Article supplied by Brian VK2AXC.

Brian VK2AXC operating Colin VK2JCC’s portable equipment

Colin VJ2JCC and Carmel VK2NO continue to set a fine example with their regular POTA activity around various Sydney Parks. The only criteria are trees, a nearby coffee shop and participation on the Friday HARDARC Net 9am to 10am 7.106MHz. Brian VK2AXC tagged along on Friday 17-Apr-2026 to learn via osmosis and to enjoy a coffee afterwards.

The ammo case is also home brew, Carmel designed a three tier module in SolidWorks and laser cut the panels; holds radio, battery (Watt Cycle brand 12.8v nom 8A Li ion battery) all in one box. The below appeared in the April 2025 edition of AR.

Carmel VK2NO had her trusty ammo box radio hooked up to a homebrew end fed using a 3d printed reel. Very compact, easy to deploy (usually). The reel/coax end was also attached to a tree, within reach

VK2NO end-fed assembly – inside
VK2NO end-fed assembly – ready to deploy
Carmel VK2NO operating

Colin VK2JCC has a homemade chassis of PVC pipe flatten and angled with a heat gun to form a light and durable carry pack for his radio. The radio was hooked up to an inverted V dipole antenna held up by a squid pole. Colin preferred RG316 coax feedline being lightweight ideal for portable HF. Compared to RG58 the loss in practice using RG316 is not that significant.

Colin VK2JCC’s kit
Colin VK2JCC ready!

Both of our POTA mobile experts use the ubiquitous Xiegu G90. Its inbuilt tuner can tune a proverbial “wet string” according to VK2JCC.

Note from our president Simon VK2YU: Fantastic all.  Really like to hear these reports and information on gear used on the outings.  I’m sorry I’m still employed full time or I would join regularly.  Perhaps I need to make a few long weekends and join the fun. 

Read more about MWRS local park activations: https://www.mwrs.org.au/2023/03/10/a-walk-or-a-net-in-the-park/ and https://www.mwrs.org.au/2023/03/17/another-walk-in-the-park/.

And…a newcomer to the *OTA scene is OOTA: Out On The Air: https://www.outontheair.com/: just get out of the shack and operate portable anywhere. Give it a try!