So here's the situation. I spend 5 days a week living on the road. I do my best to get out on the air, but my mobile antenna choices are limited due mostly to abuse received from trees and uneven roads. You wouldn't believe how fast a shaft on a Wilson Trucker will snap just from the truck swinging back and forth.
So it got me thinking, I shut down most evenings around 5 pm and get going at 4 am the next morning. Where I park is quiet RF wise, and I hear lots of traffic on SSB. I have been wondering about mounting a base antenna such as an A99 on the top of my trailer when I park. Or maybe even a 102 whip. I am concerned with the durability of a fiberglass antenna. The antenna would have to come down of course when I drive, and it would have to ride it a hose tube which is only 16 feet long. So an A99 would have to be taken apart every day and reassembled each time I use it. Not sure I want to do that. 16 feet is all I can get for storage, no more. I could lay the antenna down on to of the trailer, but then it would be subjected to cement powder being spilled all over it when I load.
Then there is the mounting issue. Here is what I'm working with.
The trailer is all aluminum, except for the suspension. It is also basically one piece of aluminum. From the frame to the top rails, every piece is welded. The only bolting together of pieces is between the frame and the suspension and the fifth wheel plate. Mounting any kind of antenna in the center if the trailer would require drilling a hole to mount it, and that is out if the question. These trailers unload under pressure. 14.5 psi doesn't seem like alot till you see an end cap come off at 10 psi and compound fracture a leg. Not pretty.
I have three possible mounting points.
First on the front of the trailer is this lip.
It is 1/8" aluminum. I could fabricate a mount that would attach with wing nuts or some sort of quick release. Something to pinch the lip.
Or I can do the same with this lip.
I MIGHT be able to talk my company into letting me drill a hole there, but most likely not.
Here is a top view of these two lips.
The other option I have is clamping an antenna to the back of the trailer on the access ladder, but that would require alot of coax.
So I guess my questions here are am I up in the night with this idea? Is it worth the effort? Will I gain enough signal to make it worth setting up and taking down each time I use it? If it is worth it to try, would I be better off running an A99 or would it be more practical to put a 102" whip up there. And would any of my mounting options provide for efficient antenna operations, and if so what would be the best choice.
Sorry for the book, but I've been reading alot about RF grounding, and I have learned that I need to read alot more about RF grounding.
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So it got me thinking, I shut down most evenings around 5 pm and get going at 4 am the next morning. Where I park is quiet RF wise, and I hear lots of traffic on SSB. I have been wondering about mounting a base antenna such as an A99 on the top of my trailer when I park. Or maybe even a 102 whip. I am concerned with the durability of a fiberglass antenna. The antenna would have to come down of course when I drive, and it would have to ride it a hose tube which is only 16 feet long. So an A99 would have to be taken apart every day and reassembled each time I use it. Not sure I want to do that. 16 feet is all I can get for storage, no more. I could lay the antenna down on to of the trailer, but then it would be subjected to cement powder being spilled all over it when I load.
Then there is the mounting issue. Here is what I'm working with.
The trailer is all aluminum, except for the suspension. It is also basically one piece of aluminum. From the frame to the top rails, every piece is welded. The only bolting together of pieces is between the frame and the suspension and the fifth wheel plate. Mounting any kind of antenna in the center if the trailer would require drilling a hole to mount it, and that is out if the question. These trailers unload under pressure. 14.5 psi doesn't seem like alot till you see an end cap come off at 10 psi and compound fracture a leg. Not pretty.
I have three possible mounting points.
First on the front of the trailer is this lip.
It is 1/8" aluminum. I could fabricate a mount that would attach with wing nuts or some sort of quick release. Something to pinch the lip.
Or I can do the same with this lip.
I MIGHT be able to talk my company into letting me drill a hole there, but most likely not.
Here is a top view of these two lips.
The other option I have is clamping an antenna to the back of the trailer on the access ladder, but that would require alot of coax.
So I guess my questions here are am I up in the night with this idea? Is it worth the effort? Will I gain enough signal to make it worth setting up and taking down each time I use it? If it is worth it to try, would I be better off running an A99 or would it be more practical to put a 102" whip up there. And would any of my mounting options provide for efficient antenna operations, and if so what would be the best choice.
Sorry for the book, but I've been reading alot about RF grounding, and I have learned that I need to read alot more about RF grounding.
Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2