Railfan Technology > Yaesu FT 270R vs 270

Howdy,

Which one of these models would be best for railfanning?

I have never used one, but I have read the many wows about how much better these radios perform over traditional scanners.

Also, what else is essential when purchasing this type of radio?  Is the antennae good enough or is there another one will be needed to hear well?

I am aware that railroads will be moving into splinter channels as they move towards digital.

I found that DX engineering has good deals on these two models. Is this a good seller?

Thanks for any help and advice you can offer.

 

I don't know of a difference between the two model designators. There is a previous model called the FT-170. They should alll have decent re-sale value into the HAM market.

I would suggest the Software package to simplify entering frequencies into the radio, although it does require a computer or laptop, I have lots of trouble entering frequencies into the Yaesu's and would frankly prefer to spend the time chasing a train than programming the radio.

The stock antenna is not very advantageous for the railroad band. I found a 'gain' antenna for the RR band and it's works really well.I've listed it on previous posts but don't have the model number laying around right now. I also have an FT60 which also covers the EOT band, I put the same antenna on it and it does almost as well, The EOT band does pretty well but is not optimized. The FT 270 has much better audio and is easier to carry, very rugged and has good battery life.

The older Vertex VX-170 (and I own one) and the later Yaesu FT-270 model (Vertex is just a Yaesu brand, by the way) are very similar radios.  Either will perform considerably better than most scanners, BUT they will not tune the splinter channels that are coming, AND those splinter channels may cause interference on the channels the radio will tune when those splinter channels come into use.  Those points are true for ALL amateur radios that do not have ture narrow band tuning capability.  Many of the amateur radios that can be set for "narrow" band actually only set the transmit function to narrow band, not the receive function.  One exception in the "mainstream" amatuer radios is the Kenwood TM-281 mobile.  It is truly narrow-band capable on receive and transmit and is an excellent choice for one looking for an inexpensive mobile radio for railfanning (until NXDN digital comes into wide use).  There are number of Chinese radios coming onto the market that are sold in both field programmable amateur and computer-programmable commercial models.  The quality and ease of use varies widely among them and, just like the amateur mainstream radios, a lot of the Chinese amatuer models won't do true narrow-band.  A problem with the Chinese radios is that they change models so quickly that it becomes a real moving target to make any recommendations for one.  Some of them are pretty good quality, some are pretty awful--even within the same brand.

The bottom line is that, for a good railfanning radio, the ultimate solution is go with what the railroads use mostly these days--either a Kenwood or Icom NXDN-capable commercial model programmed for receive-only on all of RR analog and digital channels that are now available.  They cost a lot more than an amateur radio, but you'll only have to buy it once.

As for antennas, the best route for good reception in a vehicle is an external mounted good quality antenna.  I used a lot of different ones over the years.  If roof clearance is not an issue (and it admittedly is for many), the Larsen NMO-150 tuned to the 161 mHz frequency is the best performer that I've found.  In portable antennas--and no portable antenna performs nearly as well as a mobile mount--about the best are the Smiley "gain" antennas tuned to the 155-165 mHz frequency range, or the Laird EXH 160 series of portable antennas.  I've used both over the years and I like both.

One final note: nearly all of the radio equipment purchased by the major railroads in the last 5 years has been NXDN-capable.  I suspect that you would hard pressed to find a portable radio on a major railroad that is not an NXDN-capable model by now.  Mobiles, locomotive radios, and lineside repeaters are being changed over to NXDN-capable as they are replaced.  So, though most of the publicity about it has faded, the RR's are steadily moving forward to digital deployment.

Good info on the Narrow-Band Receive. I notice it's being used but the only real indication is that the audio is quieter (using an older scanner then comparing to the Yaesu).

Also agree everything changes when they go digital. I've revived some of my older scanners rather than buy something at this time, not knowing what and when is really needed.

