As if my mobile ham station wasn’t already kooky enough, I’ve gone “full nerd” by adding four Diamond K9000 motorized antenna mounts! WHY? When my VHF rover had only three Yagis (50, 144, and 432 MHz), I was comfortable with rotating the beams and just letting the ATAS-120A’s radial drag under the lowest boom as it passed by. The shorter antennas would either barely touch or miss the lowest boom altogether. However, adding the fourth Yagi (222 MHz) reduced the clearance for my verticals. I was no longer willing to accept the collisions. Continue reading
Diamond K9000 Motorized Antenna Mounts
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RARSfest and VW Nuts!
The first weekend in April brings RARSfest, an annual ham radio festival hosted by Raleigh Amateur Radio Society (RARS) in North Carolina. April can be a tricky time of year to schedule events with outdoor activities due to sporadic rain activity. RARSfest mitigates that by hosting their event within a 100,000 sq-ft climate controlled indoor facility at the NC State Fairgrounds. The huge, open space often hosts livestock events and is capable of accommodating tractor-trailer traffic. So, accessing the building with my unusually-tall hatchback is not a problem at all. It’s a great place to exhibit my VHF contest rover! Continue reading
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2026 Virginia QSO Party (VAQP)
The 2026 Virginia QSO Party (VAQP) took place over the weekend of March 21-22. The sun experienced a coronal mass ejection (CME) on March 16 that drove geomagnetic storms to reach Earth in time to disrupt HF communications around the world by the weekend. Some hams watch websites that track solar activity and don’t bother using their radios if the forecast doesn’t look ideal. Well, the bands will certainly be “dead” if everyone leaves their radios off or stays home. I was unaware of the solar activity when I left home, but I still would have gone out even if I knew the details. It was a tough weekend of mobile contesting for sure, with plenty of noise and “dead” times! But I guess it’s like fishing: “A bad day of radio is better than a good day at work.” 😉 Continue reading
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The “Frankenhat”
It’s been a while since I last shared anything about my Scorpion mobile HF antenna. It’s too large to leave on my car full-time, especially since doing so blocks access to the hatchback. Still, it’s my go-to antenna when I want performance on the HF bands. I had shared at some point that I upgraded my capacitance hat (caphat) to a 35-inch unit by W8UZZ. The 8-spoke hat created an electrically longer antenna (12-spoke hat shown here); however, the extra mass proved to be problematic at highway speeds due to excessive wind loading. At first, my observation only included slight bending of the antenna main shaft. I mitigated that by turning the antenna around, which bent it back into alignment over time. Unfortunately, I noticed cracks in the caphat’s hub during a 2024 road trip and had to retire it. Continue reading
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Do You Need Heat for your LiFePo4 Battery?
Some Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePo4) batteries can be bought with internal heaters. However, most batteries don’t have them. I added my own heating pad in the bottom of my battery box. Still, I had to ask myself, “Is a heater really necessary in my application?” Is one necessary in yours? Sometimes I take a bit to get to the point. So, here’s my answer right from the start: If your battery is portable and will be brought indoors when not in use, then the easy answer is NO. I think most hams use or build portable batteries. But what about everything else? Continue reading
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2026 January ARRL VHF Contest
It was just a few weeks ago that I finished installing my big battery upgrade. January’s contest is always a challenge: Unpredictable weather can make working on the car outside unpleasant, the evolving long-term weather forecast can make route planning difficult, and we never know what winter propagation will bring. This year was no exception because my planned route included snow in its forecast. Still, I wanted to try a 10-grid rove, which would require an overnight stay. But where? Continue reading
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Installing New 4kWh Battery Box
Last month, I shared my latest lithium iron phosphate (LiFePo4 or LFP) battery project. I went into enough detail that I decided to share its installation in this separate article. I mentioned that I would mount the battery in the “cargo area,” which is not specific in a car without a back seat, but also not hard to find in such a small vehicle. 😀 I had planned to put the battery in the trunk, hidden from sight, but opted to mount it behind the front passenger seat for a few reasons, some of which include weight distribution and equipment accessibility. Continue reading
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WAY Too Much Lithium Storage!
