In article
,
Stuart Longland VK4MSL wrote:

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 haven't got a '817... I instead opted for its 100W cousin, the
'897D. The catch with all of these more modern "all-band" radios
though, is the high level of integration. While it does shrink the
size, it does mean the radio is more complex -- and thus repairs will
be more expensive and difficult.

Thanks for your comprehensive post on "all band" radios.

Sorry about the lightning frying your expensive rig; here I have
the same problems with lightning, came to the same conclusion
as you did, namely completely unplug _ALL_ leads to my rig.



I have not yet decided which way to jump as regards buying
a rig after my long 55 year absence from ham radio:

1) Completely portable (ordinary alkaline battery powered)
very low powered rig such as the Yaesu FT-817ND

2) Larger 100 watt mobile rig such as the Elecraft K3
or the Yaesu 897D

The Yaesu 897D certainly has impressive spec's


Presently I do not have enough smarts to make an intelligent
choice between the Yaesu 897D as compared to the more
expensive Elecraft K3, when it comes to the fine points
of both those rigs.

With the Elecraft, I lose the mobile capability, however
Elecraft advocates are very impressed with that fine rig.

Decisions, decisions... g

Mark