Hard Ware

The ICOM T70A is a rugged hand-held HAM radio. If you don’t already know that, then this tutorial will be of little use to you. If you do have this device, then you will know that manually programming it can be quite confusing, even with access to the manual (available HERE).

Why would I want to program my radio manually? Either you don’t have/want the software/hardware to do it the “easy” way, or you are out in the field and don’t have access to a computer. Or, maybe you just like doing things the hard way.

Having the stations programmed will help you access them quicker and give you the option to scan a pre-defined set of frequencies rather than the entire band.

This tutorial will tell you how to manually program repeaters into your ICOM T70A (i.e. via the buttons on the devices and not with additional software or hardware).

We’re going to assume that you want to do the following:

1. Program repeater frequencies into the memory
2. Create Names (with letters) for those repeaters
3. Filter the repeaters by VHF and UHF (i.e. banks)

We’re also going to assume that you know how to enter repeater frequencies and rTones.

Next, we’re going to want to familiarize ourselves with the ICOM T70A hardware. Please observer figure 1 below:

Figure 1

The buttons that we will be using are labelled with red roman numerals that we will refer to during the tutorial:
(i) SET
(ii) BAND
(iii) H/M/L (“Ham My Life”)
(iv) V/M/C
(v) POWER
(vi) TUNER DIAL
(vii) TONE
(viii) DUP

The Story of Manual

Now let’s define some terms to help you understand the manual (Yes, a manual for your manual). According to my understanding, this is how your device works:

• VFO mode: This is the mode that allows you to enter frequencies manually from the number pad (1-0). Access by pressing (iv)
• Memory Channel: The “slot” that you store a frequency in (there are 0-249). Every stored frequency must be in a unique memory channel. The frequencies stored in these can be named.
• Memory Bank: This of this as a “filter” for your Memory Channels. This isn’t a separate storage area. Everything stored in a bank, must also be stored in a memory channel. Banks can be named (b Name) like a list title, while the frequency names are the items on the list. You have 26 lists (A to Z). Each item on the list also needs to take up a unique “slot” in the bank (0-99). You can’t name Bank Slots (eg. A09 cannot be named, only the “A” list can have a name).

If we use the shopping list analogy then it goes like this (albeit a little backwards): You want to buy(store in memory) all the items in your shopping cart. Each item requires some space in the cart (Memory Channel). Half of the items are for yourself(Bank A), and half of the items are for your neighbour* (Bank B). You create two lists: A and B respectively. You name list A “MyStFF” and list B “hISStF”**. On each list, you only have so much space to write the items (A00-A99 on MyStFF). You wouldn’t (can’t in our case) name the spaces on each list; you’d simple write the item. NOTE: Just because you’ve written an item on a list doesn’t make it disappear from the cart or move anywhere (Memory Channel remains). You can clear your list, but the item still remains in the cart space (Memory Channel). So, let’s go shopping!

* HAM operators are really kind
** You only get 6 characters for names on the IC-70A

Hustle and Flow

Here is the work flow that we will be using for our memory programming of each channel:

1. Go to VFO mode
2. Choose Band
3. Enter Frequency
4. Set tone (if necessary)
5. Enter Memory Write Mode
6. Select Memory Channel
7. Select Bank Slot
8. Name Bank*
9. Name Frequency Channel
10. Save

* You only have to name each Bank (A-Z) once.

Programming in the Wild

Here’s a little reminder of the buttons (I found the original ones kind of confusing). Just think (i) to (v) left to right on the top row. The tuner is (vi). The others are not used much except for special cases.

Figure 1

Before we start the work flow, you probable want the frequency names to show up. By default this is turned off, so to turn it on:

1. Turn the device off (v)
2. While holding the (i) button and turn it on (v)
3. Turn the thin dial (vi) until you get to “name”, then turn the fat (volume) dial to “On”
4. Press (v) to go back to normal mode

Working the Flow

If at any point you feel like you made a mistake or want to give up, then press (vi) to cancel out of memory write mode. HML!

1. Make sure you’re in VFO mode (vi) (no “MR” or “C1″ appears and you don’t hear a weather report)
2. Choose the band (ii): VHF or UHF
3. For our first case, let’s input only VHF frequencies.
4. Enter the frequency. e.g. 147.060 (if repeater requires a tone, then set that and make sure the “T” is on by holding (vii) ). Also check that “DUP” or “DUP-” is on and appropriate for the repeater. You can change this by holding (viii). You have now decided on the first item to buy.
5. Press and Hold (iv). This puts you on memory write mode.
6. Select the Memory Channel with (vi). If it’s your first entry, then I suggest starting at the beginning “0”. This is where you will place your first item.
7. Press (i) to go to the details mode. First option is “bank”. Press (i) to cycle through.
8. On “bank” select your first bank (list). e.g. A-00. Press (ii) and (i) to move cursor right and left. Use (vi) to change the details. I recommend matching the Memory Channel to the bank slot. i.e. 0 and A-00. 1 and A-01 etc.
9. Press (i) again to get to “b Name” (bank name). You are going to name your list (A). Press and hold (i) so you can edit. Use (vi) to cycle through letters. Press (ii) and (i) to move right and left. You have up to 6 characters. If you don’t use all 6, just press (ii) until you hit the end. For our first case, let’s just call this one “VHF”.
10. Press (i) again until you see “m Name”. This will be the name of your item on the list. Repeat steps in 8 until the name is set. e.g. “bbyMtn”.
11. Finally, save this entry by holding (iv) again, and you will hear 3 quick beeps.
12. Repeat for the next VHF frequency with NOTE: In Step 6, I recommend choosing the next memory channel in sequence (ie “1”). In step 8, you should choose another “A” slot. ie. A-01 (which will be automatically selected anyway). Step 9 doesn’t need to be done again; your list is already named!

B Listed

Next we want to program in our UHF frequencies. Follow the same steps above, except:

1. Choose the UHF band in step 2
2. In Step 6, choose any bank other than “A”. e.g. “B”
3. In Step 9, choose again from the B “list” : B-00 and so forth.

The Alpha and The Omega

This is not the be all and end all of your HAM adventure; however, this is where the tutorial will end. Now that you have programmed your IC-T70A, you access your “lists” and items by name. To do this:

1. Press (iv). You are now in “MR” mode.
2. You can either cycle through all of your shopping cart with (vi) OR press (ii) go to your banks and cycle again with (vi). Hit (ii) again to select the bank.
3. Cycle through the programmed stations again with (vi).

Congratulations! You have programmed your HAM by HAND. There will be no one to stop us this time!