When I last posted, I had shared that my four year old component-built 100Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePo4 or LFP) battery had degraded to a capacity of only 74Ah. Given the cost and shipping charges for a replacement cell and the chance that it might only present a different problem, it seemed faster and more economical to just replace my setup with a new 100Ah battery. WattCycle’s 100Ah Mini LiFePo4, just $160 in December 2025, could probably fit perfectly in place of my existing battery for less than 25% of what I paid for 100Ah in 2021. It would also restore my lost 25Ah of capacity… for a while, anyway. Remember, all batteries degrade over time. How long would it take for another 100Ah battery to wind up right where I was in November 2025? Continue reading
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12V 100-Ah LiFePo4 Battery – Final Review
In 2021, I participated in a “Builder’s Group” session with my local ham radio club, Williamsburg Amateur Radio Club. We had made portable 12V 100Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePo4 or LFP) batteries from Fortune 3.2V 100Ah cells and a separate 120A Battery Management System (BMS). The end product was a portable 1280 watt-hour battery pack. I configured mine differently because I installed it in my car. See the original entry here. Its capacity tested very well at first, but declined with each passing year. I was able to find small “cheats” that would improve capacity a little, but the practices were not realistic to sustain because they only helped the load test and not real-world use. This year’s capacity test returned just 74Ah. My JBD BMS has just 100 milliamps of passive cell balancing, which is not nearly enough for a battery that’s charged only when the car is being driven. I decided to experiment with a different BMS in 2025. The new BMS is by JK and features 2-amperes of active balancing. The JK is much more aggressive and successful at balancing my cells. However, one cell still reaches “low voltage disconnect” (LVD) before the others. The same cell is usually first to reach “high voltage disconnect” (HVD) when the battery is charged from a relatively deep discharge, too. It’s safe to say that one cell has degraded to a point that’s unlikely to be recovered. Continue reading
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Tower-Delete: Is THIS Still a “Micro-Tower?”
I discovered roof rack fatigue in July when I removed it for the car’s annual paint maintenance. I was able to find the misplaced parts from my old RhinoRack, shown here, a discontinued rack that I had not yet used for carrying a micro-tower. Its “flush mount” design may be stronger since it has more physical contact between the rack towers and its crossbars even though that contact is via plastic parts. Regardless, I’m going to try it out for a bit and see how it endures. This latest Rover setup shaves ~45 lbs from the rooftop; so, it may be a good fit! Read-on to learn how I did it. Continue reading
Posted in Building, News, Problems, Product Reviews, Roving
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Meshtastic Solar Beacon by Atlavox
Meshtastic is a relatively new form of decentralized communications that allows users to send and receive encrypted text messages in the 900 MHz band without the need for cellular networks or a license. Meshtastic nodes are inexpensive, open source, and are easy to use via smartphone app, even without cellular services. Some nodes are even GPS-enabled for location sharing. The catch? Meshtastic’s range is quite limited outside of areas with a lot of nodes. It’s probably great in areas where friends have established a robust network of devices. There are only two users in my immediate area; so, my results have been less than impressive. Still, it’s alleged to be an emerging technology with its best days still to come. Continue reading
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Roof Rack Functional Failure: AGAIN!
Looking pretty again!
I had been collecting parts to make what I think will be a final change to my micro-tower setup. Yeah, right: Will it ever be “final?” 😀 I had delayed the change until after performing my car’s annual paint maintenance. For that, I took my car to a detailer who supports a lifetime warranty on a ceramic coating that he applied in 2022. I remove the roof rack and antennas each year to give him full access to the rooftop and door jambs. Removing the roof rack relieves all tension between the rack’s towers and its crossbars; so, it’s a great time to check the sturdiness of each component. I discovered my first functional failure in 2023 and shared a comprehensive write-up. I replaced the rack’s towers and reconfigured my antenna setup to be less stressful to the rack. My inspection in 2024 indicated that my changes were a success! Unfortunately, 2025’s inspection revealed that the same component is prone to functional failure, even if it took a little longer with the new antenna configuration. My “final change” to the micro-tower will be even lighter and less stressful to the rack, but I still think it’s time for a different roof rack altogether. Continue reading
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“Mobile” Ham Station Defined
What defines a ham radio mobile station? I once checked into a local radio net as “KE4WMF-mobile.” The net control station asked, “Are you actually driving or just sitting in your car?” I answered that I was parked, but also said that “mobile” is more of a descriptor of a station’s configuration or capability than its current use. Over the years, I’ve seen or heard of many different ways to define a “mobile” station. The most tortured way I’ve ever heard a ham declare themselves to be “mobile” was when he said that his permanently disabled vehicle (translation: a yard ornament that’ll never run or roll again) with a wire antenna still counted as him being a “mobile station.” I have no idea what he was using to power the transceiver! I think he was pursuing some sort of award for mobile operations and was stretching the rules, or lack of clarity within them, to achieve something. As a result, various contest organizers have closed a few loopholes to better define a mobile station. Continue reading
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Cargo Organization with Husky Build-Out
Originally published at StealthGTI.com on 3/24/2025. Updated in 2026.
