Radio Chest Pack Go Kit
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 9 июл 2024
- Operators have been asking for a radio chest pack go kit for VHF UHF ham radio voice & data communications. This radio kit bag is based on Etsy's Bastian Gear Mr. Frosty molle PALS chest pack. I added the Microsoft Surface, Retevis RA79 & RA89 dual-band walkie-talkies, a Garmin Foretrex, earpro, and a digirig to tie them all together to the radio harness.
Let's take a look at my concept.
73
Julian #oh8stn #hamradio
Video URL: • Radio Chest Pack Go Kit
RA89 Amazon Links
US: oh8stn.net/ra89usa
DE: www.amazon.de/dp/B0CCNNGL91 (1 Pcs) (20% off)
RA79 Amazon links
US: amzn.to/3Rowvrv
DE: oh8stn.net/ra79eu
Bastian Gear on Etsy
www.etsy.com/fi-en/shop/BASTI...
Microsoft Surface Chest Pack Go Kit
oh8stn.org/blog/2023/11/09/re...
Black Friday & Thoughts on Retevis RA79 & RA89
oh8stn.org/blog/2023/11/17/bl... Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an commission if you click through the link and finalize a purchase. Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an commission if you click through the link and finalize a purchase. 
Наука
Want more context? Please check out the episode notes.
oh8stn.org/blog/2023/11/09/retevis-ra89-microsoft-surface-chest-pack-go-kit/
Thanks for watching.
73
Julian oh8stn
Hi OH8STN. This was brilliant. Lots of useful information. I also like your chest pack. I looked up the link, plan to get one in the new year. Take care. I'll check into the UK licence website and look up the timetable to run the program. Cheers
You are one of two people who can get me over my anti-digital snobbery, Julian. your videos are always so clear and your way of doing radio in the field elegant. Thank you and keep inspiring us.
Love it. I completely agree that short distance data modes are completely overlooked.
Much appreciated.
73
Julian oh8stn
Looks like someone else watches S2 underground.:)😊
One of my favorite channels, along with this one. :)
S2 underground promotes this as well.
Chicken and the egg. Not sure who watches whom 🤣👍
"I don't always carry both radios, but when i do...
Stay QRP my friends" ‐ The most interesting man in RF.
Thank you 🙏
Wild horses couldn't take me away from HF or QRP work.
@2:41 looks like limiting straps are in order. This way it'd open and stay exactly where you need it (almost like a table) and free up your other hand. Very nice set up!
Brilliant idea jake. I think I have some material left over from a previous project. I'll see if I can sew them in next week.
Thanks for the brilliant idea!
73
Julian oh8stn
I use those metal binder clips you would use for paper clips on my work chest rig. I was going to sew something on but these just work and never got around to it.
@@OH8STN Paracord sewn into the upper corners of the front and back make for great limiters.
Thank you for sharing this. Im getting back into radios and this is a nice refresher. Thank you. Nice kit
Love the kit Julian! Runs a lot like what I use for mountain search and rescue! We have APRS to keep track of everybody when we're off the LTE networks, so my chest rig has an android tablet BT to a yaesu FT65 via a Mobilind TNC3
I think you have nailed it. May very well be the perfect load out and chest pack!
This caught my eye because I recently incorporated a chest rig in my daily carry gear. When I walk my dogs I found having misc items in my pockets and on my belt became cumbersome and aggravated a lower back issue. I always have a gmrs, flashlight, pepper spray , cell phone and occasionally other self defense n items if I'm taking them onto a woodland trail. This has been a godsend and after seeing your video I will experiment with augmenting my current kit with a uhf/vhf HT and a small tablet. I was looking at ed fongs roll up J pole anyway so it would be appropriate for this setup. Thank you for the motivation
Love the setup, quite similar to mine. The only thing missing that i highly suggest is adding a TTGO Meshtastic T-Echo. Mesh devices and community are almost an essential piece of gear in any kit nowadays. Keep it up!
So my buddy and myself were talking about past defcon and white hat work...and we talked about the legendary 'pringle-can antenna'...
Which had me thinking that somebody like yourself should make some vids about DIY/budget/adhoc antenna etc for survival/go kits.
