Search found 41 matches

by K4RXR
Sat Aug 13, 2011 3:06 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Need console recommend on 2011 F-150
Replies: 24
Views: 9462

Re: Need console recommend on 2011 F-150

Very interesting. Thank you. Havis has brackets to attach one of their floor plates to the bracket around the RCM. I've been considering going that route, but have some concerns about the stability of that arrangement. For one, there's nothing anchoring the floor plate to the transmission tunnel tow...
by K4RXR
Wed Aug 03, 2011 5:37 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Need console recommend on 2011 F-150
Replies: 24
Views: 9462

Re: Need console recommend on 2011 F-150

tvsjr wrote:We built a custom false floor with integrated wiring chase...
I have a new F-150 and I'm looking for console ideas. Do you have photos of this wiring chase?
by K4RXR
Sun Jan 21, 2007 9:50 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Small Motorola external speaker
Replies: 15
Views: 9451

tvsjr wrote:HSN8145. Same case, I believe a slightly better speaker itself (rated at 7.5 watts... I think the cell phone speakers are rated at 4)...
Thanks for the cross-reference.

What impedance is the HSN8145? 4 or 8 ohms?

Bob...
by K4RXR
Sun Jan 21, 2007 3:43 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Small Motorola external speaker
Replies: 15
Views: 9451

Small Motorola external speaker

In another thread, we got to talking about small external speakers that still sound good. While sorting through a junk box yesterday, I found a new-in-the-box sample of one of the speakers I've been happy with. I bought it at a hamfest several years ago. It appears to have been part of a Motorola ce...
by K4RXR
Tue Jan 16, 2007 5:05 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: FT-857 installation advice please, 2002 Dodge Ram 1500
Replies: 15
Views: 4339

I have some speakers like the KES-3 and they do pretty well. Some of them I thought came from old Motorola cellphone car kits. I'd like to find a couple more as the smaller ones are crap.

Bob...
by K4RXR
Tue Jan 16, 2007 9:20 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: FT-857 installation advice please, 2002 Dodge Ram 1500
Replies: 15
Views: 4339

Re: FT-857 installation advice please, 2002 Dodge Ram 1500

put a little speaker next to your remoted base... I have been sorely disappointed with the small external speakers I've been seeing at hamfests. They must be building these things with high frequency drivers because they sound very tinny to my ears. Unfortunately, this seems to be an area where big...
by K4RXR
Tue Nov 28, 2006 9:28 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: 6m antenna options
Replies: 16
Views: 4873

Thanks for the replies and suggestions. I'm going to go with a Larsen NMO50 or something similar mounted at pretty much the center of the roof in both directions. The hole was drilled, the mount installed, and the feedline routed last weekend. Maybe this weekend, I'll get the antenna mounted and tun...
by K4RXR
Tue Nov 21, 2006 2:13 pm
Forum: Base Stations, Repeaters, General Infrastructure
Topic: Base dual-band ham antenna
Replies: 7
Views: 1044

Base dual-band ham antenna

The county where I live is developing plans for a new Emergency Operations Center. I suggested to the EMA Director that the new EOC should have provisions for amateur radio. He contacted the "owner" of the building where the new EOC is going and we have an agreement in principle to mount a...
by K4RXR
Tue Nov 21, 2006 2:05 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: 6m antenna options
Replies: 16
Views: 4873

6m antenna options

[Potentially Off-topic] I'm considering various antenna options for 6m FM and I'd like the group's opinions. The vehicle in quesiton is a Ford Expedition so it has lots of roof surface and I'm not concerned about drilling holes. Here's what I see as possibilities: 1. A full-size quarter-wave on a ba...
by K4RXR
Thu Nov 02, 2006 9:27 am
Forum: General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion
Topic: ONE ON THE RADIOS IN MOVIES TOPIC AGAIN
Replies: 164
Views: 59929

"...They have called ahead by now and you can't outrun a MOTOROLA". Great line from Dan Aykroyd! And the obvious tie-in there is that the movie was based in Chicago and Motorola is headquartered in Schaumburg, a Chicago suburb. Just another example of great writing from a great movie. Bob...
by K4RXR
Thu Sep 14, 2006 5:30 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: 2004 Jetta install?
Replies: 10
Views: 3607

Correct! There's another ISO hole, perfect for ISO size radio's. Ed, since the 2002 model year, U.S.-spec Golfs, Jettas, and GTIs with the upgraded audio system ("Monsoon") have had a "dual DIN" head unit that works with the included power amp and also controls the optional 6-di...
by K4RXR
Tue Sep 12, 2006 6:37 pm
Forum: General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion
Topic: MSR2000 Model Number Breakdown
Replies: 2
Views: 640

C73KSB

100 watt, continuous duty, fully-optionable backplane, 132-174 MHz

3106BT

PL squelch, T1-R1 (one xmit, one receive freq), tone control
by K4RXR
Sat Sep 09, 2006 12:36 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: 2004 Jetta install?
Replies: 10
Views: 3607

No, I bought an A4 GTI a few months before the new ones hit the dealers. My 1.8T is rated at 180HP while the 2.0T in the new ones is rated at 200HP. The weights are comparable, I think, so the new ones should be a little faster than mine. The new ones are also reported to handle better, but with a s...
by K4RXR
Mon Sep 04, 2006 10:40 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: 2004 Jetta install?
Replies: 10
Views: 3607

I can't give you any real experience, just some observations. I owned a 2002 Jetta 1.8T and now a 2005 GTI 1.8T. In the 2002 model, the "cupholder" was a thingie that popped out of the dash above the radio. Sometime between then and my 2005, they redesigned the console to move the cupholde...
by K4RXR
Thu Aug 10, 2006 8:38 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Andersen PowerPoles for Harneses
Replies: 9
Views: 2985

On second thought, and after doing some Googling, maybe I didn't see what I thought I saw.

Take a look at this photo http://home.comcast.net/~buck0/app_asb3.jpg. Maybe that's what I saw, because I can't recall ever seeing a tie-wrap small enough to go through the "roll-pin" holes.

Bob...
by K4RXR
Thu Aug 10, 2006 8:14 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Andersen PowerPoles for Harneses
Replies: 9
Views: 2985

I've been a little disappointed in the mating friction of the Powerpoles. At Dayton, I couldn't help but notice that one of the Powerpole dealers had kinda solved the lack of pull-apart resistance. You know how when you slide two connector shells together, there's a small hole on the split line of ...
by K4RXR
Sun Aug 06, 2006 5:45 am
Forum: General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion
Topic: K4WTF - Needs your Prayers and your Support
Replies: 16
Views: 4625

Who's on first?

John, I understand. Several years ago, my father went to a prominent local hospital for heart bypass surgery conducted by a surgeon from a leading cardiac center. Dad was in cardiac recovery for over a week after the surgery (most people only spend a day there) and spent another couple of weeks in a...
by K4RXR
Mon Jul 10, 2006 7:45 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: SUV Antenna Mount
Replies: 4
Views: 2096

Does the vehicle have a roof-mounted luggage rack? Both Diamond and Comet make NMO mounts that will attach to the rails of a luggage rack.

Bob...
by K4RXR
Thu Jun 08, 2006 8:18 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Diamond NR72BNMO
Replies: 9
Views: 4417

After much personal reflection, I recall that I owned a Comet SBB-2NMO for a while. It was mounted on the luggage rack on my Ford Explorer using a Diamond mount of some sort. I forgot the antenna was there one day and put the Exploder in the garage. Snapped that Comet right off. The ferrule where th...
by K4RXR
Wed Jun 07, 2006 8:13 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Radio layout with center counsole gear shifter
Replies: 6
Views: 5016

Tom, any chance you could post one or two photos here? I'm looking for mounting ideas for my Volkswagen GTI.

Thanks!

Bob...
by K4RXR
Wed Jun 07, 2006 8:11 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Diamond NR72BNMO
Replies: 9
Views: 4417

It's still physically too short for a full 1/4 wave on VHF. How much radiated signal is getting converted to heat in whatever coil thingy is at the bottom of the antenna? As an alternative, take a look at the Comet SBB-2NMO. 18" long, 2.15dBi on 146MHz, 3.8dBi on 446MHz. I used to think that Co...
by K4RXR
Wed May 31, 2006 3:44 pm
Forum: Base Stations, Repeaters, General Infrastructure
Topic: Kenwood TKR-750 or Vertex/Standard VXR-7000 for ham use?
Replies: 15
Views: 3478

Make absolutely certain that you have the repeater tuned before you even think of putting it on the air. The TKR-x50 series has a real front end/preselector in it... if you don't tune it for your specific frequencies, your sensitivity will suck. Yeah, and that may be the issue. The shop probably do...
by K4RXR
Wed May 31, 2006 3:41 pm
Forum: Vehicle Warning Equipment Discussion
Topic: What did I see?
Replies: 5
Views: 3469

OK, thanks. Based on what I'm seeing on 911EP's web site, it may have been the LS12.
by K4RXR
Wed May 31, 2006 1:56 pm
Forum: Vehicle Warning Equipment Discussion
Topic: What did I see?
Replies: 5
Views: 3469

What did I see?

I noticed a local county sheriff department CVPI with a very eye-catching warning light. It was about 18" long and mounted on top of the dashboard at the base of the windshield. Half of the light was red, other half blue, appeared to be LEDs. The light was programmed so that the LEDs seemed to ...
by K4RXR
Wed May 31, 2006 1:47 pm
Forum: Base Stations, Repeaters, General Infrastructure
Topic: Kenwood TKR-750 or Vertex/Standard VXR-7000 for ham use?
Replies: 15
Views: 3478

I see a couple of you guys bragging on the Kenwood TKR-750 for ham use. What about the TKR-850 in the ham bands (447 in, 442 out)? A local Kenwood shop said it couldn't be done.
by K4RXR
Wed May 24, 2006 9:41 pm
Forum: Computer/Technical Assistance
Topic: Writing "HELP" files
Replies: 1
Views: 2105

Do a Google search for Windows Help Compiler. The actual compiler from Microsoft ships with their development products (Visual Basic, C, etc.). There may be a freeware/shareware/public license compiler out there, but I didn't look that far. Another approach would be put your notes together in HTML f...
by K4RXR
Wed May 24, 2006 9:30 pm
Forum: Legacy Batboard Motorola ASTRO (VSELP/IMBE/AMBE) Equipment Forum
Topic: God bless Germany.......digital police radio in germany....
Replies: 10
Views: 2789

The best think with Tetra is for logical channels per physical channel and full duplex interconnect meaning no need to cary a cell and a tetra unit. When the Formula 1 circus comes to North America (Montreal and Indianapolis) , they bring their Tetra system with them. The FIA officials all walk aro...
by K4RXR
Tue May 16, 2006 4:46 pm
Forum: Vehicle Warning Equipment Discussion
Topic: Gamber Johnson articulating arm?
Replies: 6
Views: 3258

And with all due respect to Gary, in my opinion, Jotto is just downright dangerous. Cheap would be the word I'd use. We won't compromise anyone's safety to save some $$. Could you elaborate? What is it about the Jotto mounts that you think is dangerous? I had a Jotto mount in a Ford Explorer. I'll ...
by K4RXR
Tue May 02, 2006 4:03 pm
Forum: Radio Programming
Topic: motorola vs kenwood
Replies: 5
Views: 2233

In the case of the software for the Kenwood TK-x90 mobiles, the DOS version is readily available and seems to run OK on most computers, though I'm guessing that it won't talk to the radio if run in a DOS box under Windows. It's probably best to boot the computer straight to DOS. The Windows version ...
by K4RXR
Sat Apr 29, 2006 2:30 pm
Forum: Computer/Technical Assistance
Topic: SanDisk flash drive advice
Replies: 2
Views: 2320

SanDisk flash drive advice

I have a SanDisk Cruzer Micro 1GB USB flash drive that I bought at BestBuy last November for about $80. The thing worked great. Even though the U3 software that's supposed to let you run programs from the flash drive was kind of annoying at times, the drive had tons of room and always worked flawles...
by K4RXR
Mon Apr 24, 2006 7:20 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Power wiring questions: grounding, circuit breakers
Replies: 9
Views: 3127

