Advice on Ham radio for expedition use

[roscoe]

I just got my Tech license (General next month) and thought I might pick the brains of folks in the know. I am a paleontologist and will be traveling in the southern Sahara next year. It will be a very lightweight expedition due to funds, which means myself, another paleontologist, a geologist, a translator, two drivers, and perhaps two armed bodyguards split between two rented FJ70 Landcruisers.

Obviously there are all kinds of logistical issues we will deal with that are fun to think about. But with regards to communications, we will have a satphone, and it seemed to me that a HAM backup system might be warranted, as we will be very remote. My thought was to have two radios (someone else will need to get their license) for communication between the cars, but one of them would be capable of longer-range work.

I was thinking a Yaesu VX-7R and 817 might do it. I am aware that they are limited to 5 watts, but the 817 at least has the advantage of HF for longer range work, either to the VX-7R if we are off exploring on foot, or possible for nightime DX in an emergency. Obviously we will need portable antennas, and I was thinking of carrying several dipoles we could string between the truck and a tree. I know that the 857 would have much more power, and this is part of my question, because we will have to be semi-portable, and will probably not be able to hook anything up to the trucks that can't go in the cigarette lighter.

Some questions:

-What would the potential range on the VX-7R be on 6-meter with a reasonable portable antenna?
-Is the 817 pointless for true DX? Like if we had to call the US base in Djibouti (not that they would necessarily come help us out).
-Can we run the 857 off the cigarette lighter?
-Is there some way to hook up an traveling antenna to a moving truck (an antenna that is also innocuous enough to go through customs without getting us accused of espionage)?

Money is always somewhat of an issue on trips of this kind, although I will try to write a grant to cover safety and medical equipment and training. Also we will obviously find out any English-speaking frequencies in the area (there are British expats EVERYWHERE). I plan to buy the equipment well in advance, so we can be reasonable competent using it.

Thanks!

[TacAir]

What country? The ARRL has an excellent site for travel information. You will need a local license - usually obtained in advance. DO NOT take a radio without prior permission/license.

http://www.arrl.org/international-operating

I gotta ask, why do field where armed guards are needed? Isn't there someplace a bit less...arduous for a dig?

[williaty]

I gotta ask, why do field where armed guards are needed? Isn't there someplace a bit less...arduous for a dig?

Researcher doesn't get to pick where the data happened.

[Polie]

There is an antenna a lot of people around here seem to be using now. Its automatically adjusts itself for all band capabilities. I will do some digging and try and find it for you. Last time I saw it they wanted I believe around $400 for it, not super cheap but then again it will REALLY cut down on space. One other point you may want to consider is psk31 and morse code for a backup.

[KJ4VOV]

As Tac Air said, you'll need to be licensed for the country you're in. Reciprocal licensing isn't automatic, and will depend upon many factors but one thing to keep in mind is that technician class usually does not qualify you for any reciprocal privileges, and general class usually qualifies you for whatever the lowest local class is. You really need to be an extra class if you hope to gain decent reciprocal privs. That's the main reason I upgraded to extra myself.

And, as Tac Air also advised, do not take any radio gear with you unless you have prior permission, and the paperwork to back it up, along with some discretionary funds to smooth over any rough spots. Also, be aware of what the local band limits are and understand that any US equipment you bring might not be capable of making full use of the local band limits, or might be capable of out-of-band operation that can get you into trouble pretty quickly.

And, last but not least, it's never ideal to try and run any HF rig from a cigarette lighter plug. Even at very low power many HF rigs draw more current than the plug can supply. Whenever possible you want to run heavy gauge wire, fused, direct to the battery.

[CitizenZ]

Horn of Africa? Normally I would say not to worry about licenses (as long as you have one) or espionage. It's usually an over-hyped non-issue... unless you're going to a political hotspot. Check with the links above, and whomever is handling your permits. It probably won't be a big deal, but worth checking. I'd say confiscation of your new gear is more likely than a charge of espionage, but why risk it at all if you don't have to? Bribes to get your gear in/out of country (very common) is usually based on the value of the gear in question, so bring extra cash for that purpose or ask your customs agent to include it in their manifest ( you get a little discount on the bribes for group rates rather than individual bribes).