Reading my mind👍
Hello Julian,
Grate GoBag. I am working also on a Chest Pack GoBag with Windows Tablet and VHF UHF Handheld Radio.
My ChestPack has also an Bagpack.
Greate System Julian.
Nice work on your videos, Julian! I agree that data modes, no matter the band (especially on VHF and UHF), are underutilized. I don't hear any in my area on VHF and UHF. It's food for thought.
Woah, an HT that charges via USB!? Sad that many of the major ham companies still have not incorporated this into their HTs. Yes, I'm looking at you, Yaesu and Icom. It's really nice to have an HT that I can charge with a USB battery bank like I had to the other night when I was at work when I forgot to look at the battery status to see if it needed charged.
It's ironic but true. Perhaps we can do something to change this in our community.
I've set up a similar chest rig for doing sats with the arrow antenna. Chest bags are underrated, and very handy.
That sounds incredible! I have one of the arrow antennas here. Just wondering if I should give it a go once it'swarmer again.
What all do you carry in the chest pack?
@@OH8STNFor Tx I use an Anytone 878, and for Rx I use a handheld sized Uniden Bearcat scanner. The scanner was selected because of the great bandpass filtering. The frontend doesn't get overloaded from the Tx power, which is an issue with most radios on Rx. I use the Anytone's bluetooth PTT, mounted on the arrow's boom, and operate it with my thumb. I also utilize the BT audio, paired with a headset mic, and the audio straight from the recorder wired to the speakers on the headset. It's a homebrewed headset ;), but kept the wire comlexity low. On the Rx side I have a small digital voice recorder so I don't have to write anything down. I use my phone to track the birds using the Heavens Above app (recommend). I've arranged all of it onto a board that fits into the chest pack and tilts out to face me while I'm operating. This allows me to keep my right hand on the antenna/PTT, and my left hand free to turn knobs and push buttons. I struggled early on with doing sat work, fumbling and bumbling until working out this situation. It's not as sweet as using a full duplex Kenwood, but those are unobtainium for me.
I don’t know how I haven’t found your channel until today. Great stuff subscribed!
Thanks for the kindness and for watching. 🙏
Thanks for the ideas!
Glad you like them! 👍🙏
Nicely done.
Great video
amazing video, as always. on a side note: you pronounced ciao perfectly. kudos to you, from an Italian (expat)
Thank you
I lived in Switzerland for a year working. Spent all my free time in Italian speaking parts of Switzerland and Northern Italy cafés. Also gave lectures in Milano on linear audio and metadata databases for RTI.
Italians and Swiss-Italians were the warmest of people, always making me feel at home.
73
Julian oh8stn
Nice kit, I am just getting started with VHF/UHF data. I plan on building a portable kit soon and your video gave me a some great ideas.
Absolutely outstanding comment. I'm not sure why v h f u h f data is so obscure for our community. Back in the day I did a lot of data communications on two meters SSB. Performance is so much better than FM. Please let me know what you come up with with your data station.
73
Julian oh8stn
Peltor makes a single/dual lead Comtac VI. Use a Disco32 amplified PTT, I believe the disco32 kenwood 2pin model would fit the Retevis. Looking at other handheld mics they look to have the same 2 pin plug. I use a Yaesu VX-7R with a disco32 and Peltor comtac VI single lead. I use the VX-7R specifically because the Disco PTT is screw in on the top of radio and weatherproof. VX-6R is still in production and uses the same screw in connector. Not cheap, but they work very well.
Best comment of the day! 👍
73
Julian oh8stn
Well done,awesome setup!
Thank you 🙏
73
Julian oh8stn
Excellent video Julian. Thanks for sharing your very fine business setup with us. The chest pack is very nice.
Thanks for watching and commenting. Your kindness is very much appreciated 🙏
73
Julian oh8stn
Smart build out Julian! Timely data saves lives during battle!
73, KF6IF
Thank you and agreed. Hopefully we can start getting operators to understand this concept. If HF is any good example, We should be able to grab hearts and minds with data on vhf/uhf
Thanks for watching and for the kindness. Very much appreciated.
