Mobile Amateur Radio Station K5DH/M

My mobile station is operational on the 40m through 2m amateur bands and the 27 MHz Citizen's Band. My commute to and from work each day is a 64 mile round-trip. My travel time averages an hour each way, and even longer if the weather's bad or there's an accident on the highway. If I didn't have a mobile station, the time I spend on the road would otherwise be wasted. So, instead of stewing about the traffic or listening to depressing news reports on the broadcast radio, I happily tune the bands in search of contact with the outside world! It's a great cure for "road rage". My first choice is the HF radio. My 2m FM operating is generally limited to Skywarn and other public service activities, although I do dial up the local repeaters for a chat from time to time. On road trips, I'll often have the 2m rig tuned to 146.52 MHz, waiting for possible calls from other motoring hams who've spotted my license plates or antennas. The CB radio comes in very handy when the traffic gets heavy. Listening to the truckers talk about traffic tie-ups helps me figure out an alternate route when my normal path is backed up.

THE VEHICLE:
My vehicle is a 2009 Ford F-150 XLT SuperCab pickup truck. It's roomy, quiet, comfortable, built Ford tough, and it gets surprisingly good gas mileage. As I mentioned above, my mobile shack is operational on 40m through 2m. Here is an overall view of the equipment installation: [PHOTO]. All of my antennas are installed on a diamondplate aluminum truckbox mounted across the front end of the pickup bed. Here is a photo showing how the antennas are arranged: [PHOTO]. The only holes I've drilled in the exterior surfaces of the body are the ones used to attach the truckbox to the pickup bed.

HF transceiver:
On 40 through 6 meters, I use Icom's fabulous IC-7000 transceiver. At the moment, I'm not making use of the rig's 2m and 70 cm capabilities, although I may add the necessary antennas at some point. The IC-7000 and Comet CF-360 duplexer are mounted to the front of the center console on a rigid aluminum plate. A compact AT7000 automatic antenna tuner from LDG Electronics resides on the floor under the driver's seat [PHOTO]. Here are some detail photos showing the mounting arrangement of my HF and CB transceivers from the right side [PHOTO1] and the left side [PHOTO2]. The duplexer is necessary since the IC-7000 uses the same antenna jack for HF and 6m. My external speaker is a Radio Shack 4" CB-type unit that's attached to a plastic drink cup from Razzoo's cajun restaurant. Here's a photo: [PHOTO]. The cup fits snugly into one of the cup holders on the center console. When I'm not using the HF radio, I can remove the speaker and set it down on the floor out of the way. Now you see it [PHOTO] , and now you don't [PHOTO]. This system has achieved the "XYL Seal Of Approval" (hi!).

My HF antenna is an Outbacker Perth [PHOTO] [PHOTO] with the matching OB-SB spring and base [PHOTO]. I've owned this Outbacker since the mid 1990s and have used it on four different vehicles. Although it wasn't cheap, this antenna is as tough as they come, and it performs very well for me. I have the 3-1/2 foot stinger set at a point where I can simply select a band tap from 40 through 10 meters without having to adjust the stinger. I'm not a fan of 75 meters, so I haven't bothered to set up the antenna for that band. The OB-SB base is mounted on a custom-made aluminum bracket that's attached to the left side of my truckbox. The aluminum skin of the truckbox is very thin, so I included a massive stiffener made from 4" x 4" x 1/4" aluminum angle stock on the inside of the truckbox to take all of the mechanical load. The stiffener is bolted through the top of the pickup bed using the same two bolts that hold the truckbox in place. All of the hardware is stainless. Here are some photos of the mounting bracket and stiffener: [PHOTO] [PHOTO].

My 6 meter antenna is a Hamstick, tuned for the low end of the band (for SSB use) [PHOTO]. It is installed on a heavy duty 3/8"-24 threaded "beehive" type mount that was made for the professional trucker CB radio market heavy duty 3/8"-24 threaded "beehive" type [PHOTO] [PHOTO].

2 Meter FM transceiver:
My 2 meter rig is a Kenwood TM-261A 50 Watt FM transceiver [PHOTO] [PHOTO]. I've owned it for many trouble-free years. Some would consider it to be outdated, but I hang onto it because its receiver is virtually immune to intermod. I can drive around anywhere in Dallas and not hear a peep from out-of-band signals (and believe me, we have plenty of high-powered VHF pager and radio transmitters in Dallas!). The TM-261A is an outstanding choice in a 2m FM transceiver because of its low price and superb performance. It was discontinued many years ago, but good used ones can still be bought for $125 or less. I have the optional tone squelch board installed, which also cuts down on unwanted signals.

