[Elecraft] Could this operate on a motorcycle?

[Russell Conner]

well, the naysayers have convinced me, the Elecraft is not the radio for me
for this application, and this is the application I need to solve first. A
home station is a year or two away, if ever.

I will just have to find a vendor that has a product that does what I need,
pity it is not this one.


On Sun, May 4, 2014 at 4:30 PM, Don Wilhelm <w3fpr at embarqmail.com> wrote:

> The KX3 (or any other Elecraft transceiver) is not as fragile as some in
> this thread would imply.  It is actually has a rather sturdy enclosure, and
> the SMD boards are much more sturdy than thru-hole electronics.  Put it in
> a good mount and it will survive on the handlebars of those motorcycles
> that you quoted.  It might have a rough time on a dirt bike, but that is
> another situation entirely - you are talking of comfortable riding bikes,
> some even rivaling the smooth ride of a 4 wheeled luxury vehicle.
>
> I do think your power level may be the limiting factor, especially if you
> are riding in terrain with deep valleys and canyons where communications
> may be challenging.  You can depend on only 5 watts from the KX3 because if
> it is in strong direct sunlight and gets hot, the power will throttle back
> to 5 watts.  If you can keep it in the shade, then you can depend on 10
> watts.
>
> Since the safety and well-being of everyone in your group is of utmost
> concern here, I would suggest 25 watts as your power goal unless you have
> tested 5 or 10 watts on 6 meters (or 10 meters) under the most difficult
> situations you are likely to encounter.
>
> Having HF capability can solve many problems for communications from
> canyons and other places where 6 meter/VHF communications will not be
> reliable.  80 meters and a low dipole will provide you communications in
> most cases, but that means getting off the bike and putting up that 80
> meter dipole, so I don't think that is your main focus (except possibly in
> extreme emergency situations).  I would recommend that you look into a 6
> meter (or 10 meter) transceiver with 25 to 50 watts output for reliable
> communications under the conditions that you have stated.
>
> I would think that an HF transceiver like the KX3 would be a great choice
> for HF operation in camp at night, but for the terrain that you describe it
> may not be the best choice for your in-route communications.
>
> OTOH, if you have tried the CB band with 5 watt transceivers and it works
> OK except for the 'yahoos', the KX3 at 5 watts on either 10 meters or 6
> meters may do the job fine for you.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
> PS: your "reply", Reply All" problems come from Nabble.  Move over to the
> main Elecraft reflector with a computer email client (or even webmail), and
> those problems will go away.
>
>
>
> On 5/4/2014 6:28 PM, rgconner wrote:
>
>> Well, there is no reply all, just reply, and I am replying to the mailing
>> list, so I don't know what else I can do.
>>
>> And yes, it is going to require an investment for everyone to go to 6m.
>> But... the serious HAMs that have helped provide this solution already run
>> 6m, and the cost is rather incremental if you are riding a $30K Goldwing,
>> K1600 or HD bike.
>> Even on my F700GS, we are talking my cost in tires every year to buy this
>> radio and a 6Db antenna.
>>
>> So, please, don't add limitations I have not stated.
>>
>> Now, someone stated somewhere that 6m is hard to keep attenuated, and that
>> might be a deal killer. Maybe 10w vas 5w is not worth the gain. Maybe 25w
>> is
>> the floor.
>>
>> Again, with all the praise for this unit, it seems odd it is such a wall
>> flower. *shrug*
>>
>> When I talked to the techs at the office, they seemed to think it would be
>> ok, but then they are selling it, they are not going to say it can't do
>> the
>> job unless it is going to damage their rep if it breaks.
>>
>> Considering the almost 100% against, I think most people's reaction to a
>> "bad review" if it failed on a MC would be "dumbass"
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> View this message in context: http://elecraft.365791.n2.
>> nabble.com/Could-this-operate-on-a-motorcycle-tp7588505p7588545.html
>> Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> Elecraft mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net
>>
>> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
>> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>> Message delivered to w3fpr at embarqmail.com
>>
>>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> Post: mailto:Elecraft at mailman.qth.net
>
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
> Message delivered to rgconner at gmail.com
>