Amateur Radio

[Crackerjax]

How many members do we have here that are Ham radio Operators ? I am one and I was wondering what rigs have you put into your trucks to run 2m and 70cm.

I would like run a military radio for 2m with a military antenna but I dont think its going to happen.

73's

Josh

 

[armadillofz1]

been a Ham for 20 years or so. haven't keyed up in better than a decade. thought about putting together an old 2m rig for the deuce, but i'm out of the loop with local hams and none of my friends have thier ticket. so it seems a bit of pyrrhic endevor.

 

[armadillofz1]

side note, 2m and 6m are probably good choices. both are very close to military frequncies that you might find in surplus radios. years back i remember seeing pallet loads of military radios at ham-fests being sold under the guise of re-crystaling for Ham.

 

[Crackerjax]

well i figured with todays repeter offsets, dtmf tones,pl tones, it was hopeless....i have an icom v8 that was used in iraq i use it alot but its open to the public to buy from icom....if i ever get a shelter for my truck i have alot of stuff that will go in it but untill then oh well....

 

[mistaken1]

I am planning on using the radio rack in my M1009 to mount commercial 70cm, 2M and 6M radios when the weather warms up. I will be using a using a big military antenna for the 6M, one of the raised feed point antennas for the 70cm and a commercial 5/8 antenna for the 2M. All the antennas will be mounted to the military antenna brackets.

 

[nosliw]

I've got my Technician license. I got it in 2007 before I got too heavily involved with a demanding career AND trying to farm on the side.

I never talked much on it, but recently dug what little gear I own out of the closet since (a) I lost the demanding career and (b) it's much too cold to do anything around the farm at the moment.

Boucing off repeaters lost it's appeal in the first week or so, and I don't have the ticket for any phone work below 2m. Not proficient enough in CW to attempt any communication there, so, I'm not sure what I'm going to get into.

I thought about purchasing an HF rig just to do some listening before I go for my General. It seemed to me the Technician Class was very limited to long-range transmissions, the stuff i was interested in.

 

[OldDominionIron]

I've been licensed for about 9 years, have my Extra class license, but not very active on air. I have an Icom 2m rig in my daily driver truck (Dodge RAM) and have been thinking about how to use a 2m rig in my deuce. Due to the noise, some sort of headset/noise canceling microphone is prettty much mandatory, and they are available from companies such as Heil (which is expensive, but makes a terrific product I hear).

Nosliw, look into IRLP operation, which uses 2m radios to connect to the internet, then you can communicate with other hams around the world when they connect locally to the internet in their area.

I would probably just use a commercial 2m/70cm antenna on the deuce, but I've always like the look of a military antenna mounted on the rear bumper and bent over and tied down at the front. If anybody has any pictures of their ham rigs mounted in a MV, please post them.

 

[tennmogger]

Here are some pictures of my Unimog 404, 1965, ex-German radio truck. I have a setup of the original SEM-35 low-band VHF FM transceiver and antenna matching unit, and some modern ham radio equipment. The radio box has 5 antenna portals on the roof and AB-15 base mounts with various series antenna elements as needed for length for the bands. I use magnet mounts for 2m and 70cm bands.

I drove this truck as a daily driver for about 5 years but have replaced it with a newer Unimog. The radio truck is happily parked in the shop now but has seen some interesting places as seen in the pictures. It is a nice ham shack and useful for emergency communications and ham radio events (field day photos shown).

You guys with Technician licenses can get on SSB voice on the 10m band between 28.3 and 28.5 MHz. With the solar activity increasing this will be a fun band in the near future. Antennas are cheap and easy, too.

Bob, WB4ETT (licensed since '65)

 

[englishmauser]

For anybody interestred in ham radio, there is no code requirement to get a license or to upgrade to general or extra. You can study for the written exam at QRZ.COM QRZ Ham Radio Practice Tests Find a ham club in your area that does the testing and you'll be on your way to the world of HF.

