Alee891's Radiant Red Build & BS

I looked at that.

Very doable. A lot of ham radios face plates are quite small actually. Only 1'' tall and 4-5'' wide some times.

Mine is huge and out of the ordinary. touch screen though so has to be.

 

I'm testing the waters with handheld devices. If the hobby takes off I'll eventually get a "regular" radio. At this point I'm not certain where the handheld radio will be placed in the cab, but I'll find out soon enough.

I'm open for ideas on the location for both types. I've thought about putting it in the bottom storage of the center console, but that'd likely be a pain in the ass to access. @3378jakesr5 once thought about putting a Corolla (?) overhead console in a Tacoma.

There is always this option:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/switches-in-headliner.402183/#post-11221235

I like to take the easiest route possible, so the headliner option is likely out of the question for me. I may end up just placing it near the passenger side floorboard. Who knows...

 

Im sure we can build some thing

 

well remember no a mobile Ham radio, the unit itself is about the size of a car stereo or even small actually. Then the faceplate removes. You can put the main radio under the seat easily and the face plate which is tiny can go many many places. Think of it as about the size of a scan gauge generally speaking.

They are pretty easy to fit into a cab.

 

Link for a newb?

 

mmm the best way i can show case is with my own..

This is the ACTUAL radio. Where the antenna gets plugged into, power and SD card. As well as my mic cable and a cable for the face plate.

HamStuff-2.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr

This is my faceplate. This isn't a great example as again, my faceplate is huge in the world of radios. Its a small tablet almost..lol

IgorsCommandCenter-40.jpg by Monte Nickles Photos, on Flickr

But they are separate is the point. Its not like a CB where the controls are on the unit. Even though photos will show the face plates attached to the unit, they almost all are detachable. So you only have to mount a very small unit to the dash somewhere.

 

Well that makes things a hell of a lot easier, and the face plate is significantly larger than what I was envisioning. Did you have to extend the cable for the face plate, or do they come in a generous length as is? Now I'm liking Brett's headliner idea

 

Usually come with quite a bit of cable. Mine did. Like 10' or more i think. Easy to get longer ones if needed though.

 

I don't need any more clutter in my cab that already has limited space. When I go the HAM route, it will be a clean and permanent install.

Don't think I need something that elaborate for the headliner. Just a little mount for the faceplate, wouldn't be much different than a setup for 6 switches.

But I've got an amp under one seat and a sub under the other. Maybe I can fit it in one of the cubbies in the back.

 

Yea you probably could. You'd have to extend the mic cable but that is easy to do. All depends on the unit you get.

 

The Yaesu 7900R I got has a detachable face and comes with an extension cable and mounting bracket for the face. You could easily mount the face up front and stash the radio someplace else. Mine will be going in the ARB overhead console I custom fit in my truck.

 

It's possible to use your phone as a display. I don't know how as I've done very little research on ham at all. I'll probably link it to my tablet on my dash if I ever go ham.

 

My radio can do that. Never bothered though. I hate setting up apps on the phone to run stuff. I like having a dedicated screen with its buttons on their own devices. Faster and easier to use. Safer too in some ways.

 

How often do you change settings? I just figured you would set it to what you want and let it run in the background.

 

Well if you're traveling you have to switch repeaters. So plenty. Or i monitor other channels and GPS data. Squelch is a constant change as is volume.

 

subd

 

Not Tacoma related, but picked up a new daily carry Glock 43 last week for an awesome deal. Previous owner was a police officer who qualified with it and never shot it afterwards. Said it was too small for his hands and he hated it. His loss, my gain. Can't shoot it for shit yet but it's a good little gun.