{"id":42366,"date":"2020-03-19T13:25:40","date_gmt":"2020-03-19T17:25:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=42366"},"modified":"2020-03-19T13:25:40","modified_gmt":"2020-03-19T17:25:40","slug":"searching-for-the-perfect-dual-band-mobile-and-radio-inventory-in-the-wake-of-shut-downs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/03\/searching-for-the-perfect-dual-band-mobile-and-radio-inventory-in-the-wake-of-shut-downs\/","title":{"rendered":"Searching for the perfect dual-band mobile and radio inventory in the wake of shut-downs"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

The Yaesu FT-100DR<\/p><\/div>\n

As we here in North America are about to see how deep the Covid-19 pandemic is going to go, some of us are trying to turn lemons into lemonade and make the most of our social distance<\/a>.<\/p>\n

My buddy, Eric (WD8RIF), has inspired me to add another item to my growing Social DX Bucket List<\/a>: install a dual-band mobile radio in my 2018 Subaru Forester.<\/p>\n

I had planned to install a mobile rig shortly after purchasing the Forester, but frankly, I’m a “below 30 MHz” kind of guy, so most of my radio funds support HF gear.\u00a0 When I’m taking a long trip, or wanting to join a local net however, I really miss the luxury of a proper mobile VHF\/UHF radio.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Eric has pretty much convinced me the Yaesu FT-100DR is a solid choice at $299 US. At least, it’s the rig he plans to acquire.<\/p>\n

He also discovered, last week, that new units of the FT-100DR are completely<\/em><\/strong> out-of-stock here in the US.<\/p>\n

This prompted me to contact a couple of friends who work in the ham radio retail world–I was curious if radio inventory, in general, is running low.<\/p>\n

Turns out, things are okay for now<\/h2>\n

It seems the shortage of FT-100DR units is pretty specific to this transceiver model and the back-order started before the Coronavirus outbreak and consequent shutting down of factories and supply chains across the globe. Likely, there’s a shortage of a specific part that has brought production to a halt.<\/p>\n

In general, ham radio transceiver inventory is healthy for now, but supply chains and import of new units has been slowed or halted by the pandemic. Both of my friends believe production has started again in China (albeit slowly) which would coincide with what Anna recently told us<\/a>. It’ll take a while for production and supply chains to ramp-up and inventory filled locally.<\/p>\n

I wouldn’t be surprised if inventory of lower-cost handheld and mobile VHF\/UHF transceivers starts to dwindle. As posted earlier today, there’s been a significant uptick of new ham radio licensees<\/a>. Newly minted hams might be looking for a first radio.<\/p>\n

My advice?<\/h2>\n

If you’re planning to purchase a new transceiver in the near future, and you feel financially secure enough to do so, bite the bullet! I would also recommend supporting your domestic ham radio retailers like (here in the US) Universal Radio<\/a>, GigaParts<\/a>, DX Engineering<\/a> and Ham Radio Outlet<\/a>. Your purchase will support them through what is obviously going to be difficult financial times ahead for small businesses.<\/p>\n

Otherwise, just sit tight for a while! You may find a deal on the used market. One of my favorite places to check is QTH.com’s classifieds<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Speaking of the used market, this is an excellent time to post the gear you’ve been planning to sell!<\/p>\n

Dual band mobile suggestions?<\/h2>\n

If I find a deal on a used FT-100DR, I might snag it (after giving Eric the opportunity, of course). Otherwise, I think I’ll wait until later this year and simply invest in the mounts, antenna, and wiring in the meantime.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The Icom ID-4100A also seems like a solid choice.<\/p><\/div>\n

In truth, even the FT-100DR doesn’t really satisfy all of the features I’d like in a mobile radio. Here are the features an ideal dual-band radio would offer:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Compact remote head<\/li>\n
  • Bluetooth<\/li>\n
  • VHF\/UHF analog<\/li>\n
  • GPS<\/li>\n
  • APRS<\/li>\n
  • \u00a0DMR (because where I live, it’s the best repeater network by far)<\/li>\n
  • Extended receiver coverage<\/li>\n
  • Easy to program<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Yeah, I’m essentially looking for a unicorn. DMR mode would be amazing, but I’m not sure there’s a single DMR\/analog mobile with remote head. Please correct me if I’m wrong. I’d love your suggestions and experience.<\/p>\n

