"James Barrett" wrote in message
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Bob Bob wrote:
Hi Jim

I haven't seen a simple answer to your question yet!


I don't mind all the different answers. It actually helps me to figure
out what it's all about.

I think my first misunderstanding about the Yaesu was that in reading
the owner's manual, I had been expecting it to have a built-in automatic
tuner (the Icom 703+ has one). When I read about the VHF antenna which
comes with the radio it made it seem like I could use it on all bands..
of course I misunderstood what I was reading. I understand now that it
does not have a built in tuner, and I would either have to use an
external tuner or use a resonant antenna for whichever band I was going
to use.

At any rate, if I go with the Yaesu, one benefit would be that I would
gain experience in building and tuning my own antennas. That is
something I am interested in. Having an automatic tuner might make me
lazy. ;-)

There is nothing to keep you from doing this with any radio.



I'm not worried about the low power either. I think having a high
powered radio for my first rig would make me lazy. It would be easier
for me to pump out wattage rather than fine tune my antenna. Besides
that, when I am ready for higher power, I could add an amplifier. One
thing at a time. ;-)

Unless you have experience with QRP, you might find this an exercise in
frustration. If you don't want to spend the money now, I would look for a
deal on a used 100W rig. There is not much to choose from in amplifiers
(other than VHF/UHF) that don't require 100W of drive.

Tam/WB2TT



Jim

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Jim

I agree with Tam. It is way more cost effective to buy a 2nd hand 100W
radio than a new low power one. It's easy to reduce output power when
you want to. The only reason I would go so low is if I ever wanted to
run it backpack portable.

Compare some prices! You will then be able to afford an ATU as well!

Cheers Bob VK2YQA


Tam/WB2TT wrote:
Unless you have experience with QRP, you might find this an exercise in
frustration. If you don't want to spend the money now, I would look for a
deal on a used 100W rig. There is not much to choose from in amplifiers
(other than VHF/UHF) that don't require 100W of drive.