HF in 02 AV

Finally got around to putting my Icom 706 MKGii in the AV.  Ran Power from the Battery.



Mounted the Control head in the overhead console.



Antennas are a bit hard to see, will try to get a better pix, but have a 75m hamstick for HF mounted were the passenger side grab hold was and a dual band antenna on the roof.




Future updates include  putting an SGC auto tuner on the HF side along with a 12ft whip for all band coverage as well as adding a 220mhz radio and a Yaesu 8800 dual band radio to the mix.

I upgraded the HF antenna system from the hamstick to a whip and SGC tuner to provide all band coverage.
First pix is the whip from several feet away. Its thin so its hard to see but its there.

Here is a closer shot of the whip.

Here is a closeup of the mount.

Here is the tuner tucked up under the cover inside the bed.

ohgary;

I like the control head mount. How did you run wrires to it? The remote speaker looks good also.

Nice job;

Steve

SteveOR said:

ohgary;

I like the control head mount. How did you run wrires to it? The remote speaker looks good also.

Nice job;

Steve

Click to expand...

The wires for the control head snake inside the overhead console, around the header then down the A pillar and around to the rear passenger seat. Took A bit of time to route power and control cables.

The 'A" pillar is the structure between the winshield and the front door correct ? 'B" pillar then is between the doors. Is ther also a 'C" ..

Thanks in advance for not laughing - or if you did laugh Glad i was able to help...

Regards;

steve

I have a large truckvault in my truck bed but do have some space for a tuner sized box.  Future considerations. I like how that whip mounts.
I am curious what freq/bands you are using the whip for and how well does it work?

Regards;

Steve

The whip as show is only 9ft long. I have two more section I can add to make it 16ft for stationary use.  With the 9ft whip and tuner I can work 80-6m.  I use it mainly on 80m to work a state wide traffic net but have talked around the eastern sea board on 80m with it. I have work around the US and into europe on 40m and  worked all over the world on 10.15.17 and 20m bands.

SteveOR said:

The 'A" pillar is the structure between the winshield and the front door correct ? 'B" pillar then is between the doors. Is ther also a 'C" ..

Thanks in advance for not laughing - or if you did laugh Glad i was able to help...

Regards;

steve

Click to expand...

Yes the A is fthe front, the B is the middle and the C is the back pillar

Hi, Gary,

Thanks for posting this. I'm going to attempt something very similar.

Although I own one of the popular screwdriver antennas, I'm considering attaching a 102" whip to the hand grip area. I'll install something rigid that will function as a hand grip.  I'll need to modify the door of the storage hatch or install a quick disconnect/foldover to be able to continue to use the compartment.

What forms the base of your antenna?  Is that some sort of "big/quick disconnect"?

What do you have to do to open your storage compartment?

Thanks and 73,

Mickey
N0MB

gary, my stupid aftermarket head unit is RF modulated, i'll bet you would change the AV mode if you parked next to me and key up on that mic!
maybe i can get a digital that wont interfere,  is all CB  going to be RF  ? i can listen but can't talk at the moment, every time i key up my head unit turns on

n0mb said:

Although I own one of the popular screwdriver antennas, I'm considering attaching a 102" whip to the hand grip area. I'll install something rigid that will function as a hand grip.  I'll need to modify the door of the storage hatch or install a quick disconnect/foldover to be able to continue to use the compartment.
What forms the base of your antenna?  Is that some sort of "big/quick disconnect"?
What do you have to do to open your storage compartment?

Click to expand...

You can see some of the close ups of the mount in http://www.chevyavalanchefanclub.com/cafcna/index.php?topic=114061.0  I had a "L" bracket built that matched the hold pattern from the hand mount.
I attached a stainless steel plate to that and then a Breed love  http://bellsouthpwp.net/b/r/breedlove1/
3/8x24 mount. Breedlove makes the strongest mounts I have seen around and will customize to your needs.
With the L bracket and plate I can swap out the plat for other mounts, I have one plate  for NMO and other
one with some military threads on it.

I run a 9ft whip and I have  additional sections (16ft total) I can put on when stationary.
The storage compartment near the antenna will open a few inches to sneak things in and out but most of what I
have in that compartment I use very seldom.  jumper cables, tire changing tools, tow straps,spare belts, etc so I wasn't worried about not being able to get into it quickly. If do I need access it takes a minute to unscrew the antenna.

Good luck with your project.

Gary

K-9 kennellanche said:

gary, my stupid aftermarket head unit is RF modulated, i'll bet you would change the AV mode if you parked next to me and key up on that mic!
maybe i can get a digital that wont interfere,  is all CB  going to be RF  ? i can listen but can't talk at the moment, every time i key up my head unit turns on

Click to expand...

While Radios can cause interference its often the cheaply build devices they interfere with that are the issue.

With your CB what you might do is reposition where the antenna is located, how you route the antenna cable. Make sure the SWR is good on the antenna to keep any RF from coming back down the cable.  Where is the radio mounted and where does it get its power from?  You might test by powering the radio from a batter outside the car and see if the interferance is coming down the power cord.