Hand held radio

colingr

colingr

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Has anyone any strong views on hand held radios (marine). Use will be south coast of England inshore. Preferably waterproof or am I better with a non waterproof one in a bag?

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I bought a Standard Horizon from Malthouse marine. It is waterproof and cost less than £90. When I did my VHF course the instructor, a lifeboat coxwain, said he considered them to be one of the best. One thing I wanted was an extra battery box that takes AA batteries for emergencies. The only critisism is that it is quite heavy. The price from Malthouse was the lowest I found. My only connections are as a happy buyer and he is fellow forum member.
Allan
 
A hand held has a minimal range and cant replace a Fixed unit, its only really line of sight. a Hand held is minimal transmission power 2 watts? and a fixed unit is 35 watts.

If you are going for a handheld go for a waterproof one not a bag,, bags are a pain in the ass, you cant hear them very well and its difficult to turn any knobs also the bag sweats with humidity in the sunshine.

The new Icom also floats which is useful as a waterproof one on the bottom in 50ft of water is of no use.

I use a 10yr old icom, waterproof with a mike/speaker on a flex so the radio stays safely in my velcro jacket pocket with the mike/speaker strapped to my lifejacket clip on my chest so I can hear it. I have had no issues with Icom, excellent kit.
 
HH test in Chichester harbour - radio check with SCG (one evening with no other traffic!) ... Loud and Clear ... was an Icom M1EuroV ... but other decent makes will do the same.
Obviously it doesn't have the range of a fixed set with a mast head antenna ... but it can get you out of trouble ...
 
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