[OspreyVic]

OK Dave, hope this helps.

VHF Radio’s, they are the one problem I had with my initial electronics purchase.

We started out with an ICOM M502. It was very highly ranked on every web site and almost everyone I talked too. After sending it in to have factory service, it still failed to work more often than not.

To us, having a good working VHF radio is a real big safety issue. Therefore, the ICOM is just sitting on our workbench gathering dust, and we installed a Standard Horizon Quest GX1255S. It works for us every time, and has never failed us once. Either the ICOM was just a lemon, or the factory did not know how to test and repair it.

Other ideas for you to consider are; Purchase the best antenna that you can. To us, they are a big part of how your radio works and how far it can transmit and receive.

Because of our radar arch and other limitations, we went with four-foot antennas. If I were mounting the antenna on the CC grab rail, I would have picked a taller antenna.

For the VHF, we have a DIGITAL 528-VW 4' VHF (white) #16180. It came with 15' of Digitals exclusive low loss, UV stable RG-8X marine cable.

For our AM/FM radio, we chose a DIGITAL 531-AW AM/FM (white) Antenna 4' #16276.

Hope my experience helps others.