What is the range of hand-held (5W) vhf radio at sea level ?

Shug, presumably you worked out that the height of the receiving station is just as important? Would it not be easier to try calling them from you handheld in your usual waters to see what coverage is like?
 
>OVER AND OUT

That's what the Americans do on SSB in the Caribbean, they don't have to do a SSB course for US waters but still use them in the Caribbean. Also if you are talking to somebody on a frequency used for chat in marinas or bays and you want to use another frequency to continue the chat with another boat you find a frequency that is free and tell them what it is. The American way is 'pick a frequency, no you pick a frequency' etc. Both of those used to drive other SSB users mad.
 
I use the handheld a great deal but would not wish to be without a fixed radio.
Lay the handheld down on the seat and the range is minimal.
Held with the antenna upright I regularly get 2km range on a river with bends but occasionally less depending on topography.
I would say 3km on open water.
I usually fail to hear the phone ring due to the engine noise (motorboat).
 
SHUG said:
Having let the dust settle on this one for a few days I have taken all the comments seriouskly and cross-referenced them to the RYA recommendations. I also discussed the problem with the Coastguards (by phone) who confirmed that a continuous watch on Ch16 is no longer kept . They also commented that DSC is not the complete answer since poor reception can compromise the integrity of the positional information.
My conclusion is that the range of a hand held VHF in good atmospheric conditions with an aerial height of about 2metres is between 5 and 8 miles. It also seems that the height of the aerial is more important than transmittor power.
On that basis I am buying a PL259 to SMA adaptor and setting up a masthead aerial to which I can connect the hand held when trying to contact the Coastguards.
Thanks for a lively debate . OVER AND OUT...SHUG
Click to expand...

I would try to encourage you to get a fixed vhf.
But if you must go down the H/H to masthead aerial route (and I've done it myself), sma's are not very robust. Hanging a stiff cable off them often ends in tears. A short cable with sma one end and 259 (spit) the other might be more satisfactory.
Such cable are sometimes found on ebay.
My old h/h had a BNC which is a lot tougher.

PS, did another event weekend before last, some h/h's working 3 miles away from a h/h on the beach and some not.
There was a fixed vhf ashore with some elevation, some h/h's were not getting this reliably in RIBs at about 4 miles. Which seems poor to me. My Icom was all good until the batteries went flat. Vodafone was useful.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top