73
Julian oh8stn
Excellent--- as usual
Thank you 🙏
S2 Underground had a cool case, with these lid lanyards, which allowed partial opening to the tablet, so it could be angled toward your face and not overexposed.
Thanks, I'll take a look 👍
@@OH8STN Zulu Nylon Gear - Mega Admin Pouch
@frankthetank3342 outstanding, 🙏
Hi Julian,
You have a Nice and complete gear pack in your chest pack.
One thing that saw as a extra made thing to add to the bag....
Was some straps
so that the front remains open as a flap (mobile Desk😉)and 2 hands free for.....putting on some gloves in the winter cold😄
Thanks for sharing this lovely video👍🏻
Ron
Excellent feedback. Indeed, straps would make this chest pack perfect. I'll do it in the coming week and put up a short video or blog.
Thanks for watching and sharing your ideas. Very much appreciated.
73
Julian oh8stn
@@OH8STNYou should give the strap suggestion to the maker.
Looks nice Julian. Could maybe use a headphone splitter plugged into the ear pro then output from each radio to one side of the splitter. PTT , I don’t have any idea
Hi, I have kept a close observation of your site. I like what you have received. I'll look up several of the links you have outlined. I am an outdoor activity person. I send some other info. I am looking at taking my license this year. Cheers, take care
Great Stuff
Sweet kit. Wish I had a MS Surface with internal GPS. Question: does that chest pack start to cause neck fatigue after a while? I notice that you are keeping the kit pretty minimal, which I assume is due to weight considerations.
No neck fatigue. The harness spreads the load across the shoulders and back.
The kit is minimal because it's in addition to a backpack. So there's no reason to load it down unnecessarily.
HNY & 73
Thanks!
Thanks for the kindness Roger 🙏
73
Julian oh8stn
Too bad there isn't enough interest in the market for an all-mode HT-sized VHF/UHF rig to entice the manufacturers. Just imagine 2M/70cm SSB digital modes with a collapsible yagi! Yaesu's 817/818 are close, but still large compared to an HT.
73s and happy holidays!!
Couldn't agree more. All mode VHF/UHF HTs used to exist 30-40 years ago. Seems like we've gone backwards.
Great comment 👍
73
Julian oh8stn
I’d buy in a second
Thanks Julian, helpful as always. Do you keep any/all of your HTs on the ecoflow charger full time, or do you top them off on a regular schedule?
You are very welcome.
I keep my HTs on the Eco Flow Whenever they are not in use. I use them regularly enough that i'm not worried about the batteries.
I think that if they were in long term storage unused, I'd probably store them at fifty percent of their capacity.
Thanks for watching and for the kindness, It's greatly appreciated.
73
Julian oh8stn
Hey sir, excellent content as always. The Invisio V60 may be an option for your combined monitoring needs. Invisio systems work a bit differently from the others in that the PTT houses the "brain" rather than the headset so it allows for some different types of combinations of input to include bluetooth. If I may, have you looked into building a similar system that's waterproof? My AO is very humid with frequent pop up showers so I'm hesitant to build a system with non weather rated connections or fully enclose a system that produces heat.
Wouxun KG-Q10H might work...not saying it will but I am working on it. Still need to ham radio. The chest rig is inspirational. 73 WM3R
I'm glad you found some inspiration. I like Woyxun rigs as well. I just wish the big manufacturers would catch up with the rapid innovation from china.
Julian: Which model Bastian chest pack are you recommending in your video? I went to the website and there are a variety of models and options on offer. (TIA)
I have thought about using this to take a radio out of the main pack to either have more supplies or another radio. Being able to have hf to uhf capabilities is beneficial. For sota, hf is primary and uhf/vhf secondary, the other way around for the public service events here locally.
That's a great point.
I couldn't justify carrying hf gear when vhf for uhf is predominant. Same other way around. Being able to just grab the relevant kit could streamline gear deployment.
Really wish the 705 was more shallow front to back. I do a chest rig for a capable HF QRP radio as well.
Thanks for watching and commenting.
73
Julian oh8stn
@OH8STN I do have a cross body bag that can do something similar, it's basically big enough to fit an ft 891 and not much more. I should look at it again.
