Why no current 220mhz Icom radios?

If 220mhz is so underused then why not for at least emergency radio or something? Am I missing something. I have a TYT but I would like to build out a Icom shack.

 

Because it's not a ham band in most parts of the world, just (or mainly, not sure about that) North America, so demand and potential market are much smaller.

 

Icom hasn't made a 220 radio for decades. Kenwood quit (other than multiband HTs) at least 20 years ago. I'm not sure Yaesu has made a 220 rig (other than multi-band all mode radios) for 30 or 40 years. It's frustrating but as WD4IGX says, with it only being a band in North and South America the market is limited.
I have an Icom 2330A dual band 2m/220 that I use in my truck. Unfortunately the 2m side has problems but I use it for the 220 band. I prefered to take my chances with an old used Icom rather than a new Chinese piece of junk. I've been quite happy with the radio. Recently, when I also wanted a 220 HT I ended up with a Yaesu VX-6. I like it as well.
Your choices for a mobile/base are Chinese junk or old, used Japanese. Or Alinco, I'm not sure where they fit in that spectrum.

 

If you can find a YEASU FT311RM mobile that works, buy it.
10 channel memory, 5 and 30 watts output.
Made in the mid 90s.
I have the user manual and schematic with a new old stock find.
Otherwise, I use a Transverter and drive a British made commercial amplifier up to 190 watts on FM and turn drive back for SSB.
There are a lot of repeaters in my coverage area but little activity.
Here the repeaters are assigned PL tones but none has them active. Every one is open.
I had a lot of luck plus knowledge to make it all happen.
Good luck.

 

I've owned Alinco radios in the past and they were fine.

I'm not sure they're quite up to the big brand Japanese, but they may even be I just don't know. But I'd take one over a Chinese radio any day of the week and twice on Sunday as it were.

 

It's actually a great band. I have a friend who has a repeater on 222, though he lives way too far away (North Carolina) for me to access it. Its too bad but "it is what it is." North and South America - thanks for that, didn't meant to leave out our southerly neighbors. ITU Region 2.

 

That's mostly it: small market to begin with, probably 90% is in the U.S., even if it is an amateur band in the rest of the Region (II.) YaeComWood probably didn't have enough sales to make it profitable, and it isn't harmonically (within reason) related to other amateur bands. Alinco seems to be the only source of a 222MHz mobile radio these days. Given the "popularity" (or lack thereof) of operations on 2 Meters and/or 70 cm, there is no incentive for the "Big Three" to produce a 222 MHz radio for such a small market.

 

Bridgecom does also: The Bridgecom BCM-220 is a pretty good and very popular 222 MHz mobile transceiver often used at home stations with a power supply.

 

Permote the band in your area and try to give it a boost.
No QRM, quiet, nearly as long distance as 2m. Antennas are smaller.
Antenna selection is a bit short for Beams but a good search will find them.
Mobile antenna selection is not much better.
I have a lower cost high gain Co-linear vertical that is advertised for 2m/440 but found by testing with an Antenna Analyzer it resonated on the 222 band well, in the FM portion. Powered by my FT311RM, works quite well.

 

The 222 MHz band is available in all of Region II by the ITU for amateur radio use. Region II includes both North America and South America. Now, there are certain countries in Region II that may allow other Radio Services to use the band. But, international agreements allow amateur radio operators to utilize the band unless denied by the country in which the amateur radio operator lives.

Glen, K9STH