"CQ, CQ, CQ..." Any HAM Radio Operators out there in Ollie-World?

[MAX Burner]

It would be interesting to know if there are any Amatuer Radio Operators (HAMs) out there to share experiences of incorporating the hobby with RV'ing.  Many of us HAMs enjoy making contacts all over the world while boon docking and operating either on battery or emergency power.  There are really an unlimited number of radio/antenna combinations compatible with RV'ing - one's imagination is the limiting factor.

I'm thinking it would be fun to have operators share rig installation tips, portable/permanent antenna configurations, what bands are best for RV'ing, longest VHF/HF contacts while operating on various power sources, etc....  

Yeah, I know, sounds nerdy - but once you've got the "HAM bug" its a blast on many levels!

73 de W0ABX

[topgun2]

A PM to Bugeyedriver will set you free!

[Steph and Dud B]

K1PDB. Mostly got my ticket to work with Emergency Management, so not particularly active, but still keep a little Baofeng in the truck at all times.

[BBL]

2 hours ago, MAX Burner said:

73 de W0ABX

Hello and 73 to you!  I have been a ham since the early ‘90’s and have been active most of that time.

My call sign is, AF1US (cannot get a better call sign for being retired USAF!).  I regularly work Parks on the Air (POTA) and enjoy portable, mobile, and base operations.

My wife is KV4SF (also an Extra Class) and we are training Storm Spotters for the National Weather Service (NWS) supporting SKYWARN and ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Services).

I am presenting “A Conversation on Communications” at the Oliver Rally and will discuss Amateur operations as well as many other forms of communication.  I am also planning a POTA activation since we will be in a State Park! 

I have a Yaesu FTM-300 in my truck and typically carry my FT-991A and Chameleon vertical when we travel.  We also take a variety of handhelds (HT’s) along with us.

From the description you would think I am a Yaesu man but my home shack is mostly ICOM, IC-7610 and IC-9700 along with a ACOM 1200S for some added power.  I run that through a Mosley S-33 (40m, 20m and 17m) all other bands are on an EFHW long wire.

Looking forward to some more talks, ideas, activities.

73 de AF1US

Brian

PS - I have no intention of installing any type of radio IN the Oliver. Ok, maybe a remote…

[MAX Burner]

49 minutes ago, Brian and Brandelyne said:

I have no intention of installing any type of radio IN the Oliver. Ok, maybe a remote…

@Brian and BrandelyneGreat to hear from you, brother!  Concur, awesome call sign!

Got my General in '07 and have been active from the base station here (IC-746 Pro/Ameritron AL-811/G5RV up top) - mostly on the "High Noon Net", 7.240MHz, and occasional HAM Fests.

I had an ICOM 7000 in my previous trailer (AS) with a home brewed multi-band (screwdriver) which I made from scratch.  Used a 12vDC actuator to remotely raise the Screwdriver from towing mode (horizontal) to transmitting mode (vertical) on the roof; great ground plane on the AS - obviously not so on the Ollie! HA!  

Probably won't install a radio inside the Ollie (at least for now) - I'll most likely install the IC-7000 in the truck with the Screwdriver - lots to do to the truck in terms of bonding panels, etc.  It would be nice to have an HF set-up portable/solar for camping, right?

We've done the Quartzite, AZ HAM RV rally many times over the past Januarys - great fun winter boon docking on BLM with 800-900 "Hamster" rigs all spread out in the Borego Desert!

I've got no less than 4HTs in the Ollie now, however!

73's, brother!

W0ABX

[bugeyedriver]

DdDd DDdD    DdDd DDdD      Ddd d      DdD ddDDD dDDd dDdd DD      DdD ddDDD dDDd dDdd DD

Great thread, thanks for starting it!  I always envisioned The Wonder Egg being a rolling ham shack.  During the build (in the early days) I asked Oliver to wire the trailer for ham radio operations with an so239 connector outside, running the coax between the shells to the dinette area with another so239.   But for many years, I was so busy traveling around the country making new friends and seeing new sights that I never sat still long enough to study for the FCC license and get on the air . . . until COVID, that is.  It was the best social distancing hobby I could have ever participated in during the dreaded lock down.

Now my home shack has an FTdx101D joined to a Palstar HF Auto and Palstar LA1k for my primary tranceiver.  HTs abound as well.  The antenna farm includes an EFHV stretched across the back yard for 133 ft, a Xeigu VG4 vertical up at 29 ft, and my go-to for DX is a HexBeam on a tower at 35ft.  I also have a dual band Comet GP-1 mounted on a flagpole at 25 ft.

My F150 is fully bonded together with 15 wide brass straps and my Diamondback aluminum tonneau is a great platform for my HF ATAS-120A and for my dual band CA-2X4SR.  I tend to hear a lot of crickets on VHF and UHF, but on HF I communicate all over the world while driving down the highway.  Inside the F150 I have an FT857D and FTM 400XDR/DE.

Inside The Wonder Egg I'll have an ICOM IC-7300 and a Yaesu FT5D HT.

I have too many choices of antennas to bring them all with me as I travel.  This year I'll be bringing a portable BuddiHEX from Buddipole, a TW2010 with 40M and 80M options from DX Engineering, and a CHA LEFS Lightweight End Fed Sloper from Chameleon Antennas.  There is a dual band VHF/UHF antenna mounted on The Wonder Egg.

It will be great to meet fellow enthusiasts at the rally and down the road.

73,

Pete, K2PLM

 

P.S. Folks, sorry for the NERDing  out thing here . . . it's an unfortunate  condition of ham radio operators. Thanks for understanding . . . . 

