-
You can now help support WorldwideDX when you shop on Amazon at no additional cost to you! Simply follow this Shop on Amazon link first and a portion of any purchase is sent to WorldwideDX to help with site costs.
Prez lincoln2 and Grant?
- Thread starter Bearcat
- Start date
Best SSB radio for the money is most likely the optima mk3. Opinions will vary but most won't argue that the optima mk3 is a better radio than the 2 you've listed. While both you listed are good radios, and work well, IMO, the optima mk3 is just a better SSB radio.
I've had both grant 2 and Lincoln 2. The Lincoln 2 is a pretty good radio. Grant 2 is good but it has some SSB noise issues plus it only does 5's and 0's whereas the Lincoln has VFO. I've heard a lot of good things about the radio 222dbfl mentioned but I've never had one of those so I can't say on it. But the Lincoln V3 is a good sounding rig if you go that route.
If you want to play ham radio then I would recommend a radio like the FT-450 or IC-718 you talked about in another thread. You will get a lot higher quality radio that will let you access other bands.
I would not recommend a CB type radio with the 40 ch readout and beeps and echoes. The noise makers do not belong on the ham bands.
For a single band (10 meter) rig 222DBFL pointed out the optima mk3. It is based off of the earlier Radio Shack HTX10 that many people have used.
Keep in mind that with a General class license you will really enjoy having access to other bands when 10m is dead.
Yep. If I weren't going to use the optima mk3, I would look into finding a used kenwood TS50, or even a ised HX480. They are both great radios, only issue is the TS50 will be harder to get parts for and has much less options and settings vs the HX480. I am still impressed with the TS140s I won for $300 shipped. It rocks on SSB. Dead on frequency. I also have an Icom 746 so it gets used most of the time for base use anyway. Mobile radios, the ones mentioned above or even older Icom mobile unit would work well for SSB use mostly. The kenwoods from what I have heard sound better on AM then a lot of other radios. But there are many choices and given the fact you now have the option to get an HF radio, take your time and pick one that YOU LIKE!! In the end you will be the one using it so this is why I said that. At any rate good luck choosing and like I said take your time and look around, your local CL, local amateur radio club, or even EBay you can find some nice equipment from time to time. Just be patient and get what you want is the main thing I would say. Something to grow into is always good. JMHO.
I have a couple of President HR2600's both with the chipswitch. Since these are aging radio's, I prefer not to use them for mobile use anymore.
I replaced my mobile radio with the President Lincoln 2 version 3 hoping to stay in the same tradition as the original Uniden made ones.
The overall look and feel of these new Chinese Lincoln 2 versions is cheap. The radio has a smaller footprint than the original but that can be good for some with limited space for mobile installs. The audio out volume I think is kind of low so the volume has to be turned up almost to the point of distortion.
The frequency expansion is easily done by snipping a wire but the channel groupings aren't sequential, meaning the band groupings jump around, ridiculous I think. Before the mod, the band groupings are lettered A-G in order. With the original Lincolns, doing the chipswitch adds 12 meters for us licensed amateurs but this one does not.
Like most glorified CB radio's out of the box, the frequency is off and noticeable on SSB modes. If you are only going to use this on 11 meters, it won't matter since I usually hear plenty of off frequency radio's both directions and the funny thing is these operators swear there right on. The good thing about these radio's is that it has a service menu that makes frequency calibrations easy since it's done in that service menu by changing the value numbers. You still need a reference tone to zero beat against it if you don't have a good signal generator. I calibrate my HF rigs with WWV then zero beat these types of radios with them. None of the service menu mods or how to access it is given but the info is online with some research. I found it myself and performed the frequency calibration easily myself.
The on-board CTCSS and DCS features are useful but are only selectable as either decode or both decode /encode only. It should give the encode only option for 10 meter repeater access but it doesn't. This maybe a good thing to keep a non-licensed radio user from screwing around and illegally using a 10 meter repeater. Also the owners manual doesn't tell you how to make this selection in the radio's user menu but I eventually figured it out myself.
The good points? I like the VOX feature since I use a wireless earset mic for hands free mobile use. This is the only glorified CB I know of that has VOX and another reason why I chose this model..
I also like the color screen and lighted buttons with color options, BUT, the frequency display is too small and the channel display is too big. I would like it reversed or the menu option to change it. Then again, it was designed more the the average CBer who tunes by channels not by frequency.
On the air? the reports are good for what that's worth and the receiver seems to be average for these types of radio's with a good antenna system. No real issue there. It's not going to be as good as a real mobile HF radio but I never expected it to be.
Overall? If you have a aging Lincoln or HR2510 I would recap it and take good care of it since I believe these radio's fall short of the original Uniden made ones and cover up that fact with on-board toys and gimmicks.
I replaced my mobile radio with the President Lincoln 2 version 3 hoping to stay in the same tradition as the original Uniden made ones.
The overall look and feel of these new Chinese Lincoln 2 versions is cheap. The radio has a smaller footprint than the original but that can be good for some with limited space for mobile installs. The audio out volume I think is kind of low so the volume has to be turned up almost to the point of distortion.
The frequency expansion is easily done by snipping a wire but the channel groupings aren't sequential, meaning the band groupings jump around, ridiculous I think. Before the mod, the band groupings are lettered A-G in order. With the original Lincolns, doing the chipswitch adds 12 meters for us licensed amateurs but this one does not.
Like most glorified CB radio's out of the box, the frequency is off and noticeable on SSB modes. If you are only going to use this on 11 meters, it won't matter since I usually hear plenty of off frequency radio's both directions and the funny thing is these operators swear there right on. The good thing about these radio's is that it has a service menu that makes frequency calibrations easy since it's done in that service menu by changing the value numbers. You still need a reference tone to zero beat against it if you don't have a good signal generator. I calibrate my HF rigs with WWV then zero beat these types of radios with them. None of the service menu mods or how to access it is given but the info is online with some research. I found it myself and performed the frequency calibration easily myself.
The on-board CTCSS and DCS features are useful but are only selectable as either decode or both decode /encode only. It should give the encode only option for 10 meter repeater access but it doesn't. This maybe a good thing to keep a non-licensed radio user from screwing around and illegally using a 10 meter repeater. Also the owners manual doesn't tell you how to make this selection in the radio's user menu but I eventually figured it out myself.
The good points? I like the VOX feature since I use a wireless earset mic for hands free mobile use. This is the only glorified CB I know of that has VOX and another reason why I chose this model..
I also like the color screen and lighted buttons with color options, BUT, the frequency display is too small and the channel display is too big. I would like it reversed or the menu option to change it. Then again, it was designed more the the average CBer who tunes by channels not by frequency.
On the air? the reports are good for what that's worth and the receiver seems to be average for these types of radio's with a good antenna system. No real issue there. It's not going to be as good as a real mobile HF radio but I never expected it to be.
Overall? If you have a aging Lincoln or HR2510 I would recap it and take good care of it since I believe these radio's fall short of the original Uniden made ones and cover up that fact with on-board toys and gimmicks.
What a disappointing review...I remember the 2600, Lincoln, 2510's were Very sought out radios..known for their smooth audio and Recieve like no other in its class..(the 2950 never even touched these radios on the Recieve end) I had a feeling that the China market would screw these rigs up
Sorry, but I call it like I see it. These aren't close to being a clone of the originals.
To be fair, these radio's will work fine as long as you're not hoping for an updated version of the true classic and accept it as just a new model on the market.
If you can find a good 2510 or Lincoln, grab it since they are still sought after and getting hard to come by.
I agree the original President line of radio's are better than the 2950 especially if you get one with the chipswitch giving better and user programmable features.