• You can now help support WorldwideDX when you shop on Amazon at no additional cost to you! Simply follow this Shop on Amazon link first and a portion of any purchase is sent to WorldwideDX to help with site costs.
  • Click here to find out how to win free radios from Retevis!

New install...102 or Wilson roof-mount?

I just don't get the big controversy. Many antennas are made in a way or have features that deal with wind, weather, and rain, so what is the big deal. Either they have it or they don't.

I bought a Wolf .64 ground plane that I believe is some sort of co-linear type design and maybe not specifically a .64. I paid good money for it, and it has an upside down gamma match feeder. The top or the bottom of the gamma, take your choice, for that antenna was not plugged. I didn't think a thing about it, but at some point after installing it outside it got water in it. Surprise! surprise!

Until it leaked out or dried up, the antenna didn't work too good at all. Do y'all think that was something the manufacture should have addressed. Of course it was. Common sense suggest that may have been why Wilson put a hole in the base, end of story.

The same thing with this Wilson idea, so again...what is the big deal that we have guy's arguing it is good, it is bad, it's only on older models, or the newer model are better, because it don't have a hole in it.

This ain't no big deal, but I guess it is a topic for discussion.

Is someone else grumpy today!:)
 
This ain't no big deal, but I guess it is a topic for discussion.


My thoughts exactly...a person has one bad experience and "hears" about others; and the entire product line is defective and sucks. As many as they sell, they are bound to have a problem or two?? As I stated earlier, I have owned several, they have performed very well considering their fairly inexpensive cost.

I don't understand that a single small hole wouldn't be sufficient, it allows any free water to drain and any moisture to evaporate (in the event some might actually get into the base). I also find the drill will easily sink clear into base...like its completely hollow. I also blew into the hole on both antenna bases, they hold pressure...I would expect an air leak if they were also going to leak water?

Bandit35: you act like the only opinion that matter's is yours...I find it funny how many have had zero problems, but those don't count??
 
you think?

feeling a little under the weather there marconi?

i don't see that there is a controversey, argueing or anything like that going on here at all. what i do see, is everyone sharing their personal experences and viewing them as a collective whole.

the more experences that i hear about the more it points to bad quality control during production. with the exception of antenna abuse of course.

it is a BIG DEAL when these antennas either don't work right out of the box, or start to leak within a short time after installation, now if water was no big deal then they wouldn't have gone through the trouble to design it as an enclosed load...why not just leave it exposed in an open air design? and as far as the hole goes, try to remember something;

well all know what the intended purpose of the hole is for, there could be alot of reasons why it is missing on some and not on others, like bad tooling, and or cost cutting measures for starters.


in the end you just may find it may be a big deal as some things in the electronic industry end up being in hind sight. over the last year i have heared and read about more failures from defects in workmanship over anything else, now;

try to put yourself in a newbies shoes, and you were looking for a good quality antenna and you did your reserch on it and you were considering lets say a wilson 5000, and you ran across a thread like this and thought to your self "i better wait and do some more reserch on it" and the more they did, the more they find lack of quality control and unhappy costomers....so they hold on to their hard earned money and eventually spend it on another product less likely to give them trouble, and they end up happy with what they got.


in anycase, take my case for example, i laid out better than good money for the 5000 and the thing was dead right out of the box...damn.... yes i had something to bitch about, but it happens. called them up and talked to the new owners and told them what had happened and he took his display model right off his desk, unscrewed the coil, and shipped it right out to me. i thought ok, this is good, till i got it and found it was leaking from the mast causing swr issues...THEN i got pissed.......

and called them up again, and told them about it....he made a call to their shipping dept and told them to take care of me and i ended up getting a whole new differen't antenna that i couldn't use( wilson 5000 trucker).

so am i disgrunteled about it? no...why? because they tried to remedy the situation.


now if i did the reserch like i sould have maybe i would have come across a thread like this that would have saved me a couple of weeks of B.S. and a few migraine headaches to boot........


this is why threads like these are so important as to encapsolate everyones' experences so one can make a better decision for themseslves.
 
My thoughts exactly...a person has one bad experience and "hears" about others; and the entire product line is defective and sucks. As many as they sell, they are bound to have a problem or two?? As I stated earlier, I have owned several, they have performed very well considering their fairly inexpensive cost.

I don't understand that a single small hole wouldn't be sufficient, it allows any free water to drain and any moisture to evaporate (in the event some might actually get into the base). I also find the drill will easily sink clear into base...like its completely hollow. I also blew into the hole on both antenna bases, they hold pressure...I would expect an air leak if they were also going to leak water?

