Amateur (Ham) Radio BS and Callsign Thread!

Hello all, I got my radio and accessories in the mail yesterday and now I’m trying to figure out the mounting solutions.
I’m studying for my license now and wanted a mobile radio to listen in and have comms ability in the event of a hurricane.

I got a Btech UV-50x3, Nagoya TB-320A, and Nagoya RB-100N mount, my plan was to mount the antenna behind the cab on the lip of the bed but having the antenna in hand the coil is about 6” below the roof of the cab, so I think I’m going to change things up a little.

My question(s) are:
1: Is it better to have the entire antenna at roof level? Or will I be fine with a simple bracket to push the coil above the roof line?

2: How important is RF bonding? I’m looking into getting several feet of 3/4” braid to bond the bed, cab, and exhaust to the frame.

3: What SWR meter do yall recommend for VHF/UHF? The antenna is supposed to be pre-tuned but it would be nice to verify the install.


I’m going to hopefully get my truck tinted tomorrow so the radio head is more difficult to see and then after that I should be able to start the install as well as getting the radio programmed with CHIRP.

 

The ideal antenna mounting location is smack dab in the middle of the roof. I built a bracket that sandwiched between the rear brake light and cab and have a Nagoya (formerly mag mount) mounted on the bracket. The antenna has a spring to allow me to get in/out of the garage. You don’t need to bond the bed, cab to the frame. It already is. There’s a few free phone apps for study guides that work well. Make sure to get licensed before transmitting.

 

Hamstudy.org is a good resource

 

http://k0bg.com/

It's much easier to use a good quality ground independent antenna, like a Comet SBB-7 or Diamond SG7900. You can put them wherever you want. I used to use them on my motorcycle. They're not as cheap, however they are far superior in performance.

 

That’s a massive antenna

 

Yep. Mini antennas are usually a compromise.

 

1. Even though this page shows a car instead of a truck, it's mostly the same. Top dead center of the vehicle is best.
https://kv5r.com/ham-radio/mobile-antenna-placement/

2. For UHF / VHF - not very at all. I never bonded anything and I'm super happy with my results. The ONLY time I ever helped someone else bond was a guy with a Tundra who was running an HF radio with an ATAS Antenna that automatically tuned. Grounding was affecting it's ability to tune right so we grounded it better. But then he could work Japan and Croatia from the front seat of his ride while doing 85mph down the free way when we were done. That was worth it. You aren't doing that.

3. For the price of an SWR meter you can get a NanoVNA off of Amazon. Waaaay more functional and helpful but a steeper learning curve. Up to you. Any SWR meter will work. They are all about the same.

Using CHIRP to program is the easiest way. You are on the right path there. Don't forget to check out RadioReference.com and adding in some public service frequencies too. If your area (not sure where you are) hasn't gone all digital trunked and encrypted yet (look for FM / FMN) then you can receive those freq's on your radio. Also, for interoperability in a disaster, almost all of your federal wildfire and air support is analog and unencrypted - that's the stuff I want most since we live on the edge of civilization. Radio can be an EXCELLENT source of sigint.

You have 1000 memory slots / channels in that thing and I guarantee you will never fill that with repeaters. Hell my state only has about 450 repeaters in the whole state and half of those are either paper repeaters (don't actually exist but people reserved space for a radio to build one day), are back yard DMR Hotspots with a 3 mile range (no use to me), or are just used as a local hang out for geezers to argue over burritos and the best place for a colonoscopy. I used to think I had to have ALL of the repeaters in my radio so I could be a master of the airwaves and talk to anyone anywhere at any time. After about 5 years, I realized there are repeaters of high value and repeaters of low value. Cull the low value repeaters because they increase your scanning time.

My repeater selection strategy starts with searching RepeaterBook.com for repeaters that are:
1. Linked
2. Wide Area
3. E-Power
4. Have features like AutoPatch, EchoLink, IRLP

That helps me find the repeaters that are better funded, in better locations and serve a broader population - seems to be a better quality of information and personalities for rag chewing.

CONGRATS AND GOOD LUCK!!!

 

https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/volunteer/volunteer-registration

April 15th, Boston Marathon! Come on out!

If history is any indication I will likely be at mile 2!

 

Thanks for all the info Guys!
I’ll probably not worry with bonding right now, and won’t permanently mount the antenna (yet) but I appreciate all of the info.
Going to start studying this weekend.

 

I know it's a long shot, but anyone in the Colorado Springs area have an NMO hole saw they're looking to loan, rent, or sell?

 

I was at Harbor Freight for a moving blanket this weekend. They had NMO sized Bits.


Pretty Cheap Too!

 

It's a 3/4" hole saw. Use a greenlee punch, it's cleaner.

 

My understanding is that the greenlee punch requires access to both sides of the roof. Since I have a 96 that requires the rear window to be removed to drop the headliner I'd rather drill the hole from the top and fish the cable to the B pillar

 

Are you sure?

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...ld-and-adventures.484602/page-6#post-15699184

 

Yep, 95-97 are different from the later first gens unfortunately

 

Did anyone do anything for Winter Field Day?

I met up with a couple guys from my local club and we did WFD and POTA at the same time. Nothing to serious just an ft-891 with an aluminum pole vertical antenna. Made 80-90 contacts in a couple hours Saturday afternoon on 20m.

 

My club activated our club shack with one radio, class I1. I took a turn operating phone mode for about an hour, all from the comfort of a warm building. Then I went and got a hot lunch. It was great.

 

Nice. We were in the cab of the truck with the heat going. Had to turn the truck off every once in a while to keep the noise down. It seems counterproductive to operate indoors during a “field day” but I understand. If the weather was bad I would do the same thing.

 

Have had my Extra for a few years, and still never got on HF...... Picked up a Wolf River coil setup and antenna analyzer. Excited to finally get on HF!

 

https://www.wmur.com/article/traffic-new-hampshire-eclipse-4924/60445331

Made about half a dozen QSOs sitting in this. 4.5 hour trip turned 12, made it easier to handle when we were throwing dad jokes back and forth at 9PM.