 

     

[BigTexas]

KE5PRE -   I'm not very active.  Mostly I mount my rig on a motorcycle to support charity bicycle events around the state.  The MS Society has an annual ride this weekend.  I'm working the route going from to Austin to College Station with an overnight in LaGrange.  The other routes are coming from the Houston area so we use a statewide linked net.

I usually take an HT camping with us with some local repeaters stored when we hike.  Just incase we have an emergency with no cell service.

[MAX Burner]

Thanks for all the replies, y'all!  I'm getting pumped!  Casablanca may very well be in line for a multi-band radio install, after all...  

Sounds to me like there's plenty of expertise out there in Ollie-world to bounce-off ideas about cabling, permanent/portable antenna options, power options, and share internal radio mounting location ideas.

Obviously not a lot of room inside, but my lovely wife might just give me some volume inside the pantry for a rig (that is, if I ask her twice and beg her, "pretty please?").  HA!  We actually had our IC-7000 mounted in a cabinet in our SOB with the head panel tucked away but accessible and she was fine with that.  

So, I say the ice has been broken - standby for subsequent threads on converting Casablanca to a "rolling HAM shack"...

In the meantime, recommend we talk-up the HAM hobby and get other OTT folks interested...  RV'ing and HAM operations are a compatible fit, IMHO.  Especially considering the enhanced safety and emergency capabilities mentioned above by @BigTexas with just getting folks into carrying HTs on camping trips were cellular signal are absent.

73 de W0ABX

Art

[BBL]

This is my Mosley S-33 and 18' Diamond Dual Band antenna up on my Universal, All-Aluminum tower.  It also has my Acurite weather station.

 

73 de AF1US

Brian

 

 

[MAX Burner]

31 minutes ago, Brian and Brandelyne said:

This is my Mosley S-33 and 18' Diamond Dual Band antenna up on my Universal, All-Aluminum tower.  It also has my Acurite weather station.

 

73 de AF1US

Brian

 

 

Absolutely awesome antenna!  I've got a DX Engineering MBVE-5A multi-section vertical (43 feet) with a tilt mount.  I had it set up at our cabin with 60+ radials - the cabin sets at 8,300msl; needless to say I was getting good contacts.  Its disassembled it and now it's waiting for a good location at our main residence.

[topgun2]

Are you guys speaking English? 🤔

[bugeyedriver]

3 hours ago, topgun2 said:

Are you guys speaking English? 🤔

DDD ddDd      DdDd DDD ddD dDd ddd d      dDD d      dD dDd d      DdDdDD

[topgun2]

5 hours ago, bugeyedriver said:

DDD ddDd      DdDd DDD ddD dDd ddd d      dDD d      dD dDd d      DdDdDD

Well - that certainly clears it up!😜

[MAX Burner]

4 minutes ago, topgun2 said:

Well - that certainly clears it up!😜

It certainly does!  Ha!  🤪

[MAX Burner]

9 hours ago, topgun2 said:

Are you guys speaking English? 🤔

It’s “HAMster” English 🤣

[MAX Burner]

On 4/25/2023 at 8:37 PM, bugeyedriver said:

Inside The Wonder Egg I'll have an ICOM IC-7300

@bugeyedriver:  What are your plans for mounting the IC-7300?  Permanent or temporary - just curious, trying to get some ideas for my IC-7000...

73!

[bugeyedriver]

The IC-7300 is not permanently mounted in the trailer.  Going down the road it is nestled inside its Pelican case in the truck and while setting up camp I bring it inside where it sits on the dinette table.  This works for me because I am a solo traveler with a small dog, so using the table as a ham station is fine.  The DXE-TW-2010-P has a control cable which enables me to change bands remotely.  I feed the cable into the trailer through a small hatch where the power cable enters the trailer on an electric the wind-up reel (an early model feature). The antenna control box is powered by a 10AH battery.  

[bugeyedriver]

June QST magazine is out, with THe Wonder Egg on the cover!  This was my setup during field day last year.

[SeaDawg]

12 minutes ago, bugeyedriver said:

June QST magazine is out, with THe Wonder Egg on the cover!  This was my setup during field day last year.

Awesome, Pete!

[topgun2]

Inquiring minds just want to know - where is the biggest ham of them all - Bosker?

[MAX Burner]

1 hour ago, bugeyedriver said:

June QST magazine is out, with THe Wonder Egg on the cover!  This was my setup during field day last year.

Awsome rig set-up, @SeaDawg!  Very jelly here...  73 OM!

[MAX Burner]

On 4/30/2023 at 4:58 PM, bugeyedriver said:

The IC-7300 is not permanently mounted in the trailer.  Going down the road it is nestled inside its Pelican case in the truck and while setting up camp I bring it inside where it sits on the dinette table.  This works for me because I am a solo traveler with a small dog, so using the table as a ham station is fine.  The DXE-TW-2010-P has a control cable which enables me to change bands remotely.  I feed the cable into the trailer through a small hatch where the power cable enters the trailer on an electric the wind-up reel (an early model feature). The antenna control box is powered by a 10AH battery.  

Great rig, OM!

73 de W0ABX

[SeaDawg]

26 minutes ago, MAX Burner said:

Awsome rig set-up, @SeaDawg!  Very jelly here...  73 OM!

That's not mine. It's @bugeyedriver's. Great, isn't it?

[MAX Burner]

1 minute ago, SeaDawg said:

That's not mine.

oops!  Sorry, guys!  Anyhow, yes!  Great rig - I love DXE antennas...  Here's a pic of one of my SOBs with my home brew multi-band screwdriver and 12v electric tilt mount...

[Galway Girl]

Saw the post on QST Mag.

KI7SXN  checking in from Everett Wa.

C.  Short

Hull 505 - Galway Girl