1996 Coachmen Leprechaun Ham Radio Install

[thefuzz4]

Hey Everyone,

So now that we have our camper charging itself with its convert properly and the fact that here in Colorado we're gearing up for camping season. Now is the time for me to find a place to install my home base station radio into the camper. Problem is unlike in my truck where I can just stick the thing under my dash and then put the face plate up somewhere, I need the ability to remove this from the camper when we get back home so I can hook it back up inside. Sure I could just order another radio to put in the camper but well I think I've spent my budget on the radio for this year :). Anywho anyone got any experience with putting one of these units in a Coachmen? Like I said I'd like to be able to remove it so I'm going to use the male/female plugs so I can just unplug and unscrew the coax.

Just in case you're wondering why I don't put in a CB well, where we go up into the woods where no one else is around we use our portable radios while we're out riding our ATVs and we like to be able to talk to each other and it would be nice to have a nice powerful radio back at the camp site. Especially in the event of an emergency since our phones don't typically work back in the woods. Also tree's eat up the AM transmits pretty well. 73's to all KE0DQW

[crasster]

Well there are MANY ways to setup the HAM radio, but of course you'll want to do it where the coax is the shortest to prevent the most loss possible. It is much better to run longer speaker/MIC wires to convenient locations than put out longer stretches of antenna wire (loss).

[thefuzz4]

Hey Ken,

Oh yes fully legal all of us are licensed :). Simplex operations in the woods work wonders compared to those GMRS ones :).

[RoyB]

I guess I am missing something with the Ham Radio operations. These radios are to be used to talk to other ham radio operators.... It is sort of against the rules for you to setup a communication thing for you and your family members to use unless they are all licensed ham radio operators as well...

My ham radio HF mobile unit is the IC706MKII and I have it under the rear seat of my truck with its control head up on the dash. I have the same setup in my OFF-ROAD POPUP trailer setup so all I have to do is move the main radio from the truck to the trailer. I picked up a second control head and also have a TARHEEL LIL TARHEEL screwdriver antenna mount on the trailer. I can easily move the TARHEEL from the truck and mount to the roof of the trailer.

I also have a couple other Ham radio units I use mostly to monitor FM channels for police, rescue squad, and WX channels... These radio are also mounted in a unique place and only the remote control heads with speakers and microphones are mounted on console panel...

Here is a drawing of my OFF-ROAD POPUP trailer which shows where things are mounted. You might get some ideas from this to implement in your trailer setup.

All of my HF,2M, and 440 rigs are powered by a BLUE SEA 12VDC Fused sub-panel Panel that is fed by my battery bank... I have mounted all of the HF-VHF-UHF antennas on the roof of my POPUP trailer... I also have a easy pole type antenna that goes up to around 25-feet that I can use a OFF CENTER FED Dipole Antenna which covers the HF bands... I can throw up the ends of this antenna up into trees on both sides of my POPUP trailer...


To legally talk with non-amateur radio members of your family you need to use citizen type radios like the FRS-GRMS-MURS types...

Roy Ken