What changed
Where to buy: dealers, manufacturers and parts — edited Sep 6, 2026 by Unknown editor
This is the first recorded version, so every line is shown as added. Note: Imported from content/wiki
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A starting list of the companies amateurs in the United States actually buy from. Nothing here is
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an endorsement, none of these links pay us anything, and no list like this stays current on its
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own — check prices, stock and shipping yourself, and tell us what we have missed or what has
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closed.
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Buy in this order if your money is limited: antenna, feedline, then radio. A modest transceiver on
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a good antenna beats an expensive one on a compromise.
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## Full-line dealers
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The stores that carry most brands, take trade-ins and will talk you through a purchase.
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- [Ham Radio Outlet](https://www.hamradio.com/) — the largest US chain, with stores you can walk into
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- [DX Engineering](https://www.dxengineering.com/) — deep stock of antennas, coax, connectors and
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station hardware, and a technical support line worth calling
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- [GigaParts](https://www.gigaparts.com/) — full line, with a large presence at hamfests
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- [R&L Electronics](https://www.randl.com/) — long-established full-line dealer
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- [Main Trading Company](https://www.mtcradio.com/) — new and used gear, and a large used inventory
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- [KJI Electronics](https://kjielectronics.com/) — full line, Northeast
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- [Texas Towers](https://www.texastowers.com/) — antennas, towers and rotators as well as radios
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- [Array Solutions](https://www.arraysolutions.com/) — station engineering, switching, filters and
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measurement gear
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- [BridgeCom Systems](https://bridgecomsystems.com/) — repeaters, DMR and system integration
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## Transceiver manufacturers
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- [Icom America](https://www.icomamerica.com/), [Yaesu USA](https://www.yaesu.com/) and
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[Kenwood](https://www.kenwood.com/usa/com/amateur/) — the three that make most of the HF and
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VHF/UHF radios in service
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- [Elecraft](https://elecraft.com/) — US-built HF radios, amplifiers and tuners, several as kits
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- [FlexRadio](https://www.flexradio.com/) — direct-sampling SDR transceivers driven from a PC or a
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front panel
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- [Apache Labs](https://apache-labs.com/) — open-hardware ANAN SDR transceivers
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- [Alinco](https://www.alinco.com/) — mobiles, handhelds and power supplies
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- [Xiegu](https://www.xiegu.eu/) and [lab599](https://lab599.com/) — small, inexpensive portable HF
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- [QRP Labs](https://qrp-labs.com/) — very low-cost HF kits and the QMX/QDX transceivers
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- [AnyTone](https://www.anytone.net/) and [Wouxun](https://www.wouxun.com/) — analog and DMR
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handhelds and mobiles
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## Amplifiers, tuners and filters
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- [Acom](https://www.acom-bg.com/) and [Expert Linears America](https://expertlinears.com/) — HF
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amplifiers, solid state and tube
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- [Elecraft](https://elecraft.com/) KPA series, and [Icom](https://www.icomamerica.com/) and
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[Yaesu](https://www.yaesu.com/) house amplifiers
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- [Palstar](https://www.palstar.com/) — antenna tuners and wattmeters, US-built
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- [Hardrock-50](https://hobbypcb.com/) — 50 W HF amplifier kits
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- [Array Solutions](https://www.arraysolutions.com/) and [DX Engineering](https://www.dxengineering.com/)
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— band-pass filters, common-mode chokes and station switching
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- MFJ, and its Ameritron, Hy-Gain, Cushcraft and Vectronics brands, wound down most manufacturing
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in 2024; product and parts availability varies, so check before ordering
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## Antennas
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- [Comet](https://www.cometantenna.com/) and [Diamond](https://www.diamondantenna.net/) — VHF/UHF
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mobile, base and dual-band verticals, and the mounts to go with them
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- [Arrow Antenna](https://www.arrowantennas.com/) — portable VHF/UHF Yagis, including the handheld
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satellite antennas
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- [PAR Electronics](https://www.parelectronics.com/) — end-fed wires, filters and receive antennas
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- [Mosley Electronics](https://www.mosley-electronics.com/) and [M2 Antenna Systems](https://www.m2inc.com/)
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— HF and VHF/UHF beams, rotators and mast hardware
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- [SteppIR](https://consumer.steppir.com/) — motorized adjustable-element beams and verticals
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- [Hustler](https://new-tronics.com/), [Alpha Antenna](https://alphaantenna.com/),
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[Chameleon Antenna](https://chameleonantenna.com/), [Buddipole](https://www.buddipole.com/) and
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[DX Commander](https://dxcommander.com/) — portable and multiband verticals and wires
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- [MyAntennas](https://myantennas.com/) and [Alpha Delta](https://www.alphadeltacom.com/) — end-fed
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and trap wire antennas, arresters and switches
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- [Tarheel Antennas](https://www.tarheelantennas.com/) and [Scorpion Antennas](https://www.scorpionantennas.com/)
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— motorized HF screwdriver antennas for vehicles
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- [Larsen](https://www.pulselarsen.com/) and [Laird Connectivity](https://www.lairdconnect.com/) —
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NMO mounts and commercial-grade mobile antennas
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- [Spiderbeam](https://www.spiderbeam.com/) and [Max-Gain Systems](https://mgs4u.com/) — fiberglass
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poles, wire, and light portable beams
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## Towers, masts and rotators
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- [Rohn](https://www.rohnnet.com/) and [US Tower](https://ustower.com/) — the two names most amateur
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towers carry
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- [Yaesu](https://www.yaesu.com/), [M2](https://www.m2inc.com/) and [Alfa Spid](http://www.alfaradio.ca/)
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— rotators from light azimuth to satellite az/el
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- [DX Engineering](https://www.dxengineering.com/) and [Texas Towers](https://www.texastowers.com/)
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— hardware, guys, thrust bearings and everything you forget to order
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Towers are the one part of the hobby that will kill you if you get it wrong. Read
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[towers and masts](/wiki/station/towers-and-masts) first, and get experienced help.
