In article ,
Mark Conrad wrote:

Opinions regarding Yaesu FT-817ND transceiver?

Seems like a great little rig, blasts out a whooping 2 watts
of RF power on batteries, do not know if I can handle
that much power, if I decide to apply for another license.

I was W6TAM 55 years ago. (extra-class license)

I have not really shopped around for a rig yet, so do not
know how the Yaesu FT-817ND rig compares to
its competitors in the $700 price range.

Any advice gratefully appreciated -

Mark Conrad

I use mine mainly for working satellites. I've been on the birds for
nearly a year and a half and have used it to make about 1500 contacts
with at least 80 different stations. I've worked over 25 American
states as well as 5 Canadian provinces and one of its territories. My
furthest contact with it was the K4T DXpedition a few days ago, which is
about 4100 km from my QTH.

I made my first contacts with just the stock rubber duck antenna but
I've been using an Arrow dual-band Yagi for more than a year.

I'd say that my FT-817ND was worth the investment.