开云体育

Nigel . . .


On Tue, 07 Jan 2025 09:22:02 -0800, "Nigel ZS6RN" <zs6rn@...> wrote:

Currently I do not own a Baofeng radio of any type and interest in the brand is as a result of researching what appears to be rebranded / white label version of the BF888S by a local company (Zartek).

I can't say whether these two are the same radios. I own a pair of BF-888
radios. They work, and are programmable with CHIRP of RT Systems software. I
don't know the full frequency range they will cover. I bought mine probably a
decade or more ago. The box they came in said they were license-free radios, but
in the USA at least, that is not true. For them to be license-free, they would
have to be FCC type accepted for the Family Radio Service (FRS) band, or work on
the much lower frequency citizen's band. I programmed them for ham frequencies.
I think they have more power than allowed on the FRS band, and the antenna is
removable, which also isn't allowed for FRS.

There's a review you should read:



It states that though Baofeng says they have an output of <=5 watts, it puts out
about 2 watts, which IS less than 5W. If that's an issue for you, then you won't
want to buy them. There is also some variation in output power from one unit to
another (one put out 1.9 watts, even less).

More information, drivers, programming software, and more for the BF-888 can be
found here:



Apparently, these are also available under other model names:

BF-666S, BF-777S
Pofung T88, GT1
Retevis H-777

This source does not mention the Zartek radio as a rebranded Baofeng.

Here's a Reddit thread discussing the use of BF-888s instead of the Zartek
somewhere in Africa, I believe:



It covers some legal and possibly other considerations.

Depending on where I look for information, these can cover 420-470 MHZ or
possibly as low as 400 MHz on the low end.

These are pretty inexpensive, so maybe buy one and see if it meets your
requirements, then buy more if you need several.

As for your license-free band where you live, you might want to find out if the
radios used on that band are required to be approved by some regulatory agency
in your government.


Donald KX8K



----------------------------------------------------
Some ham radio groups you may be interested in:
/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng
/g/CHIRP

Nick . . .

On Wed, 13 Nov 2024 14:46:35 -0800, "Nick_MI7NPN"
<himself@...> wrote:

I want a radio exactly as it was when taken from the box.

I downloaded the user guide and searched it and there's no directions
on how to do that. Below I will paste the instructions on how to reset
a UV-5R model, which seems to have many similarities with their
similar radios. It may or may not work. I doubt if it will ruin things
for you, but note that after the factory reset, the menu is in
Chinese. You then have to go through a short procedure to set the menu
to English again since the Factory setting is Chinese menus.

If you try this, you do so at your own risk, of course. But you
probably don't have a fortune invested in one of these. My UV-5R and
my two BF-888 radios were pretty inexpensive. Let us know if you are
able to reset it, and how you ended up doing it.


Donald KX8K

============================================


To perform a FULL Reset
1.Turn on the radio and press the MENU button.
2.Press the UP and DOWN arrow key to select RESET (Menu Item 40).
3.Press MENU to choose RESET.
4.Press the DOWN arrow key to choose ALL.
5.Press MENU. The radio will display SOURCE?
6.Press MENU to confirm. The radio will display WAIT... for a few
seconds, then beep twice to confirm reset is complete.
7.The radio will revert to Chinese language mode. Reset is complete.

To set language from Chinese to English
1.Press MENU.
2.Press the UP and DOWN arrow key to select VOICE (Menu Item 14).
3.Press MENU to choose VOICE.
4.Press the DOWN arrow key to choose ENG.
5.Press MENU to choose ENG.



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/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng

I have one of these too, and it works well, produces around 7.4 VDC at the terminals that connect to the transceiver when the input is 12 VDC. The only problem is with the label: the label states "Name: Li-ion Battery Model BL-5 Capacity 1800mAh Voltage: 12V."

But there is no battery in the unit and the difference in weight between this unit and a battery from one of the Baofengs ought to be a giveaway, but maybe not to someone new to all this.

73,

Maynard
W6PAP

A lot of interesting thoughts and suggestions. One of the issues is the
varying supply voltages. In my truck and RV, I have 100Ah LifePo4
batteries running all the comm gear. With the chargers on line, the
system voltage may run around 13.8-14.4 volts. Most ham equipment seems
to tolerate 12-15V without too much issue. The oddball devices, like the
weather radio, handheld chargers, etc, that want to run from 5V, 6V, 9V,
10V, etc, don't seem to be as tolerable and want whatever the supplied
wall warts provide with little variation. I think what I will be doing
is just build some more line lump cables with PowerPoles on one end, the
little buck converters in the middle and the coaxial power connectors on
the other end and label them as adjusted for the needed voltages.

Thanks everyone.

Michael WA7SKG



Donald Hellen wrote on 11/8/24 5:00 PM:

Did any of the other ideas sound plausible or do you think you're
better off just using the adapter you have and play it safe?

Donald KX8K



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/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng

I didn't really mean to sound harsh. It's just that I'm looking for a
specific answer to a specific problem and so many people feel a need to
answer with something that has nothing to do with the question posed.
That just wastes everybody's time. The topic was concerning charging the
radio from 12V. Walt's answer had zero to do with charging the radio
battery, but using a battery eliminator to power the radio. Apples and
wagon wheels. Sure, his information may have been useful to somebody,
but it had nothing to do with my question.