I have been a fiercely independent traveler for a very long time, both in vehicles and on my bicycles. I often carry more tools or parts than necessary. I had been carrying cargo in bags, then boxes, and even some stackable cases. Then I discovered the new Build-Out series of tool cases by Husky. I bought my first units in 2024 to support my side job as a bicycle tour mechanic. It didn’t take long for me to realize that the Build-Out boxes are a great fit for my in-car use. Continue reading
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Autoexec Car Desk: Reach to Gripmaster
I bought my Autoexec Reach car desk in 2021 when I started doing more with ham radio, particularly when I began exploring digital modes and needed a computer to ride with me. I was still logging on paper sheets and content to continue. At the time, I had a simple “desk” that slips onto the steering wheel. I still use it for some tasks today (shown below). I knew that I needed more space when I committed to bringing my laptop out for radio activities. Oddly enough, I hadn’t shared much about the Autoexec desk before now because I was constantly experimenting with it. I didn’t want to write about it until I found a configuration that I liked. I replaced it with a homemade project after about two years. Continue reading
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My Other Mobile Stations
I’ve had a few e-mails over time where showing someone an image from a previous install might have been helpful in providing ideas that they could use for themselves. I’m not going to do full write-ups for each photo, but I will show an image of the platform and then load a bunch photos into a related album. Loading all of the photos proved to be very time-consuming for visitors. I’ve created pages for each platform. I’ll work from most recent to oldest. In some cases, the same car will be shared twice because of the major changes to its setup. Please feel free to contact me if you have specific questions. Continue reading
Posted in Building, Origin Story
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2025 Virginia QSO Party
I don’t participate in HF contests with one exception: the Virginia QSO Party (VAQP). Mobile HF stations are at a disadvantage when compared to home stations, especially those with HF Yagis and 220V amplifiers. The disparity can make operating during a crowded contest weekend quite a challenge. The VAQP isn’t limited to Virginians, but the level of participation is much lower than nationwide or worldwide events. Unlike many HF contests, the VAQP has a category just for mobile stations, which means that I’m “competing” only against other mobiles. Better yet, any station can work a mobile in each county they visit and get extra points for doing so. As a result, many operators seek and even follow mobile stations throughout the event, which effectively enables mobile stations to “become the DX” over and over again! In a way, it’s similar to being a roving Parks on the Air as an activator, working with stations that I know can hear me because they’re calling ME. What’s not for me to like about that? Continue reading
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Bonding for My HF Mobile Setup
I’ll start by saying that this article is not about why to bond an HF mobile setup. In my opinion, K0BG.com is perhaps the best, most technical website for building mobile ham radio systems. His bonding page is excellent! He shares more technical information about bonding than I’ll claim to understand here. Instead, my goal is to show you what I’ve done to my car. Alan, K0BG, explains that bonding horizontal surfaces is more critical than the vertical surfaces. This photo shows one of the bonding straps for my hood. I have braided straps to bypass each hinge. I had bonded each of my doors, too, but the braided straps eventually broke from door use (photo below). I did not replace them. I also did not bond my hatch since it is another vertical surface. My most significant bonding efforts happened along the exhaust system. Continue reading
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2025 ARRL January VHF Contest
Contrary to what online photos may suggest, I do not drive year-round with my micro-tower and VHF contest setup on the car. There are places where I drive that a 10.5-ft tall vehicle can not go, especially during the months when trees are full of leaves and their branches hang just a little lower. I operate as a “Limited Rover“ during VHF contests; so, my station has fewer antennas than the Classic and Unlimited Rovers. I mount the tower base and loop module at my leisure and then install the tower and Yagis about a week before each contest or special event, sometimes sooner if the weather forecast is unpleasant. Everything is tested and finalized 2-3 days before the big event. This photo shows me on a rather cold day after mounting the mast and as I was securing the coaxial cable runs. My fellow car enthusiasts cringe when they see my tools and supplies laying directly on the paint! 😀 Continue reading
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POTA: An Intro and How I Activate
Parks on the Air, commonly referred to as “POTA” (POH-tuh), is an international radio sport that encourages amateur radio operators to communicate with or from state and national parks, as well as a wide variety of other designated public lands such as wildlife management areas, national trails, and historic sites. Broadly speaking, there are two types of radio operators in POTA: activators and hunters. Activators operate in designated parks while hunters search for the parks and call them. Most hunters call the parks from a home station, but some are also activators in other parks. That’s a simple explanation of POTA. As with any activity that grows in popularity, the program can be more complicated than that. Continue reading
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