 

[BigjeepTX]

Just got my technicians license last month. Im in the Texas State Guard and they encourage you to get one so I did. Right now I just have 2 meter but more soon to come. Gonna setup the M1009 with some HAM gear just for fun.

Michael, KF5EHS

 

[sangamon]

If you have a decent memory, you should be able to pass the tests for General and Extra.

I used a combination of the ARRL license manuals and MFJ quick study books to prepare.

 

[avengeusa]

I have a technician ham license, never used it.... I do want to get some real radio going in the dooce

 

[dogtags]

Last year I received my Technician License. I have become increasingly involved with amateur operations in my neck of the woods. I am a member of our county ARES/RACES group and hope to do some storm spotting this year. I enjoy operating and wish more of my buddies were amateurs also.

My daily driver is a Jeep Wrangler that has a dual band radio (2-meter and 70-centimeter). I also have a PRC-25 that needs some fixing up before I can get on the air on 6-meters.

 

[rlwm211]

Extra class here....There isn't much where I live on 70cm so I do not own one at this point. I have multiple 2 meter rigs and an hf/vhf radio.
I have two shelters with radio gear in them. I have an S250 with 3 2 meters, one 11 and one 10 meter radio, onboard batteries all of this mounted on a civvy HD single axle trailer. I am developing an S280 with 2m and HF capabilities. This will also be self contained and will have multiple options for antennas.
As for going down the road in the deuce, I have experiemented with headsets and vairous mike setups. It is hard to be heard over the noise that the truck generates going down the road. I will be putting a muffler on in the near future and hope it makes the noise level manageable. At this point, without a headset, I would not hear the radio at all with the truck running, and working down the road.
RL

 

[usmc81301]

I have been a ham for seven years. I use a Yaesu FT-8900R quad band. Excellent radio.

 

[papakb]

Kurt Lesser KG6KMJ

Running an VRC-90 in the HMMWV ambulance, a VRC-12 in the 151, a PRC-128 for a mobile and a either a PRC-660 or a PRC-75 for 70cm. 2M is all done with a 127.

73s

 

[Lex_Ordo]

I got my ticket for Technician Class in June 2007. I own a VX-7R HT, and have all kinds of bands programmed into it. I like the VHF 2M band a lot, and frequent the 70cm/ 440 from time to time. My HT also hits 1.25M/ 220 and 6M. Not much going on in 6M, but it is much closer to Military VHF, so it works well with the older Military radios, in 57 MHz.
I use echolink software, and google earth to locate QSOs, when I travel. Then when I get local, I try to hit the machines over the air.
I also use this programming software. Works great!
Jim Mitchell - KC8UNJ

Unfortunately, with a Duece, it is futile to attempt any radio comms, so I just wait till I get to my destination.
Out... K2DWH

 

[mistaken1]

Passed my Tech and General exams this weekend. Waiting on FCC to list me.....

I am working on adapting a H-161A/U headset to my Kenwood UHF radio in the deuce.

 

[Carl_in_NH]

Congratulations on passing your test. Been a ham since I was a kid - just after the time my deuces were rolling off the production line.

I purchased a VIC-1 intercom configuration to install in a deuce; they are easy to interface to various types of rigs, and provide the ability to talk to one another while in the truck at speed (and without shouting). One of these configurations will allow you to install two 2-way radios of your choosing, and one receive only rig. That works for most applications. Once the weather breaks, I'll be fabricating some brackets to do my install.

There have been several threads on ham radio and the number of forum members that are hams; a quick search will reveal there are a number of us here.

 

[mistaken1]

Congratulations on passing your test. Been a ham since I was a kid - just after the time my deuces were rolling off the production line.

Thanks! I have been interested since I was a kid but it has taken quite a while to get here. I think it was my involvement with community emergency response that has motivated me to take the test.

Next on the list is to learn to weld.