I am thinking of buying a marine radio for my boat. How much use do you all get out of one of those things? Is it of benefit to have one on Pepin, Leech. And.. how bout those huge antennaes? Can a shorter (4ft.) do?
The antennae height will have a direct impact on the range you’ll be able to get out of the radio. The higher it is off the water, the further you’ll be able to send and receive. As far how much use I get: 1) They are a nice thing to have for talking to others you know on the water. 2) You can check on lock activity and waiting times at the dams. 3) Most important, even if you don’t use it for anything else, it’s like the spare tire in your trunk. You may never have to use it but when you NEED it, you’ll be glad it’s there. Especially if your fishing big water and don’t always have somebody close enough to flag down. They’re a safety tool that doubles as “just one more electronic toy”. If you don’t want the antennae in the way, get a decent hand-held. They’re good for maybe 3 to 5 miles.
The distance that you can talk is usually limited to your choice of antenna. You can hear people you can not reach with a poor antenna. I found Universion Systems, Inc. 1-800-289-8366 (Ireland Antennas) makes a short (4 ft.) antenna that gets out like an 8 foot. Real quality.
They make an extention (telescope type) antenna for hand-helds that tripples the range.
Hope that 800# is good, I have not called in years. Hawger
Hawger, Thanks for the info. I will try the 800 number and let you know if its still good.
Quicksilver
hi Quicksilver, I’ve had a marine band radio for the last 7 or so years. it is handy when fishing with friends or a friendly fishing club, like mine, we can talk during the day, and help each other on what’s working and what’s not. Most radios now also have built in 9 National Weather service NOAA radio channels, no matter where you are you can usually get at least one channel. if some bad looking weather is moving, my first move is to my radio to listen the NWS. it is a real safety item to have on board. also on big water, it might be a lifesaver, at least someone out there will have a radio. on shiping channels and Great Lakes the Coast Guard monitors certain freqs, and are always on 16. Antenna come in different lenths. trans and receive is line of sight. on water the horizon is 7 miles out, so if you need to reach much beyond that often, you’d probably need an 8 ft antenna, most situations 4 ft is plenty good enough. hope that helps. Jack.
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