Considering a Yaesu FT-897D, any input?

[waltel]

For my firts entry into Ham I am close to a decision between 857D and 897D having passed over 817D for too little power.

What is the best option for an antenna and can I assume a beginner wants an antenna with a tuner?

Anything else I should buy with radio to get started listening. Will get Technician lic in a month or so...

Thanks

Waltel

[Corey]

Get a duplexer and the Yaesu ATAS 120 antenna like I have.
It is made for these units.

[762X39]

What is the best option for an antenna and can I assume a beginner wants an antenna with a tuner

The radio is a great choice and beginner or not, an antenna tuner is a good idea, needed in fact.Enjoy!

[1911]

For my firts entry into Ham I am close to a decision between 857D and 897D having passed over 817D for too little power.

The 857 and the 897 are electronically identical; one is packaged more for mobile use and the other more for base station use but plenty of folks use either one for both of those uses. Great all-band radios in any event.

What is the best option for an antenna and can I assume a beginner wants an antenna with a tuner?

You'll need more than one antenna to fully utilize either of those radios; at the very least you'll want a dual-band 2m/70cm antenna for those bands and an adjustable multi-band antenna for HF like a Tarheel or the ATAS-120, but you could save some money by having a few ham sticks for different HF bands and just change them out on the same mount as needed. Tuners are handy for adjustable multi-band HF antennas but not required for fixed-length antennas that you can tune once when you install them.

If you're set on having a tuner, then the Kenwood TS-480SAT radio is another option that has a built-in tuner. I have this radio and like it a lot. However, it is only an HF radio so you would need a second 2m radio for trail commo, APRS, etc.

Anything else I should buy with radio to get started listening. Will get Technician lic in a month or so...

Thanks

Waltel

I find the Nifty! mini-manuals to be a useful thing to carry with me instead of the entire manufacturer's instruction/operators manual for a given radio:

http://www.niftyaccessories.com/

Good luck on your test! Recommend that you study for and take the General Class test soon after you pass the Technician, while you still remember the basic stuff.

[HillbillyfromAL]

Also don't forget even with the Tech license there are plenty of freqs available to you. ARRL has a chart of them. I am going to start studying for the general too, but I'm not in any hurry as I can use all the bands my FT8900r operates on.

[cruiserlarry]

I use the Yaesu FT857D / ATAS-120A combination in my FJ Cruiser, and have made contacts all over the world without issue. While some hams consider this a "compromise" system, they are amazed when I go head to head with larger units in the field - many times my FT 857D and ATAS 120A smoke the larger, more complex systems. I would choose the 857 over the 897, as the 857 has a better display and a much smaller, lighter footprint. The only advantage to the 897 is it's ability to work with internal battery packs - not a factor in a vehicle mounted situation.

[Corey]

That is great to know Larry since that is my exact same setup too.

[gary in ohio]

The ATS-120 is fine as long as your not planning a lot of 40/80m contacts.. If you do a lot of 40/80 work then look at a bigger screw drivers antenna or tuned whip system.

[SP Jon M3]

The ATS-120 is fine as long as your not planning a lot of 40/80m contacts.. If you do a lot of 40/80 work then look at a bigger screw drivers antenna or tuned whip system.

The ATAS-120 only goes down to 40m, it's not designed to operate on 80m. I also have to echo Larry's statement. I've been very happy with the 857/ATAS-120 combo. I've made contacts as far as Tazmania with this setup, even through the small pileup.

[chris snell]

I have a gorgeous FT-897D with lots of accessories for sale here:

http://www.expeditionportal.com/foru...HF-Transceiver

If you're interested, send me a PM. It's a great radio.