John,
At first I was a bit puzzled by Jan's recommendations, and then I saw an important piece of info that I had not noticed...
That you were on a small 25'
Catalina....
And, in my haste to answer you about the TS-930, I overlooked some other important words of yours....sorry about that!!
So, with the 25'
Catalina, combined with you being a new ham, and your stated desires, gives us some surprising but useful ideas...
Quote:
Originally Posted by jhnhll
I have found a used one listed for 650 or best offer. Want to use for ssb nets weather and email. I am a new ham...
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First off, we need to know WHERE you are planning on cruising/sailing, and as much other info you can provide, such as what you desire e-mail access for, time-of-year, future plans, etc. before we can give you any accurate / specific recommendations...
So please, let us know...
Until then, here are some recommendations/ideas/thoughts...
Let's address your 3 stated uses one-at-a-time...
1) Weather....this is easy....
Just about any working HF ham radio or marine radio will fulfill this requirement...
Have a look at this thread, where you find out how/where to get as much weather info/forecasts as you'll need...
Offshore / Hi-Seas Weather data / forecasts
2) E-mail...most find that neither
HF radio nor sat
phone necessary for e-mail....(and those on a budget find they save a LOT of $$$ here...)
Most cruiser's find e-mail (and internet) access via Wi-Fi and cellular to be all that they need....as most have no need for e-mail access during the few days (week or two) at a time that they may be away from shoreside infrastructure (Wi-Fi / cellular)....
So, a good external Wi-Fi system (such as a Ubiquiti Bullet based system), and/or an unlocked multi-band cellphone/data-dongle, is the choice of most for equipping their boats for easy/cheap e-mail (and internet) access...
$250 will get you an excellent Wi-Fi system...
Marine WiFi Systems
Not sure where you're planning on cruising, but in most of the popular cruising areas, there are Wi-Fi hotspots and cellular coverage in populous areas, so, with Wi-Fi, cellular, wireless data plans, etc. available, your e-mail needs can be met fairly easily and inexpensively....
If you have specific needs for reasonable speed,
reliable e-mail access in far
remote areas and/or when
offshore, on
passage, then you will need to budget for either a
PACTOR modem (~ $1500) and Sailmail, or a
satellite terminal / satphone/ext antenna/datakit (~ $1500+)...
3) "SSB Nets"....
SSB Nets = Maritime HF Nets = use a Marine
HF radio, not a ham radio...
Ham radio nets = use either a ham HF radio or a Marine HF radio...
HF Radio Recommendations:
a) As a new ham (and someone new to HF radio operating and radiowave propagation), my
advice is always to buy/use a simple, basic radio first....never try a "fancy" rig, filled with too many bell 'n whistles....
b) As a new ham, I almost always recommend
buying a NEW radio, rather than used....unless you buy a relatively new (current production) used radio from a local ham / one that can show you the radio working properly, or from a ham radio store that can also show it working (or at least provide you a "money-back warranty") buying NEW is the best way to go...
c) As a new ham, on a sailboat, I always recommend a radio without lots of menu-driven features/settings....meaning a rig with knobs and buttons that have one function that is well labeled / understood...
--- Now, if you combine the above criteria together, the list is pretty short....
But, that doesn't mean that you must buy only from the rigs on the list, but I'd recommend trying....
--- My first recommend would be a used M-700Pro (a high-quality HF marine radio that will
work well on the ham radio bands, for both normal/casual operating as well as nets, etc.)....purchased from a reputable seller, at $500...(you can still find a few new-old-stock, for about $900 - $1000)
--- Next would be a used M-710 (a high-quality HF marine radio that will work "acceptable" on the ham radio bands, and for "net" activity will work fine...)....purchased from a reputable seller, at $500 - $700...(you can still find a few new-old-stock, for about $1000 - $1100)
--- Next would be a used M-802 (a high-quality, versatile, HF marine radio that will work very well on the ham radio bands, for both normal/casual operating as well as nets, etc.)....difficult to find on the used market, but sometimes available for around $1000 - $1200....
You can buy it new for around $1800....
IC-M802 HF Marine Transceiver - Features - Icom America
Icom SSB Radio Kits & Components
--- Next would be ham-only radios...
- Icom IC-718....new = $600 - $650....(used = $400 - $450..)
IC-718 HF All Band Transceiver - Features - Icom America
ICOM IC-718 Product Reviews
ICOM IC-718 HF All Band Transceivers IC-718 - Free Shipping on Orders Over $99 at DX Engineering
Icom IC-718, Icom 718 Amateur Transceiver
- Kenwood TS-480....(a bit more complex than the other rigs above, but reliable and reasonably easy to learn how-to use...)
New = ~ $950....(used = ~ $600)
Kenwood - ts-480hx-480sat
Kenwood TS-480SAT and TS-480HX Transceivers TS480
Kenwood TS-480SAT Product Reviews
Kenwood TS-480HX Product Reviews
The Icom M-700pro and M-710 are BIG bulky, heavy rigs that might prove to be a pain to find a good spot to mount/install on a 25-footer...
The M-802 (and the TS-480) have separate control heads, allowing you to mount the "radio" out-of-the-way (in a dry area) but still have the control
head where you need/desire it to be to allow you easy use of the radio...
The IC-718 isn't a "miniature" radio, but it's relatively compact and you should be able to find a spot for it...
Well, those are my recommends for you, from $400 - $1800....(and with the added info that you probably won't need any external
PACTOR modem or sat
phone, so that budget can be added to the radio budget...)
4) Please read over these threads to give you a better understanding of HF radio (and sat phones, weather, etc.) for sailors/cruisers...
Tips for using an HF-SSB Radio (mostly for newcomers)
http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ml#post1616588
Offshore / Hi-Seas Weather data / forecasts
Icom M-802 Instr Videos(basic-adv) & LIVE DSC-Distress Call
(many of these videos are very helpful to all HF radio users...especially video #4...as well as #5, #6, and #9...)
SSB Receiver Only? Is it practical?
I thought maybe
posting a couple of the videos here would be helpful??
I hope this helps....
Please advise us WHERE you're planning on cruising, and what you specific needs are for e-mail, etc...as well as any other
communications needs/desires, and we can be more specific...
Fair winds..
John
s/v Annie Laurie