For an external speaker, I'm using a little 2" x 4" oval job that seems to have been intended for the cellular phone market. It was a $3.00 hamfest bargain. The audio quality isn't the best, but it serves my needs just fine and it fits neatly at the top of the dash without obstructing my view [PHOTO].

My 2m antenna is a classic 5/8 wave Larsen NMO-150. It's hard to beat a commercial-grade Larsen for performance, dependability, and durability. I bought this particular antenna in 1994 and it's still going strong!

Citizen's Band transceiver:
My CB radio is a 1980s vintage Cobra 19XS 40-channel AM unit [PHOTO]. This particular example was manufactured in June, 1984. I like this model because it's very small in size and it offers surprisingly good performance. My CB antenna is a professional grade Hustler model HQ-27 [PHOTO]. This classic antenna has been around virtually unchanged since the early 1970s. It's hard to beat commercial-grade antennas for performance, dependability, and durability. The HQ-27 is 56" tall, center-loaded, made of stainless steel, and fits a standard 3/8"-24 mount.

INSTALLATION NOTES:
DC power for all of my gear comes directly from the vehicle battery via #10 AWG twin-lead wire. The power feed terminates in an commercial type electrical junction block mounted on the inside of the firewall [PHOTO]. I punched a 1" hole in the firewall on the driver's side to provide a means of bringing the DC power cable and all four antenna feedlines into the cab. I purchased a rubber grommet at the auto parts store to protect the cables from chafing. The grommet is a generic replacement intended for engine PCV valves. Here's a photo: [PHOTO]. Both the positive and negative DC power leads run all the way to the battery, and I have an outdoor-grade fuse holder installed in the positive lead right at the battery [PHOTO]. I *never* use the vehicle body or chassis as the return path for my DC power! Doing so just begs for noise to be introduced onto the power leads! I also *never* power any permanent mobile gear from the fuse panel or cigar lighter. I do have a filtered, fused cigar lighter power adaptor for my Yaesu handheld so that I can use it in rental cars.

I'VE BEEN AT THIS A WHILE...
I've been operating HF mobile since the late 1970s, from many different vehicles, using many different rigs and antennas. In addition to the IC-7000, at one time or another I've used the following HF rigs in the mobile (in no particular order): Icom 730 and 706 Mk2G, Alinco DX-70T; Ten-Tec Scout; Kenwood TS-130S, TS-430S, TS-440S, and TS-520S; Yaesu FT-757GX; Uniden HR-2510 and HR-2600; Realistic HTX-100; and numerous CB radios that I'd converted to 10 meters. I've used many different antennas too: modified CB antennas on 10 meters; a classic 1950s Webster Bandspanner; a Valor Pro-Am 40 meter whip (similar to a Ham-Stick); a Hustler mast and resonators; an Antenna Specialists mast and resonators (virtually identical to the Hustler_; a WA5UHT Texas Bugcatcher; the Outbacker Perth; a 9 foot CB whip fed from an Icom AH-4 remote auto-tuner; and probably others that I can't recall. Don't ask me which one worked the best, because I honestly never kept score, and the installation varied from vehicle to vehicle. I do know that I've always had great success with the Outbacker Perth, and I highly recommend it for its durability and performance. By the way, the Outbacker name is not just "catchy". I have traveled the roads of the Australian outback, and I was amazed at the number of commercial Outbacker antennas in use on tour buses, long-haul trucks, and other commercial vehicles. When the nearest town might be 100 km or more away, you need a dependable antenna, and the Outbacker is it! If you can stand the enormous physical size and ungainly looks, a Texas Bugcatcher is hard to beat, especially if you can find one of the ones made back in the 1980s by WA5UHT. I always opt for an antenna that requires no electric power and has no moving parts (which means no "screwdrivers"). That means no "band hopping", but I can always pull over and change taps on the Outbacker if I really feel the need. (gee, how did we survive for all those decades without motorized antennas?)

MY OPERATING SCHEDULE:
I'm usually on the air on weekdays from 0615 to 0715 Central time, and again some time between 1630 and 1830 Central time, depending on when I get out of the office for the day. Most mornings, I'm on 40 meter SSB, usually at 7169 KHz. In the afternoons, I'll be on whatever band is the most active. I really enjoy working other mobile stations. It's always fun comparing rigs,antennas, and operating and installation tips with other mobileers. A bit of DX thrown in makes it even more fun. I even do my best to crack the DX pileups using the 7000's split frequency capabilities (and I've surprised many DX stations with my mobile signal, often walking right over the fixed stations!). I hope to meet up with you some time while operating HF mobile! Thanks for reading!