HF Radios for HMMWV

[Wire Fox]

I appreciate any help anyone can offer on this one.

I've been lurking around for quite a while lookign into a few more modern MVs and due to the crossover of hobbies in amateur radio, I was hoping someone could help me get started in finding a military radio that might fit my needs (even if it's just pointing me to a more comprehensive resource that helps me make the decisions for myself).

I see tons of VHF-type radios for sale and documentation about them, but I'm actually looking for an HF radio that operates somewhere in the range of 1.6 MHz to 30 MHz. Everything I can find generally points me to Vietnam-era or earlier radios that I'm not so sure do what I need, and then I generally can't find anything that looks like it might be compatible with installation hardware into a HMMWV or LMTV. Anything that can be easily converted to manpack via adding a battery pack or other hardware is also a big plus. Anyone have any experience on this?

EDIT: GRC-213 looks like a great go-to if it weren't unobtainium from what I can see. For people new to this like me and searching around, the GRC-213 is a vehicular-mountable package that uses the PRC-104 manpack radio, minus its battery. The PRC-104 uses the RT-1209 transceiver unit. Figuring out that they renumber hardware based on its purpose is a big step in the right direction, but I still am looking for more readily available alternatives to the GRC-213 package-or even better, a source of the GRC-213 or at least an RT-1209 so I can built up my own.

 

[NormB]

I'm also a ham - extra - considering putting in a 2M rig using a stock military antenna, only problem is, most of them of the AN or AS3900 series were made for the radio frequencies used by military in the 30 to 88mHz range and aren't easily converted to 11M even for CB use. Sure, they'll work on 6M but how often and how far does 6M propagate? They don't call it "the magic band" for nothing.


Amateur extra band privileges don't include 4M here in the states so I'd need something like an SFB3512 covering 30mHz to 512mHz, MUCH more utilitarian for 2M, 70cm bands, but those apparently are as rare as hens' teeth.

http://www.arrl.org/frequency-allocations

Norm

 

[papakb]

You have a couple of choices depending on how large your budget is. Older sets like the PRC-74 are available with limited frequency range and a huge vehicular adapter for reasonable costs. Next in line might be a PRC-132 if you can find one. Nice small footprint but there's no vehicular adapter that I'm aware of for the set. Stepping up to the GRC-213 or GRC-220 is a really nice way to go but pricing is high for these sets. For really high power you can install a GRC-193 in the back for even more money and then if you have an uncle in the Federal Reserve you can install a Harris GRC-132.

NormB, 86humv here on the forum has the Harris wideband antennas available at reasonable prices. I bought 4 of them from him and other than one had an open center conductor they're really nice antennas. I use one with my 1439 SINCGARS set.

Kurt
KG6KMJ

 

[TrailLifeBill]

I look forward to seeing what you come up with!!

Bill
N4TJS

 

[Flyingvan911]

I put my Icom 706 MkII-G in an ammo can. It works well. There's not much true HF military stuff out there. KC0ERE

 

[tennmogger]

Radios not yet mentioned are the PRC-320 (British) and PRC-174 (Israeli). These are both affordable back-packable sets covering 2 to 30 MHz. Search on either of these here on SS because this subject has come up many times before. Lots of good info available. The same search results will mention antennas such as the AB-15 base with MS-116 series antenna sections.

Working HF from a Mil Veh is lots of fun.

 

[papakb]

The other issue working HF from a vehicle is there aren't a lot of good options for antennas. The At-1011 is 16' long in it's road version and 32' long when used statically.

Kurt
KG6KMJ

 

[NormB]

The other issue working HF from a vehicle is there aren't a lot of good options for antennas. The At-1011 is 16' long in it's road version and 32' long when used statically.

Kurt
KG6KMJ

The "Tarheel" screwdriver antennas look appealing, but I'm not thinking of HF so much as the 2M and 70cm bands and monitoring police/fire/rescue at the lower end, that's where the SFB3512 type antennas appeal to me; same format as the 3900 series, tuned differently. Once I get that ground wire octopus installed the humvee will make a fairly nice ground plane regardless.

Norm
K3NB

 

[NormB]

Radios not yet mentioned are the PRC-320 (British) and PRC-174 (Israeli). These are both affordable back-packable sets covering 2 to 30 MHz. Search on either of these here on SS because this subject has come up many times before. Lots of good info available. The same search results will mention antennas such as the AB-15 base with MS-116 series antenna sections.

Working HF from a Mil Veh is lots of fun.

Reviews here: http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/8965 (prc-174) and here: http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/7905 (prc-320).

 

[SCSG-G4]

And there is a PRC-320 group on Yahoo. Along with a number of other British radios of the same vintage.

 

[Wire Fox]

Guys, seriously top-notch responses! I'm going to read into the British and Israeli options the most as they might meet the needs. For giggles, I read a lot into Codan's modern military radios. They look excellent, but seeing as I have found zero up for sale, I assume they're absurdly expensive or just simply restricted.

Right now, I'm working on purchasing a HMMWV. Once it's rolling, I'll be racing to get radios in it and getting it ready for disaster response. I want my HMMWV to work and be fun!

 

[ONTOS66]

I have a GRC-213 with antenna and base sitting on a shelf in my radio collection. Also some pdf manuals for that family. Let me know if you might be interested. I can take a few photos for you.