I subscribe to a list server that lists new radio licenses by state around the country. Every week I see listings of new licenses at all of the remote transmitter sites showing they are being modified for digital modulation. it's just a matter of time before the railroads make the change...

James Nelson
Thornton, CO
www.flickr.com/mojaveflyer

Dug out the manual for the FT-270, it's a desk model from the 1980's that can be installed in a vehicle under the dash.
That leaves the handheld model as the FT-270R.

Antenna info:

Vertex ATV-10C
VHF 10.5" High Gain Antenna, 155-165MHz (Blk) VX-160/180/230/350/410/420/820/920 Series Portable Radios

Bought it on the www from The Antenna Farm in Montana someplace. The key is that it claims to be a gain antenna vs a simple rubber duck, has the right frequency range for RR band and somewhere in there it indicates an SMA connector.

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?9,3271182,3271511#msg-3271511

Here's a suggestion for those of us who like to get good radio monitoring performance on a budget while the dust is still settling in the RR radio world -  the Bendix King EPH series handheld radios.

Plusses:
Inexpensive, easily available on eBay from several sellers
Plentiful - being released in large quantities by US Forest Service, Military, State Fire and Depts of Forestry, other Gov't agencies
Field programmable by user for frequency and wide or narrowband option built in (choose correct model) - no computer required, computer programming is optional if desired
Many accessories available - battery packs, cases, chest-packs, speaker-mikes, antennas
AA-insertable battery packs available for user choice of battery types:  alkaline, NIMH, NiCad, etc.
Rugged - Mil Spec for shock, vibration, dust, temperature, humidity.  Went to Kuwait and Iraq with US Army and others.  Not submersible tho, so no swimming.
Excellent and loud audio
Flexible - external speaker, microphone and antenna jacks
Long battery life per charge
Manuals and tech information abundant
$150 for a good narrow-band radio with battery and antenna, not bad.

Minuses:
Some radios have been used very hard.  Be picky about the condition of the radio before you buy, and get exchange privileges if it is not satisfactory.
Push to talk button is a weak point in the design - usually needs replacement.
Check frequency alignment - might need a tune-up from a tech.
Heavy and large.  Makes a good weapon or wheel chock.

In rural areas like Northern Calif, use of splinter channels and digital modes is quite rare.  RR radio voice comms are sticking to existing channel spacing and analog VHF as experience has shown digital radio will not cover heavy terrain or long distance as well as analog.  My employer (State of CA) has found a similar experience and VHF in mountainous regions is still the primary mode, esp where cell coverage is sparse.

I was using BK EPH series radios before they were "cool."  They are indeed good performers, but DO NOT be fooled by the comment that they are easily field programmable.  Yes, they can be field programmed, but it is an involved and difficult process where it is very easy to screw up stuff in the radio by accident.  Also, many of the older models of the EPH's that are finding their way onto the surplus market ARE NOT narrow band capable.  Caveat emptor.

A far better choice in an analog commercial radio is the Kenwood TK-290--an absolute tank of a radio with great performance (it's what many of the Class 1's were using before NXDN digital came onto the scene).  It is not, however, field programmable.

A big problem with a lot of the older radios is that the programming software is old either DOS, or Windows 98 and earlier software.  A lot of it won't run on a newer Windows platform and, if it does, it may not be able to get to the radio through a USB port.  If your computer doesn't have a serial port, you may be out of luck.  There are a lot of "knockoff" inexpensive programming cables available for older radios, but some of them work and many of them don't--usually their driver software is the culprit.

Bottom line:  there is a reason that a lot of these radios are so cheap on the surplus market.  The FT-270R, despite its limitations, will perform very similarly to the EPH and the TK-290--I know, I've compared them side by side--at about the same cost as a decent used radio.  There is no free lunch when it comes to radios.  Want great performance?  Want full capability (like NXDN digital, for example)?  Want rugged construction?  Good audio?  Well, you have to pay for it.