# Best radio



## countrygal57 (Dec 27, 2012)

If you keep a solar/hand crank radio in your BOB, which one do you prefer? I'm looking for lightweight, durable, and reliable. Any opinions on which radio is the best out there?


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

I have tried several. 

The hand crank ones just take too dang much cranking!!!! Regardless of how long it is "supposed" to operate on, the darn things just never seem to make that time limit, and need to be cranked again to keep going. I find it to be really annoying. The cranking part is LOUUUUUDDDD and will drown out the radio sound with the gears whirring.

I flat don't trust the solar ones. Too many items made nowadays that have a "solar feature" either put out too low of a wattage (batteries never reach a full charge) or the solar panel is too low of quality (output falls quickly after being used a few months) or the batteries within are too dang small (runs one hour or so, then dead). 

I also don't like the quality of the radios that are built in them, either.

So I just said f-it-all, and I use good a good quality shortwave radio (Grundig G3 and G8) with good quality rechargeable batteries (Sanyo Eneloop) and a good quality wall charger (Energizer). If you don't want to use rechargeables, use the expensive lithium batteries, they last for ten years. Don't install them until they are needed. 

If you want a good AA and AAA battery charger, get one that will also plug into the lighter socket (12 vdc) of your car. No sense in trying to charge batteries when only the house wall outlet will do and the power is off.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Oh, I keep the Grundig G3 at the house and the G8 at work. I can bring it with me if I need to leave because it is pretty small (travel size). 

I use "dead" AA batteries (industrial Rayovac AA) that we take out of test equipment at work and I put them in the G8. Even though the little battery gauge on the G8 only shows "one bar" up, it will still last all month. It even plays well with no bars showing!! I can't complain about it at all.


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## TheLazyL (Jun 5, 2012)

Eton FR160B

Hand crank, yep crank forever with a minute or two of use BUT solar charges too!

I've got one I keep at the "cabin". keep it in the east window and the charge lastes a good part of the day.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

Linc is right about the noise of a crank - they're loud and would get you noticed. I have a couple for the house, but I wouldn't think they'd be a good choice for a BOB. Chances are, if you're using your BOB, you're also trying to fly under the radar...

My cranks (for the house) also have solar, and again I agree with Linc. Not impressive. Better than nothing, but not impressive. And if you're using your BOB at night, well...


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

I forgot to mention Grundig and Eton are now the same company/products. Good stuff that works better than most. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grundig


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## mma800 (May 7, 2012)

Playing a radio will get you as noticed as cranking one.

I have the Eton for my BOBs and am very happy with the sound, solar and crank.

I use a Sony for home use.:wave:


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

mma800 said:


> Playing a radio will get you as noticed as cranking one.


Just make sure you use an earphone....


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

mma800 said:


> Playing a radio will get you as noticed as cranking one.:


Good point. Oddly that didn't occur to me, probably because I'm hearing impaired and usually use earphones.

Even without earphones, I would still think you could control the volume of the radio better than the volume of the crank.


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## Outpost (Nov 26, 2012)

I haven't found a hand-crank radio from ANYBODY that I can actually say that I like. I'm sort of playing around with *"other"* solutions.... For example:

An old cordless drill (my current project is 14.4V) with a fairly large (for leverage) "crank"-shaped handle tightly in the chuck. If one cranks it, one gets a surprising amount of current out of it. This can be used to charge batteries or run radios directly. (during one of my shorter fits of insanity, I actually got some transmit time on a CB while sitting on the drill and cranking with one hand while keying with the other.)

I haven't really developed the device/technique quite frankly because it's a pain in the ass..... never-the-less, it does have some promise. Those motors seem to be a *HELL* of a lot more efficient than the garbage little dynamos in those radios.

A word of warning though.... Until you do some homework in your electronics, and have properly incorporated DIODES and REGULATORS on the output of your nifty new hand-cranked generator/recharger/dynamo thingy, *DO NOT HOOK IT UP TO ANY LARGE FREAKIN' BATTERY!* It will, I promise, *beat* the *ever-loving snot* out of you!

:eyebulge:


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## jsriley5 (Sep 22, 2012)

I have and have had for a while a little grundig am fam shortwave radio that runs on 2 aa I have a one ear ear bud for it and I have a little wire extension antenna on a reel for it. I have a few lithium aa batts in the bob as well as several sets of rechargeables and a little solar batery charger. I don't figure to run it that many hours a day unless some really good source of very neccessary info is actually still on there. I also have chargeable batts for a pair of GMRS radios that are in teh bob and it's lighting is all AA based as well of course now that I say it I"m havng second thoughts they may all be aaa not aa at any rate that is how I meet that possible requirement. I hope to integrate my little ham sets into it as well for vhf/uhf como and intel gathering. Those have the factory battery packs I doubt I will be able to charge those and have battery packs to back those up but if Im' using them much I"m going to have to get a bigger charger to keep up with power needs.


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## gaspump86 (May 5, 2012)

go go gadget emergency radio... lol
I have also been looking into one of these. good points you all


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

If you use them sparingly (listening for only a few minutes each day), three high quality lithium AA batteries will run a Grundig G8 for at least a year, if not a lot, LOT longer! I listen to David Jeremiah for a half hour every day on officially "dead" AA batteries (one bar or less), and they last well over a month!


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