After being somewhat under antenna’d at my activation of Black hill the other week, i decided to bite the bullet and sort something a bit better!
So, I now have a proper setup comprising yaesu FT4XE handheld with spare battery, 2M flowerpot antenna SWR 1-1.1, 6M Roach pole and home made guy kit, a 2/70 SWR meter from moonraker, 2M SOTAbeams bandpass filter various adapters and bits and bobs, it all packs down neatly into a little duffle bag (except the pole) for hiding in my sackruck!
Tested it properly today on my front grass, strong signal reports all around so im over the moon… hopefully manage some good contacts in the up coming weeks on this setup!
Thanks everyone for the support and encouragement, it really did give me the push to sort out a basic setup
best thing about it all is, too it hasn’t cost me a fortune! the whole lot, handheld included was less than £250, just goes to show that amateur radio as a hobby needn’t break the bank!
Of course you foolishly said complete. That’s just the beginnings! Why do I know? Well like you, I was testing a new antenna on my front grass this afternoon.
Few extra suggestions:
1/ Don’t attach the antenna to the top section but on the next section below. The top section can easily snap with too much strain/wind.
2/ Get some velcro loops and wind it around coax & pole, esp. above / below the choke in windy conditions.
3/ For quick (cold/windy) activations, you can leave the pole in you backpack and only extend the pole for a few sections just enough for the top section of the antenna to peek out above the cairn/trig point/wall/pile of stones.
Good luck with your next activation and hopefully we’ll have another S2S soon.
Some sound advice there, reguards the top section, i was actually thinking of detaching it permanantly, and fitting the top of the antenna with a small plastic hook, to just hook the antenna over the edge of the pole, and a velcro bottom to hold the coil, im in wales from wednesday, and the setup will be going with, for some SOTA and use in the caravan!
I am yet to find a suitable hook, but will see how it works out! Thanks for the advice
I folded a piece of heat shrink tubing and fixed it with another piece.
I put this over the tip. If it is windy and the mast bends strongly, it makes sense to fix the antenna again further down, e.g. with adhesive tape or Velcro.
For me, this has already held a few hundred activations.
