What do you guys like for handheld backup radios?

cowman

cowman

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About 10-12 flight hours ago my charging system quit and I had it "fixed". Last flight it died again, supposedly it's been fixed again. I think all that reasonably can be done on that front is being done...

All this is making me reconsider carrying a backup radio. What do you guys like? Is there any reason to get anything beyond a basic 2-way radio or are any of those nav reciever units worthwhile?
 
Icom here.

I've used Icom, Sporty's, and Vertex/Yeasu (and maybe an old King). I used them all pretty heavily in the glider club and ended up liking the Icom best, so I bought one.

All have the same rx/tx power and sensitivity. Some are more wx-resistant that others - a nice thing to know if you get caught in the rain with it. Some are more drop-proof than others, also a nice thing.

Some are louder than others, that's handy if you have it on your belt on a noisy ramp. I think the Vertex is the loudest.

But the biggest thing is the user-interface. It seems like it's just a handheld, but some brands are easier to use than others. Icom, for me, is the simplest.

In any case, get a headset adapter so you can plug into it.

Add a coax antenna cable underneath your panel, then plug right into it with the handheld when you need it. It will greatly increase your range.

Mine has the VOR receiver, but I've never used it in flight except the one time I wanted to see if it worked. It did, but I had to be almost in visual range of the VOR.

The NAV capabilities are probably...OK...if you spend a lot of time learning how to set it up and use it in flight and have a good antenna.

Borrow one of each brand you are considering and see how easy it is to set the squelch, change frequencies, and store presets so you can switch quickly through saved freqs.
 
When I was still pretty active with ham radio I always used Icom, I never ran into a radio I couldn't figure out though. I don't really know anyone who has one to borrow unfortunately.

One big difference I noted between them was batteries. Some apparently use AAs... which I usually carry anyway for my headset. Others have lithium-ion with supposedly very long operational times but one wonders how long that charge keeps after sitting in a flight bag for a couple months? I've already got a whole pile of crap I charge before every flight....
 
I bought a like-new Icom from a retiring private pilot. Hate the user interface on that thing, but otherwise it works well and serves the purpose.

I used to have a Yeasu that was half the size, much more intuitive user interface, but gave it to a family member when I sold my then plane and moved abroad.

Forget the nav function. Unless you are a gadget freak they aren't much use compared to a tablet and Foreflight or something similar for nav independent of aircraft power.

Second rechargeable battery (charged!) or a spare set of AAs is a must imo.
 
GRG55 said:
...Second rechargeable battery (charged!) or a spare set of AAs is a must imo.
Click to expand...
or carry an second battery case filled with fresh AAs as your backup battery. that’s what i do with my ham HT.
 
cowman said:
When I was still pretty active with ham radio I always used Icom, I never ran into a radio I couldn't figure out though. I don't really know anyone who has one to borrow unfortunately.

One big difference I noted between them was batteries. Some apparently use AAs... which I usually carry anyway for my headset. Others have lithium-ion with supposedly very long operational times but one wonders how long that charge keeps after sitting in a flight bag for a couple months? I've already got a whole pile of crap I charge before every flight....
Click to expand...

You haven't tried the newer Yaesu HTs, then. I've got a VX-5 that you need the manual for anytime you want to do anything other than turn it on, select a programmed memory and talk. It's almost that bad. Plus, the ink on the keys has worn off a number of them. I hope I remembered what they do.

My aircraft HT is a Sporty's radio. Works fine, has lasted a long time (sailor's highest recommendation). AA batteries are the only way to go for a radio that might get used once or twice a decade. Much better than rechargeable batteries that don't get recharged all that often. Carry some new spare AAs with you and you're set.
 
SP-400 hasn’t let me down yet. I haven’t tried any others though.
 
I consider a headset adapter necessary and the splice in the coax. Came all the way from Baja with a Yeasu and no issues with border crossing, customs or ATC after an alternator trapped out.
 
Ive used Icom, but my choice is:

Yaesu FTA-750L.
Works great, easy to program, and the navigation functions pull their weight when I'm in the Cub.
I also bought a "push to talk" button and these batteries for the back-up battery tray.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079JFK22D/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

My only beef is that you need Windows to run the Yaesu programming application (blasphemy for a Linux guy), but it runs in VMBox, so no big deal.
 
I got a Sportys SP-200 off of eBay for redundancy and it works great.
 
My only suggestion would be:

a) if you're going to regularly play with it and listen to local ATC, CTAF, whatever, then buy one with a rechargeable battery pack.

b) if, OTOH, you plan to just leave it in the plane and use it for emergencies only, then buy one that uses standard batteries. Because Murphy's law says a rechargeable will be dead when you need it.

