Steve,
Dont rule out a generator TOO quickly. Roving plans and configurations tend
to snowball.
Tom and I started out small, then grew to a lot of bands
Then added amplifiers, and had to go to a generator just to keep up with the
power requirements.
(we had a deep cycle, then two, then three, but generator helped a lot)
I have a small Honda EU1000 and love it.
Very light weight,
put it out about 50 feet and noise is minimal.
only takes a minute or two to put it out and pull the rope (ONCE)
In fact I am in the process of buying another one so I have enough power to
run the equipment, lights, AND a heater.
Take a look at my web site:
http://www.frontiernet.net/~ihi/
good luck
73
Jack
WA2IID
----- Original Message -----
From: <k4gun@comcast.net>
To: "VHF contesting list" <vhfcontesting@contesting.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 22, 2008 10:00 AM
Subject: Re: [VHFcontesting] Inverters and roving
As usual, I have received a number of excellent comments and suggestions and
that has lead to a few more questions on my part. As is also usual, a lot
of those comments came to me directly and not through the list. I'm going
to try to respond to a few of those in a single posting.
First, one person asked if I had added ferrites to the DC input. The answer
is no. The battery and inverter are sitting side by side inside the tool
box. I can certainly add them, but I'm not sure if that would do any good.
The battery is charged by the alternator and there are no ferrites on that
either. That again would be easy enough if anybody thinks it would do any
good.
I have ruled out getting a DC operated rotor. Its a great idea, although
expensive. It doesn't power my laptop and therefore, I'm still in need of
an inverter.
One person suggested a generator. I had ruled that out because it just adds
complication. Each time I park, it means getting out and starting it. Not
a huge deal, I know, but my goal has been efficiency and maximizing
operating time. That suggestion is back on the table, but I'm still not
sure I want to go that way.
One other person suggested good results with the Exceltech brand of
inverter. Its not cheap which brings up the question of how much power I
really need. The have a 250 watt model (300 surge) for $484 and a 600 watt
for $775. Obviously, 600 will work, but would I be able to get away with
the 250 watt model?
Again, thanks to all for the great responses. Y'all have been an invaluable
resource.
Steve K4GUN
-------------- Original message --------------
From: k4gun@comcast.net
> Well, my new rover system is just about complete. I posted some pics on
> QRZ if
> you're interested: http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?t=163565
>
> I've run into a problem though. I decided to spend the money and get a
> pure
> sine wave inverter. Based on opinions here and elsewhere, I figured this
> caused
> the least amount of noise. I also mounted it in the steel toolbox and
> attached
> a couple of ferrite beads on the electric cord. The battery is also in the
> tool
> box.
>
> Sounds like a good plan, right? Well... not so much. It turns out that all
> pure sine wave inverters are not always as quite as you would think. On 50
> MHz,
> I have an S4 noise floor and a buzz on the calling frequency. When turning
> the
> antenna, its an S8 noise. Its seem fine on 144 and 432, but on 50, its
> just a
> nightmare. When I turned the inverter off, the noise dropped to S1 or
> less.
> This is an AIMS inverter that I bought off e-bay from a company called
> Energy
> Igloo.
>
> I'm about tapped out for this contest. I think I'm going to get a DC
> adapter
> for the laptop and just use the truck as a rotator. Maybe I'll use my
> "stimulus" check for another inverter. Any suggestions on which one to get
> would be greatly appreciated. Any other thoughts or suggestions would be
> great
> as well.
> _______________________________________________
> VHFcontesting mailing list
> VHFcontesting@contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/vhfcontesting
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