Greetings to all on my first thread. Thought I'd post some photos of my tactical Icom IC-703. Looking for a pack to put it in. My inspiration came from looking at mil-surp manpack HF rigs... and the fact I couldn't afford them. I figured, heck, I could make a case for my 703 out of scrap aluminum and and come close to a tactical mil HF rig but without the expense. So here it is... Case made from 1/8" plate aluminum. This will be used with resonate dipole antennas cut for 60 & 40 mtrs in NVIS config for up to 400 mile range. Might make some whip antennas for mountain top ops. The 703 is a QRP rig with 10 watts out max so heat really isn't an issue. It has a built in antenna tuner making it a nice package. When I got it all together the other afternoon I called CQ on 20 mtrs and KB2GZH came back to me and we talked for a good 1/2 hr till the band shifted west. I was running 4 watts. Not bad for an Oregon to Maine qrp contact. Was using my base antenna, 80 mtr dipole up 70' between two fir trees, fed with open wire to homebrew balanced tuner. My all band antenna 160-6 mtrs. I then went up to 17 mtrs and heard UAØFO calling CQ. I answered and he came right back with a 5x7 sig report. Now that's ham radio! So without further adieu... here's the photos.
Glad you like it... As far as building cases to sell... guess I could make templates for cutting, drilling and tapping... still would be labor intensive... I'll have to think about it.
Thanks William! Really not that difficult. It's all flat plate with some 1/2" angle for the corners. Just cut, file, measure, measure again, mark and drill. a little practice and anyone with a jig saw and cheap chinese drill press could do it... I did. I do enjoy this kind of stuff and I suspect that really helps... I get ideas, some work and some don't... this one worked!
It did more than work: it shined! You've shown us that form can improve function, instead of dictating it. A flat-four engine fits in a Volkswagen, but it belongs in a Porsche. Thanks for reminding us of the difference. William Warren
I have to say, Beautiful Job, this would be very Handy for those Monkeys that are into Comms and are in the BugOut Crowd. Would give them very nice Comms while on the move, and with an AMP, and a Good Antenna, at the BOL, would be plenty good enough for Comms around the Nation. Well done...
We used a standard Alice pack for the mil HF rigs. With the frame the weight is distributed quite well, especially since they tend to use a lot of batteries which add up in weight..... Nice rig you have made!!
Check this bag out: Vism First Responders Utility Bag 12.5"x8.5"x7.25" Nylon Urban Gray CVFRB2918U Might be a little small. Hrm, I used to have a link to a nice Condor bag. Would be perfect 14" x 12" x 8"
