Sunday, September 15, 2013

Virginia Beach Hamfest 2013

I attended Virginia Beach Hamfest 2013 this weekend. Participation was a bit limited in that none of the major vendors attended. Notable this year was the absence of a MFJ vendor. I may need to switch to making my major purchases at FrostFest, vice the VB Hamfest.

The usual attendees were missing: Sparks (moved away), Tracy (moved away), and even Ethan and Matt. Was there something else going on elsewhere this weekend?

In any case, I was able to pick up a PowerGate and a RigRunner, both built by West Mountain Radio. I'm hoping that I can pick up the ISOpwr module at the next FrostFest. I'd planned on dropping this rig into the Invisible Car, but after the third rear-ender, coupled with the batteries crapping out, I decided to get rid of it. I'm hoping that I can get it into the non-hybrid Civic with not too much extra fuss.

After that, I only need a decent battery and a small Pelican case, and I should be ready for the next outage/exercise. Of course, there's the usual tweaking planned (a small generator, a more-capable radio, etc.).

Note: I "borrowed" the idea for this rig from Chris Hosman (KC4F), who built a number of semi-portable rigs for the Hampton ARES group. Given that I do most of my comms on the road (antennas tend to irritate wife and neighbors), it looked like something that I needed to build for myself.