K9WX-9 APRS: Automatic Packet Reporting System

I literally struggled for months with the issue of how to install the radio in my 2005 Ford Escape. I finally settled on a Panavise mount and was please with the outcome. Panavise mounts are vehicle specific. The mount for the 2005 Escape was installed by first removing the bezel around the instrument cluster (2 screws), installing the mount with the 3 self-tapping screws provided (no need to drill pilot holes into the thick plastic on the right side of the instrument cluster) and then reinstalling the bezel. Whole thing took about 15 minutes and was very clean. More importantly, the screw holes for the mount were hidden behind the bezel and were invisible when it came time to sell the car. I upgraded the vehicle to a 2012 Nissan Rogue in March 2012 and installed a similar mount from ProClip USA. This mount neatly fits between the cowl covering the instrument cluster and the heat/AC vents. The cables from the control panel are attached to the dash using a Gardner Bender cable clip; there are no mechanical fasteners involved, the cable clip is “friction fitted” into a seam on the dash. The radio body and an external speaker are mounted in the cargo area. I used a Comet hatchback mount on the Escape along with a Comet SSB-1 1/4 wavelength antenna and felt as if it was a struggle to hit the more distant digipeaters. When I bought the Rogue I had the antenna professionally installed in the roof. What a difference! Performance was greatly improved. Mobile station, operating as K9WX-9. Current equipment: o Radio: Kenwood TM-D710 o GPS: Green Light Labs GPS-710 o Power terminal: West Mountain Radio RIGrunner 4005 o Radio mount: ProClip USA vehicle specific mount o Antenna: Diamond NR72BNMO, hole-mounted in the roof You can see more pictures of the Rogue interior install here: http://www.k9wx.net/downloads/RogueInstall.pdf and you can see more pictures of the antenna install here: http://www.k9wx.net/hf%20mobile.htm

The “old” car, a 2005 Ford Escape

The “new”car, a 2012 Nissan Rogue