Hal:
Get an extra power connector or cable for the rig. Then get 2 battery
holders, each for 4 "AA" cells. Attach the battery holders back-to-back
with double-faced tape or super glue. Wire both packs in series to the DC
connector for the rig. This will provide about 13v, and will power the
receiver of most 12v radios for about a minute. That's OK, since all they
want is to see the front panel light up and noise come out of the speaker.
Even if you leave the radio on long enough to run the batteries down, after
an hour wait the batteries will be capable of the same thing again, although
for a shorter period. I change the batteries every trip. Even if they
don't like the battery pack, after you've explained what it's for, as long
as they've already checked the radio you can just toss the batteries out and
replace them at your destination and you're only out $5-$6. (A "stick" of
12 "AA" alkalines as Radio Shack usually costs about $8).
Rich K2WR
|