If it's for serious communications then you should have a decent HF radio, alinco DX-8 or better, with 100watts HF and decent HF antenna, maybe an NVIS portable. If it's just for fun with a minor backup option then anything with a good antenna will do. Even the vx-7 with a foldable 6 meter yagi can have great range in the desert. Remember that amateur radios are designed to talk to other amateurs, not call in the cavalry. If you know whom you will be calling then get equipment needed for that purpose. Commercial comm gear may be needed, or maybe just a 2 meter HT and decent antenna, but an all band all mode like the Y-857 will probably do most of what you will need. In the 3rd world they use marine band and CB radios and 2 meters as inexpensive communication systems.

[Tater Raider]

I think I'd be more likely to go with a GPS system that has an emergency - send help feature, but that's me.

[roscoe]

Thanks for all the advice. With regards to the legalities, I will definitely look into reciprocity (as well as upgrading my ticket), but I don't think we will see anything like a regular police authority once we get out of the airport and capital. Out where we will be I don't expect to see much of anybody, since there is nothing to fight over once you get away from water sources. If we don't get anything confiscated, we will probably be OK, since this is very much a developing nation that has been in and out of conflict for decades and I can't see enforcement of the airwaves being a priority. We will have some survey electronics with us, so we may get a pass on radios.

So 100 watts on HF is what we would need to communicate with Europe or East Africa? That is very useful information. I also like the look of the NVIS for portability.

We will have multiple GPS systems and a satellite phone, and the emergencey beacon idea has merit. But I don't think that you can say anything other than 'help' with those beacons, and I would like to be able to get a little ahead of situations, and provide detailed info should the need arise. But also, if we split up and are 20-50 miles apart, which is not much out there, I want to be able to communicate between vehicles. Would a handheld be able to do it on 6 meters?

I am more likely to get an 857 than the Alinco simply because it can communicate with the UHF/VHF handheld.

I gotta ask, why do field where armed guards are needed? Isn't there someplace a bit less...arduous for a dig?

Well, sometimes the low-hanging fruit has all been plucked, and you have to go to less well-known or friendly places. No question it is an issue, but exploration is one of the reasons I got into this field. Most folks would probably be surprised at how often paleontologists or geologists get shot at, or have their camps sacked by raiders. The trick is not to get yourself into the middle of whatever long-simmering and seemingly pointless conflict was around when you got there. That has worked for us, and most other researchers, in the past, with an occasional hair-raising exception. My wife has made me get enough life insurance so that I am literally worth more dead than alive (particularly with an academic's salary).

[williaty]

100W isn't some magic number for communicating over that distance. Some days you can do it on 100mW. Some days you can't do it even on 100kW. 100W, however, is generally enough to make communication possible, if it's possible at all that day, and give you some fudge-factor for less than perfect technique.

The other thing to remember is that NVIS, like everything other than line-of-sight, is not 100% reliable. It depends on what's going on in the upper atmosphere, just like any other kind of bounce. You can't expect any band to work on any given day. The odds are better for some bands than others and if you have a enough versatility to use many different bands, there's probably going to be at least one band opening on any given day. But it's not certain. If you have only one or two bands you can use (due to antennas, etc), then it's even less certain. NVIS's actual real "purpose" (if you can call it that), is to provide short-range coverage to the other side of an obstruction. So you're in one valley, the rest of your platoon is in the next valley over. Radio can't go through the mountain. "Normal" sky-bounce HF has a low take off angle and is likely to be obstructed by the mountain as well. Even if it wasn't, that low angle leads to the bounce coming back down hundreds of miles a way. NVIS has a high take off angle, so the bounce lands pretty close to you. The steep angle also lends itself to "reaching into" valleys in mountains.


