Just had lots of fun running the 12v supply from the engine bay
of my car to a point just under my dashboard. Modern cars really know how to
squeeze every last inch of space. After an hours hard work and some cut hands I
finally got the cable to the correct location. I was happy to see my rig
powering up and quickly grabbed a SWR meter to test the antenna. With an output
of 50 Watts I have a near 1:1 SWR across the repeater and main transmission
frequencies. A quick audio check confirmed I could contact Kent from the
Danbury repeater. My next test is to try out the rig whilst mobile, probably on
my way to work. The rig sits nicely on its slide mount and can be easily fitted
and removed. I’ll probably run a short length of coax so that when I fix the
mag mount I won’t have trailing leads in the foot well. Let me know if you plan
to make your own slide mount and need any advice.
