To give you some idea of the
scale of this thing, the mast
pipe is 21 feet. The boom is 14
feet, and the elements are 18
feet.
To left, is the assembled
antenna on a test stand. I used
a small signal generator set up
a few houses up the street for a
signal source. Testing yielded
confusing results, I assume due
to interference from
surrounding houses and
objects. I did manage to set it
all up on a hilltop 5 miles south
of town. Initial results from this
setup seem promising, even on
a 10 foot mast pipe.
scale of this thing, the mast
pipe is 21 feet. The boom is 14
feet, and the elements are 18
feet.
To left, is the assembled
antenna on a test stand. I used
a small signal generator set up
a few houses up the street for a
signal source. Testing yielded
confusing results, I assume due
to interference from
surrounding houses and
objects. I did manage to set it
all up on a hilltop 5 miles south
of town. Initial results from this
setup seem promising, even on
a 10 foot mast pipe.
OK, about the light. Only because I
could, is the only answer I have. The
light sat on the shelf for years
collecting dust, and I never threw it
away. It only took an extra L-bracket,
hose clamp and one extra wire. Sure, it
serves no useful purpose, but how
many people have a strobe light on
their antenna? As a side note, it gave
them something to talk about on the CB
'soap-opera' channels!
The antenna can be used either
vertically or horizontally, and this is
rotor set-up. I modified the control box
to only work through 90 degrees. Word
of advice for someone thinking of
making a flipper rotor. Modify the rotor
with mechanical stops to limit rotation
to 90 degrees. Don't rely on the control
box for limiting range.
I like to design and build mechanical
gadgets, and this project had it's share.
The antenna needed to be about 10
feet over the top of the tower to
operate in vertical mode. I designed a
mount for the main rotor that would
allow it to swing out of the way, to
permit lowering the mast pipe. This lets
the antenna drop down to the top of the
tower allowing for maintenance or
repairs. Not shown, is the winch
contraption I built to raise the mast pipe
up and down.
To the right, is a scrap piece of tower
used as a test stand to work out any
engineering and design issues BEFORE
I try to install it up on the tower. A
lesson learned from the tower raising
fiasco. This simplified everything and
made it a simple bolt up job. At least I
found out I need a modification to the
mount beforehand.
could, is the only answer I have. The
light sat on the shelf for years
collecting dust, and I never threw it
away. It only took an extra L-bracket,
hose clamp and one extra wire. Sure, it
serves no useful purpose, but how
many people have a strobe light on
their antenna? As a side note, it gave
them something to talk about on the CB
'soap-opera' channels!
The antenna can be used either
vertically or horizontally, and this is
rotor set-up. I modified the control box
to only work through 90 degrees. Word
of advice for someone thinking of
making a flipper rotor. Modify the rotor
with mechanical stops to limit rotation
to 90 degrees. Don't rely on the control
box for limiting range.
I like to design and build mechanical
gadgets, and this project had it's share.
The antenna needed to be about 10
feet over the top of the tower to
operate in vertical mode. I designed a
mount for the main rotor that would
allow it to swing out of the way, to
permit lowering the mast pipe. This lets
the antenna drop down to the top of the
tower allowing for maintenance or
repairs. Not shown, is the winch
contraption I built to raise the mast pipe
up and down.
To the right, is a scrap piece of tower
used as a test stand to work out any
engineering and design issues BEFORE
I try to install it up on the tower. A
lesson learned from the tower raising
fiasco. This simplified everything and
made it a simple bolt up job. At least I
found out I need a modification to the
mount beforehand.
A few years back, I managed to
pick up the parts for this
antenna for free. It was dropped
off at an agency that resells
donated items. True to form,
since they had no idea what it
was, or the value, they decided
to throw it away. They let me
have it, which saved them the
trouble of carting it off to the
dumpster. This is actually a
story in itself, but we need not
get into that here. The make is
unknown and was originally set
up for 10 meter amateur band
use. I spent more time on the CB
band, so I modified it for that.
pick up the parts for this
antenna for free. It was dropped
off at an agency that resells
donated items. True to form,
since they had no idea what it
was, or the value, they decided
to throw it away. They let me
have it, which saved them the
trouble of carting it off to the
dumpster. This is actually a
story in itself, but we need not
get into that here. The make is
unknown and was originally set
up for 10 meter amateur band
use. I spent more time on the CB
band, so I modified it for that.