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Mobile Head Set

With the increase of the use of mobile radio I thought I would publish my design for a hands free system I have been using for many years.

It all started back in 1994 when I worked as a service engineer. I was travelling through Bristol and in QSO with a G4. Blue lights shone through my rear view mirror. It was the Old Bill. (Police). They didn't like it that I was using a fist microphone while I was driving. No action was taken as I had seen them come out of a side street behind me. If I hadn't they would have done me for driving without due care and attention.

I went to a rally not long after and there was a stand selling head sets for £12. There was no plugs fitted nor a switch box. Instructions were supplied though and I soon had it working on my then ageing FDK 2m rig but it required a 1.5 battery to energize the mic insert.

Enter the Hand-Held

Some years earlier I had acquired a Standard C120, a very good rig it is too: this required a different method of connecting the mic. On a handie most of them require a resistance on the mic socket to transmit. It was found that if the mic insert was connected it transmitted, disconnect and it went to receive. Easy!!

I then bought a dual band Icom ic7e. This worked the same way as the old Standard, but by this time (6 years) the old head set had developed a fault. The mic boom, when moved went on and off. Well about a year earlier I bought from a computer fair for £2-50 a nice looking head set as used on computers. I gave this a try. Cutting off the lead from a generous 2m down to about 1m. I connected the unit to my old switch box.

Success! It worked. The following day I used it mobile on the way to the Longleat rally. I had good reports of sound Quality, and that is what I wanted.