Steve’s new Icom IC-705 SOTA lap desk

I’ve been in touch with Steve (WG0AT) recently. He happened to be selling his FT-817 at the same time I was looking for a narrow CW filter.  The stars aligned and I now have a 500 Hz Collins CW filter in my FT-817ND.  Thanks, Steve!

Steve also took delivery of his Icom IC-705 recently so we’ve been trading notes about this fine rig. He and I both have a fear of the ‘705 falling off our laps when using it in the field for SOTA and POTA activations.

Steve, being the king of ham radio customization, started working on a portable desk. He shared iterations along the way and his final product seen in the photo above.

The desk is a brilliant design: it’s lightweight, sturdy, has holes for managing wires/cables, a strap to hold it your leg, and even a cup holder. The cup holder is a bit of genius because he likes a good cuppa tea in the field just like I like a good cuppa joe.

The IC-705 will be able to bolt directly to the lap desk so there’ll be no fear of it falling off a cliff in the field.

Of course, the desk will work with any field-portable radio. Steve shared a few more photos:

I’m going to attempt to build a similar desk for my IC-705. The great thing about it is it’ll easily fit in a backpack, too.

Thanks again for letting me share your photos, Steve! We look forward to seeing this desk in action at a summit near you!

Check out Steve’s excellent YouTube channel here.

One thought on “Steve’s new Icom IC-705 SOTA lap desk”

  1. Ingenious. I’ve been using a combination of a mini-clipboard when I’m 100% on foot or an extra large 11×17 clipboard when operating near the car. It’s a work in progress.

    73,

    Jack
    NG2E

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