VHF radio use

[Jennie@ifish]

Did you plug it in?
Batteries?

[Tagster]

I was wondering who was going to be the first to say that

Maybe I have something installed wrong, I actually have a 25 watt raytheon...it should be picking up all kinds of chatter around bouy 10 and Bonneville, but, it doesn't. I also have a 6' shakespeare antennae that is mounted to the boat. I checked some of the past threads on VHF radios and it looks like 68 should be busy...

I even have a separate battery just for it.

[Phish_on]

yep there is constant chatter on 68 in the midst of the buoy-10 circus -

get a buddy to do some tests with you, someone could bring over a hand-held and check it out in the garage. I don't think anyone would get too excited, transmit @ 1 watt and use ch 68.

Also you should be able to get weather reports!

[Tagster]

That is part of my frustration, I get very clear weather reports on 1 and 3...If I get those, why not anything else?

Should I have the squelch so high that there is always static? Or should I turn it down to silence?

[Thumper]

Why screw around with this. Your life could depend on the proper functioning of that radio. Take the radio and boat to Rodgers Marine Electronics at 3445 Marine Drive in Portland (503-287-1101) and have them check it out.

[Tagster]

I have a 5 watt vhf radio that I mounted to my boat. I always take it with me when I go to the Columbia, just in case I get in trouble, or someone else does, then maybe I can get help or give some.

Only problem is, it is very silent. Very rarely do I hear transmissions on it. Maybe I am monitoring the wrong channels? I scan from 1-25. I thought that 16 was the hailing channel?

Any advice?

p.s. I also carry a cell for emergencies, it is just kind of comforting having two resources..

[Pete]

Depending on where you are, there is usually a lot of talk on 80 in the Portland harbor between tugs and ships. You don't want to interfere with it, but it's OK to listen. If you're getting weather, I can't imagine the rest don't work, but honestly, there are lots of times when there just isn't much going on ... a lot of times when it might be useful for someone to say something but they don't.

[Tagster]

I have read some past archives about an "ifish" channel for buoy 10 and maybe even Bonneville..

Was anything ever established?

I am heading out Sunday, so I will check 80 to see if I can pick up anything...thanks

[FM2]

Tagster, you probably already know that VHF works on line of sight. I used an 8' antennae on my boat and it worked very well with a 5 watt VHF so maybe your antennae position relative to your boat may interrupt any signals from the lower wattage radios. I'm not a radio expert but you might look for an alternate location on your boat that provides your antennae as much clearance from anything metal that might interrupt the signal. It's also possible there could be a short in the wire from the antennae to the radio. I would recommend replacing your 6'antennae with an 8' for better reception.

Thumper has excellent advice, Rogers is very good with electronics. I used to moor my boat there and whenever I had a problem they would not hesitate to check it out (many times at no cost) but they are truly electronic experts and will give you excellent customer service.

[ 11-30-2001: Message edited by: FM2 ]</p>

[Pitch Pocket]

Don't set your radio to one frequency until you have scanned the bands. Put the radio on scan and id the talkers. They move around, but generally stick to one or two channels.

[Vinny]

Squelch Adjustment -

Rotate the squelch knob until you hear static. Then slowly rotate it back until the static just stops. Transmissions should be strong enough to "break squelch." You should not have to listen to static. However, if you're trying to receive a relatively weak (or distant) signal, you might have to listen to static.