The Frankenstein Build! LT/Expo/Trail rig..and BS

Blower and LT to Igor, SAS on Frank.

 

hmm. Interesting idea.

 

Fuck yes

 

I kinda figured they might be 35's . Sometimes a Great Photo like that one , can be deceiving , like the way you hold a fish or a rack while having your picture taken can make the subject appear Bigger .
I do the overland , mostly highway till you get there. How do like the 255's off road ?
Currently , I had some Cooper AT3's 275/70/17 they did great off road , never any problems , the 255 is only 3/4 inch slimmer and might be better for snow and mpg's.

That is a Super Picture ! Buy it ! Hahahaha !

 

I like them a lot. I have the cooper ST Maxxs. Been great to me so far, a tad louder then id like. Need to rotate them soon actually which i'll do with new wheels.

Offroad they did great. Lots of clearance with minimal trimming. Was glad I had them in Utah in more the one place with a truck that had almost no armor.

Igors thread is here: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/igor-double-cab-4x4-frankensteins-helper.390488/

Lots of photos of Igor wheeling with the 255s: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/m-d-u-photo-thread.458786/

Its a great photo! Ben always does good work.

 

Right I forgot, my bad!

 

^^^

Thanks
Igor and my truck are almost identical.
Kings up front , Dakar and Bilstein rear ....
My plan is the ST Maxx

 

Your Fiancé is a Good Photographer Ben !!
I Love that picture !

 

@Blackdawg is this still your daily driver?

 

Haha no.

No Igor my double cab is. Haven't daily driven frank for about 3 years.

 

This is Igor https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/igor-double-cab-4x4-frankensteins-helper.390488/

 

Dang haha nothing you own is stock!

 

Nope haha I can't restrain myself

 

Alright, it only took me 15 day, but I looked over the link.

First outstanding questions:
Is the GM300 (or something similar) required to run APRS? As in, can I just use a baofeng handheld to do the same job?
WTF is the TNC?
Do you have to have service to run APRS or just GPS?

I've got a Baofeng 82HP that is going to remain in the rig at all times w/ a mag mount antenna, plug in battery, and mic, but will have another UV-5RV2 that will serve as a handheld outside of the rig.

I like the thought of a larger radio, such as an Icom or Kenwood, but the handhelds are my introduction into H.A.M. so that's what I'll be using for a while. Not concerned with digital.... yet.

 

haha no worries!

The GM300 is not required. Hell some radios have it integrated already. You CAN actually make a custom cable to interface with the TNC and use your Baofeng for aprs. I'll explain how this works and it'll answer the other questions at the same time.


To use APRS you need three componets basically.
1)GPS to give your coordinates
2)something to transfer this to the radio waves
3)something to broadcast information to Radio waves.

Device #1 can be as simple as just GPS. Or as complex as a computer. Phones are now considered ideal as they are small, most smart phones have GPS, and you can get GUI apps that will allow you to see and interact with not only your own APRS data but others as well. In other words, using APRSDroid I can literally see other people on a map.

Device #1(For me an old Motorola DroidX) sends the GPS data to the TNC via Bluetooth. The TNC is just the small black box. What this does is take my GPS data and convert it into the packets that need to be sent out on the radio waves. These packets are the APRS "language" so to speak and get received by any and all stations listening to the correct APRS Radio Freq(144.39). To get it to the other things, you use Device #3(a radio, duh ha) to broadcast your APRS packets containing your GPS data to all stations listening. The end game is to hit an iGate. An iGate is a small repeater tower that is connected to the internet and once it receives your APRS packets, it posts them online at aprs.fi. Now, there aren't igate everywhere, but there are a lot more digipeaters out there. These are simply repeaters dedicated to relaying APRS data to try and get you to an iGate. There are settings you can pick to say how many times your data will get relayed, but we will worry about that stuff later.


