Thoughts on the Kenwood TH-F6A HT?

[Irongen]

Howdy folks,

I'm currently studying to get my ham license and plan on taking the test early in June. I am going to pass the test before I purchase any sort of transceiver, and was leaning towards getting a HT for its obvious BOB applications. Anyone here have any experience with the Kenwood TH-F6A? It has the bands that I would be most interested in for starters, since there are a ton of 2m/440 repeaters in Michigan, and there are more 220 than 6m repeaters in the state. It also has a fantastic receive capability, which would be handy in a SHTF or other emergency situation. Seems like a solid unit for under $300 new. Any thoughts?

[buxyrk]

personally, i would go for the yaesu vx-7r instead. its submersible for 30 minutes. for a clutz like me, that is a selling point. it has 6m, though i wouldn't expect much from a handheld. 6m, 2m, and 440 all have 5w, but only 300mw on 220. (makes no sense to me). i think they are about the same price too. main thing for me is durability, if I get one, I would want one that could survive a couple drops, spills and other daily occurences.

now i should put up a disclaimer saying that I do not own a handheld, so I can't speak for either of these outside of specs i seen on the internet, and i am also fairly new to amateur radio, so, dont put too much weight in what I say.

[Irongen]

I was originally leaning towards the 7r, but having 6m in a HT isn't going to be as useful as having 220 would be, and I would much rather have 5w on 220 than .3w that the 7r puts out (if that's all you're going to give, why even bother?). Besides, a 6m antenna should properly be 1.5m long if I'm calculating right - way too unwieldy for a handheld unit. The 8r at least gives 1.5w on 220, but that's nearly $100 more for that extra 1.2w. I'd really have to stretch my budget to make that work.

Yes, the submersible feature is nice, but I figure if I drop the radio in water that I can reach, it probably won't be submerged more than a few seconds, which shouldn't prove fatal to a splash-resistant unit (the Kenwood is mil-spec for light rain); if I drop it in water deep enough that I can't reach it, it doesn't matter if it can be submerged for 30 minutes or not. The best solution is to not go around dropping my radio into any lakes or rivers I go near.

One feature on the Kenwood that I haven't seen on any other HT is its receive range: it can receive up to 1300 MHz, while most others receive up to 999 MHz that I've seen. Not sure how useful that would be in practice, but certainly wouldn't hurt to have it.

Not saying I won't end up with the 7r; it's a heck of a nice unit. But as of now, it would seem that the Kenwood would be of more use in my area. Both are highly regarded from what reviews I've read. I don't think I'd go wrong either way, but I still have plenty of time to make a decision yet.

[buxyrk]

yeah, i agree about the .3w on 220. if you actually plan on using that, then i wouldn't get the 7r. i like it for its submersible feature, because i plan on going out on some lakes this summer. but since the TH-F6A is splash resistant, that should be enough. lte me know how whichever one works out for you. I'm thinking bout getting one by field day.

[thelight]

How active is 220 in your area? You say there are more repeaters there than on 6 and that makes sense since six is right on the boarder of HF... but that doesn't mean 220 is active.
I have two VX-5Rs, gave one to my GF when she got her ticket, and plan to upgrade mine to the 8 sometime this year. I like the Yaesu's because I beat on my gear and it's survived gloriously. I'm not a huge fan of the complicated menu system on the 5, but I hear they've made improvements in that area. The 8R has built in APRS if I'm not mistaken, and that's a feature I like.

[Irongen]

Not sure about the level of activity on the 220 band in my area - don't have a transceiver yet, so can't listen in. However, it's probably a 2:1 ratio or better in Michigan in terms of 220 to 6m repeaters. I would have to assume that the repeaters are there for a reason; I can't see folks going to the trouble of setting up a 220 net for minimal activity if the 6m band was so much more active.

The 8r would be a very nice radio; I could probably live with 1.5w on the 220 band with it, but I've heard bad things about the Yaesu menu system. The Kenwood supposedly has a more intuitive menu setup, but the menu is not going to be a make-or-break for me. Whatever I end up getting, I'm going to have that menu memorized. Once I'm familiar with the system, it will cease to be an issue.

[JohnE]

I own a Kenwood TH-F6a, a Yaesu VX-5 and an Icom V-8.

All decent radios.

The Kenwood I purchased new, the others were used.

The menus on all 3 are complicated, unless you're using them actively, I wouldn't count on memorizing them. I don't mean using them by talking on them, I mean adding and removing memory channels, PL tones, etc. What we've gained with the miniaturization of the radios we've lost to multiple switch/menu settings. Each button on the Kenwood faceplate has at least 2 functions depending on which button you push first and then there's the actual menu system which involves both the push button switches and the rotary dials to choose from various settings, some of which are pretty esoteric.

I'd strongly suggest getting or making a laminated "cheat sheet" for whatever radio you end up with. Small enough to fit in whatever pocket or case you're gonna be carrying the radio in.

