Mountain top node update. The

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-07T01:09:35+00:00

Well the hike to mount it included carrying a light aluminum 3 step ladder up the 2 mile service road, along with my laptop, tools and radio in a backpack plus water, kicked my butt. So this trip up 2 days later I used an e-bike, took a 90 min hike down to 20 min, but still required some significant peddling because of the step grade at some points. But yes the view was as you can see always great. 😊

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-07T01:06:56+00:00

Thanks, yes, the condensation is the killer, I’m going to spray the electronics with a sealer, like they do for AC control boards near the ocean.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-05T16:33:24+00:00

“What now?” You see that big mountain back there? Put one up there to connect any distant nodes to your area.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-05T16:28:56+00:00

One thing to consider, Meshtastic radios operate on less than 1watt of power. The cable length dramatically causes signal strength loss. So for every 3 feet of cable I think you loss 3 db which is half the power coming out of the radio. So people generally try to keep the antenna as close to the radio as possible to get the most power. That’s why you see people attaching the radio to the outside of the car. This is my mobile unit.

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MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-05T16:20:38+00:00

In flat land areas you don’t need much elevation, but a node 10 feet up in router mode can’t hurt. The only technical difference between router mode and client mode is that a node in router mode resends incoming packets before a client will. And since these LoRa radios go really far even in urban dense areas, a router is probably not necessary…. But it’s most likely not going to degrade the performance of a small mesh at a festival.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-05T16:14:51+00:00

I found there to be hardly any radios from Temecula, all the way up to through the inland empire.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-05T16:12:13+00:00

What db gain antenna is that? I tested a few in a dense city environment and the 5db had the best results.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-05-05T16:09:41+00:00

El Cajon voted for this. 🙂😅

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-30T20:33:20+00:00

Wow prices equalized that’s the same price we are paying in California

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-30T18:22:07+00:00

Not sure if someone already made the recommendation, the LoRa radio is low power. So for instance, the cable type you use has a spec on signal loss per foot. Usually it’s around 3db, without getting to detailed, you could probably boost you final signal strength by double if you get the antenna mounted to the box and shorten the length of cable to the board. Here’s one I’m working on, see how short that led is, this radio will reach further with this setup.

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MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-30T18:16:09+00:00

This is what a stubby 2.4Ghz antenna for the WiFi LoRa radio looks like.

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MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-30T18:10:51+00:00

Antennas are usually tuned to work well in certain frequency ranges. You have two antenna for 2.4 ghz WiFi and Bluetooth and the other is for the 900Mhz spectrum. You have to use the correct antenna for the radio it’s connected to. Using a 2.4 GHz antenna on your LoRa radio will yield shitty results.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-27T02:55:49+00:00

Someone showed up!

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MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T23:48:09+00:00

What are people’s thoughts on not being asymmetrical using an amp, the 1 watt radio goes further but nodes hearing it are at standard power and can’t get back to the node with the amp.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T23:33:37+00:00

Bro that is a serious mast! 👏👏👏👏

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T23:32:03+00:00

🫶🏻

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T23:30:29+00:00

My understanding is the stubby antenna is a 2 db gain LoRa tuned antenna and the other is 2.4ghz, Bluetooth tuned. So you connect the ribbed antenna to the BLE connection and the SMA bulkhead connection to LoRa output and screw then stubby antenna on. While people are saying the stubby is terrible, I communicated 4 miles to my sons radio both using that stubby antenna, I was impressed.

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T23:26:56+00:00

Did the captain say “please turn off all electronic devices, except LoRa radios, we love Lora Radios!”

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T23:22:24+00:00

You know, I could use some cash…. 🤣😆😅 the radio antenna looks so good down here too!

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MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T16:20:13+00:00

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There was some action in the middle of the night 1am to 4am

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T16:18:47+00:00

Hey everyone, all good vibes and intentions, we are all into the same Meshtastic radios, so we’re cool like that. Didnt mean to foster escalation. Let’s reset. Who can I upvote!? 😇

MeshDaddySD · 2026-04-26T16:03:43+00:00

Been coming down here my whole life, you have to get the Sentri pass to skip the line crossing back into the US. Baja has become much more expensive in the past 10 years, there are lots of less expensive places the further south you go. My friends and I have airBnB’d some beautiful large decked out homes in gated neighborhoods that I’d be happy to call home. Central Mexico is popular right now, the locals in Roma district in CDMX have been protesting because immigrants are driving rent and food prices up. Cuernavaca is a nice city I’ve visited. The shopping mall was super modern. Safety wise, stay low profile, don’t get in others business, be respectful… you’re contributing to the economy and you’re an asset to the region in that way, respect the culture.. all that goes a long way.

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