Pajero Owners Club of South Africa

One of the better, cost-effective VHF Portable Radios available for use by the f4x4 fraternity has been the Kirisun PT4200 VHF portable Radio, which is a 16-Channel unit covering the full VHF spectrum. Featuring a 1200mA/Hr Lithium-Poly Battery, this light-weight robust unit has been tried and tested for use in harsh environments and has come through with flying colours. Hence it has become my recommendation for an excellent "value for money" portable radio.
Kirisun has recently introduced a brand new Mobile VHF radio, which we have tested and are happy to announce that the short-comings of the older model radio have been addressed. Consequently, it is now totally approved by us for use in a 4x4 vehicle. The PT8000 unit is a solid eight-channel VHF Mobile radio featuring a full 25W of RF power at an affordable price.
Contact me for any further information on these units should you have any queries.


-F_D

Hi,

I really don't have any knowledge of radios, but wants to install a radio in my car.

Want to use it mostly for communication between vehicles when in a convoy. I don't like the hand held type.

How do I communicate if other vehicles have handheld radios and how do I get the frequency to talk to them.

What is the best type of radio?
What about licences?


Please send specs of the radio you are talking about if it can be used.

Thanks for the help!

Wilfred

Wilfred

Eric has written a radio primer which will answer most of your questions.

https://www.pajeroclub.co.za/member-art ... -4x4-usage

Read that and then decide which way to go. There's an eternal debate on the 29Mhz vs VHF. There is a general trend towards VHF but be careful that many (if not all 4x4 clubs) are still advocating 29MHz still. So you buy a VHF and you find you can't talk to many people.

I use a GME 29MHz and 2 Kirusun handheld VHF radios (which I acquired very recently)

Hi Wilfred,

Probably the best way to help in deciding which radio is best for your purposes is to find out what the other chaps in your group use. Currently, most people still use the 29MHz AM radios because historically, those radios were by far cheaper to obtain initially and licencing was fairly straight forward.But times are a-changing, the usage of VHF radios is slowly growing and the total price differentiation between a 29MHz AM mobile radio and a VHF Mobile radio is getting smaller all the time. By applying to the ORRA for permission to use their VHF frequency, licensing is also no longer an issue and the licence is legal anywhere within the borders of South Africa.

The various pros and cons of the AM vs VHF radios are discussed in the article Simon mentioned above, but perhaps the most obvious differences between the two technologies can perhaps be briefly summarised as follows:

* the power output of the VHF radios as opposed to that of the AM radios (25W vs 4W),
* the greatly increased range and audio clarity obtained on the VHF radios (AM radio by nature is only suitable for short distances and becomes all but useless in inclement weather).
* antenna length of the VHF radios is much shorter, resulting in less chance of damage to the antenna and vehicle because of overhanging branches
* VHF radios are generally repairable (excluding "drowning"), while AM radios are generally scrapped and replaced in the event of faults developing

There are Clubs that only make use of VHF radios, as well as Clubs that only use 29MHz AM radios. But the future, inevitably, will lie in VHF, as the product availability of 29MHz AM continues to shrink even further. The technology is old.


-F_D

Thanks a lot for all the info guys, I will do some reading and then try to make a dicision.

Wilfred

Hi F_D,
Is the VHF you refering to the same as used on ski boats?
Where in the Cape can I get one of those radio's you recommend?

Hi JDV,

The Marine VHF frequencies are a group of fixed VHF frequencies, which are not used in the coastal regions commercially, although they are used commercially in the rest of SA. Ship to shore (& vice versa) is not permitted other than in the Harbours. This basically means that the VHF Marine frequencies will not communicate with land mobile stations anywhere along the coast, and they cannot transmit on the coastal frequencies.

The Kirisun VHF portable can, of course, be programmed for this but it would require a valid ICASA licence before any dealer can do so.

The older Ski-boat frequencies are the 29MHz AM frequencies, and they are not at all compatible with the Kirisun radios, which are only VHF/FM.

If you require radios on VHF or AM, I can supply, subject to a valid licence.


-F_D

Tx F_D,
The reason for my question is that I have a VHF in my semi rigid boat that I put together 3 years ago
It would be very convenient for me if my radio in my Pajero can thus be used for a dual purpose; that is to communicate with my boat and as inter 4x4 communication?

F_D
I have a lisence for (my boats) VHF

The normal land Mobile FM radio can certainly do this, but I'm not sure what the legalities are. IOW, we could certainly program a mobile radio and a portable radio on the VHF marine frequencies if it is permitted (i.e. licenced). Maybe have a chat with the harbour Master about this? It would save you quite some money. Alternatively, if you have a Land-based VHF frequency, there will also be a certain bleed-over to nearby waters, but again I don't know what the authorities would say about using the radios in this manner. So to answer your question: Yes, it is possible, but I don't know how legal it might be. I can't really see too much of a problem with this but check what the HM has to say in this regard.


-F_D