I’ve never used the VHF radio on my boat since I’ve had it. I just recently got a SeaTow membership and wanted to make sure everything works in case of an emergency or if I need to talk to somebody. The radio is fixed mounted into the dash and connects to an 8’ fiberglass antenna. Last time I was out I had the radio on channel 16 and was picking up transmitions from SeaTow to boaters requesting help but couldn’t pick up the responding boaters. I tried to do a radio check but didn’t receive any ■■■■■■■■. My mic may be bad but I’m just thinking about upgrading the whole radio, its kind of outdated and doesn’t have DSC or GPS on it. It’s an ICOM but not sure of the model. I’m just wondering what most people are running, how far and clear your transmitions are reaching, and are you runnin on high or low when transmitting, whether it be from a fixed mount or handheld. I’ll most likely get a handheld as well but wanna know what seems to be working. Radio options are endless so I need to get what’s working.
Check your connections first. You may just have corrosion issues. Do yourself a favor and go ahead and cut the connector off the antenna and reterminate a new one. This could solve your problem for under $5. West Marine sells them.
It’s likely a PL259 connector. They sell crimp and solder kinds. Solder is preferred.
General rule of thumb is one mile per watt for transmission. Typical fixed mount is 25 watts. This means 25 miles on a clear day. These radios are line of site, so the better your antenna, the more range you’ll have.
Depending on your proximity to sea tow and the other boats, it’s not uncommon that you would hear one party but not the other.
Thanks 23Sailfish, I have been under the dash panel and the coax for the antenna doesn’t hook directly to radio, it hooks to some kind of inline converter box, no clue what it is. So it’s very possible I have a connection issue. As to my range, I typically go 40-50 miles offshore. If I’m out that far and can only push a 25 mile transmition, does that mean I can’t reach SeaTow or will my transmition push through somebody else’s radio antenna?
One more thing, money spent on a quality antenna is money well spent. You get distance there, not in the radio. I’ve always had ICOM, but there are many radios equivalent. DSC is important, but is useless unless properly tied to your GPS.
Handhelds are a nice backup, but I personally believe you’d be better off investing in a eprb rather than a second vhf. Just my opinion. Everyone has them and maybe not everyone would agree. Handhelds also have less range, around 5 miles max.
I’ve got a walkaround and my antenna mounts to the side of the cockpit, 8’ long Shakespeare. I’ll check all my connections and give it another try. But I’m really leaning towards a new radio with the GPS and distress call.
Some people have two vhfs. Redundancy in safety is always good.
Center conductor to shield should always be open. If one little strand of your shield is touching your conductor, you will not transmit properly. Clean terminations in RF make all the difference. Good luck.
Height is a key to distance also. Remember what he said about “line of sight”. SeaTow, BoatUS, and Coast Guard have their antenna mounted very high. Think about what is one of the first things you see when youre coming back in…The tip of the Ravenal Bridge. A antenna mounted up there will transmit farther than the same antenna sitting on the battery wall.
Also, not a joke, I suggest going to your local library and ask the reference dept. for help researching this question. You’d be amazed at the books you can check out for free. Line of sight is probably the key to your question. We sometimes can’t talk across 13 miles up here on lake Murray. In my opinion handhelds are a waste of money for what you are doing.
Go talk to Keith at West Marine in MTP and he will tell you anything and everything you need to know. I went in one afternoon on a weekday and they had 4 guys talking my ears off about every radio and such. Also, please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that if there is a boat with an antenna between you and your desired target. It will relay that signal so you can talk to them. That is how people could call seatow from the ledge if it comes to it…
Height is a key to distance also. Remember what he said about “line of sight”. SeaTow, BoatUS, and Coast Guard have their antenna mounted very high. Think about what is one of the first things you see when youre coming back in…The tip of the Ravenal Bridge. A antenna mounted up there will transmit farther than the same antenna sitting on the battery wall.
Actually, height does not effect transmit distance. It does effect whether or not the Earth is in the way, though.
Sorry. Couldn’t help it. I should have. But, I couldn’t. ;-p
Go talk to Keith at West Marine in MTP and he will tell you anything and everything you need to know. I went in one afternoon on a weekday and they had 4 guys talking my ears off about every radio and such. Also, please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe that if there is a boat with an antenna between you and your desired target. It will relay that signal so you can talk to them. That is how people could call seatow from the ledge if it comes to it…
If you use a handheld for backup, especially offshore, think about picking up an adapter to connect it to your whip. That small antenna on the handheld really limits your distance. The connector are usually SMA and the whip antennas are usually PL-259 but you should check your rig to be sure.
On a side note I’m a HAM operator and I’ve thought about posting plans for a collapsible YAGI directional antenna, that you can build at home. It gives more gain, read that distance, than the normal whip. Since it’s directional you wouldn’t want to use it as your primary antenna but if you have problems reaching shore you could crew it together. If anyone is interested let me know.
Thanks
David
