Any very small, cheap, lightweight aviation handheld radio?

N918KT

N918KT

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Hello all. I am thinking of probably buying a very small and lightweight handheld radio for my work in airport ops. The handheld radios for ops use at my airport are heavy, bulky, and have long antennas.

Specifically, I am looking for a radio that is the size of a small walkie talkie that I could fit in my pocket, is lightweight, and have a short antenna.

Is there any radio out there that fits my criteria and is cheap?
 
I don't see any of these that work in the aviation band as they all seem to have a range starting at 136MHz. Which ones work in aviation bands?
 
Yaesu makes a small one, as does another company whose name is all letters, maybe starting with "I" (CRAFT moment, sorry).

of course, you realize that "cheap" and "aviation" don't mix, and that smaller electronics sell for premium prices? I have a ginormous radio from Sportys.
 
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N801BH said:
I have had great service from mine.....

http://www.vertexstandard.com/
Click to expand...


I agree! Yaesu/vertex standard are very reliable and user friendly. I was also surprised to find new batteries for them on the shelf at my local Batteries Plus shop...these radios are apparently very popular among contractors and such because if thei durability. I carry a VS that I purchased off if ebay in new condition for $150.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
DesertNomad said:
I don't see any of these that work in the aviation band as they all seem to have a range starting at 136MHz. Which ones work in aviation bands?
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You are looking at the radios that operate in the Ham Bands. They normally have a receive range of 136mhz-174mhz. Look at aviation or "air band" radios.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I looked up the Yaesu FTA-230 and it looks small but the antenna still seems a little bit long. I was wondering how short can an aviation handheld radio antenna could be? Is it possible that aviation radios could have antennas the length of a walkie talkie, like an inch or two at the longest?

https://www.google.com/search?q=wal...C1sQSq_4HoDg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAg&biw=1366&bih=667
 
N918KT said:
Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I looked up the Yaesu FTA-230 and it looks small but the antenna still seems a little bit long. I was wondering how short can an aviation handheld radio antenna could be? Is it possible that aviation radios could have antennas the length of a walkie talkie, like an inch or two at the longest?

https://www.google.com/search?q=wal...C1sQSq_4HoDg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAg&biw=1366&bih=667
Click to expand...

It's possible, those little rubber antennas will give you very poor receive sensitivity and very low power output.
 
Walkie Talkie antenna?

scr536_2id.jpg


The antenna on the icom (i think on the yeasu/vertex too) has a BNC connector so it's simple to connect to a different antenna. But, I'm not a EE and don't know what lengths will work or what's available.
 
Too bad Dynon doesn't make theirs anymore (DX15). They only made a small production run as an exercise in how to get a Com radio approved thru the FCC bureaucratic process. I bought one for about $160 at Oshkosh a few years ago and it's a nice little lightweight handheld radio. The lithium battery charges fast and lasts all day too. If you could find a used one forsale, you should jump on it.
 
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Small, cheap, lightweight. Pick any two. Oh, this is aviation. Forget the "cheap". Sporty's also sells a radio under their own brand name. I've got their older one and it is still working fine.

Unless you are using it frequently, get a battery holder for AA cells. They don't self-discharge as much as NiCd or LiIon batteries will. If you are using the radio a lot then rechargeable batteries are the way to go as they will save you money in the long run.

There aren't as many antennas to select from for aviation handheld radios. The market is too small. Just go with the one that comes with the radio.

And, yes, I am an EE (and an amateur radio operator).
 
N918KT said:
Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I looked up the Yaesu FTA-230 and it looks small but the antenna still seems a little bit long. I was wondering how short can an aviation handheld radio antenna could be? Is it possible that aviation radios could have antennas the length of a walkie talkie, like an inch or two at the longest?

https://www.google.com/search?q=wal...C1sQSq_4HoDg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAg&biw=1366&bih=667
Click to expand...

