This year I ventured up to Dayton Hamvention and had my sights set on getting a new radio. I was able to purchase a Connect Systems CS800D dual band FM/DMR radio. I naturally removed the cover to get a peak under the hood as seen in the photo above. Once I was done understanding the basic layout of the PCB (note the UHF PA mounted to the back of the case, top of the image, and VHF PA at the front of the case, bottom of the image). I found it interesting how they fit so much radio into such a tiny package.
After some bench testing, I decided it was time to figure out how to mount it in my car. With a remote control head, I can simply mount it with the same setup as my Yaesu 7900R control head (which has since been sold). One problem, the remote control head mounter supplied with the radio does not match the mounting plate I have in my car. To fix this, I need to create a new mounting plate (or at least an interface plate). I started up Autodesk Inventor. Follow me after the break for more details or check out the part on Thingiverse!
I decided to go with an interfacing plate instead of a whole mounting plate as I assume others might have a similar problem. I designed the interfacing plate to attach to my mounting plate via 2 screws. The interfacing plate can attach to the remote head mounting hardware via 4 screws and it has a ridge built in to ensure it is well supported.
While this plate makes more sense to machine out of aluminum (just need to make some holes and mill out the middle, as you can see in the image below), I decided to 3D print the part. I neither have the material nor the tools in my apartment to make this happen quickly.
The whole stack fits nicely together as seen below. The interfacing plate fits snugly inside the remote head mount. The large, square hole in the plate allows the cables to easily pass through.
The screws included with the CS800D were not able to get a good grip in the interfacing plate. While the fit was tight, I wanted to avoid the remote head falling apart while on the road. To fix this problem, I turned to a special tool: a 3D printer pen. This pen allowed me to extrude some plastic into the slotted holes in mounting bracket. This plastic secured the two plates together and made for a single piece. You can see my handy work in the image below. Not the prettiest of work, but it gets the job done.
The last step was to test the fit and ensure everything works. The control head fit right in and the cable was able to route out the back hole. The last step is mounting the radio in my car. Since it is replacing my Yaesu 7900R setup, it is pretty much a drop in replacement.
The last step is to get on the air! With a codeplug made up with my favorite DMR and FM settings, the radio is ready to go and I have condensed two radios into one! Fun way to mix some 3D printing with amateur radio!
Milluzzi Labs 