Mine is a Sporty's, stays in the glove box and it uses 8 AAs. Every year at annual I put new batteries in the handheld and the two flashlights that I keep onboard. I toss the year old ones in a ziplock and into the glovebox. Those batteries are then used to power the noise canceling headsets.

Works well.

There are almost always a dozen or so "used" batteries in the glove box so if something should happen to those in the radio, it's likely that I could still salvage the day. But that has never happened.

Every 60 to 90 days I get it out and make sure everything works when I do a VOR check.
 
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Icom A23 for me, but I’m considering getting the YAESU 750L. I’m on my second A23, the antenna BNC broke internally, didn’t pay to fix it. The thing is over 15 yeas old, oh, and it was free, as is its replacement. When I returned it I was hoping to get the new Icom, instead they issued a brand new A23. It seems they bought a batch of them and still have a good number in the stock room. With retirement looming, I am leaning towards the YAESU.
 
cowman said:
When I was still pretty active with ham radio I always used Icom, I never ran into a radio I couldn't figure out though. I don't really know anyone who has one to borrow unfortunately.

One big difference I noted between them was batteries. Some apparently use AAs... which I usually carry anyway for my headset. Others have lithium-ion with supposedly very long operational times but one wonders how long that charge keeps after sitting in a flight bag for a couple months? I've already got a whole pile of crap I charge before every flight....
Click to expand...
Mine has a rechargeable battery. With the way I work my flying schedule, I charge it up overnight before I plan to fly. That works for me. I do think my battery is getting pretty weak, though, and I might replace it with a AA pack. Keeping track of the batteyr charge and the battery charger gets to be a pain.

Even if you can't borrow a couple to play with, consider this: As far as the name brands go, they are all excellent. It comes down to personal preference. Find whichever is on sale and you won't go wrong. You'll figure it out by goofing around with it in your living room and at the airport and wonder what all the fuss was about.

One thing I have that I really like is a speaker mic. Not something you'll need in an airplane, but very handy in a glider. I can clip it to the shoulder harness and stick the radio into a side pocket or clip it somewhere else on the harness.
 
I have a few Icom handhelds, all rechargeable. While I hate them all for their unintuitive function I like them better than the other brands. I'd like the AA battery option better than ni-cad but the newer radios use li-ion so their storage life and service life should be far better than what was previously available. My newest one is li-ion and it stores well.
A good deal on a ni-cad radio may not be all that good a deal.


I wouldn't spend an extra dime for nav. I'd never use it. Others may, though.
 
Yaesu or ICOM. I like the Yaesu better.

Under no circumstances should you be suckered into buying the junk Sporty's puts out. I know three people that have gotten hosed by them. Battery life is terrible. QC is awful. Helpdesk doesn't care at all about those issues. I would suggest they make great boat anchors, but since they require about a hundred batteries it probably wouldn't be great for the environment.
 
As a fellow HAM, and liking Yaesu radios, I have the Yaesu 750, and it is great.... but also have an early Icom.. (A20) the headset interface for the Icom is better, easier to use as it can be plugged in and unplugged to use a a true handheld. The Yaesu headset adapter plugs in and has a screw attachment, so it will not unplug readly, thus is not as usable as just a handheld. I do have AA battery packs for both, actually have AA battery trays for ALL my handheld radios.. nothing worse than a dead rechargeable battery when a radio is needed.

When I have needed a back up radio in flight, I used the Icom as the headset plug in was easier... having only one radio in my plane I consider my handheld rather important. I will be adding another antenna just for the back up radio one day... Inside the wingtip so not to increase drag.

And then there is this report of an older Icom radio... dropped 3k ft and still works!
https://www.icomuk.co.uk/News_Article/3794/17371/

and this one on Ebay.... https://www.ebay.com/itm/ICOM-IC-A21-VHF-Air-Band-Transceiver-UNTESTED/192520332838?_trkparms=aid=222007&algo=SIC.MBE&ao=2&asc=50998&meid=4e6c14e131934188b52f3ed0929ef277&pid=100011&rk=5&rkt=12&sd=281616940637&itm=192520332838&_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850
 
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cowman said:
About 10-12 flight hours ago my charging system quit and I had it "fixed". Last flight it died again, supposedly it's been fixed again. I think all that reasonably can be done on that front is being done...

All this is making me reconsider carrying a backup radio. What do you guys like? Is there any reason to get anything beyond a basic 2-way radio or are any of those nav reciever units worthwhile?
Click to expand...
I had an ICom, and while it did last a loooong time, it was quite awkward to use. When it died, I just didn't bother to replace it. One more thing to carry in my bag, and I wasn't seeing the real utility. I fly from the DC FRZ, so if I lost electric, and/or both radios, I probably wouldn't head back in using a handheld (and definitely not without a transponder) - I'd divert NORDO to an uncontrolled field, make some phone calls, etc. IFR, I guess I'd go 7600 and press on as cleared. Without an external antenna connection, the range and reception can be spotty, and the Nav functions (if it has VOR) are kinda irrelevant with ForeFlight and an iPad now. I dunno, if I start flying IFR a lot more again, I mig reconsider.
 
