relates to my question about vhf?

Good - but you didn't say so. Now re VHF: in practice I find my main set with high-up aerial on 1 watt power usually gives better reception/range than my handheld at deck level even if the handheld is on 5 watt power.