I do not feel my answer was in any way insulting or berating, but, I am
sorry, I find it hard to be grateful for answers that have nothing to do
with the question presented and waste my time.

Michael WA7SKG



Donald Hellen wrote on 11/8/24 6:17 AM:

On Thu, 07 Nov 2024 16:02:23 -0800, "Dennis via groups.io"
<spike.dennis@...> wrote:

I did download the Baofeng software. It does work. But it's horrible! You must input every cell's information manually. No copy/paste capability, no importing of data. Imagine programming 999 channels one at a time! No thanks.

I would still think that entering the information in their program
would be easier than entering the same information from the front
panel of the radio. Still, though, I would think that the company
behind the radio would offer a much better program to work with the
radio.


Donald KX8K



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There's no place like 192.168.0.1
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Some ham radio groups you may be interested in:
/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng

On Fri, 8 Nov 2024 01:31:16 +0200, "Costin R"
<electronice.az@...> wrote:

Your answer seems a bit harsh to me.

I have to agree here. Walt was just offering another way of doing
things.

I wanted to respond and remind members here to be grateful when people
try to help, even if they don't really reply directly to the original
question. If a member steps over the line and insults or berates
another member, we'll either put that member on moderation or remove
him or her from the group. We do try to allow for free speech as long
as it doesn't adversely affect others.

Donald KX8K
group owner/moderator



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Some ham radio groups you may be interested in:
/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng

On Fri, 8 Nov 2024 01:31:16 +0200, "Costin R"
<electronice.az@...> wrote:

I don't think it will exceed 150mA, so I would install a 7810 stabilizer (10V/1A) in the cigarette lighter socket on the wire. At such a low current, it does not need a cooler. On the input and output, mount a 100nF/50V capacitor in front of the negative terminal.

I think he's not wanting to use the cigarette lighter socket, but the
same would apply to the line from 12V PowerPole connectors to the
charger. Apparently, this could be put in a small box, or maybe built
into the charger base?

Donald KX8K



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Some ham radio groups you may be interested in:
/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng

On Thu, 07 Nov 2024 13:59:49 -0800, "billsf9c via groups.io"
<OOWONBS@...> wrote:

2 diodes would drop ~1.4 v. 1N400x series just handles an amp but there is a 3A version. Axial lead. Fit inside or in the cord line itself.or make a short adaptor.

Michael,

Are you up to making a modification such as this? If so, I would
suggest adding the diodes in the +12V line coming from the car's 12V
system. That way you leave the charger unmodified, and your AC adapter
also will still work as designed.

My approach would be to use the 12V to 10V adapters you have now and
just add PowerPoles to the wiring. I don't know how well Baofeng
designed the charger so we don't know how much of a variance in
voltage that the circuit allows for it to still run within both safe
limits and also still charge the battery. If you want to modify the
charger or adapter, then you can consider the following but realize
that you may run the risk of damaging your charger or possible fire.
If you do any modification, I would extensively test the mod out
without leaving it connected when you aren't present to validate that
it will be OK.

With the previous caveat, here's what I might do if it were mine and I
wanted to do what you would like to do with the charger . . .

I would use 3, 4, or even 5 diodes though since the car will have
13.8V when the engine's battery charging system is operating. Silicon
diodes have about a 0.7V drop across them in a circuit. Three would
drop about 2.1V and four would drop about 2.8V, while 5 would drop
3.5V.

If your drop in charger has voltage regulation and isn't just a
trickle charger, a little higher than the 10V spec should be fine. Too
low and it just won't charge. Too high and you may run the risk of a
fire, though I would expect the charging circuit to regulate the
voltage somewhat.

Four diodes would then provide about 11 volts. A fifth would provide
10.3 volts, which would be a safer bet, but it probably won't charge
if the ignition is off because 12.6V (battery voltage without car
running) minus the 3.5V drop of 5 diodes leaves you with only 9.1
volts, probably too low to charge your HT when the car isn't running.

I feel 5 diodes would be safer, as long as the HT takes a charge with
5 in the +12V supply line. Use regular silicon diodes (not the
Schottky type, which has a lower voltage drop) that can handle double
the current requirement of the power adapter for a safety margin. If
your adapter is rated at 1.5A, use 3A or better diodes.

If you can get a schematic of the charger, it might tell you more
about how large of a variance in voltage it can deal with.

You can "fold" the diodes end over end as long as you don't short any
wiring, using spaghetti tubing to cover exposed wires and then some
heat shrink tubing over everything to make it a neat package.

You could breadboard the setup and run it on a 13.8V DC supply and see
if it gets hot, and if it charges the HT correctly. If things get hot
on an open breadboard setup, they would only get hotter if they were
packed together tightly with shrink wrap tuning.

You may feel there's too much to risk here and just use the 10V
adapters you have, but wire the adapter with PowerPoles instead of a
cigarette lighter plug.


Donald KX8K



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Some ham radio groups you may be interested in:
/g/ICOM /g/Ham-Antennas
/g/HamRadioHelp /g/Baofeng

Walt,

Your answer has absolutely nothing to do with my question.

My question concerns running a Baofeng drop in desk charger from 12V. I
see no correlation whatsoever between your answer and my question.

Michael WA7SKG



Walt WA7SDY via groups.io wrote on 11/5/24 8:01 PM: