Ham Radio mounts, installs

[dduffey]

Any Hams out there thinking or have done an install? I just received my General license and haven't had a mobile ham yet, so it is all ground zero for me.

I'de like to get on the 10M band from the R1T and have heard that can be problematic on EVs.

I do have a contact that wants to do some testing in EMF interference caused by the vehicle. Should I have him scan the 10M range, locations around the vehicle, grounding points, etc.?

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[chrismc]

There are a number of challenges, including 12v power, but to me the hardest part is antenna mounting. The all-glass roof is challenging and does not present a useful RF ground plane. You will likely need to mount to a roof crossbar and add a metal ground plane under the antenna for decent signal propagation. 10m band presents its own challenges due to the size of the wave and limited equipment. Since you just got your General ticket, I’d look at battery-powered setups used for SOTA HF and similar and go that route for more flexibility than a conventional mobile HF setup.

 

[thrill]

I've been thinking (eek) that glass roofs might work reasonably well as ground planes if the tint is due to embedded metallic particles.

 

[Desiboy]

Reviving this thread. On my LR4 (also glass roofed) I had the antenna mounted on the hood, much like the FM radio antennas on vehicles in the 90s. Anyone mount a HAM radio yet?

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