Hi.
The main, must have features, are Regular size batteries where you can use either off the shelf or rechargeable, like AAA, always have a set of long shelf life batteries as back up set, and simple user interface (UI). Having WX and some tracking features like VOR, GPS can be useful but not necessary.

Typically what happens you may not use it for a while and when you need it, and try to use it, under pressure typically, you will not remember how to use it, if it has a complicated UI, or you batteries are run down. All the fancy features are worthless if you cannot, don't remember, how to use it, or if you have a proprietary battery pack you find out that they no longer make it and you end up with a useless unit.

Sporty's, of just about any model, is close to what has everything a pilot needs and one can be found on EB, or other INet, sites for a good price.

I've tried many Make/ Models over the years and I always end up my 30 years old Sporty's, that I actually had to used in flight. I've also flown with people that had their fancy radios and found them useless when needed, either because of batteries, or could not remember how to use it.
 
I carry a Vertex 210 I won as a door prize long ago. I've been through two battery packs and then bought a case for AA batteries which I keep in my go bag. I have the radio plugged into my car so I can get the ATIS when I approach the airport and then I clip it to my go bag when I get in the plane.

I used it once in the air after a wire broke to my alternator and my battery died before I got home. I called the tower and got landing clearance using the handheld.
 
I got an old KX99 off of eBay for short money and it works well. Simple interface. Built like a brick, which is good because that's now big it is.

I was given a Vertex by a customer of mine who had stopped flying. It's easy enough to figure out by reading the manual, though for an emergency backup I'd prefer simpler features. It's well built and has a AA battery pack.

I had an electrical outage many years ago in a 172 and my right seater could just barely hear to use it to get a landing clearance. Smart vigilance says to keep the headset adapter plugged in to the radio so it's ready to go if necessary. I'm not usually that smartly vigilant.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have the compact Yaesu 250-L and it works great. Since I fly with Garmin Pilot on my phone and my tablet, a VOR pong screen isn't something I care about taking space in my bag. If I'm NORDO but for a handheld, I'm likely troubleshooting bigger problems.
 
cowman said:
How well do the AA powered ones work as far as transmit power/endurance? I have to imagine there's a significant difference in performance vs a li-ion pack?

I'm leaning towards this Yaesu since it comes with everything but I've got doubts about AA performance
http://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/yaesu-fta-550aa-airband-transceiver.html
Click to expand...
From the Yaesu website:

The AA battery pack holds 6 AA, looks like all in series. Here's a pic of the lithium ion battery. Someone out there is smart enough to figure out the equivalences.

SBT-12.jpg

SBR-12.jpg
 
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I have the Yaesu FTA550 on standby. Haven't had the chance to use it airborne, but seems like it works fine. Seems to go through batteries quick just sitting around, but I recharge it with rechargeable AA's every few flights. Decent price on Amazon too.
 
I replaced by old Sporty's SP-200 with a new Yeasu, which came with all the accessories.
 
chartbundle said:
At half the mAH of a NiMH cell, I'll stick to NiMH. And my tiny portable USB charger.
Click to expand...

No. The batteries I posted are 1200mah for 4. You need a total of 6 which brings it to 1800mah. Exactly what the sealed Yaesu battery pack delivers.
Being lithium, they hold a charge for a looooooong time.
 
Hi.
What SBest is trying to say is that AA NiMH can come in as high as 3000 mA each. The ones that Amazon has are 1200 each, not all.
On the plus side the ones you point to are LIs which have a longer shelf life, but overall the NiMH are still a better buy, they can last as long as 1-2 years, very / low small internal leakage, if you get some like the Eneloop Pro, without having to recharge them.
 
I'm gonna go ahead and pull the trigger on the Yaesu I think... looks like a lithium ion pack exists if I decide I hate the AAs...
 
Shepherd said:
No. The batteries I posted are 1200mah for 4. You need a total of 6 which brings it to 1800mah. Exactly what the sealed Yaesu battery pack delivers.
Being lithium, they hold a charge for a looooooong time.
Click to expand...

That's not remotely how batteries work.
1200mAh per cell at 1.5v(1.8Wh)(looks like a 14430 or something custom with a buck converter on top of it, would be interested to see what the max current draw ends up being, actually screw that, I'll order a couple and see)

A 6 cell series pack will give you the same 1200mAh at 9V(10.8Wh).