What is the terrain like where you're going? Mountains? Savannah? If it's predominantly flat, I'm not sure NVIS is the best technique to rely on given the current unfriendly state of the ionosphere. If it's pretty flat, just sanding on top of a truck or throwing the antenna into a tree might gain you enough distance for all the regional communication you're going to want. Then use a simple wire antenna like a folded dipole made of ladder line strung up between vehicles or jeeps to reach to Europe. Hell, I use a folded dipole hung on our laundry line only 6 feet off the ground and I can consistently hit the UK from Ohio with that.

[TacAir]

Thanks for all the advice.
We will have multiple GPS systems and a satellite phone, and the emergencey beacon idea has merit. But I don't think that you can say anything other than 'help' with those beacons, and I would like to be able to get a little ahead of situations, and provide detailed info should the need arise. But also, if we split up and are 20-50 miles apart, which is not much out there, I want to be able to communicate between vehicles. Would a handheld be able to do it on 6 meters?

A Shout Nano will text via satcom Has an SOS beacon with GPS location. Pocket sized.
Worth a look.
http://www.geoprosolutions.com/shout-nano/

[KJ4VOV]

...will be traveling in the southern Sahara next year.

Based on this I'm assuming Egypt or Sudan, possibly Chad.

Here's a link for information about reciprocal licensing for each country:

Egypt: http://www.qsl.net/oh2mcn/su.htm

Chad: http://www.qsl.net/oh2mcn/tt8.htm

Sudan: Unable to find a working direct link to amateur radio licensing, but it all starts with their Ministry of Information so here's their link http://www.minic.gov.sd/english/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=71&Itemid=95

[roscoe]

I really like to look of that Shout Nano. A big step up from the old marine EPIRB we used to have.

This will be desert, with lowish mountains or canyons. With the Nano as emergency communications backup, the radios will pretty much be used for communication between parties. It still seems like it might be useful to have a portable in a truck and the handheld with the walking party (you do a lot of walking with your head down when looking for fossils.) I still like the idea of being able to make long distance contacts, but that may be more for fun out there.

I am not really that strong on antenna theory - can you take a strung dipole and adjust the height of one end to change the angle, in order to adjust the beam?

[Bunsen]

-Can we run the 857 off the cigarette lighter?

It would be kinda kludgey to do that directly (you'd have to drop the power to 30W or so to keep within the 10A capability of the typical lighter), but you can do it pretty well with an intermediate battery. Take a 20Ah or so sealed lead-acid and connect it to the radio with short, heavy-gauge, fused wires. That handles the short bursts of high power demanded by the radio, and you can slowly recharge it through the cigarette lighter. Take some spare fuses for that lighter circuit in case you get careless and key up at full power while it's still plugged in.

If you're going to have some tall trees or structures to hang antennas from, then dipoles should work okay for DX. If not, a somewhat inefficient loaded vertical (low takeoff angle even without a high antenna, but burns some power off as heat) may work better than a low-strung dipole (good efficiency, but throws your signal mostly straight up), so give some though to Hamstick-type antennas too.

[daddysjeep09]

Here's an antenna that I've been tossing the idea around using with a manpack. http://www.buddipole.com/

The reviews I've read say that it seem to be well like in the American southwest. Maybe this will help with you're antenna especially if you're in an area where you don't have any trees, buildings or anything like that. I've also been told that you don't necessarily need the tripod, you can mount in on a vehicle.

[TacAir]

I really like to look of that Shout Nano. A big step up from the old marine EPIRB we used to have.

This will be desert, with lowish mountains or canyons. With the Nano as emergency communications backup, the radios will pretty much be used for communication between parties. It still seems like it might be useful to have a portable in a truck and the handheld with the walking party (you do a lot of walking with your head down when looking for fossils.) I still like the idea of being able to make long distance contacts, but that may be more for fun out there.

I am not really that strong on antenna theory - can you take a strung dipole and adjust the height of one end to change the angle, in order to adjust the beam?

An inverted V offer some directional patterns

http://www.k7mem.150m.com/Electronic_No ... d_vee.html

This link
http://www.w8ji.com/rhombic_antennas.htm
has the Smith charts for several related antennas.

I've used Inverted V antennas many times to good effect and am building one I can use as a NVIS or dipole as the conditions warrant.

Once I can find some ground (not snow) in a local park for testing and measurement I'll put up some photos.

