The Malcolmized FT-102 arrived today. It's going to have some rather interesting company in the form of its chief competitor: The TS-830S. I managed to get ahold of a Gold Label version that looks almost new, along with a couple of SP-230 speakers and a VFO-230.
There's a bit of history with me and the Kenwood hybrids. In the early 80s a buddy of mine traded a TS-520S to me for some boat-anchorish equipment (Gonset GSB-100, Hammarlund HQ-100, Realistic DX-160, etc). He didn't need it because he'd just bought a TS-830S and wanted some nostalgia around the radio room in addition to the modern (at the time) gear. A couple of years later, I ended up with his '830 as payment for house renovations.
The year afterward (35 years ago this month, to be exact) I sold both Kenwoods to finance the purchase of my first street motorcycle. Ham radio went by the wayside for several years then returned in the form of a TS-820S plus accessories. I've had that particular '820 since 1987 and have modded it for WARC transception; in 1989 I added an R-820 to the lineup and they've been in almost non-stop service ever since.
Both top-end hybrids have been on my mind for a number of years and the purchase of each set of gear started off with an acquisition of the remote, synthesized VFO - the hardest accessory piece to locate with either line. It's always fun to do A/B comparisons with my TS-820S/R-820 setup and one of my FT-90x rigs, and a '102/'830 shootout will be enjoyable as well.
Ironically, I bought an AT-230 tuner at one of our local hamfests not long after acquiring the TS-820S. I'd thought about selling the thing many times over the years but kept it around for whatever reason...probably to justify completing an '830 station.
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