Ham Radio Operators! What radio / band do you use?
- Thread starter TJustin
- Start date
TurboMinivan
Still plays with cars
- Location
- Lehi, UT
That is a good radio, and I'm sure it'll give you great performance for many years. I presume you have installed it by now. Have you had a chance to use it yet? If you need/want somebody to chat with, let me know.
- Location
- Payson, UT
Unfortunately, I have not. Still deciding on mounting location, and finding a good NGP antenna. I know that's not ideal particularly for propagation, but that's the route I'm headed.
Input on NGP 2m 1/4 wave antennas?
TurboMinivan
Still plays with cars
- Location
- Lehi, UT
Yeah--they don't exist. By definition, a 1/4-wave antenna requires a ground plane. Well, okay, I guess that's not entirely correct. You can run a 1/4-wave antenna without a ground plane, but its performance will be substantially compromised. This is why antenna manufacturers tell you a 1/4-wave antenna requires a suitable ground plane for proper operation... but it looks like you already know that.
What do you do if you don't have a suitable ground plane? Use a 1/2-wave design instead. They are extremely forgiving when installed without a ground plane, and still perform very well. This is one more reason why I'm such a fan of the Larsen NMO2/70B antenna.
Do you think you can find/make room for that antenna on your rig? Somewhere? Anywhere?
- Location
- Payson, UT
Thanks for the clarification Dempsey. Still figuring out my understanding of antenna 101. I'd like to position it at the back of the Jeep either at the top of my tire carrier or if there's a way to do it using one of Teraflex's behind the brake light antenna mounts, I'd consider that as well.
Supposedly I am supposed to take into consideration the radiation if 2 antennas are close together, but haven't read up on it enough to make a solid decision yet.
Supposedly I am supposed to take into consideration the radiation if 2 antennas are close together, but haven't read up on it enough to make a solid decision yet.
I came across this the other day and seeing this thread bumped reminded me of it:
https://www.ke6mt.us/2018/05/hf-ham-radio-on-a-budget-qrp-labs-and-qrpguys/
https://www.ke6mt.us/2018/05/hf-ham-radio-on-a-budget-qrp-labs-and-qrpguys/
- Location
- Payson, UT
Input on my plan for installation?
I bought a Poison Spyder Trail Cage Kit. Plan is to weld sheet or expanded metal between the the 2 center stringers that run from the "b-pillar" up to the a-pillar, then mount both the CB and ham in that location. Should I be worried of overheating with having little airflow through there, and close proximity to the roof?
I bought a Poison Spyder Trail Cage Kit. Plan is to weld sheet or expanded metal between the the 2 center stringers that run from the "b-pillar" up to the a-pillar, then mount both the CB and ham in that location. Should I be worried of overheating with having little airflow through there, and close proximity to the roof?
Last edited:
TurboMinivan
Still plays with cars
- Location
- Lehi, UT
The CB should be a non-issue. My Uniden PRO 510XL is mounted the same way, and it has operated just fine that way for years.
The 2980 should be okay there, also, provided you leave it some room between the top of the radio and the bottom of the sheet metal "roof" piece. Its cooling fins will want to radiate heat, so you'll want to leave them at least a small gap to do so. If you mount the radio via its factory bracket, you should be fine.