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03-10-2008, 10:29 AM
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been here awhile
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Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: North Alabama
Posts: 4,301
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Quote:
Originally Posted by N316RV
I put my tracker in my Cessna 150 until the RV is done. Bought one of the Byonics whip antennas. Taped up inside of windshield. Tried it out yesterday and got OK performance until my 9V battery died. Got one hit on the ground and the next one on climb out. A HAM friend noted that I did not have a ground plane and suggested that I attach about an 18" wire under the jam nut (ground) on the SMA connector and stretch out across glare shield. I plan to give that a try next. Also plan to power off aircraft power through cigarette lighter jack.
Alan Jackson
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Good to see you in the air, Alan!
Looks like you hit a repeater 41.8 miles away before the battery gave up the ghost.
Does flying the C150 mean you have to monkey with the beacon interval???
Stations which heard N3216V directly on radio over the last 48 hours:
W4GPS-7 5.2 miles 211° 2008-03-08 12:56:44
K4GIG-7 41.8 miles 215° 2008-03-08 13:02:00
KE4ROC-7 9.3 miles 279° 2008-03-08 13:02:30
N4BK-7 5.6 miles 243° 2008-03-09 17:34:38
Last edited by Sam Buchanan : 03-10-2008 at 10:38 AM.
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03-10-2008, 11:08 AM
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Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: MN
Posts: 2,269
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Looks good
Alan, try a the ship's power - you might be fine! Looking good!
__________________
Cheers,
Pete
Amateur Plane - RV-9A N789PH - 2350+ Hrs
Amateur Radio - KD0CVN
Doggies Delivered - 25+
St. Paul, MN
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03-10-2008, 11:44 AM
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Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: McKinney, TX
Posts: 52
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Another Antenna question
I too have a Microtrak 300 on order and have an antenna location question. I am of the pre-novice category (taking the Tech test this weekend) and need all the help I can get.
I am thinking about mounting the Byonics whip antenna in the engine compartment mounted to the firewall and extending forward. Any thoughts about whether this will work?
__________________
Dick Flunker
RV-6A, 2000 hours
North Texas
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03-10-2008, 05:39 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Rhode Island
Posts: 937
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Aircraft Antenna for APRS
This is the antenna I had been planning before I heard of a certain entreprenurial youngster on his way to Alaska  :
http://www.rami.com/gaa/antenna-info.cfm?pid=9
They can be had for $75 new on Ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/AV-14...QQcmdZViewItem
I suppose if I have any concerns with the J-Pole I'll probably put one of these in.
__________________
Highest Regards,
Noah F, RV-7A
All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men? for they may act their dream with open eyes, to make it possible. -T.E. Lawrence
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03-10-2008, 06:47 PM
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Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: DeLand, Florida
Posts: 53
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DickF
I too have a Microtrak 300 on order and have an antenna location question. I am of the pre-novice category (taking the Tech test this weekend) and need all the help I can get.
I am thinking about mounting the Byonics whip antenna in the engine compartment mounted to the firewall and extending forward. Any thoughts about whether this will work?
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Dick,
Not a good idea to mount the antenna in that location. The reason is this, too much metal up there. The close proximity to the engine ETC., will cause a higher than normal SWR (Standing Wave Ratio). A high SWR will adversly affect the RF moduel possibly causing overheating and or destroying the device. Antennas work better in a non metal environment. As in the wing tip or on the belly of the craft. If installing in tip area I would mount it to the outboard rib for a good ground plane. Verticaly polarized would again be the best way to mount the antenna.
I'm planning on installing a 2 Meter rig with the antenna on the belly and the APRS antenna behind the 2 Meter antenna.
Good luck
John H. KQ4FT
N194JH RV-9
N5810U Cherokee
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03-10-2008, 07:03 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Rhode Island
Posts: 937
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Ryan's J-Pole Antenna - Performance Report
Well I received Ryan's J-Pole Antenna today and plugged it into my Microtrak 300. I have never been able to hit a digi from my house before with the little wire antenna that comes with the Microtrak. But I WAS able to hit the nearest digi (about 6 miles away) with Ryan's antenna. Not very scientific, but it IS promising! 
__________________
Highest Regards,
Noah F, RV-7A
All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men? for they may act their dream with open eyes, to make it possible. -T.E. Lawrence
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03-10-2008, 07:13 PM
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Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: McKinney, TX
Posts: 52
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Thanks John!
Given the info from John I will also be mounting the antenna on the belly. I already have 2 com antennas and a marker beacon on the belly so I'm sure I'll need to pay close attention to the spacing.
What is the minimum separation needed for the Micro-Trak 300 antenna relative to the marker beacon and comm antennas?
__________________
Dick Flunker
RV-6A, 2000 hours
North Texas
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03-10-2008, 09:42 PM
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Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 47
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APRS antenna placement
Quote:
Originally Posted by tacaruth
I am interested in building a tracker and have a question about the transmit antenna. Would this antenna look similar to an elt antenna? I would like to install my tracker in a removable location in the baggage compartment of my RV-7A. The antenna sold by byonics is roughly 18" inch long whip. Is this the best antenna for a portable unit? My thought is to have it removable/portable so I can take it with me when I go backpacking, hiking, etc. I realize that a rubber-duckie antenna is not very good but would it be workable? The rest of the stuff is very portable. According to byonics, a 9V alkaline battery would run the system for about 9 hours. When in the plane, I would have a socket to plug into for airplane power.
Thanks,
Tom RV-7A N175TJ Flying
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If you place the antenna in the baggage area the aluminum structure will block a good share of the signal. I would definately place the aircraft APRS antenna on the exterior of your RV7 and run coax to the baggage area to connect to the unit if you go this route. The antenna would likely work best on the belly of the aircraft with as short a coax run as possible to the transmitter.
While backpacking you could use a rubber duck antenna if you wanted but a better bet would be something like a quarterwave antenna or one of the larger flexible HT antennas designed for 144-148Mhz.
The math to determine 1/4 antenna length for a given frequency is 234 divided by the frequency in Mhz. Multiply this number by 12 to get length in inches.
234/144.39Mhz = 1.62 x 12 = 19.44"
Brian
KF7TG
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03-10-2008, 10:07 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: MN
Posts: 2,269
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Check's in the mail!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Noah
Well I received Ryan's J-Pole Antenna today and plugged it into my Microtrak 300. I have never been able to hit a digi from my house before with the little wire antenna that comes with the Microtrak. But I WAS able to hit the nearest digi (about 6 miles away) with Ryan's antenna. Not very scientific, but it IS promising! 
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Noah - glad it works! I'll let Ryan know.
__________________
Cheers,
Pete
Amateur Plane - RV-9A N789PH - 2350+ Hrs
Amateur Radio - KD0CVN
Doggies Delivered - 25+
St. Paul, MN
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03-13-2008, 08:52 AM
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been here awhile
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Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: North Alabama
Posts: 4,301
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APRS antenna from Aircraft Spruce
Here is the antenna I've used as a COM antenna on my plane for the past eight years. It has held up fine and performs very well. It would make a capable APRS antenna at a reasonable cost:
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/avpages/av534.php
If you want to optimize it for 144.39, it could be shortened ~2", or really dialed in with an SWR meter. Mounted on the belly of the plane it should be a great APRS unit. It is basically a store-bought version of the home-made antenna I use:
Here is an interesting antenna, I have one but have not yet tested it:
It is an ELT antenna that is only 12" long, mounts in a 1/2" hole, includes a BNC connector, and sells for about $70. I suspect a very slight trimming in length would put it in the 2-meter band.
Last edited by Sam Buchanan : 03-13-2008 at 09:37 AM.
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