[NoAm]

Mr. NoAm & I have been looking for handheld radios. Someone told us about the Baofeng handhelds. yes they are inexpensive, but might work for us until we can get the good Yaesu radios
Wanted to see if anyone had any experience with these or suggestions. Wouxun radios had also been mentioned as an inexpensive alternative.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BAOFENG-UV-3R-Mark-II-UPGRADE-136-174-400-470Mhz-Dual-Freq-Display-/120916575098?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c2730837a#ht_4141wt_1256

[KJ4VOV]

Mr. NoAm & I have been looking for handheld radios. Someone told us about the Baofeng handhelds. yes they are inexpensive, but might work for us until we can get the good Yaesu radios
Wanted to see if anyone had any experience with these or suggestions. Wouxun radios had also been mentioned as an inexpensive alternative.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BAOFENG-UV-3R-Mark-II-UPGRADE-136-174-400-470Mhz-Dual-Freq-Display-/120916575098?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c2730837a#ht_4141wt_1256

There's been discussion of both in the Communications forum NoAm. I'd provide a link but that requires two hands and the cat in my lap will not allow that. She's graciously allowed me to stop petting her with one so I can continue to type a little, but stopping with both would be unacceptable and her claws are uncomfortably close to my dangly bits, even protected as they are by heavy sweats.

[KJ4VOV]

Mr. NoAm & I have been looking for handheld radios. Someone told us about the Baofeng handhelds. yes they are inexpensive, but might work for us until we can get the good Yaesu radios
Wanted to see if anyone had any experience with these or suggestions. Wouxun radios had also been mentioned as an inexpensive alternative.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BAOFENG-UV-3R-Mark-II-UPGRADE-136-174-400-470Mhz-Dual-Freq-Display-/120916575098?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c2730837a#ht_4141wt_1256

There's been discussion of both in the Communications forum NoAm. I'd provide a link but that requires two hands and the cat in my lap will not allow that. She's graciously allowed me to stop petting her with one so I can continue to type a little, but stopping with both would be unacceptable and her claws are uncomfortably close to my dangly bits, even protected as they are by heavy sweats.

ETA: Quickly, while she goes for water...

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=94136

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=89271

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=88470

[NoAm]

I searched for handheld, instead of Baofeng *facepalm*
Thanks KJ4VOV!

[mikester]

I am very happy with my UV-3R. It is a phenomenal radio for the money.

I had no problem programming it from the front panel. Right out of the box it was easier to set the CTCSS tone for my main repeater than my VX-5R is, without even looking at the instructions.

The software and CHIRP both work well for programming it, but I ran into a problem with the USB-serial drivers. I think the programming cable I got uses a counterfeit PL2303 chip, as I had to install a special driver and once I did I could not use other 2303 cables. I think I will cannibalize the cable and change out the 2303 for an FTDI chip as they seem more robust and I have one on hand.

The charging cable is 5V **negative** tip, which is unlike most other devices. It is also an extremely small connector. My model came with a cradle of sorts, but it cannot charge the battery in the radio from the cradle.

It uses a 4-conductor TRRS connector for audio/programming, but the jack is not wired like a Yaesu or anything else that uses that plug. Bummer that non-Baofeng other accessories are not usable. It is cool that the VFOs (not just the memories) can be set by the PC: Maybe some enterprising soul will write software that allows it to be used with HRD or GPredict for satellite QSOs.

It is pretty solid and well-built. It may not have an aluminum housing, but it does have an aluminum chassis at least.

I did drill out the mic hole in the front of the unit, as I had reports of low audio. RX audio goes from plenty loud enough to extremely loud, great in a moving vehicle.

With a mag-mount antenna on the roof I have excellent luck getting into my main repeater from well over 20 miles away, as long as I am not at the very bottom of a valley. Good reports in most places, and it drops out in the same places my VX-5R does. Quite remarkable what 2W will do.

I got it to build into a dedicated APRS tracker, but for the moment it is still doing QSO duty and doing it well. The antenna I have been using it with is an MFJ-1722S, and the two make a great compact combo.