Setting a Baofeng on FIRE!

I came across this video through the qrz.com forums. K5CLC did some extreme testing of a Baofeng UV-5R, including setting it on FIRE! The results are interesting. Skip to 2:57 to see the flames. I really like my Baofeng HT…not as my primary radio but as the one that is with me when I’m working on the farm, tinkering in the barn, or anytime I’m likely to have dirty hands.

Michael Brown, KG9DW, is a regular contributor to AmateurRadio.com and writes from Illinois, USA. Contact him at [email protected].

8 Responses to “Setting a Baofeng on FIRE!”

  • W3FIS, Paul:

    Remember, these are Part 90 devices, designed for the construction, public service, and other such things. I have a UV-5R+, and two UV-3Rs, its little brother. Also a couple of Wouxuns. GREAT radios. ONLY problem I have ever had was that, after three years of hard use, one of Wouxun’s batteries refused to hold a charge. $18 off of E-bay, and that problem solved.

    73 /paul W3FIS

  • AE2DX FRED:

    Excellent Mike loved the test being an owner of a UV-5R bought off of Amazon for $27 complete I did purchase an extra battery which I still have in the cellophane bag unused, I love the radio, hasn’t given me a problem in the year since I got it. With the program and cable it was easy to program via a computer. A very satisfied customer for sure.

    73/Fred AE2DX

  • Quincy Collins VE1 PDQ:

    I am impressed! As a new ham operator ( even though an old 62 years old) I wondered about my BaofengUV-5R as it seems to be the radio for poor folk. While my Scottish heart grieved damaging any hard won item at least I know now that any mishaps I inflict upon this radio with my inexperience will not result in a Mission Impossible self- destruct. Now, who would like to try your torture test on their Icom or Yeasu? Line forms here! Well done. Rev. Quincy Collins, Nova Scotia, Canada

  • Matt W1MST:

    Editor’s note — Li-ion batteries tend to EXPLODE when exposed to fire. Plus. using gasoline to start a fire is a great way to get burned. This is not an experiment that someone should try to replicate.

  • Goody K3NG:

    But will it blend?

    I want to see this same test with an Elecraft K3.

  • peter kg5wy:

    Send your new radios to Mike for a thorough QC evaluation.
    Or, we all can try it at home ourselves.
    If they survive, we can use them. If not, send them back to the manufacturer for a full refund.

  • jerry w5kaw:

    like to see if a icom ic-v80 would hold up??

  • Km4htd:

    I’d love to see this test on icom, yeasu suppressed they haven’t been done for some unknown reason? Could it be they can’t pass the test?
    73s
    Dale
    Km4htd

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