Author: dsdee

KC0DTU is now N2DEE

dsdee Leave a comment

Same guy, same radios, just a new callsign…

OK, maybe a bit more than just that…

My “General” class license has been upgraded to an “Amateur Extra” back in Janurary… The go-box pictured in the previous post has been rehomed into a Gator box (post and pictures later)… The Baofeng & BTech HT’s have been replaced by an AnyTone D878UV and a Kenwood D74A (love this radio!). And, last week I took the dive into the world of HF with the purchase of an Icom IC-7300. Still trying to figure out a workable antenna for that, and will probably write up something in the future when things settle down.

It’s been a busy 12 months, and I anticipate no slowing down over the next several…

Go Box (v1) mostly done!

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“mostly,” only because I’m still trying to decide on the radio that will live permanently in it… In the mean time, my mobile, a Kenwood TM-V71A, sites nicely in on top of the empty area.

My go-box consists of:

  • Harbor Freight/Apache 3800 case
    • Seems really sturdy, and is IP65 watertight and dustproof, and for a price point that made the decision pretty easy.
  • Bioenno power LiFePO4 (12V, 12Ah battery
    • It’s light!  3.3 lbs!
  • Bank of 4 switches with a volt meter and USB plus attached
  • An SO239/SO239 panel connector to route the antenna coax from the antenna to underneath the panel
  • A Pl259/PL259 1′ pigtail coax cable to route from the other side of the SO239 connector to the future radio, once its mounted in, or underneath the panel
  • A set of Powerpole connectors on the case to power equipment above the panel
  • A 2.1mm x 5mm charging port to charge the LFP battery from the charger at home.
  • A master switch to shut the hole thing off.

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Kenwood TM-V71A… Installed, configured, and cheat sheet created

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Picked up my (first?) mobile unit for my F150 last weekend… a new Kenwood TM-V71A.  I was kind of leery about going for a radio that has basically been around a decade, but when factoring in the dual receivers, the price-point, and not willing to commit to any of the digital options for the mobile unit (not yet, at least), the decision felt pretty “right.”

On Sunday, I got it all wired up with the wire fed thru the firewall, into the Read More

Next level license, on to the next adventure…

dsdee Leave a comment

I wish I had started this website a 6 weeks ago when I got my first radio (Yaesu FT-70DR – great radio, digital modes, unfortunately only 2-3 C4FM repeaters in the area)… and replaced it with my second radio (AnyTone AT-D868UV; solid radio, it did DMR which was why I got it, but a klunky as hell UI on it, so ended up returning it, too)… and now replaced it with two Amazon Prime Day deals with a Baofeng BF-F8HP (8 watt, dual band) and a BTECH UV-5X3 (5 Watt, 2M, 1.25M, 70cm).   I figured for a total of $84, I could Read More