<< Would you consider a new wife if you would have a wife 15 years younger? )): >>

I'm 60; if I had a wife 15 years younger I'd probably be suffering multiple heart attacks!!! <g>

I understand the problem; my wife and I are planning our retirement home now. Hopefully it will be at the other end of the lot my daughter has. We have the problem of making the house design fit the pre-revolutionary area she lives in. Puts a REAL limit on the style and size of the house. Fortunately, antennas aren't an issue; no towers over 40' but anything else goes.

Good luck on the search. Keep looking and you'll find one the makes BOTH of you happy.

Lon

<< Well,my wife dreaming about a new house and I'm dreaming about a 5el Yagi. It's look like I have to give up my hobby... >>

Have you considered a new wife? <g>

Seriously, I am sorry you have been placed in this position. I cannot imagine my wife expecting me to give up my primary hobby over a place to live.

I'm fortunate, in that regard, I expect.

For What it's worth, new houses are NOT a good value. Older is better, as you have already been told. My daughter and her husband just bought an older house a couple of month ago - built in 1770 - predates the founding of this country!

Good luck, maybe you WILL find something that meets BOTH your needs.

Lon

Steve:

<< N3KZP, I understand what you're saying; however, unless you have a rather palatial residence I don't know why it would cost "hundreds of dollars" to run a 240V line into the shack >>

Actually, my residence IS palatial. Four bedrooms with a 20k+ sq ft 'attic' and a 20-car garage.

My shack is on the second floor of a townhouse built into a commercial office building. The nearest service box is almost 75' from the shack. The electricians in Baltimore charge an arm and BOTH legs to run service on a commercial structure. The last quote from the electrician (made while he was doing other work in the building) was a little over $300. The 'performance' increase on my AL-80A isn't worth the cost, IMHO.

The lack of 220/240 is more than made up for by the 23k sq ft steel roof under my Butternut vertical, though.

My point was that a 220/240 line, however desirable, is NOT always easily available and at a low cost.

Lon

<< BS. Anyone in North America has 240 readily available, if they have any electric service at all from virtually ANY utility company.  >>

It must be nice to live in your perfect world.

Having 220/240 _available_ and being able to run a 220/240 line into the shack are two different things.

Yes, I have 220/240 available, but to run a dedicated line into the shack would cost me several hundred dollars that I don't have. I'm sure I am not the only ham in this position. My AL-80A runs 600-750w SSB very nicely on 120v, thank you!

Lon
 

<< It is not illegal to buy it or use it having a valid amatuer license using it on the ham bands.. >>

That depends. If it meets the FCC's spectral purity standards (very doubtful) then it might be legal.

<<Any amatuer can use it>>

Use it where? On 11 meters? Not hardly.

<<  and even modify it to the ham bands.. >>

See my first paragraph.

CB amps are simply not worth the time and trouble to make then legal.

I have been waiting for someone else to jump in with an answer, but since no one has ...

With the possible exception of the Yeasu ($4000) solid state amp, I don't think you will find a single amp to cover 160-6. An amp with that wide coverage is not as easy to design and produce as the typical transceiver. You are much better off with two separate amps. 6m amps are not as common as HF amps, by the way.

As for sticker shock, welcome to the real world. With amps, you tend to get what you pay for - bottom end amps have cheaper components and construction and fewer bells and whistles. More expensive amps are better built, longer lasting (if not abused) and so forth.

I suggest to consider buying a used amp from someone you are familiar with. The AL-811 and Al-80A and B are often available for under $500 and $750, respectively. Both use inexpensive tubes and are easy to use. The Heath SB-200 is another good, used amp that is often moderately priced.

Go through the amp reviews and do some reasearch before you make a decision.

I hope this helps.

Lon

I believe the June QST has a construction article on just such an animal.

Lon

I wonder whqat would happen if houses started sprouting large, aluminum 'whiskers' from their roofs?

Steve:

<< f the house is in a Historical District, are you certain they allow towers?? >>

Well, the fella my daughter talked to said we can put up anything we want as long as it is under 50' and there are several such towers with tv antennas on them in South Brittain Histortic District.

If it turns out to be not true when we finally retire, we won't be living adjacent to my daughter!

Lon

Steve,

The house (Southbury, CT) is pretty much original. Believe it or not the oiled, shake roof is original, as are all the doors and floors (pegged hardwood). Of course the wiring and plumbing and heat is modern.

The kids are going to spend the next 10-15 years completing the restoration, but replacing the 50's kitchen and bathrooms now and a new roof in the next few years.
 
The current garage is termite ridden so just before we retire, the garage comes down and a new carage and carriage house will go in its place. Right now we are working with the historical district on styling for the carriage house, but they seem willing to approve the colonial/federalist plans we have come up with.

Lon

Dale,

<<  It's not as important as the schools, the neighbors, the house, and a hundred other factors that made us choose *this* perfect-for-us house. >>

To each his own. My daughter and her husband just purchased a "new" house, built in 1770. The plan is for my wife and me, in five years when we retire, to replace to old two-car garage with a three-car garage/carriage house combination for us to live in.

We gave the kids a choice - if you want us to live next to you, there must be no antenna restrictions on the property/neighborhood. They went along with this and found the 'house of their dreams' and a place for a 50' tower for dad!

In addition to the above reply, if your trucks are used in a commercial venture (your business), then what you propose violates FCC regulations.
 
Amateur radio cannot be used to further the normal activities of a business.

Can anyone give me a relative short reply of the merits of a Garman Vista compared to the Magellan Platinum?
 
They seem, on the surface, to be equivalent, but are they really?
 
I am interested in them for general GPS use, not APRS.

Thanks