Bandit35: you act like the only opinion that matter's is yours...I find it funny how many have had zero problems, but those don't count??

not sure where you get that at.....everyones opinion counts good and bad alike. oh, yea...you have to count a single person with 20 antennas as 20 different opinions...gimme a break!


so just how many have had no problems? do you know? i dought it. from what i see here on this fourm, it looks to be 50/50.....but now this isn't the only fourm out there....now is it? i suggest you look around before you try to nail me as a bad mouther. im a streight a shooter as you will ever find. i know whats out there..... anyone dought me? look for yourself......im ready to put my money where my mouth is.......are you?
 
I guess Stryker has still got some of these antennas.
A few CB shops still have them in stock for $69 & shipping.
Google it if you must have one.


sr5k.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
I really believe that the design has changed from the original and I hope it's for the better.

Seems the older ones may have had some issues, i can't speak to that, and others have, but mine is a newer one bought in 2008 or early 2009.

It is all plastic hdpe, with no seal on the bottom, you can look back to my earlier post with picture on it and see that a seal has been formed of the actual hdpe.

The tolerances on my antenna are very tight. The mast fit's in very tight, the mast it self is very tight against the cap and I have no evidence of water intrusion at these locations that may have been a problem in the past. It does not mean it may not be a problem after wear and tear, I just have not seen it up to this point.

So I hope that Wilson has improved the design as it appears to have done. As soon as i get a chance I will take some more pics to show what i am seeing on this "newer" wilson 5k antenna of mine.

Bandit, is that a recent purchase you had problems with or is this an old like more than 3 or 4 years?

Cuz, i seem to think they have improved the design.
 
I guess Stryker has still got some of these antennas.
A few CB shops still have them in stock for $69 & shipping.
Google it if you must have one.


sr5k.jpg


Bandit what do you like about this antenna, i think it is the same as the Wilson line you claim to have been having problems with? Just asking...
 
Bandit what do you like about this antenna, i think it is the same as the Wilson line you claim to have been having problems with? Just asking...

looks the same to me. i know that your just asking, but i am claiming nothing... it is what it is. my efforts in posting in this matter wasen't intended to be arguementitive, antaganistic,to cause trouble, or ignore the fact that they are not all defective....

and they were not ment to put the current owners or the wilson name in a bad light..

but rather to put the facts out there as to why there are so many defective ones, so someone would not have to try to read through a ton of b.s. to get to the truth,

if i offended any of you gentelman i apoligize.


as i said before i still do like the wilson antennas. however i won't spend another red cent on one, or recommend them untill the q.c. problems are addressed. and i understand the fact that as many as they produce, there are bound to be a few that are defective......a few. with all the reserch i have done it would seem that most of the defective complaints that i am aware of have been within the last year.

also, to clairify this..... my posts are not aimed at the whole wilson line.......just the wilson 5000 series.


good luck to whatever you choose to use as a mobile antenna
 
Since Bandit35 is just trying to run a product into the ground at this point (you made your point quite clear), I'm out since nothing I would say would make a difference.
 
Since Bandit35 is just trying to run a product into the ground at this point (you made your point quite clear), I'm out since nothing I would say would make a difference.

No he didn't. He put forth an observation that others including myself have also observed. He also stated:

as i said before i still do like the wilson antennas. however i won't spend another red cent on one, or recommend them untill the q.c. problems are addressed.

This is an opinion, and a valid one based on real life experience and other reports he read. He then continues:

and i understand the fact that as many as they produce, there are bound to be a few that are defective......a few. with all the reserch i have done it would seem that most of the defective complaints that i am aware of have been within the last year.

This is also true.

He is not saying Wilson antennas all suck, he is saying that there have been some issues as of late and until those issues are fixed he is staying away from the antennas in question. I have read several other posts on multiple forums stating the same and based on my experience I have to agree with that. It is a logical decision based on his and others experience. Now should they fix their issues it sounds to me like he would consider them again, as would I.


The DB
 

dxChat
Help Users
  • No one is chatting at the moment.
  • @ Mark Malcomb:
    Hello BJ. Been a long time since I've been on. You doing well? Mark Malcomb
  • @ Naysayer:
    I’m
  • @ kingmudduck:
    Hello to all I have a cobra 138xlr, Looking for the number display for it. try a 4233 and it did not work