[Mobile-Portable] Prepping My Chevy Astro Van For Ham radio

[Richard Ferguson]

As far as wiring the deep cycle battery, you have a couple of choices.
1. You can use a relay that connects the batteries together when the
engine is running, and disconnects when the engine is off. 2. You can
use a solid-state diode isolator as well.  Any marine or RV shop should
be able to help you with this.

Forget the hamsticks or hustlers for 75M. For 75M mobile, you need a big
antenna, a screwdriver type or one with a huge coil, like a Texas
Bugcatcher. Bigger is better, longer and larger coil.  On 20m, the usual
antennas will work fine, but the standard HF antennas will be dummy
loads on a stick on 75m, more or less useless.

Forget doing anything with the broadcast aerial, just drill holes for an
extra antenna on the fender or on the roof.  Then you can put in a
standard mount, and then use many different antennas.  Remember that the
center of the roof is the best electrical location for any antenna.

My article, link below, talks about eliminating interference, good luck.
 It was published in the mobile amateur radio awards club newsletter
some years ago.

http://www.qsl.net/ka0dxm/hfnoise.html

Richard
KA0DXM


doc wrote:
> 
> I own a 1991 Chevy Astro van which I am modifying for
> Amateur Radio, especially emergency communications.
> here are some of the things I hope to do and for which
> I'd appreciate helpful advice.
> 
> 1.  Change the short stock broadcast aerial to a longer one
> (screw on 1/8 female at the base of the whip), then insert
> an a/b switch prior to the broadcast radio and add a BNC
> jack on the dash.  This would allow use of that aerial for
> BC or a scanner ... and in an emergency for HF use via
> a tuner.  Anyone done this?  Advantages, disadvantages?
> (No space inside the fender to install a power antenna or
> even a AM-FM-CB/HF combo-type antenna.)
> 
> 2.  Mounts for hamsticks on the left and right rear sides just
> before the rear bumper.  Install 75m and 20m sticks for
> most common use and switch as desired when other bands
> are desired.  Makes for an inexpensive, simple and rugged
> setup and 75m & 20m are the key HF bands for emergency
> work.
> 
> 3.  I'd like to add a second large battery, preferably a
> deep cycle that I own, and put some sort of device in line
> so it remains fully charged but cannot be discharged due
> to a failure in the regular charging system.  Also want to
> be able to conveniently bypass that protection and start
> from it should the regular battery fail.  Any recommendations
> as to the physical placement of this battery and the
> charging protection device?
> 
> 4.  I installed better quality spark plug wires that are supposed
> to help to kill some of the RFI (engine static) I hear on the
> AM-BC radio, little help.  Where is the next place I should look?
> 
> That's all for now!  Thanks for the list and thanks in advance
> for any helpful hints!
> 
> Thanks! & 73, doc KD4E  ARRL-WCF-SEC
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
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