Likewise, you will hear and receive APRS Packets from any and all stations that your radio can pick up. So if you and I are wheeling together and both running APRS. You will receive my APRS packets and I will receive yours. So on my Phone running APRSDroid, you'll show up on my map and I will show up on yours. We can see exactly where we are. Now this isn't like "real time" tracking. I will only know that last position you pinged. But it real time enough to know where you are and such. Very hand to have.

To make a cable for the Baefeng you'll need a cable that plugs into the mic and speaker ports and it'll have to live there and be wired to the TNC. Not super ideal, but it is do able. The good news is that if lets say you get a dual band mobile rig of some kind next month. You CAN use the Baefeng as your dedicated APRS radio if you so choose. Id wire in a permeate antenna for it too and power but you can do that all if you want.

Ditto to all Ben said too. You'll need a license to do APRS as you have to register and get an access code to use APRSDroid. can't do that without a Callsign.

And you can easily make a cable. My Dad has made tons, we can help you if you choose this route.

 

Been studying intermittently for the technician exam. Plan on taking it next month - not transmitting and only using my radios as scanners at the moment, so no license nazi comments

I'm hoping the 82HP will be a suitable rig radio as it puts out a little more power than the UV - also anticipating that the mag mount antenna will perform far better than the standard antenna. I'll have to look into chord options!

Thanks for the clarification of the TNC. I saw photos of it in Monte's linked post so I had to ask.

Do all of you guys use android devices? Anyone use apple? I'm not in support of one over the other, just curious as to why Android devices are mentioned? Easier to setup?

 

There aren't really any IOS options out there mainly is why. think there are two but I didn't get them as I only have an ipad and needed to buy a GPS dongle for it. Was easier to use an old Droid we had. Plus I have a Tab4 now and it has GPS so if my phone dies I just switch it over to the tablet.

The 82Hp will work fine if you get a real hard mounted antenna. I think they make power setups where you don't need a battery either. Again, power is overrated in radio. Its all about the antenna. Most repeaters only run 10-15w and have ranges of 40-50miles. But they have huge antennas and a great tune and grounded well.

The antenna will make all the difference. Get an external speaker and mic and your good to go.

Won't be able to run APRS with an external mic and speaker though. You'll need those ports for APRS.

 

Alright, now we're getting into the meat of it. @m3bassman feel free to chime in on this response as well. I'm new to this and trying to drink from a fire hose...

So, is APRS utilized for anything other than tracking? Is there additional benefits from sending/receiving APRS packets aside from being able to see one another on a device (aside from safety as well)? Also, does your transmission need to hit an iGate and/or repeater for others to pick you up (as in those in your group), or does being tuned into the dedicated frequency show location alone?
- sorry if the last question is hard to understand... it was hard for me to type...

Now that I understand this, I'm assuming the reason you have the GM300 is simply for APRS, and the Icom serves the role as vocal communication?

I've got an external speaker and mic coming in the mail , but now I'm wondering if I need to convert one handheld to a dedicated APRS unit and have the other one serve for coms - again, for the time being. If I end up really enjoying this hobby I'll get a better radio.

I have no problem running and android device and will likely find a use for my old Samsung GS5 now.

 

APRS is pretty much only for position. You can message through it, in fact that's where text messaging came from. The down side to it is that the receiving station you are sending a message to MUST have their own aprs setup and MUST be on and listening to receive it. Otherwise it won't go anywhere. AND you MUST know their EXACT callsign and the SSID they are using for APRS. There are apps that even support email too so you can contact people who do not have an aprs rig.

You do not need to hit a digipeater or igate for someone to see you. If they receive your packets directly then they get them. No need for a repeater. The dedicated freq is just so that everything is tied to well..everything. This way you don't have to constantly be changing your freq if you switch states half way through.

There where times in Utah for instance that Mike and I both didn't hit any digipeaters or igates. But we could always see ourselves because we where within range of each other.

Yes, my GM300 is both rigs is just for APRS. The 5100 is used for straight up talking and scanning.

To use the Baefeng, you'd be better off getting a second one to run APRS as it'll just be a PITA to use it as your main radio and aprs due to the way it has to be done with that particular radio. So a better radio may be an option or just two baefengs.