marine radios

Is anyone using hand held marine radios? Do they have good range? I’d like one to talk to the lock master to find out how long a wait there will be. Thanks

I have 2- Handhelds radios that I always keep charged- one we take out for the day and leave on channel 16 or 14 if you are near a L/D. The newer radios have weather channels w/alerts so you can keep-up with the weather. The range can vary, out in the wide out pools(lakes) you can get 3-4 mi., around the bends with the high bluffs, maybe 1-2 mi. Or, if you have an emergency you can use 16 and call for help. We don’t go out on the water without one. Hope this helps. – John oh, yes, the second radio we use if we are fishing with another boat and as a back-up.

Is there a specific brand of radio I should be checking into? And are the replacable batteries better, or rechargable batteries?

Go to Boatus.com, they have a good selection. They range in price from $125 -$200, don’t buy a CB or one of the other FM’s, make sure it’s marine band(VHF), their 5-watt, while mounted style with a large antenna is 25watt. A friend of mine put a larger one in his boat with a fold down antenna.He would leave the antenna down and radio on while he was fishing and could monitor the radio, if he needed to transmit he would pop the antenna up. Both the handheld and base units come in waterproof stlyes. The best battery’s are NiCad.

John

I’ve got a Humminbird handheld with a rechargable battery. Lasts all day. Paid $99 from Bass Pro. I’m very happy with it. You can also buy a cigerette lighter adapter for it and use it without the battery. I’ve have mine for 3 years and have no complaints.

I too have the Humminbird VH-5 hand held. All the features of the base mounts. Excellent radio for the money. 5 of my friends have the same radio. Thumbs up!

Add another to the list of satisfied hummingbird owners. I use it on pools 1 and 2, tight pools, high bluffs and bends. I can reach the locks just fine with it. Only complaint is handling it it wet weather with the plastic sleeve. It is hard to turn the knobs.

Thanks for all the replys. Glad to hear the hand helds work so well, I really did’nt want to mount any more electronics, got enough stuff running already. Thanks again.