    Also, are you considering making any major radio purchases over the next few months. or do you plan to wait until the economy begins to recover? Please comment!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    As we here in North America are about to see how deep the Covid-19 pandemic is going to go, some of us are trying to turn lemons into lemonade and make the most of our social distance. My buddy, Eric (WD8RIF), has inspired me to add another item to my growing Social DX Bucket List: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[545,3,43],"tags":[8312,8358,4102,8378],"class_list":["post-42366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ham-radio","category-news","category-shortwave-radio","tag-coronavirus","tag-covid-19","tag-ham-radio","tag-social-dx"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-b1k","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27592,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/08\/the-zastone-zt-d9000-dual-band-mobile-includes-hf-and-lw-coverage\/","url_meta":{"origin":42366,"position":0},"title":"The Zastone ZT-D9000 dual band mobile includes HF and LW coverage","author":"Thomas","date":"August 16, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Cap Tux, who writes: The Zastone ZT-D9000\u00a0radio has actually been out for a while and is a Dual Band Mobile (Triband with option), nothing fancy there and bears a striking resemblance to the Icom IC-2820H (clone?). Options include GPS, Bluetooth, 220Mhz and LW (The\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Deals"","block_context":{"text":"Deals","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/deals\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Zastone-D9000.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Zastone-D9000.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Zastone-D9000.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/Zastone-D9000.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":18796,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2016\/05\/european-hams-announce-new-radio-a-dual-band-multi-mode-radio-to-support-dmr-d-star-and-c4fm\/","url_meta":{"origin":42366,"position":1},"title":"European hams announce NEW RADIO \u2013 a dual-band, multi-mode radio to support DMR, D-STAR and C4FM","author":"Robert Gulley","date":"May 12, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"An announcement has been made by\u00a0Kurt, OE1KBC and reported by Don Trynor, VA3XFT concerning a multi-mode radio combining various digital modes. The radio\/computer is called simply NEW RADIO and is a joint initiative of the \u00d6VSV, DARC and IARU R1. As stated in Don's article: the \u201cNEW RADIO\u201d that will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Digital Modes"","block_context":{"text":"Digital Modes","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/digital-modes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"NEW RADIO, DMR, D-STAR, C4FM, System Fusion, mobile, radio, ham radio, amateur radio, VA3XPR, dual-band, multi-mode, FM, chassis","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.va3xpr.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/DSC01769.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.va3xpr.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/DSC01769.jpeg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.va3xpr.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/DSC01769.jpeg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44564,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/07\/covid-19-popular-yaesu-and-alinco-rigs-meet-early-demise\/","url_meta":{"origin":42366,"position":2},"title":"Covid-19: Popular Yaesu and Alinco rigs meet early demise","author":"Thomas","date":"July 31, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 No doubt, the Covid-19 global pandemic has had a mostly negative impact on our daily lives.\u00a0 Surprisingly, I found that the impact on the amateur radio world, at first, was quite minimal. Not only did sheltering at home seem to increase the number of operators on the air, but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Yaesu-FT-450D-edited-1-e1596207207516.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Yaesu-FT-450D-edited-1-e1596207207516.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Yaesu-FT-450D-edited-1-e1596207207516.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Yaesu-FT-450D-edited-1-e1596207207516.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":42302,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/03\/social-distancing-nothing-new-to-us-radio-geeks\/","url_meta":{"origin":42366,"position":3},"title":"Social Distancing: Nothing new to us radio geeks","author":"Thomas","date":"March 15, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Let's face it: COVID-19 is certainly disrupting \"business as usual\" across the planet. It's hurting economies, and of greater concern, hurting people. 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Really? It\u2019s not all doom-and-gloom, you know! The low-frequency part of the SW spectrum is proving very good value at the moment. And the mediumwave guys are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Digital Modes"","block_context":{"text":"Digital Modes","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/digital-modes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/WSJT-X.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/WSJT-X.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/WSJT-X.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42366"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42366\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}