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General discussion (QSO) / Re: Seeking recommendations for mobile 2m/70cm rig & antenna
« on: June 26, 2013, 08:51:36 PM »
Hello John! Glad you're getting back on the air. I'm still a newbie myself but I'm learning something new every day.
I agree with Jonathan on the Larsen 2/70. I'm running one on each of my mobiles & have had ZERO issues with them. Mine are NMO mounted thru the roof, but the NMO mag mounts are pretty stout to say the least. We use them on our locomotives at work if that gives you any idea of the beating they can take.
I'm a Kenwood guy myself so their the only radios I'm familiar with but.... If I were building a setup like you're wanting, I'd be looking at the Kenwood TMV71A. You can remote mount the control head & stash the RF deck in the trunk or under the seat. There are all kinds of head mounts on the market. You can get them that fit in a cupholder or on the A/C vent, all kinds of options. I also agree on hard wiring. You **might** be able to run on 25 watts thru the cig lighter, but I wouldn't risk it. Wiring on modern cars is cheap junk. The auxiliary plug on my Trailblazer is rated for 30 amps, but the wires running to it are 22 gauge! Too risky for me. You could run power wires from the battery to wherever you're going to mount the deck & terminate it with power pole connectors to make taking it in & out of the car a plug & play kind of deal.
Anyways, let us know what you decide to do & good luck.
Matt
KF5LCH
I agree with Jonathan on the Larsen 2/70. I'm running one on each of my mobiles & have had ZERO issues with them. Mine are NMO mounted thru the roof, but the NMO mag mounts are pretty stout to say the least. We use them on our locomotives at work if that gives you any idea of the beating they can take.
I'm a Kenwood guy myself so their the only radios I'm familiar with but.... If I were building a setup like you're wanting, I'd be looking at the Kenwood TMV71A. You can remote mount the control head & stash the RF deck in the trunk or under the seat. There are all kinds of head mounts on the market. You can get them that fit in a cupholder or on the A/C vent, all kinds of options. I also agree on hard wiring. You **might** be able to run on 25 watts thru the cig lighter, but I wouldn't risk it. Wiring on modern cars is cheap junk. The auxiliary plug on my Trailblazer is rated for 30 amps, but the wires running to it are 22 gauge! Too risky for me. You could run power wires from the battery to wherever you're going to mount the deck & terminate it with power pole connectors to make taking it in & out of the car a plug & play kind of deal.
Anyways, let us know what you decide to do & good luck.
Matt
KF5LCH