I understand your desire to see and try a radio before buying; I'm the same
way. Ham Radio Outlet www.hamradio.com and Amateur Electronic Supply
www.aesham.com are reputable national companies and may have a store near
you. I have purchased many times from both companies with great
satisfaction. Also reputable are Lentini Communications (also personal
endorsement), Grove Enterprises (publishers of Monitoring Times) and
Universal Radio. Consider buying the radio from the dealer who shows it and
stocks it. Short wave is not exactly a booming business and there's value in
supporting a seller who has stock in your area, since he's likely to be
around a little longer if he gets your business.

As to a good radio under a grand - I own an Icom R75 and Yaesu FRG-100 and
they're both terrific. The Icom is probably better at digging out a tough
signal and the control functions are more obvious, but the Yaesu sounds
better with an external speaker and I find myself listening to broadcast
programs more on it. To be fair, the features aren't hard to learn and the
radio comes with a handy little pull out menu card that lists common button
functions and stores under the rig.

As to a used rig, I bought a Kenwood R5000 from Ham Radio Outlet and think
that it's a good mix of what the R75 and FRG100 do well with no real
shortcomings, except a number keypad that's laid out in a slightly
cumbersome way. You get used to it. Great sound and easy to use. Buying used
from a dealer has real advantages if there's a problem with the rig. Then
again, you'll pay $450 - 500 and may find a new or open stock radio for that
price - with a warranty.

The trouble with ebay (and I am a frequent user) is that good radios tend to
bid up quickly and it's a crap shoot to a small degree, though most all
sellers with good feedback are quite reputable. I'd still rather buy a used
or open stock (returned and discounted) R75 or FRG 100 (how I got my Yaesu
at a real steal at HRO). This is a purchase that you are likely to enjoy
often and for a long time, so a little bit more of an investment makes
sense.

www.eham.net has a classifieds section, Universal publishes their used
equipment list at www.universal-radio.com AES also lists their used gear on
line. Grove sells theirs through ebay now.

Choosing a new radio is a good problem to have. Enjoy and good listening!



BCcubed wrote in message
...
Hello all,

I have been listening for about 9 months now and finally I am starting to
feel
comfortable in my knowledge of shortwave and the propagation of
international
broadcasts. I use a portable receiver but now want to move to the next
level
with a good radio and an active SW antenna. My question is Where can I go
to
trade up to a better radio? Are there sites where SWL's have swap type
setups?
Can anyone give me advice about getting a used Drake, Kenwood, Yaesu,
Icom,
Ten-Tec?? The new radios are nice but 1500$ is a bit too steep at this
point.

73,

Neil