 

[ONTOS66]

There is also the PRC-47 (man portable, if you have a team of porters - or 3 ANGLICO Marines). They were used by ANGLICO Naval Gunfire teams to direct fire from ships (among other things) They can also be vehicle mounted which is much easier to move this big beast. I have two complete ones, without vehicle mounts, in transit cases sitting in the basement with my collection. Also nice for a ham who wants to use milcom for a field day. I also have the interface for a radio teletype, and assorted antennas. Interesting older radio. Here is a stock photo of the basic radio.

 

[m38inmaine]

I have the vehicle mount for the PRC-47, it's an interesting mount, reminds me of a buck board seat from a wagon.

 

[NormB]

You have a couple of choices depending on how large your budget is. Older sets like the PRC-74 are available with limited frequency range and a huge vehicular adapter for reasonable costs. Next in line might be a PRC-132 if you can find one. Nice small footprint but there's no vehicular adapter that I'm aware of for the set. Stepping up to the GRC-213 or GRC-220 is a really nice way to go but pricing is high for these sets. For really high power you can install a GRC-193 in the back for even more money and then if you have an uncle in the Federal Reserve you can install a Harris GRC-132.

NormB, 86humv here on the forum has the Harris wideband antennas available at reasonable prices. I bought 4 of them from him and other than one had an open center conductor they're really nice antennas. I use one with my 1439 SINCGARS set.

Kurt
KG6KMJ

I got one from him this past week, hooked it up to my Sark-110 analyzer and WOW does it have some response, 2M is great, 15M great, 10M great, few others I don't recall off-hand.

It'll take some time to cleanup and hookup, but it was, I think, a great deal.

Norm

 

[jake-cutter]

Are there any radios available that can connect to the VIC 3?

 

[blhar15]

There is the PRC-104 2 - 30 MHz

 

[Wile E. Coyote]

AN/PRC-138s are really nice and the most modern thing to escape the crusher in miniscule quantities (you can get them in the older OD paint or the newer CARC green), but...haven't seen any for sale for probably 3 years, and when they show up, just the basic packset R/T is north of $5000. Then you have to try and find the VAA/ amp etc., which is usually another $1300-ish. Everyone else has covered the PRC-104 variations, which is the next best thing.

The British Clansman stuff is very good gear and still reasonable - but you didn't see it in HMMWVs. The VRC-176s mentioned are also decent and usually pretty cost-effective, but I think they were strictly used by IDF and not used in any HMMWVs this side of Israel. If that matters to you.

CODANs and the Motorola MICOM/Mobat HF stuff...you don't see too often...as most seems to have been ordered for 'special purpose' type things in small quantities (FEMA used a bunch of the MICOM/ Mobat gear, I believe.) CODANs show up fairly regularly on the 'armyradios' group - but the only Moto MICOM XR / 2B/ 2E stuff I've ever come across is on Ebay.

Another cool rig is the GRC-215 'Regency Net' setup, but apart from some non-working transceivers that Mike Murphy had a couple of decades ago and some web references to them in use by MATF (and one or two guys on YouTube with them) -- they seem to be more unobtainium than anything else (except maybe current gen PRC-117Gs or PRC-150s

 

[Wire Fox]

AN/PRC-138s are really nice and the most modern thing to escape the crusher in miniscule quantities (you can get them in the older OD paint or the newer CARC green), but...haven't seen any for sale for probably 3 years, and when they show up, just the basic packset R/T is north of $5000. Then you have to try and find the VAA/ amp etc., which is usually another $1300-ish. Everyone else has covered the PRC-104 variations, which is the next best thing.

The British Clansman stuff is very good gear and still reasonable - but you didn't see it in HMMWVs. The VRC-176s mentioned are also decent and usually pretty cost-effective, but I think they were strictly used by IDF and not used in any HMMWVs this side of Israel. If that matters to you.

CODANs and the Motorola MICOM/Mobat HF stuff...you don't see too often...as most seems to have been ordered for 'special purpose' type things in small quantities (FEMA used a bunch of the MICOM/ Mobat gear, I believe.) CODANs show up fairly regularly on the 'armyradios' group - but the only Moto MICOM XR / 2B/ 2E stuff I've ever come across is on Ebay.

Another cool rig is the GRC-215 'Regency Net' setup, but apart from some non-working transceivers that Mike Murphy had a couple of decades ago and some web references to them in use by MATF (and one or two guys on YouTube with them) -- they seem to be more unobtainium than anything else (except maybe current gen PRC-117Gs or PRC-150s

It's really hard to decide what I need until I get hands-on with one and see what I can and can't use. I think I've got a fairly good deal on a PRC-104 if the seller still has it available. I'm really wanting one with the RT-1444 or RT-1209A type units that has remote control, because I really like the idea of having a more rapid interface than the standard PRC-104 selection method. All my interest in amateur radio is pretty much data modes and computer interfacing...

 

[Wile E. Coyote]

RT-1444 was really only used with the GRC-206 FAC/ TACP setup along with the AM-7148 amp etc., and there's an ALE version as well made for some foreign government (Mike Murphy had some, but I think they're all gone.) There was also a frequency-hopping controller. Lots of great info on Brooke Clarke's unbeatable page here: http://prc68.com/I/PRC104.shtml

I'm also pretty much a data guy lately - my main area of interest. I wanted a PRC-138 so badly I could taste it, but Availability and Cash on Hand never seem to coexist in the same universe.