Not all that long ago, having a VHF radio aboard was considered something of unneeded luxury. Fact of the matter is, I recall quite vividly a certain British yachting magazine doing a frothing-at-the-mouth editorial about how the introduction of affordable VHF would rot the sinews of seamanship...
How times do change.
Today I can still buy a
rather decent waterproof handheld VHF for quite a bit less than $100. The one we have has been working finest kind for more than a decade so I expect it will, more than likely, continue to work for at least another and will, quite probably, outlive me.
From where I sit this is money well spent because from time to time it is actually needful to listen in or ask someone a question... So it passes the need/want criteria.
For those of the VolksCruiser persuasion, a sub one hundred dollar handheld VHF is really all you'll ever actually need.
Better yet, a handheld does not require crafty holes or mounting solutions that require running wires into inaccessible places.
I'll call that a slam dunk.