Antenna length is a function of the radio frequency's wavelength. A shorter antenna is unlikely to have good reception (or as good reception).
 
Hi N19KT and everyone.
While a small radio may sound like an attractive feature, in addition to what others mentioned, try to get one with a set of batteries that you can easily replace, has sufficient output power, and ability to track VOR / GPS. One of the most common reasons the electronic devices get discarded are proprietary battery packs. For a Transceiver you will also need the Power, at least 1.5W CP.
[FONT=&quot]Most of the smaller devices do not have sufficient power to be real useful. I've actually had the need to use my Sporty's A300, in flight, and with any less power it would have been useless. I modified this one to use a battery pack from an SP-200, 8 AA rechargeable, this is an old model, (they now have 200, 400). To present I've gone through 5 sets of rechargeable batteries. Getting one with the special battery pack would have rendered it useless long time ago. TV[/FONT]
 
I'm not convinced a handheld radio needs to do VOR/GPS built-in. My ICOM has a NAV function. I've used it on the ground just to see if it works. It does, but it is a pain using it in-flight. Too many button pushes to get it configured, and a limited range. I'd rather use a radio as a radio, and a GPS as a GPS. The one thing about that feature that IS handy, if you really need it and can figure out how to set it up when you do need it, is that it does allow you transmit on a voice freq and receive on a nav freq when talking to some flight services.

The main reason I got my handheld was for glider ops, no need for a NAV. Plus I use it on the ramp for getting ATIS/ASOS during preflight. If I need it as a COM backup in flight, I already have to be close enough to the airport for talking to tower, CTAF, or turning on the lights that I won't need the NAV function anyway.
 
iCom used to make a handheld aircraft band transceiver that had thumbwheels to set the frequency.

No scanning, no nav, no 'alerts', no need to be connected to a PC to program it.

That's what I need.
 
JimNtexas said:
iCom used to make a handheld aircraft band transceiver that had thumbwheels to set the frequency.



No scanning, no nav, no 'alerts', no need to be connected to a PC to program it.



That's what I need.
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Simplicity would be nice. Although that is getting harder and harder to find. It seems "simple" does not sell.

One problem with the FTA 230 is it is not very user-friendly. I have had to refer to the owners manual many times while using it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
My Vertex allows me to plug in my headset so I can keep the noise down and hear the radio. I never have used the VOR function and don't think it is necessary.
 
I have a headset adapter for my ICOM. Never had to use it in flight...yet. I have used the speaker/mic pretty hard, though. Drop the radio into a side pocket, and clip the speaker mic onto the shoulder harness when in the glider.
 
As mentioned earlier, the frequency determines wavelength. A frequency of 125.000 Mhz will create a wavelength of 2.39 meters. Creating a wavelength of 2.39 meters (or 7.8 feet) from a physical antenna that is only inches tall doesn't yield in good signal strength due to adding reactance to create the proper antenna loading.

"But the antenna on the airplane isn't 7 feet tall". You'll want an antenna that matches the wavelenth as close as possible, but it needs to be practical too. For fixed stations, it makes sense to have a full wave length antenna (IE: Tower). For mobile stations, it makes sense to use 5/8, 1/2, 1/4, or some other length that will be a resonance of the length.

You'll also want to make sure the waves are polarized properly. For FM, vertical polarization is typically used. So, when using your handheld, it's best to keep the antenna up/down. Second best is to have the long side in line with the direction that you are talking to. Max signal strength radiates in a 360 pattern around the axis of the antenna.

Disclaimer: It's been a couple decades since my ham radio usage days - google-fu for more details.
 
TazzyTazzy said:
You'll also want to make sure the waves are polarized properly. For FM, vertical polarization is typically used. So, when using your handheld, it's best to keep the antenna up/down. Second best is to have the long side in line with the direction that you are talking to. Max signal strength radiates in a 360 pattern around the axis of the antenna.
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Just a minor point: While aviation radio frequencies are close to the FM radio band for car radios, aviation radios actually use AM technology for transmitting voice signals.
 