The Yaesu pack pictured above is 1800mAh at 7.4V (13.32 which is basically the 14Wh it says right on it)

A pack made from 6 x 1.2v 2400mAH NiMH cells would give you 17.28Wh, but of course at a higher weight and you'd have to charge it outside the radio. And the high capacity LSD cells may not have quite the same peak current as the Li-Ion pack.
 
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Yaesu 550L, comes with both lithium and AA battery packs and the headset adapter. Fortunately, its heaviest use so far is to grab wx during pre-flight.
 
chartbundle said:
A pack made from 6 x 1.2v 2400mAH NiMH cells would give you 17.28Wh, but of course at a higher weight and you'd have to charge it outside the radio. And the high capacity LSD cells may not have quite the same peak current as the Li-Ion pack.
Click to expand...
I would not recommend using NiMH batteries in a backup radio, as even the newer ones have significant self-discharge rates. Alkaline or lithium-ion batteries have better long-term shelf-life and low self-discharge capability.

I have an ancient Sporty's SP-200 that is still working. It's great for getting ATIS, AWOS, or for calling for clearance before engine start. I change the batteries every couple of years. In a pinch it's my ATC communication, but to make it really useful I need to install an external antenna connection.
 
cowman said:
How well do the AA powered ones work as far as transmit power/endurance? I have to imagine there's a significant difference in performance vs a li-ion pack?

I'm leaning towards this Yaesu since it comes with everything but I've got doubts about AA performance
http://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/yaesu-fta-550aa-airband-transceiver.html
Click to expand...

Will be no loss of range w/ AA batteries. As long as the batteries are supplying the right voltage, the transmitter won’t see a difference.
 
chartbundle said:
(looks like a 14430 or something custom with a buck converter on top of it, would be interested to see what the max current draw ends up being, actually screw that, I'll order a couple and see)
Click to expand...

I haven't disassembled them yet, but their high-current performance(like transmitting from a radio) is poor.

All tests fully charged or in the Alkaline case, new.

Li-Ion "1.5V AA" Open circuit voltage: 1.5v under load: 1.1v at 0.75A

The Yaesu specs say it wants 900mA at 7.4v (6.6W) to transmit. Which puts a 6 cell pack of these at 6.6v and 0.75A(4.95W) which would reduce your transmission power a bit.

A LSD NiMh(MAHA Imedion) did 1.26V at 0.811A for a 6 cell pack voltage of 7.56v but still a little short at 6.13W

The Alkaline AA came in at 1.35v and 0.86A for 8.1V and 6.96W.

So, for pure backup use the Alkaline would win, but of course the voltage drops as it's used so I think NiMH would be better on a regular use where you keep it charged if you don't want to spring for the Li Ion pack. I don't have any non-LSD NiMH or NiCad to test with any more, but the NiCad should come in right below Li Ion in pure power output. The "Li Ion 1.5V AA" should probably stick to cordless mice and keyboard use.
 
cowman said:
How well do the AA powered ones work as far as transmit power/endurance? I have to imagine there's a significant difference in performance vs a li-ion pack?

I'm leaning towards this Yaesu since it comes with everything but I've got doubts about AA performance
http://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/yaesu-fta-550aa-airband-transceiver.html
Click to expand...

The Sporty's portable sucks batteries so hard you can use it as a backup heat source in an emergency.

I bought the Yaesu with the rechargeable pack. Can use AA's as a backup. That's been a perfect solution for me since I boat anchored the Sporty's one it replaced. #definitelynotbitter #willneverbuysportyshousebrandagain
 
cowman said:
I'm gonna go ahead and pull the trigger on the Yaesu I think... looks like a lithium ion pack exists if I decide I hate the AAs...
Click to expand...

You will not hate AA batteries, when you go flying and find you forgot to charge the rechargeable battery. That battery pack could be a lifesaver. Get the AA pack as an option...just in case..
 
Get the Yaesu FT 550. Good radio. If its gonna stay in your flight bag as only a back up, go ahead and spring for the LioN, as it will hold a charge much better than AA. If you're gonna use it like I do in my experimental, use the AA and the cigarette lighter adapter.

Even just on AA power, mine will last for a couple of 2 hr flights no problem.

I've had the Sporty's SP400. It lived in my helmet bag and occasionally got used to listen to ATIS or copy a clearance before engine start. When I really needed it during an actually panel failure, it didn't work. It now has a permanent wide black line across the display and lives on my work bench as a base unit.

My Sonerai came with an iCom A5. It worked for awhile. Then the cigarette lighter adapter failed, and it just seemed to chew through batteries every flight. Bought new adapter, didn't fix the problem. It now lives in a drawer in my hangar. Haven't seen it in months.
 
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