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## Coax, connectors and cable
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- [Times Microwave](https://www.timesmicrowave.com/), [Messi & Paoloni](https://messi.it/) and
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[ABR Industries](https://abrind.com/) — low-loss coax, made up or by the foot
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- [Davis RF](https://www.davisrf.com/) and [The Wireman](https://thewireman.com/) — coax, ladder
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line, antenna wire and insulators
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- [RF Industries](https://www.rfindustries.com/) and [Amphenol](https://www.amphenolrf.com/) —
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connectors, if you would rather buy the real thing than the cheapest one
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## Power, Powerpoles and parts
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- [Powerwerx](https://powerwerx.com/) — Anderson Powerpole housings, contacts, crimpers,
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distribution blocks and supplies; the de facto standard for 12 V connections in the hobby
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- [Quicksilver Radio](https://www.qsradio.com/) — Powerpole parts, adapters and small station
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accessories, much of it aimed at portable operation
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- [West Mountain Radio](https://www.westmountainradio.com/) — RIGrunner distribution, battery
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analyzers and sound-card interfaces
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- [Astron](https://www.astroncorp.com/) and [Samlex America](https://www.samlexamerica.com/) —
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linear and switching power supplies
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- [Bioenno Power](https://www.bioennopower.com/) — LiFePO4 batteries and chargers for portable work
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- [DigiKey](https://www.digikey.com/), [Mouser](https://www.mouser.com/) and
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[Jameco](https://www.jameco.com/) — components, when you know the part number
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- [All Electronics](https://www.allelectronics.com/) — surplus parts, hardware and enclosures
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## Kits and building
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- [Elecraft](https://elecraft.com/), [QRP Labs](https://qrp-labs.com/),
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[Pacific Antenna](https://www.qrpkits.com/) and [4 State QRP Group](https://www.4sqrp.com/) —
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transceiver, antenna and accessory kits at every level of difficulty
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- [HobbyPCB](https://hobbypcb.com/) and [TAPR](https://tapr.org/) — amplifier, SDR and digital
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project boards
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- [Digirig](https://digirig.net/), [Masters Communications](https://www.masterscommunications.com/)
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and [Tigertronics](https://www.tigertronics.com/) — sound-card and CAT interfaces for digital modes
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A club evening spent building coax jumpers or a ground plane costs almost nothing and teaches more
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than any of this — see [kits and building](/wiki/station/kits-and-building) and our
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[club meeting ideas](https://usnara.org/clubs/meeting-ideas).
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## Receive-only and SDR
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- [RTL-SDR Blog](https://www.rtl-sdr.com/), [SDRplay](https://www.sdrplay.com/) and
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[Airspy](https://airspy.com/) — $30 to $300 wideband receivers
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- [Great Scott Gadgets](https://greatscottgadgets.com/) and [Ettus Research](https://www.ettus.com/)
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— transmit-capable SDR platforms for experimenters
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## Badges, QSL cards and station identity
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- [The Sign Man of Baton Rouge](https://www.thesignman.com/) — callsign badges, signs and club
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name tags
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- [Ham Crazy!](https://hambadge.com/) — callsign badges, magnets and gifts
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- [KB3IFH QSL Cards](https://kb3ifhqslcards.com/), [UX5UO Print](https://www.ux5uoqsl.com/) and
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[Global QSL](https://globalqsl.com/) — QSL card printing in small and large runs
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- [QRZ.com](https://www.qrz.com/) — where most people will look you up, so keep your page current;
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see [logging and QSLs](/wiki/operating/logging-and-qsls) for what to do with the cards
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## Used equipment
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Most operators buy at least some of their station second hand, and radios hold their value.
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- [QRZ.com swapmeet](https://forums.qrz.com/) and [QTH.com classifieds](https://swap.qth.com/) —
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the two busiest amateur-to-amateur markets
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- [eHam classifieds](https://www.eham.net/classifieds) — long-running, with reviews of nearly
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everything on the same site
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- [Hamfests and swapfests](https://usnara.org/hamfests) — the best prices in the hobby and the only
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place you can turn the knobs before you pay
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- Estate sales through a local club: when an operator becomes a silent key, clubs are often asked to
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help sell the station. Ask your club how theirs are handled
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Buying used: ask for the serial number and photographs of the actual radio, ask why it is being
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sold, and be wary of a price well under the going rate. [eHam reviews](https://www.eham.net/reviews)
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will tell you what a model's known faults are before you send money.