FYI, if you are shopping for cheap transceivers, be not deceived by advertisements for Chinese handhelds; many of them will include "Air Band" in the description, but few (if any) actually *have* air band coverage.

There are so many VHF / ham freq handhelds for sale for prices so cheap, that it is difficult to imagine that they are made out of anything but oatmeal and twisty-ties, but the reviews suggest that they are good radios, so perhaps they're merely being built by slave-driven 9-year-olds.

Here's an example - the text description reads, "Cheap wholesale 118-136mhz vehicle air band transceiver," which reads like exactly what a bunch of airplane-poor pilots are looking for, but if you read the tech data, you learn that, by "air band transceiver," they actually mean, "NOT air band transceiver"; and by "118-136mhz" the actually mean, "136-174MHz/400-430MHz/440-470..."

It's, like, completely understandable.

http://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Cheap-wholesale-118-136mhz-vehicle-air_1955975391.html

I sent an email to one of these outfits once asking about it, and she offered to sell me an iCom (by model number; she did not admit to the brand), for about $20.00 more than Sporty's gets for the same model, but with 4-6 week shipping.
 
TazzyTazzy said:
As mentioned earlier, the frequency determines wavelength. A frequency of 125.000 Mhz will create a wavelength of 2.39 meters. Creating a wavelength of 2.39 meters (or 7.8 feet) from a physical antenna that is only inches tall doesn't yield in good signal strength due to adding reactance to create the proper antenna loading.

"But the antenna on the airplane isn't 7 feet tall". You'll want an antenna that matches the wavelenth as close as possible, but it needs to be practical too. For fixed stations, it makes sense to have a full wave length antenna (IE: Tower). For mobile stations, it makes sense to use 5/8, 1/2, 1/4, or some other length that will be a resonance of the length.

You'll also want to make sure the waves are polarized properly. For FM, vertical polarization is typically used. So, when using your handheld, it's best to keep the antenna up/down. Second best is to have the long side in line with the direction that you are talking to. Max signal strength radiates in a 360 pattern around the axis of the antenna.

Disclaimer: It's been a couple decades since my ham radio usage days - google-fu for more details.
Click to expand...

This answer reminds me of the suggested definition of "crab" for a dictionary: "A small red fish that walks backwards."

That was a perfect definition except that it isn't a fish, it isn't red, and it doesn't walk backwards.

A resonant unloaded monopole is one quarter of a wavelength, not a wavelength, half a wavelength, 5/8 wavelength but any other odd integer multiple (1, 3, 5, 7 ...) of a quarter wave.

What matters for FM has precious little to do with the AM aircraft COM band. Yes, aircraft COM bands are polarized vertically (i.e. with the pointy end up and down) but the aircraft NAV bands are horizontally polarized.

And, some FM (like the broadcast band) are horizontal and most of the voice bands (like 2-meters) are vertical. Some of them (like the data bands) are circular.

Max signal strength is a torus (doughnut) slipped over the end of a monopole UNLESS there is a conductor in the vicinity (like a saltwater sack called a "human") and then it is anybody's guess what the pattern looks like.

Jim
 
SCCutler said:
FYI, if you are shopping for cheap transceivers, be not deceived by advertisements for Chinese handhelds; many of them will include "Air Band" in the description, but few (if any) actually *have* air band coverage.
Click to expand...

Most of the "cheap Chinese handhelds" are quite clumsily worded in that the "Air Band" is NOT transceive, but receive only. However, the receive audio on AM really doesn't sound that bad. I suspect that they used a conventional AM detector and then did slope detection to recover the FM from an AM signal circuit.

I only know of one transceiver that had VHF AM and FM and that was a Vertex/Yaesu that had the most horrible AM transmit audio you ever heard. I think they may have tried a trick to convert their phase modulation into AM but it sounded horrible. It was soon removed from the market.

Jim
 
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