WICEN CASES
VK4ION
Building Cases
First some background
In Bundaberg our WICEN group serves the community by assisting the Emergency Service organisations activated during times of natural disaster.
Our Equipment
Our 12-volt-powered radios work when electricity and telephones fail
and our operators must be able to respond quickly by carrying
everything they need to set up portable stations wherever they are
required.
An emergency Station includes the Radio equipment, the antennas and
a portable office so that they can pass radio traffic and keep track
of messages etc.
We received some funding for the radios but the budget didn't
stretch to the enclosures to carry the new equipment so we began to
look for cheap options.
We've experienced flooding in Bundaberg and knew that something
robust was required if the operator and equipment were to be safely
transported by floodboat or helicopter.
The aim was for a single operator to carry everything they needed so
the first step was to lay out the radio and ancillary items, and to
measure and rearrange until we found an efficient design.
The end result was three timber (pine) cases with outside dimension
740x370x210mm.
Each box contains the radio equipment, a 40M roll of coax;, leads
for battery connection, hammer, earth wire and earth stake, magnetic
bases for antennas, clock, Hi-viz jackets for the operator, plastic
boxes containing message pad and office supplies and of course spare
fuses
Total weight when the box is loaded in this configuration is 22kg,
and well within the lifting capabilities of active WICEN members
Gallery
Building the cases
Here are a couple of images of the project.
Please contact me if you have any questions.
19mm pine boards. Lid height 70mm. Bottom 140mm.
All holes predrilled before screwing as raw pine is quite soft
and will split easily.
Lids are removable.
A weatherseal strip under each lid, and pull-down clasps ensure
a tight, weatherproof fit
Several coats of marine varnish help to seal and weatherproof
the cases.
Extra long carry handle for easy handling.
The Radio, Antenna Tuner & Power supply are all firmly fixed to the removable shelf by small aluminium "L" brackets.
The shelf is 12mm Pine sheet, strong enough to hold the radio equipment & can be taken out and used where required.
Everything the operator needs to prepare & send messages ensuring a paper-trail during activations.
Consider this..
Things which had to be considered
- Rounded off corners so no sharp edges on the box, nothing to catch the operator as they carried it
- Fitted a long hardwood dowel handle secured into the case with threaded metal rod & nyloc nuts
- The lid detaches so it can be used for other purposes, like a tray or for holding paperwork in the radio shack environment that the operator creates around themselves
- All bolts are recessed into the timber. No sharp protrusions to catch on the equipment or the operator
- Used Cabot's Marine Clear: 2 coats to the inside and 4 spray coats to the outside
To keep weight down...
- Small aluminium 'L' brackets secure equipment to the shelf to reduce the amount of metal around the radio equipment
- The removable shelf has finger-holes in diagonal corners to lift it out. Reduced weight by not adding a lifting handles
Personal Projects
Never stop learning, sharing knowledge or travelling
Each of these images will link to a dedicated webage where I share my Amateur Radio projects or travel pages.
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