Davie/Cooper City Amateur Radio Club
a 501(c)(3) not for profit organizaiton
a 501(c)(3) not for profit organizaiton
We are Radio Active
Our Mobile Ham Station
Converting a 12' Utility Trailer into a Mobile Ham Shack
Around the middle of 2017 the officers and other interested members began kicking around the idea of having a mobile station that we could use at Field Day, take to the monthly outings, take to social events, activations, etc.
We presented the idea and some rough cost information to the members in january 2018 and received approval to purchase a used trailer and start work.
To that end we:
- Incorporated as Davie/Cooper City Amateur Radio Club so that the club could own the trailer, not any specific member
- Purchased a 1,600 lb, 12' long utility trailer, transferred the registration to Davie/Cooper City Amateur Radio Club
- Had a license plate issued for the trailer (will apply for a ham radio tag with the club call sign) (Rich WB4EHG)
- Determined what mods needed to be made to the trailer and created rough drawings (Pete, N8PR)
- Fred WB4BAG is having the mods made by his company free of charge!
- Started a Trailer donation fund (Tom, N4MEO)
- Started receiving equipment donations from members
Trailer specs: V nose, 6' by 12', ramp door, recessed track in floor
Donations
Around the middle of 2017 the officers and other interested members began kicking around the idea of having a mobile station that we could use at Field Day, take to the monthly outings, take to social events, activations, etc.
We presented the idea and some rough cost information to the members in january 2018 and received approval to purchase a used trailer and start work.
To that end we:
- Incorporated as Davie/Cooper City Amateur Radio Club so that the club could own the trailer, not any specific member
- Purchased a 1,600 lb, 12' long utility trailer, transferred the registration to Davie/Cooper City Amateur Radio Club
- Had a license plate issued for the trailer (will apply for a ham radio tag with the club call sign) (Rich WB4EHG)
- Determined what mods needed to be made to the trailer and created rough drawings (Pete, N8PR)
- Fred WB4BAG is having the mods made by his company free of charge!
- Started a Trailer donation fund (Tom, N4MEO)
- Started receiving equipment donations from members
Trailer specs: V nose, 6' by 12', ramp door, recessed track in floor
Donations
Trailer in progress 2:
-- Steel outboard frame rails added to
make a new, longer tongue.
-- Old rails were 2" x 4" x 1/8" wall.
New rails are 2" x 2" x 1/4" wall.
(1/3 heavier).
-- New 2" ball socket welded to the
extended tongue.
Old tongue rails remain in place
as added support.
-- Will now begin fabrication of the
"tower hinge support".
-- Would not have been easy as it is
without Pete's drawings!!!!
-- Steel outboard frame rails added to
make a new, longer tongue.
-- Old rails were 2" x 4" x 1/8" wall.
New rails are 2" x 2" x 1/4" wall.
(1/3 heavier).
-- New 2" ball socket welded to the
extended tongue.
Old tongue rails remain in place
as added support.
-- Will now begin fabrication of the
"tower hinge support".
-- Would not have been easy as it is
without Pete's drawings!!!!
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 |
Trailer in progress 3:
-- Not in view are the reinforcing
rails under the new tongue plate.
-- Room was left on the new rails to
mount the spare tire carrier and
the new tongue jack (has a wheel
instead of a foot).
-- Tongue plate serves as a base to
mount the tower support structure.
-- The 1/4" tongue plate added critical
strength to the tongue and only
delayed initiating fabrication of the
"tower hinge support" by one day.
-- Planning to have a mounted tower
by Friday, May 18.
-- Not in view are the reinforcing
rails under the new tongue plate.
-- Room was left on the new rails to
mount the spare tire carrier and
the new tongue jack (has a wheel
instead of a foot).
-- Tongue plate serves as a base to
mount the tower support structure.
-- The 1/4" tongue plate added critical
strength to the tongue and only
delayed initiating fabrication of the
"tower hinge support" by one day.
-- Planning to have a mounted tower
by Friday, May 18.
Trailer in progress 4:
-- The mast is in place over the trailer body
-- The antenna it attached to right side of
the mast
-- The left side then pivots down causing
the antenna to go up in the air.
-- The mast is then cranked up to the
desired height.
-- The mast is in place over the trailer body
-- The antenna it attached to right side of
the mast
-- The left side then pivots down causing
the antenna to go up in the air.
-- The mast is then cranked up to the
desired height.
June 5, 2018, Fred brought the trailer to out June club meetiing. This is the first time we have seen the trailer with the new tongue and tower mount & raising assembly. The photos below are what we got to see.
| Trailer Fund Donors | ||
| Bob Patten | N4BP | Astron 12V 7A Power supply Telex ProCom 200 boomset Vectronics VC-300 HF Tuner |
| Bubba Tim | N2BBT | Deal on trailer |
| Diane Joerger | KC4BAR | $150 Cash |
| Fred Perkins | WB4BAG | Labor & materials on trailer |
| George Wallner | AA7JV | Yaesu FT-1000D xcvr |
| Ivan Cholakov | NO2CW | $20 Cash |
| Neil Cinege | WB2RUU | Work & materials on inside |
| Pete Rimmel | N8PR | MA-40 40' telescoping tower HyGain TH3 Jr beam 20/15/10m rotatable dipole RG-213 coax 2 VHF/UHF fertical antennas $50 cash Al mast for 2m 4el antenna |
| Rich Joerger | WB4EHG | Small Refridg Kenwood TS-450S HF rig |
| Gil Gillingham | W1RG | $100 Cash |
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Trailer in progress 1:
-- Frame reinforcing completed.
-- Old 2-5/16" ball socket removed.
-- Added wood to layout the positioning
of the new rails.
-- Frame reinforcing completed.
-- Old 2-5/16" ball socket removed.
-- Added wood to layout the positioning
of the new rails.
Trailer as we purchased it
| Trailer Fund Donors | ||
| Sandy Cowan | K4OXM | Diawa 12V 30A Power Supply |
| August passing around the hat | All present | $400 Cash |
| Latour Fire Equipment Co. | KA9PYU | 1 X 10lb fire extinguisher 1 X 5lb fire extinguisher |
| Pete Rimmel | N8PR | Assorted components equaling $110 |
September 16, 2018, The first outing with the trailer at Vista View park. We setup early in the AM and operated some FT-8. We learned some lessons that will be applied to future outings.
Neil WB2RUU has done a fantastic job on getting the trailer operational!
Neil WB2RUU has done a fantastic job on getting the trailer operational!
Copyright ©2023 Davie/Cooper City Amateur Radio Club Inc.
a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
an ARRL Affiliated Club
a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization
an ARRL Affiliated Club
Our contact information is on the About page.
WebMaster: Rich WB4EHG