Thanks for all of the tips and advice. Note that I said nothing in my original post about fusing the ground lead. My question was whether or not to ground to the body/chassis of the vehicle at the equipment or run the grounds back to the underhood electrical distribution point. Based on what I read ...
by K4RXR
Wed Apr 19, 2006 8:26 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Power wiring questions: grounding, circuit breakers
Replies: 9
Views: 3127

Power wiring questions: grounding, circuit breakers

At the risk of opening the great power wiring debates again, I have some questions for the group: 1. When mounting radio equipment in a vehicle, is it better to do the grounding at the equipment or run the grounds back to the power source? Let's say you are tapping off the battery or other reliable ...
by K4RXR
Tue Apr 18, 2006 7:49 am
Forum: Vehicle Warning Equipment Discussion
Topic: Crown Vic automatic fire supression systems ?!?!?!?!!?!?!?
Replies: 11
Views: 4584

What are these systems using for an extinguishing agent? Halon is probably the best, but it's a chlorinated fluorohydrocarbon, so production has been seriously curtailed by federal and international regulations. You can still get halon, but the cost for refilling these systems is going to continue t...
by K4RXR
Mon Apr 10, 2006 7:37 am
Forum: General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion
Topic: eBay forbids selling Motorola Radios???
Replies: 57
Views: 14858

escomm wrote:Previous poster appears to be a tad upset!
AEC wrote:Enterprise.....One to beam up!
That says it all.

Bob...
by K4RXR
Thu Apr 06, 2006 7:49 am
Forum: General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion
Topic: NMO Shielded mounts ?
Replies: 8
Views: 1101

I ordered some Larsen NMOKHFDS mounts from Tessco earlier this week. No account necessary if you use a credit card. The DS cable is essentially the same as the UD cable, but uses a stranded center conductor. Also, you should be able to find dielectric grease at just about any auto parts store (NAPA,...
by K4RXR
Thu Mar 30, 2006 8:12 am
Forum: General Motorola Solutions & Legacy Radio Discussion
Topic: NMO Shielded mounts ?
Replies: 8
Views: 1101

Are you talking about the Larsen NMOKHF mount? I'm looking for a good source for them, too.
by K4RXR
Mon Feb 27, 2006 8:15 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Havis-Shields face plates in JottoDesk console
Replies: 2
Views: 1514

Havis-Shields face plates in JottoDesk console

Will it work? Do the mounting holes in the plate match the mounting holes in the console?

Thanks!

Bob...
by K4RXR
Fri Sep 16, 2005 6:38 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: 2003 Ford Explorer - Console.. among other things...
Replies: 2
Views: 1539

Take a look at the Jotto Desk console. If you think it will suit your needs, let me know. I have one that I took out of an '03 Exploder. It fit great and was easy to install, but I ended up getting rid of the car. I'll sell the console and some face plates for less than new price. You can email me a...
by K4RXR
Tue Mar 22, 2005 2:53 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Jotto Desk vs. Havis Shields console for Explorer
Replies: 12
Views: 3665

I think I have it figured out. The link to the installation instructions on Jotto Desk's website was broken, but it worked today when I checked. It looks like once you remove the screw that's under the pad in the storage compartment, it's just a matter of applying some pressure to pop the top out of...
by K4RXR
Mon Mar 21, 2005 7:29 pm
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Jotto Desk vs. Havis Shields console for Explorer
Replies: 12
Views: 3665

Jotto Desk console. Can have it installed in 10 minutes. We use a lot of them in Exploders. Bump again. I'm about ready to order a Jotto console for my '03 Explorer, so I did some poking around today to see what it was going to take to get the top of the old console off. I'm stumped. What screw or ...
by K4RXR
Fri Feb 04, 2005 9:32 am
Forum: Vehicle Radio Installs
Topic: Jotto Desk vs. Havis Shields console for Explorer
Replies: 12
Views: 3665

Let me bump this topic with some additional questions. It looks like the Jotto Desk console for the Explorer is a little deeper than the Havis-Shields. More depth would seem to be A Good Thing in order to accomodate deeper equipment that doesn't have remote head capability. However, the only photos ...

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