My SOTA Station Gear

Equipment:

• Yaesu FT-857D, MH-598AJ DTMF remote microphone. The remote key pad offers programmable short-cut keys for direct access to the menu e.g. power menu
• Icom HF IC-703 QRP with inbuilt ATU
• Batteries:
  • 4S 4.2 Ah LiFePO4 (13.2 volts)
  • 4S 8.4 Ah LiFePO4 (13.2 volts) stored in a PLANO 1450 waterproof case
  • 4S 3.2 Ah LiPo (16 volts) requires regulation to < 15.5 volts
• Yaesu FT-817ND out of the box no mods
• External in line microphone voice compression kit.
• Plano 1460 waterproof carry case
• Batteries:
  • 3S 2.2 Ah LiPo (12.2 volts)
  • 4S 4.2 Ah LiFePO4 (13.2 volts)
• Yaesu FT-60R dual band HT
• SG-Lab 23cm 1296 MHz Transverter
• SG-Lab 13cm 2.4 GHz Transverter

HF antenna options (homebrewed):

• ‘Moseley’ Inverted V Linked dipole for 6/10/17/20/30/40 metre bands
• 9.7 metre clip-on wire extensions for 80m 3.585 MHz.
• Linked EFHW 15/17/20/30/40 metre bands, 20.1 metre antenna and QRP tuner. Feedline is a 2 metre length of RG58AU. Counterpoise is a non-resonant 6.8 metre length of #18 wire.
• 40m center loaded vertical (retired)
• 14 MHz 1/2 wave wire J-Pole antennas (homebrew OE9HRV design)
• antenna winders were purchased from TET-Emtron in Perth. You can make your own from plywood.

VHF antenna options:

• ‘Moseley’ 6m 52 MHz Coaxial Dipole homebrew antenna for SOTA. Simple design no mechanical joints, coil-up for easy storage in a backpack.
• 2m Slim Jim, excellent homebrew antenna for SOTA. Tough, reliable, faultless operation with a low angle of radiation ideal for mountain peaks.
• 2m 4el yagi homebrew can be mounted on a squid pole using a short length of plastic pipe and a mast clamp.
• 2m 3el yagi, mounted on a camera tripod.
• 2m 144 MHz 1/2 wave dipole, mounts at 5 metres on the squid pole. Has a low VSWR on third harmonic 432 MHz.

UHF antenna options:

• 70 cm 7el yagi tripod mount
• 70 cm Slim Jim
• 23 cm 12el yagi homebrew
• 13 cm 22el yagi homebrew
• 23 cm Bi-Quad
• 13 cm Bi-Quad

Antenna supports:

• 6 metre, 7 metre and 10 metre squid poles from Harverford in Sydney.
• 6 metre pole found on eBay, I often use this pole to support the 52 MHz 1/2 wave vertical.
• 10 metre squid pole purchased at Maruya Markets for $20, a bargain!
• 10 metre Travel Pole from DX-Wire Germany. This pole fits in a suitcase.
• 12 metre Spiderbeam telescopic pole

Coax cable options:

• 10 metre length of RG-58AU, I keep a second 10m length in the car boot. 🙂
• 10 metre length of RG58AU terminated with BNC connectors
• 3 metre length of RG58AU, BNC connectors.
• 6 metre length of LMR-400 for 70cm 432 MHz activations

Other essential bits and pieces:

• Various RF socket and plug adapters
• Roll of electrical tape
• Releasable Cable Ties
• Tie Down Straps: 4 * 0.5 and 4 * 1 metre
• Aluminium tent pegs to stake out the dipole end ropes, in lieu of other supports
• Sister Clips in various sizes
• 16 oz throwing weight and a 15 m length of 3mm blind cord
• Paper log book
• Lenovo Tab3 7 inch tablet running VK Porta Log
• First Aid Kit
• Clothing appropriate to the conditions
• Summit Bothy Bag (when Wx is a concern)
• Signal Mirror (polished stainless steel)
• Head Lamp
• Matches
• Insect Repellent
• Food and water for the human pack-horse 🙂

Clothing and winter extras:

• Hiking boots Scarpa Delta GTX. Best fitting boots I have found in 30 years. 😉
• Gaiters
• Rain jacket
• Thermals
• Gloves and beanie for winter

Navigation:

• 1:25,000 topo maps and compass
• GPS Garmin 64S with optional OzTopo (10 metre contour) V6 software. Note, the Garmin base map supplied with the unit does not include topographic detail.

Backpacks:

• Kathmandu Katun day pack
• BlackWolf pack for overnight activations

Battery charger:

• Balanced Charger suitable for LiPo and LiFePO4 batteries

First published: 14 February 2014
Last update: 28 October 2021

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