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Yaesu FT-7800R Mobile Installation |
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Written by Administrator
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Saturday, 27 September 2008 06:26 |
Living in the south Auckland countryside and working in the city means a reasonable commute (50kms/40 minutes on a good day) each way. A lot of this time is filled listening to podcasts but for several years I had also been taking my Yaesu VX5.
The VX5 is a neat little rig but at only 5 watts it was limited use for simplex, it was a very wide receive front end so connecting it to my mobile antenna would cause serious overload as I passed through the central city, I ran it from batteries because a connecting to the car accessory socket caused too much noise on transmit and the installation was a bit messy.... cables snaking into the car from the antenna and the handheld lying on the passenger’s seat.
I hadn't taken much notice of the prices on amateur transceivers until a recent trip to Los Angeles where I picked up a Yaesu FT-450 at HRO for US$750 (NZ$1000)… that is another story. US prices for 2m/70cm transceivers were great but I wasn't going to the US in the foreseeable future... only Hong Kong next week.
Google told me there was one amateur radio dealer in Hong Kong - CQ Shop and emails in advance of traveling asking what models they stocked and pricing went unanswered.... so while there I just went for a visit. CQ Shop is in Sham Shui Po... 4-5 MTR stops away from Tsim Tsa Tsui in a part of the city with few tourists and plenty of small shops selling electronic stuff to the locals. Unlike the tourist combat zone of Tsim Tsa Tsui you don't need to bargain at CQ Shop... they are very helpful and will give you a price that is more than fair (actually cheaper than HRO because there is no state sales tax to add) (no interest here.... just a satisfied customer). Compared to the large stores in the US the range is limited... mainly focusing on VHF/UHF transceivers and accessories.... makes sense given the lifestyle in Hong Kong I don't see many opportunities for large HF antennas and high power.
I purchased a Yaesu FT-7800R for Hk$1780.00 (US$266 / NZ$360). A great deal compared to NZ prices. The CQ Shop staff were really helpful and because they knew it was for export they were very happy (actually insisted) on powering up the rig and checking it on both transmit and receive.
Why the FT-7800R?
I like Yaesu gear. Not that I dislike other brands but my first contact with Amateur Radio was with ZL1BOK in the late 70's and he had a Yaesu FTDX-400 and this has certainly influenced my buying decisions.... I currently have an FT-450,FT-736R,FT-101ZD,FT-5200,VX5 and now the FT-7800R.
- A removable head. I wanted to install the rig in the Honda Civic I drive each day so the install options were limited.40-50w out on 2m (70cm less important as most 70cm stuff around Auckland is through repeaters but I do a bit of 2m simplex).
- Not excessively affected by strong off frequency signals.
- Wide band receive... specifically air band AM.
- Enough buttons and knobs (rather than menus) so it can be operated by feel while driving.
- Not too expensive.... I have enough other expensive hobbies (horses and airplanes).
Looking at the various options from Yaesu, Icom and Kenwood the FT-7800R won out. I didn't think the extra paid for a "real" dual band rig like the FT-8800 was worth it... I have enough trouble listing to one QSO without trying to listen to two... I had no requirement for cross band repeat and I thought the lighted buttons on the FT-7800R would make it a lot easier to operate in the dark.
So the FT-7800R it was....
Unlike the US the separation kit is not included in the standard price from CQ Shop. It is quite pricey to buy the standard Yaesu kit separately so I went for the eBay option and ordered a third party kit from one of the vendors on eBay. I could easily have made the cables myself but the plastic mount for the control heard was what I really wanted.
If you do buy the kit on Ebay watch make sure you check the pricing carefully... the vendors often list multiple of the same item with completely different prices and shipping costs. Mine ended up costing around AU$20 (the Yaesu kit seems to be around US$60) once shipping to NZ was included.... and was the best deal I could find at the time. It arrived, exactly as advertised and well packed within a week of ordering.
While waiting for the separation kit I planned the installation.... my main worry was how to get through the firewall to connect to the battery.
The Civic has some existing grommets with cables but try as I might I would not cut through the rubber to push the rig power cables through. The big stereo guys insist this is possible but after a few hours trying I gave up. I also didn't want to drill through the firewall either so I took the alternative option and ran the cable from the engine compartment through the door pillar and behind the trim in the cab. Not quite as tidy but pretty good.
The rig is mounted in the trunk (boot in England/NZ/Australia) and screwed to the back of the passenger seats. 
The power cables connect "almost" directly to the battery. The negative is on the same bolt that connects the battery negative lead to the chassis. The positive is on the same bolt that connects the battery positive into the fuse box. This needed a small amount of cutting of the plastic fuse box to allow the cable to enter but the result is very tidy. 
 Both positive and negative cables are protected by 10 amp fuses as close as possible to their attach points. If anything shorts downstream these should blow and stop any damage.
To get the power cables into the cabin they route between the hood and the passenger door and then behind the internal trim.
To prevent chaffing of the wires (particularly below the hood where there are sharp edges) the sites are run inside clear plastic tube.
The power cables run behind the trim down the passenger side of the car and emerge in the trunk.
The separation cables (panel and audio) run behind the trim on the driver’s side of the car and emerge under the driver seat.
The head unit is mounted using the separation kit mounting between the stick shift and the brake. I spent a lot of time considering locations and I am very pleased with this... it is tidy, all the controls fall nicely to hand and it is easy to glance down if needed to read the display. 
There is a Jaycar communications speaker mounted under the driver’s seat.
The DTMF mic still floats around in the cabin and often sits on the passenger seat. I guess I should install the mic holder.
Overall I am very pleased with the FT-7800R and how the installation worked out. The rig works well and I have had good reports on the TX quality, no noise on the signal from the ignition or alternator. The only thing that could be better is extra volume when driving at 100km on rough chip roads... although this is more an issue with the noise proofing (or lack of) in the Civic rather than a problem with the rig.
Would I buy another FT-7800R? Absolutely.
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