- Today we're gonna look at five things I loved
from the last year, so please keep watching for more.
(upbeat rock music)
Hi, I'm Michael, KB9VBR, your host for Ham Radio Q&A.
I'm on a mission to inspire and educate
the amateur radio community,
so if this is your first time watching,
please consider hitting that Subscribe button.
Well, a popular topic on my channel are the product reviews.
I will often review an amateur radio-related item
as hams are infinitely curious on
how particular things are functioning.
So as we close out 2018,
I've compiled a list of five items that I've reviewed
and continue to use on a regular basis.
Some of the items were provided by me by the manufacturers,
but others are purchased by me.
So when I find something I like, I wanna share it
with the rest of the amateur radio community.
Links for more information, or to purchase the items,
can be found in the video description below,
and as a general disclaimer,
I may receive an affiliate income with some of these links.
It doesn't affect the price you pay,
and it also helps keep this channel going,
so thank you for your support.
Well, the top five product reviews of 2018
in no particular order, are as follows.
First up, the ISO-Tip Solder Pro 90 Butane Soldering Iron.
This review actually came out in December of 2017
but it's a really good product and I wanted to include it
in this year's rundown.
I'm a fan of butane soldering irons
for working on something outdoors.
The Solder Pro 90 heats up fast and delivers a punch,
making it easy to do a quick repair
out at the field day site or maybe to put
a PL-259 connector on some coax out at the repeater.
The hot air tip is especially handy for working
with heat-shrink tubing.
You'll find the Solder Pro 90 at iso-tip.com
or online at Amazon.
Next is Wolf River Coils Silver Bullet 1000.
I actually own two Wolf River Coils.
I got the 10 through 40 meter coil a couple of years ago
and this last year, I picked up the longer
10 through 80 meter version.
The shorter coil is great for portable operation.
I used it at National Parks on the Air event
a few years back and the longer coil gets set up
in my backyard as the wintertime vertical antennae.
What I like about these coils, besides their portability
and simplicity, is the price.
Now you can put together a complete vertical antennae system
for about $100.
These coils are a part of my camping kit,
so if you love portable operation,
you should check them out.
Details can be found at wolfrivercoils.com.
The third item, the Green Egg for Hams NMO Cover.
I was sent one of these covers to review
and it couldn't have come at a better time
as I was putting in a mobile radio system
in my Suburu Outback.
The Green Egg for Hams is a novel little cover
to protect your NMO mount
when the antennae is not screwed in.
I keep mine on the car and use it
when I take the Outback through the car wash.
The covers are sold on eBay under the username general3D
or go to www.general3D.com.
Next is the Retevis HD1 Dual Band DMR Handheld.
This past year was a big one for me
in getting into DMR radio.
It all started with Retevis sending me a copy
of their RT82 Handheld to review,
but my favorite model so far
has been the Ailunce HD1 Dual Band DMR Handheld Radio.
A couple of things I like about the HD1
are its beefy battery, which is necessary
for the radio's 10-watt transmitter,
the audio quality, promiscuous mode,
and the ability to program and make changes
to the settings and channels on the fly.
With the promiscuous mode it is easy to monitor
all the talk groups on a repeater and to quickly switch
to a talk group if you wish to jump into the conversation.
Early models had some firmware issues,
but Retevis addressed those in the late summer of 2018
and it is really easy to upgrade the radio
and it's now operation is rock solid.
The HD1 is available direct from the Retevis website,
and also from Amazon.
And speaking of radio reviews, the other transmitter
that I enjoyed reviewing this year was
the Retevis RT95 dual band mobile radio.
The RT95 is analog only and it puts out about 25 watts
of power on the 2 meter and 70 centimeter band.
It's priced right and has a couple of novel features
such as software programmable buttons, dual watch mode,
and with a one touch single band mute,
and the option to invert the display.
The TFT LED display is bright.
It'll be a little bit cluttered.
Of the inexpensive Chinese mobile radios on the market,
this is one of the better ones.
I continue to use mine as a backup or second VHF transceiver
in my shack, which is handy when you are net control
for SKYWARN weather net.
The radio is available on Amazon
and also from the Retevis website.
Is there a product review that caught your attention
in the last year?
Is there a product you'd like me to review
in the coming year?
Please leave them in the comments below.
And really please don't bother telling me
about that $3,000 transceiver because unless you're
gonna send me a loaner copy,
it's probably outside my budget.
But I'd love to hear your suggestions.
For more articles and information be sure to check out
my blog at www.jpole-antenna.com.
Your support of this channel is what drives
the production of future videos.
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Well thanks for watching.
I'm Michael, KB9VBR, have a great day and 73.
(rock music)