I tried out the Drake low-pass filter I purchased at Ham Expo last Saturday for a song, and it works!!! I did some test transmissions on both 40 and 80 meters using CW and phone with great results: NO television interference at all.
This was probably the best $10 I may have ever spent; now I wouldn't mind having a few more, maybe a bandpass filter for 6 meters if I could find one since I still have to do this apartment living for 1 more year at least.
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I got a big surprise today. My XYL Mary, KD5OGD, wants me to have a VHF/UHF mobile installed in our Dodge Dakota pickup!
I was shocked when she told me this; I actually said, "No way. You're kidding me, right?" She assured me that she wasn't, and at that point I knew that she had realized my love for Amateur Radio was very strong. My storm spotting adventure on Friday afternoon with just an HT helped her realize that I needed good equipment to do that kind of public service, and of course to stay in touch with each other for general purposes also.
So now, I'm researching several possible ways to get some good dual-band gear into the truck. The radio to use will likely be the Yaesu FT-8800. The antenna will be a different story, since I would prefer a permanent mount. But I may use one of those triple-magnet mounts for the roof of the truck; those mounts never get blown off! If I go that way, then the antenna choice will depend more on gain...and I want a LOT of gain. 4-7 dBd gain would be good as far as I'm concerned.
I'm seeking help from those who have a slightly better idea about these things than I do; I do hope that the gear will be installed before the end of May. I have to wait for those IRS refunds, you know?
What helped in this decision is that when Mary and I took a trip down toward Del Rio a couple of months ago, we had such a blast but would have loved to have some ham gear in the truck. HF would have been ideal, but VHF/UHF would have been fine too. If I had the gear in the truck when we were driving through Del Rio, I could have possibly talked to some Mexican hams right across the Rio Grande from the city. Who knows? At the worst, 146.520 MHz would have been fun.
I guess the recent decisions I have made concerning a few things have helped in this decision. Friday's weather events had probably helped, too. Oh, yes...Mary said that she might want to go on a storm spotting trip also.
Am I in Heaven on Earth? It sure seems that way...wow!
WR1TX
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