New radio

Just ordered a new marine radio and am happy about it. Cobra MR HH350 FLT.

Toward the end of last season, my radio checks got some responses saying my transmission had lots of static and was tough to understand. Last few times out, no response to radio checks despite repeated attempts on multiple channels with plenty of boats out. Now I know there are some who might just ignore my calls on account of me being a jerk sometimes, but not everyone one the water could know my voice and filter my calls.     

 Plus the charging connection is getting bad and it had to be kinda leaning on the wire to connect.

The new one monitors 3 channels at the same time, so 9, 16, and 69 party time.

Looks nice.  Is this model float?

Yes floats

I've owned a bunch of Cobra's and been happy with them.  Good move.   

Nice small rig, Multiscan is a nice feature, are the newer rigs all capable of 3 channels?
I'm new to comm's on the kayak scene,  are there given channels for unpowerd people?
We usually listen to the c.g. ?18? @doran.
Id be interested in seeing whoever is around me when I'm out.
 Thanks for the post

Nice small rig, Multiscan is a nice feature, are the newer rigs all capable of 3 channels?
I'm new to comm's on the kayak scene,  are there given channels for unpowerd people?
We usually listen to the c.g. ?18? @doran.
Id be interested in seeing whoever is around me when I'm out.
 Thanks for the post

Kayaks and other small boats often use channel 69 for a lot of general chatter. And different areas have different suggested channels for calling the coast guard, so check that for your locality. There are lots of options with different features depending on what you want to pay.

I've owned a bunch of Cobra's and been happy with them.  Good move.   

Same, I've been around a lot of Cobras, and they always work well.

Nice small rig, Multiscan is a nice feature, are the newer rigs all capable of 3 channels?
I'm new to comm's on the kayak scene,  are there given channels for unpowerd people?
We usually listen to the c.g. ?18? @doran.
Id be interested in seeing whoever is around me when I'm out.
 Thanks for the post

Kayaks and other small boats often use channel 69 for a lot of general chatter. And different areas have different suggested channels for calling the coast guard, so check that for your locality. There are lots of options with different features depending on what you want to pay.

My radios (Cobra and ICOM) only monitor two channels - pretty cool to see three channel radios.

As Gopher said, most kayakers are on marine channel 69, but I've seen some use 68 also. Sometimes in the bay both channels are really busy - a lot of other folks use those channels too.

US Coast Guard is always on marine channel 16 for emergencies. 

 A list of channels is in this thread: https://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=88060.0

Not sure how it all started, but 69 is the "kayaker channel" just about everywhere that I've kayaked on the ocean.  Using 69 can be useful, but I have always encouraged kayakers to have a solid commitment to monitoring the local channel for the port they're boating out of.  At Eureka and Shelter Cove that channel is 68, and at Trinidad it's 78.

When you are on the ocean and you follow the very common advice to only monitor channel 69 because you're a kayaker, you are potentially jeopardizing yourself as well as possibly missing out on important information about the fishing!  When you don't monitor the local channel, you may miss it when powerboaters are speaking to you, about you, about the bite, about the weather or current hazards, about a shark...etc. 

I'm fortunate because I live in an area of limited population, so monitoring the local channel has always been a no-brainer.  I started out as the only kayak on the water much of the time at Shelter Cove, off of Humboldt Bay and at Trinidad, so of course I've always been on the local channels for those areas. 

There are exceptions to what I'm saying.  At Gimme Shelter it becomes a hassle for dozens/scores/a couple hundred kayakers to be on the local channel, so the use of 69 is convenient and appropriate at that time.  At all other times while on the water at Shelter Cove, I am on 68, and I have a good rapport with the charter captains and other locals.  The main point of being on that channel though, as I said, is safety and remaining informed of local issues and conditions.

I've never monitored multiple channels on one radio - I've been too lazy to use that function.  When I want to monitor multiple channels I turn on multiple radios - it doesn't happen often.  This is another topic, but it's worth bringing up here - I have long recommended having redundancy in VHF radios - that is, have more than one.  I usually carry three, and I currently own 5.

On the Cobra topic:  plenty of people have bagged on them in the past - probably because they're cheap.  Back in the day, you could get two of the smallest ones in a two-pack for $89!  They worked great, until they didn't!  That was a good way to get into the mode of always owning and carrying multiple radios.

It is a fact that many - if not most - of the best kayakers on this site have experienced a dead battery in their VHF.  When you're offshore and something goes wrong, having a dead battery would be a tragic reason to fail to hail assistance.

VHF redundancy and navigation tool (GPS and compass) redundancy are super high on my list of priorities for kayaking on the ocean - right up with dressing for immersion.

A list of channels is in this thread: https://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=88060.0

The in link that thread is dead; here's the current link: https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/us-vhf-channel-information

Just called the Santa Cruz harbor and the Harbor Master and Harbor Patrol monitor channel 9 and you can get a radio check from them starting at 6:00am.  If you want to contact the Dredge operator they are on channel 8

Just called the Santa Cruz harbor and the Harbor Master and Harbor Patrol monitor channel 9 and you can get a radio check from them starting at 6:00am.  If you want to contact the Dredge operator they are on channel 8

In Santa Cruz, I'll first try for a radio check on 69, then 11 (the channel for boaters), and if those fail, then 9. It seems to me that channel 9 is only reliably answered after 9:00am (which also happens to be when they start patrolling the ramp parking lot), but I could be wrong.

If there are a lot of kayakers around, I'll monitor 69 and 11, but most of the time I monitor 11.

Nice small rig, Multiscan is a nice feature, are the newer rigs all capable of 3 channels?
I'm new to comm's on the kayak scene,  are there given channels for unpowerd people?
We usually listen to the c.g. ?18? @doran.
Id be interested in seeing whoever is around me when I'm out.
 Thanks for the post

Kayaks and other small boats often use channel 69 for a lot of general chatter. And different areas have different suggested channels for calling the coast guard, so check that for your locality. There are lots of options with different features depending on what you want to pay.

Thanks

I run a ham license for trail coms, have a gmrs, and the marine band is new territory.

Just called the Santa Cruz harbor and the Harbor Master and Harbor Patrol monitor channel 9 and you can get a radio check from them starting at 6:00am.  If you want to contact the Dredge operator they are on channel 8

In Santa Cruz, I'll first try for a radio check on 69, then 11 (the channel for boaters), and if those fail, then 9. It seems to me that channel 9 is only reliably answered after 9:00am (which also happens to be when they start patrolling the ramp parking lot), but I could be wrong.

If there are a lot of kayakers around, I'll monitor 69 and 11, but most of the time I monitor 11.

Harbor master said the Patrol should be responding at 6:00a, but Harbor master at 9:00a.