Questions tagged [portable]

Transporting, setting up, and operating a temporary station. For operation from a vehicle, use [mobile] instead.

Filter by
Sorted by
Tagged with
3 votes
2 answers
167 views

What are the best SSB bands for hiking/tourism?

I am relatively new ham-radio operator. I have a goal in mind to hike and have overnight stays in a tent. I keep exploring idea about bringing a radio with me. I am prepping for general license to ...
k1zmt's user avatar
  • 337
2 votes
2 answers
575 views

Operating on the US-Canada Border

How would one identify if one were operating from a location directly on the US/Canada border? Wxxxx/VEx or Wxxxx? How about POTA? If I were to operate a POTA twofer on the boundary at the border of ...
AI7OW's user avatar
  • 324
4 votes
1 answer
677 views

Using NanoVNA to tune antenna

I'm extremely new to this, so I'm mostly asking for tutorials and so on. I have tried configuring the device according to one tutorial I found. When I hook up the cheap antennas that came with a ...
Jesse Knott's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
206 views

Creating a single feed wearable wire antenna

When I was deployed, our commo guys gave us wire antennas we could thread through our body armor (through the MOLLE loops). These antennas were just lengths of 50Ω coax that had the insulation ...
Jesse Knott's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
287 views

A new ham should start with Digital or Analog Portable Radio?

I am interested in acquiring two portable radios to talk between a family member and me (both new hams), e.g. when we go trekking in a National Park or to communicate in the same city. We used PRM ...
Fabián Iglesias's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
230 views

Portable indoor VHF antenna for SDR

I want to make / buy VHF antenna that can meet the requirements below: Portable (easy to install and transport). Indoor (I want to install the antenna at a windowsill). Low noise level, no (or not ...
ALEX's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
0 answers
158 views

What is the best way to ground a whip antenna in a hotel room?

We have a 102" CB whip antenna cut for 10 meters. We're staying in a hotel and trying to figure out the best way to ground this antenna. Right now we're using a pile of wires on the floor, but we'...
kj7rrv's user avatar
  • 179
4 votes
2 answers
249 views

Can an American General licensee operate in Portugal during a visit?

I am an American and I have an American General License (k8axf), and I tried to make sense of all the legal documents to see if I can operate while visiting Portugal and I think I can under a CEPT CAT ...
Alan K8AXF's user avatar
1 vote
4 answers
904 views

Can I power a QRP station with an USB powerbank?

I recently found out there are very cheap (down to under a dollar) adapters that convert the 5 Volts from a USB port to 12 Volts. Manny small QRP stations draw very little power. For instance, the ...
EdvinW's user avatar
  • 378
3 votes
2 answers
95 views

How to figure out my car battery's capacity?

I was participating in an emergency radio training and I was asked how long I could operate. I'm using an old car battery, which was sometimes not capable of starting the car in winter, which is why I ...
Thomas DK3TU's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
294 views

Receiving range of ham radio on SSB with a portable radio receiver

I'm learning about shortwave listening. I want to listen to amateur/ham radio on a portable radio (eg a XHDATA d-808) with SSB, I hear SSB is the main place hams would be on. I know it's hard to give ...
Emma32's user avatar
  • 3
3 votes
1 answer
270 views

Using crocodile clips to make modular QRP antennas? Are there downsides?

I'm trying to get into backpacking QRP, which has lead me to read up on various ways to construct very portable wire antennas. I would ideally like to have a single antenna for the CW parts of the 40, ...
EdvinW's user avatar
  • 378
1 vote
1 answer
360 views

What length and number of radials should be used for a dual band vertical whip backpack antenna?

The Situation: Very new Ham I have a 2m/70cm 48" Abree whip antenna, originally designed to be connected directly to an HT I would like to mount this antenna to the side of my hiking backpack, ...
hehe3301's user avatar
  • 157
4 votes
3 answers
661 views

Need batteries for backpack operation

I am building an HF backpack rig using an Icom IC-706MkIIG with a Opek HVT-400B antenna. The specifications on the radio say 20 A draw at high power, so what size and type batteries would be suitable ...
Steven Donnell KG5GRI's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
2k views

Lowest cost portable HF radio with at least 100 W output?

My use case is intercontinental HF radio, and I am frequently traveling. Lugging a big rig is inconvenient and expensive ones get you into customs trouble all the time. So, I'm looking for a low cost ...
Gunther Schadow's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
382 views

Counterpoise wire voltages?

One practice which seems common when operating temporary or portable QRP, SOTA, etc., is to throw a counterpoise wire out on the park lawn or shrubbery, mountaintop or hillside or parking lot ground, ...
hotpaw2's user avatar
  • 13.3k
2 votes
2 answers
660 views

Grounding of a portable setup

I am occasionally using an extremely simple shortwave portable setup consisting of a battery, the transceiver, a short coax feedline and a vertical half-wavelength vertical antenna with a transforming ...
jstarek's user avatar
  • 222
1 vote
3 answers
518 views

Temporary/Portable station coax pl259 connector water proof?

Currently, I am running a semi-portable setup at home. I have a spool of 100ft of lmr400 coax outside in the porch where it free from most weather and rain. I only drag it out to the yard when I am ...
Matthew Wang's user avatar
3 votes
5 answers
625 views

How should I select an HF antenna for portable work?

I'd like to get started doing portable HF work and I'd like some information on antenna possibilities. My broad (and somewhat flexible) criteria are: By "portable" I mean it can be carried in a ...
Jim MacKenzie VE5EV's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
1k views

Building a portable APRS iGate/digipeater

I've been experimenting with APRS for the last year or so. There are a lot of areas that I go that don't have digipeaters or iGates. (Luckily, I live about three blocks from one, so around home I'm ...
Jim MacKenzie VE5EV's user avatar