I really like what you have done with this. Would it be beneficial to have a roll-up Jpole to extend your effective range? You could also consider a small amplifier and LiFePO4 battery if you frequent areas with poor coverage. Probably not worth it in most instances due to size and weight constraints.
Actually, the j pole sounds like a brilliant idea. It would not take up much weight or space. 👍
About the battery, seems I forgot to cover it in this video. I carry the PF LightSaver to recharge the HTs. The INCH pack has a LiFePO4 already, so no need for the extra weight in this pack.
Regarding the amplifier, what would you think about a collapsible yagi instead?
Always nice to see you in the comments.
73
Julian oh8stn
@@OH8STN I think the yagi is a better solution! As a matter of fact, K6ARK was on a Ham Radio Crash Course livestream last week talking about a portable yagi he designed and built. It has 4.15 dBd forward gain and weighs under 5 oz. There is a link to his build instructions in the video description. I posted it here, but RUclips did not like it and deleted my comment.
@Swamp-Fox I'll check out that video, thanks. I've got a portable collapsible log periodic in the shack. Perhaps I'll give it a try with that one first.
@Swamp-Fox I just checked out the K6ARK ultra portable yagi on his website. Not bad at all.
Check out the Ailunce AY02 yagi UHF foldable antenna
Julian: What Brand, Model, and Baud settings do you use on Vara, since Retevis is not a selection?
Your question is the answer. VaraFM Wide with a Digirig as the audio interface.
Hi Julian, what is the maximum data throughput using VARA FM, is there an unlincensed limit (lower than top speed), like for VARA HF?
There definitely is an unlicensed limit but I don't remember what it is. You can read it on his website though. Regardless, Both limited and full bandwidth are impressive.
How do you find the Microsoft Surface in field conditions, as it seems to not be very rugged?
Great question! I simply take care of it in the field. I keep it in a pouch until it's needed. I also use the keyboard cover to protect the screen during transit.
There are certainly better rugged options, but they cost more, weigh more, and in some cases are more difficult to charge in the field. We simply have to weigh the pros & cons.
73
Julian oh8stn
Hello Julian, I am a new to ham radio. Got a license and purchased used Yaesu ft-817 with auto tuner. What kind of antenna I should be looking for to be able to listen ham traffic available on our region? Qth is near Riutunkari. I'd like learn by listening others but I dont know frequencies to start with and what kind of antenna to buy to hear those frequencies with Qrp radio.
Firstly welcome to the community. As far as the antenna goes, an OCF dipole is a great start. You'll need more than one antenna, Because even the multi band antennas will miss some of the bands. The 817 has such low power, you won't want to waste energy on a broadband antenna. Try this video ruclips.net/video/OEpFwZhSdMo/видео.htmlsi=N9j7eC84JKbxLkQz
Regional comms is on 80m ~3699, but I warn you, it's not always the "best listening" pleasure. I would suggest using dx summit website to chase the spots. This way you can hear operators from all over the world, with their different styles.
For 3699, a low hanging dipole is good. For higher bands, get your antenna high in the air. If you want to try data modes, get a digirig and cable set for your radio.
Hope this helps
73
Julian oh8stn
Looking at the chest bag in Etsy at that price I wonder if it comes with the radios and surface go as well 🙄
Great video! how about a roll up J pole antenna? 73
Apart from the obvious, what do you use the small Garmin Foretrex gps for?
As a compass and to see where I've been 👍
How happy are with your Jääkäri XL? It's a pretty heavy backpack, is the carrying system, in your opinion, worth the weight?
Indeed! The only complaint I have about the pack is the weight. The frame is absolutely magnificent! It distributes the way to cross your body in a comfortable way. The modularity is also magnificent, no complaints there. I accepted the weight because it's such a rugged pack, It actually protects thegear & equipment I have inside of it. I can certainly get a lighter, but I'd end up doing something to protect the gear inside the pack anyway.
It's a little heavy but no regrets.
@@OH8STN Thanks for your reply, I'm trying to decide if the Jääkäri L or XL is better suited for me so your insights are appreciated.
Great video thank you
73
M0DSK
Thank for watching 🙏
73
Julian oh8stn