AH4 in mobile, vibration?

[AD7DB]

Anyone who uses the Icom AH-4 tuner in a mobile, is there any problem with physical vibration?

I am planning a mobile installation. I have a 1995 Toyota small pickup, like the Tacoma but it came out the year before and thus has no special model name. I plan to put a ball mount on the left side near the back of the bed, and mount the AH-4 on the inside of the bed. The bed has a fiberglass truck shell which will provide added protection to the unit. The antenna will be a 102" CB-type whip. Rig is an Icom 706.

The truck isn't in too bad a shape for 172,000 miles, but it does shake things up in the back at times on bumpy roads and streets. Are there any serious problems with vibration on this tuner, or should I just skip it and go with Hamsticks?
 

[K0BG]

I've operated the AH-4 in my car for the last three years or so without any problems. Nor have I heard of any with the AH-4 in any vehicle, vibration caused or otherwise.

As for the Hamsticks, forget about it if you plan on using them with the AH-4. They have too much distributed capacitance to band QSY, although the AH-4 will certainly match them to the 50 ohm coax.

The whip is a better idea, and will allow operation from 40 thru 6. However, on 40 the efficiency will be low. I use a resonant 20 meter antenna and the AH-4.On 40 it works slightly better than my loaded 40 meter antenna.

I've written 4 articles here on eham.net you might be interested in reading. They are:

http://www.eham.net/articles/4407
http://www.eham.net/articles/4424
http://www.eham.net/articles/4425
http://www.eham.net/articles/4623

Two deal specifically with the AH-4.

Also, look at this URL http://www.hamoperator.com/ah4/


Alan, KØBG

[AD7DB]

Thanks for the info. Yes, I know about Hamsticks, as I have one I used on my brother's Suburban. What I meant was that if an AH-4 wasn't going to be reliable during bumpy driving, then I'd just use a more conventional means of using a Hamstick and running coax to the radio and skip getting an AH-4.  I don't have the tuner yet, though I plan to buy it later.

[N7PTM]

The AH-4 has no problem with physical shock & vibration in the typical mobile environment.  It also has no problem with being exposed to -20 deg F temps for a few weeks. I once had the AH-4 in a 2001 Windstar and had no garage to park it in, so it got as cold as could be and still worked fine.

[KF9WY]

I have an AH-4 mounted in the bed of My 93 Ford Ranger 4x4.
I use this truck for everthing from deer hunting, to bouncing over St.Louis pot-holes.

It's never let me down.