A decent case for storage is one of the cheap, plastic handgun cases, for about 10 bucks you can put the radio and a decent number of accessories in one. I'd also get an SMA to BNC adapter for the antenna, one that stays on the radio not the pigtail type with an extra piece of cable. I'd also most definitely get an aftermarket antenna for whichever radio you get, the rubber duckie types that come with them are about as useful as a dummy load. Comet and Pryme both make decent aftermarket antennaes for HT's.

One other HT to consider if you can make do with a simple dual 2m/70cm band, the Yaesu FT 60r, less than 200 bucks, extremely reliable, tough and big enough to be easy to use.

There's not a lot of activity on 220 or on 6m anywhere in the country compared to 2m and 70cm. There may be a lot of repeaters but there's a reason why most HT's are dual or even single band. People set up repeaters for all kinds of reasons, make sure that whatever guide you're using shows you if the repeaters are open or closed. Having dozens of private, closed repeaters in a given area won't help you on any band.

[Irongen]

There's not a lot of activity on 220 or on 6m anywhere in the country compared to 2m and 70cm. There may be a lot of repeaters but there's a reason why most HT's are dual or even single band.

That's very true. But on the flip side, if you ran into a situation where you needed some comms where you could be fairly certain that there wouldn't be too many ears listening in, this might be an advantage to the 220 setup. Heck, from what I've seen even most mobile units don't run 220.

Still, the Yaesu HTs are on my list. Will definitely be looking into both brands more before I plunk down $200+ on a unit.

[ProstheticWeasel]

I have a vx-7 and am liking it. I did try out dunking it in a pool and it survived quite nicely. It does not even come close to floating though even with a couple of keychain floats on it. I think the 30 minutes of time in the water is only good to 3 or 6 feet. Since my boat has 5 feet of draft the radio is a goner if I ever do drop it over. But at least it is ok in the cockpit with it raining.

[nateted4]

It rains a lot where I do my hiking, we're often walking through waterfalls, so the VX-7r extra water resistance works best for me. I have dropped it in creeks (I'm a clutz) and it survived just fine. I did manage to destroy its screen (it was rattling around in my bag for a week and prolly got impacted). Repair part was pretty cheap, and the factory turn around was about a week. They're both fine units from reputable manufacturers and either will do you fine. More importantly, good luck on your test.

Also, look into ARES in your area:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_Radio_Emergency_Service
You might find them to be worthy of you're hobby time.

-Nate

[aa1pr]

I have yet to get one but in the last year I have made several posts thinking that this is the true radio for what ever purposes. The all mode recieve is impressive even though it stops around 600mhz.

With a simple wire attached to the antenna you can better pull in the hf stations and the possibilities are endless from my standpoint. let alone copying cw from an ht!!

On a side not I wish they would come out with a newer version that included 6m....

I got the shaft on an VX5 so I could never tell anyone to go with Yeasu from my bad experience?

[kahoots]

For many days I was back and forth about getting the kenwood or the vx7/8. After scouring the net I'm pretty sure I read every single review for both. Some say the kenwood has better reception ..others the vx7..great. What people seem to agree on is that the kenwood picked up the AM bands better..not really a deciding factor for me. Also of note is the supreme water protection you get in the vx7. vx7 also had some complaints about the speaker BECAUSE of its waterproofing. After a lot of though I ended up getting a Yaesu FT-60 and I really like it. The only downside being that it isn't submersible.


To answer the OP - the kenwood is a fine radio that I'm sure you'll be happy with. I didn't get it because I really only needed 70cm and 2M, ft-60 is almost half the price of the kenwood and vx7, the FT-60 is easier to use if you don't have the manual handy, and I liked the ft-60s ruggedness and simplicity. Also there were a few reviews from people who had all three of them ( kenwood, ft-60 , vx7) and they said they always just end up grabbing the FT-60 cause its easier and it 'works'.

Don't want to start a big hubub over this and all the standard disclaimers apply blah blah: the vx7 can be moded with free software to transmit on 'other' bands( I only moded to be able to transmit on FRS/GMRS.) The FT-60 needs to be taken apart to mod although I found it super easy and you don't need anything more than a leatherman wave to do it(just google it). To my knowledge the kenwood cannot be modded ..or at least not as easily. The ft-60 also has some great free software to organize everything.

[rdyabout]

For me the TH-F6A was the better choice. I use the radio extensively in public service and the Yeasu simply doesn't have enough power on 220 to make it useful on that band.

I never saw a need for a six meter handheld.

The TH-F6A has free programming software available (you need a separate programming cable) and it works well. While it is not completely waterproof, I have used it a lot on my bicycle in all kinds of weather, dropped it a few times, it still runs fine. They are plenty rugged enough.

We have no need for a six meter HT in my area

The Yaesu is a great idea and it might have been my first choice if they only had seen fit to give five watts on 220.

[American_Infidel]

Like what aa1pr said, the all mode receive of the TH-F6A puts it in the win column for me. I don't think there is another HT on the market that can receive SSB.