Sent: Tuesday, March 28, 2006 14:09
Subject: Page #2 FAQ
At 12:47 AM 2/3/2005, you wrote:

Thanks for all the great info.

So is this HP-32 a non ground plane antenna? Yes, but we ground the trunk racks to the frame and that makes your motorcycle the ground plain. Antenna manufactures advertise that these antennas work just fine without a ground plain, well that is true, but they work a heck of a lot better with a ground plain. Suggest retail price for the Comet HP-32 is $89.95, we can get it for our members for $50 plus shipping.

What kind of range would I expect to get in conjunction with the D-700? Of course it depends on the power out put, on what band you are on, where you are riding in what kind of terrain & etc. One of the tests I do on all the antennas Comet gives me is to put it on the back of the bike on the antenna mounts that we sell, ride a known route with the radio on the 2 meter band on 45 watts, start at my house, take the same route every time, have my wife talk to me on 2 meter simplex, head up the I-405 freeway. Go up by the LA airport (55 miles) while testing all the way on both 2 meter & 440. The Comet HP-32 will just make it on 2meters, so I can still hear her and make out what she is saying. It will not make it on 440 simplex at 55 miles. On 440 it starts to lose out at about 30 or 35 miles. Then I keep going North on the I-5 all the way out to the 75 mile mark. Of course the HP-32 at only 35 inches in height can not make it from there, even though in one area I am on higher part of the I-210 freeway by then. The Comet SBB-7 has been able to talk all the way and back, except where the hills or buildings take it out.

Will the antenna come with cabling? No, you will need to order the Comet 3D4M coax. $24.95 suggested retail, our price is $15 plus shipping.

Should I consider getting the SBB-7 also, and just interchange it with the mount when needed? That would be my recommendation, many of the MARC Members use this antenna on the many MARC Charity events because of it's superior performance in the gray areas where the repeaters are impossible to hit with the shorter antennas. Some of us even mount the 7 foot Maldol antennas on the back of the bike and put 3 monofilament fish lines on it to keep it from breaking off in the wind when on the freeways. You will also need to put our Stainless Steel, 2 ½ X 3 ½ " plates under the rear legs on the trunk rack bracket. $10 to MARC Members.

I have the Kuryakyn rack, so I would be interested in the flat mount. They are $10.

I think I like the ptt switch on Jon's site (Kennedy), if I can't get it integrated into the OEM switch, which I'm reasonably confident now that I've done more homework. I left a message for Jon, but he hasn't called me back yet. The PTT Button Bracket and the PTT button is the same one we have, he use to buy them from us, but found a place in Japan that can make the brackets cheaper then what we were selling them to him. The PTT Buttons are the exact same ones we sell for $13, We were selling them for $10 but the last batch we got a couple of days ago, they charge US $13 for them.

 Do you have an Idea on how you're going to connect your SP III to power AND to the D700's serial port? Yes

 Do you have your radios stored in the compartment where the CD changer goes? Yes, one of them, the other goes on the inside right side of the trunk. Pictures available.

 Is there enough ventilation in there? Yes, I drill a couple of vent holes for them.

 I know I've asked a lot of questions, but I do very much appreciate your advice. Maybe one day we'll meet on the road or on the air, and I can thank you personally.

So to Summarize, if you could tell me how much the total cost for the bundle of:

$12 MARC Membership must be received first, or we prorate dues at $1 a month after March so that everyone's dues come due at the same time, makes it easier for the secretary to keep up with the book keeping.

Polished Stainless Steel Plates are $20 to MARC members, $25 to all others. With the stainless steel plates you can still put 25 Lbs of luggage on the trunk rack without cracking the lid of the trunk box. Before we started using the plates on all installations many of our friends and members were cracking the lids on all the Gold Wing models. I am assuming that you have an 1800 Gold Wing, they are the weakest of all the models to date.

HP-32 $50

Flat Mount $10

SBB-7 Retail $74.95, our price $50

Any cabling you could supply. Retail $24.95, our price $15.

Shipping. Probably $10 would cover it, but less then $20.

Oh, and let me know an address to where I should send the check. Make a $12 check out to MARC, or prorated at $1 a month to December 31st, make another check out to Ray Davis for amount for the things you want to order, plus $10 shipping. When the checks clear the bank, I will go to Comet and get the stuff sent to you. I don't normally wait for the checks to clear the bank for MARC Members who have been members for a long time, but you being new, I am sure you understand that. We got burned for $300 from a new member about a year ago, so now we are a little gun shy.

When you join MARC, will be put on the MARC List and from then on you will get more help with your questions then you could ever imagine.  I actually get very few questions from our MARC Members, they just go to the MARC List.

I also do all the installations for our MARC members here in Southern CA for free. They have to furnish all the equipment they want to install and pay me for any items that they forgot and a little extra for tie raps, shrink tubing & etc. I do that up until May, on the first weekend of May I go to the WOTI BBQ in San Antonio TX, then back home for the MARC Meeting on the second weekend, then ride to the HamVention in Dayton OH for that event on the third weekend then home again for a week, do our BAD Ride Charity Event for American Diabetes Assoc, then I go to Americade in NY, Honda Hoot in Knoxville, Wing Ding in Madison WI, Honda Homecoming in Marysville OH, the IBMC National Campout in Cody WY. Then come home to do the SCMA 3 Flags Classic, Tijuana MX to Calgary Albert Canada for the 20th year in a row. I am going to be 74 years young in May, while I am at the HamVention in Dayton OH. Last year, I put 42,000 miles on Casper in 5 months.

Updated to March 28th, 2006