|
|
|
|
Buck's RV-8
|
Date: 9-11-2007
|
Number of Hours: 2.30
|
Manual Reference:
|
Brief Description: GPS antenna mount
|
|
Recently, a fellow RV-builder friend showed me an interesting GPS antenna mount that one of our mutual friends had fabricated for him. The mount was intended to go on the upper firewall, where the antenna would have a clear view of the sky, at least from a radio-wave standpoint. The mount, however, was made of heavy-gauge stainless steel! It weighed at least a couple of pounds, so of course my friend opted to copy its otherwise ideal design, but make it out of lightweight aluminum.
I borrowed the steel monster and replicated it for myself today. I began by tracing the mount on a piece of stiff posterboard, then tweaking the dimensions so they were perfect. Then I cut out the posterboard and traced its edges onto a sheet of 0.040" aluminum, cut it out, trimmed and polished the edges, and bent it in a bending brake. Then, I cut two 4-1/4" lengths of heavy aluminum angle, trimmed and polished them, then clamped them to the sides of the mount, drilled the eight rivet holes, and deburred all the parts.
I'll leave it clecoed like this until it's time to mount it to the firewall. At that time, the mounting holes will be drilled. I'll also figure out the exact antenna placement in the mount. It's big enough to hold both the Garmin GPS/XM antenna and a second GPS antenna.
After that project, I sanded and test-painted the half-dozen components of the throttle quadrant assembly. I want to see how the color I've chosen works with the light gray color I'll be using for the interior.
|
|
Steel prototype, cardboard pattern, and aluminum stock marked for cutting.
|
|
The Steel Monster and my new, lightweight replica.
|
|
Ready to mount on the firewall.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Copyright © 2001-2024 Matronics. All Rights Reserved.
|
