Friday, December 22, 2017

Ham Shack Major Upgrade


This is my little corner of the world. The new desk is almost finished. Key features:
  1. about 7ft wide, 30" deep and 7ft high
  2. 3 drawers on the left, room for 2 computers plus paraphernalia (UPS, ethernet switch, etc) on the right--I will add the second computer after I install AndysHamV21 on it
  3. ~18" adjustable shelves on each side
  4. top shelf holding misc items
  5. middle shelf for stability and storage--and ultimately my on air sign 
  6. 200mm computer case fan to cool the HF rig (Ten Tec Jupiter)
  7. small, fixed shelf on the right to hold the 2M rig and power supply
  8. my DIY 12V power strip (for the fan and sign)
  9. pull-out keyboard shelf and pull out work/writing area
  10. 8-outlet power strip (behid the monitors and radio)
  11. 26" Samsung TV/monitor connected via HDMI cable
  12. 21"  monitor connected via VGA cable through a KVM switch to both computers to facilitate sharing
  13. pre-existing telephone jack now comes in through a wall plate in the desk side
  14. 2" holes in several locations for wire management
  15. notches in each of the 18" shelves to accommodate wires and cables
It took the equivalent of 4 4'x8' sheets of 3/4" plywood, plus some 2x4s for framing, some 1"x4" pine for trim, and some 1/2" plywood for the keyboard shelf. I put on 2 coats of stain plus 2 coats of polyurethane (8 coats on the desktop). We  used drawer slides from Rockler for the drawers and the pullouts

We also took the time to run the coax from the 2M and HF antennae across the ceiling and behind the wall. The desk is where the coax came into the shack anyway--it's just neater now, coming in through a wall plate and on to the radios,. We also ran the ethernet cables behind the walls. There had been cables all over the place. Now the ethernet runs:
  • from the cable modem/wireless router into the wall across the ceiling to a dual wall plate
  • from the dual wall plate an ethernet switch
  • from the switch to the XYL's computer and another cable from the switch back into the wall plate
  • from the wall plate across the ceiling to another wall plate under the desk
  • from the wall plate to another switch that feeds each computer
Dual ethernet wall plate--cable comes from the cable modem/wireless router and into switch. One output from the switch goes to the XYL's desktop--the other goes back to the wall plate and on to the shack

I'm in heaven.  All credit goes to my brother-in law (the one with the skills). .This is a substantial piece of furniture. I can't get a clear shot to take a photo of the whole thing--it's too big. I still have a little work to do, but it's great!

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