Friday the 17th

I awoke this AM with some energy and guts. First think I did was drill a 1/4″ hole in the wall, inside to outside, and it was in the wrong spot – of course – so I drilled one in the correct spot. Then I got out the 1.75″ hole saw and drilled a bigger hole on the inside and it was OK. Next, I went outside in PJ’s and drilled a 1.75″ hole using the pilot hole and it too was OK. Finally, I inserted a 7″ long 1 1/4″ PVC pipe through the whole and capped both ends so it was captivated without too much movement. (Now I was almost done except for the RTV to seal everything).

Time for breakfast —- Ok, after breakfast, I drilled a couple of more holes and holesawed them to the 1.75″ OD and inserted PVC plus captivators. Later came the RTV and now I am finished and ready for the LMR400 run from the antenna to the radio inside. With that I can talk to Auburn, Angola, Lagrange and other repeaters. Yea!

Now, I await dinner and kudos for a job well done. Remember – making an antenna is easy but the new cabling, through wall penetrations and the connectorization is much more difficult. Remember that when you dream of APRS, Echolink and IRLP all of you HAMS out there.