5/8 antenna

[15minigrass]

If you want sturdy sturdy quality built, gotta pay the price. just grab an Antron99, youʻll have alot left over for everything else and try to get a Maco Groundplane.

works better than the GP kit made for the A99. I have my SWR @ 1.2-1,3:1. I painted the antenna so the fibrglas wouldnʻt fray. I keep painting it evry time I bring it down.

 

[The DB]

Question on the Imax. Do you have the ground plane kit? Ive read that a 5/8 requires one to work properly.

A 5/8 wavelength antenna doesn't have to have a ground plane to work. That is not to say that you won't see a benefit from using a ground plane kit, but it is definately not required. The thing is, if you do see a performance benefit it isn't actually from a performance increase, but from lessening a problem you likely didn't know you had.

Also, with that length of antenna, stick with a ground plane kit that has horizontal radials. Wearther you notice it or not, the angled radials will cause more of your signal to warm some clouds...


The DB

 

[StrangeBrew]

.... and we folded the new tornado into the trash can, ....

If you do wind up with a broken tube couldn't it just be replaced with an equal length of better quality tube?

It seems as though it should be easy enough to make up a replacement set of tubes to rebuild the whole antenna to sturdier specs if you wanted to, seems like a waste to just scrap the whole thing. Am I missing something here?

 

[15minigrass]

If you do wind up with a broken tube couldn't it just be replaced with an equal length of better quality tube?

It seems as though it should be easy enough to make up a replacement set of tubes to rebuild the whole antenna to sturdier specs if you wanted to, seems like a waste to just scrap the whole thing. Am I missing something here?

lol, Same thing I was thinking. couldʻve kept the good parts and rebuild it.

 

[15minigrass]

My ground plane got ballʻz. lol.

 

[bob85]

strangebrew,
most of the sirio's have enough tuning tip to push a broken section back in and extend the tip, they always snap at a joint losing about 4"

i know it sounds drastic scrapping the tornado, neither my friend nor me wanted it, i had plenty of broken sirio's in the garrage from other locals,

if you are going to replace the whole antenna why waste money buying a weak antenna, its cheaper to buy tube and build your own,

putting quality tube into a weak antenna puts more stress on the sections either side of the quality tube due to lack of flex and extra weight making it weaker,

even replacing the plated screws that hold the sections with hose clamps puts more weight and wind load on the tubes making the antenna weaker,

when my sirio 2012 snapped i cut the swage off the bottom section and put a quality 5/8 vertical from an old skip-master in there pushed all the way in to double skin the bottom section,
when the winds came the bracket bent 45 degrees,

when i replaced the upper sections of a vector with quality tube from an armco gp it almost bent double just lifting it off the ground,

you can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear.

 

[918Oklahoma]

The tornado will survive. Going to be a great antenna for me, if it ever comes back in stock. Your friend either didn't have proper support for it, or he got a bad apple. I'd say the majority of people ive talked to that have one are getting great results out of theirs.

 

[bob85]

i wish you the best of luck with it 918.

 

[918Oklahoma]

Thanks bob ill need it. Im looking at the penetrator now... anyone running this antenna?

 

[15minigrass]

lol, A99 will solve all your weaknesses listed. lol. except the noise level. lol. I found that the Maco GP kinda hleps with the noise level issues, somewhat, not all but some.

 

[918Oklahoma]

lol, A99 will solve all your weaknesses listed. lol. except the noise level. lol. I found that the Maco GP kinda hleps with the noise level issues, somewhat, not all but some.

Yeah the a99 seems like a sweet antenna. But i think im going to go with the sirio 2016, i want to try aluminum. Just might order it tonight. Found a good deal, 144 shipped.

 

[firerunner]

I have had my tornado for about 18 months now, the only problem I have had is one of the ground radials falling off. This was no fault of the antenna I should have used loc-tite on the set screws. The antenna has seen some pretty high winds with no problems maybe not as bad as Bob85 sees in England ( I live in California). It has also seen a couple of miss haps, again no fault of the antenna and I have straightened it the best I can and it still works great. I also own a A99 and there is no comparison the tornado works way better even being a little lower height. The A99 is a good antenna especially if you want a antenna to go out throw it up as mobile antenna to talk skip from a hilltop somewhere.

Now i just got lucky and picked up a avanti 5/8 antenna from the 70's. The quality of this antenna is hands down way better than the tornado. All of the aluminum is heavier gauge and you can just feel the quality. But that antenna is no longer made.

Those are just my opinions on what I have used as antennas so far still new at all this. Good luck 918 in what ever you decide and yes we will talk on the radios soon lol.

 

[918Oklahoma]

Thanks for the report on the tornado they really seem great.

After obsessing over which antenna to get for the past few weeks I decided to go with the Sirio 2016 since the Tornado was unavailable. I Ordered it from H&Y electronics for 144.94 shipped, best deal by far on this antenna on the web. I am extremely excited. Here in the coming days ill get the rg213 on order and i will be set!

 

[wheelman918]

Hey guys. Finally worked up the courage to order my base antenna, tried to pick up a Sirio tornado from dnj radio but they were sold out and wont have tuem again for months.... Well, conditions could be gone by then, i dont have time to wait lol. Since i cant find it anywhere else for sale, i may change antennas.
What would be the best ground plane antenna i could put up instead that is omparable in price and simplicity as the tornado?
The antennas im considering: Maco V58, Sirio GPE27, Sirio 827. How would these compare to the tornado? Has to be broadbanded enough to cover 10 and 11 meters, even more frequency coverage would be a bonus.
i dont want to go the fiberglass route with an imax or antron, i want something with a lower noise floor. Feel free to make suggestions on other kinds of antennas.

Any advice or help would be appreciated.

if you live in town other houses closed id get one of the solarcon base antennas ive had them before they work good tune to a wide spectrum. i was considering a sirio mobile ant i run alot of power and the sirios wont handle alot the wilson 1000 was the better choice hands down. I wish you would hurry and get one up, i dont have a base but i got a hilltop parking place we could talk no problem were about 50 to 60 miles apart if your antenna is high enough i can talk that far on am 19 lol

 

[HomerBB]

918,
I have never run any of the afore mentioned antennas in this area. I am in Rogers, AR. 100 miles SE of you, and I know why you are sweating the Spring/Early Summer weather here. We are both right in the Tornado Alley corridor, and even without a twister on the ground winds here commonly approach 35 - 40 mph for hours on end and even higher as fronts move through. I have watched my antennas (all homebrew) twist and turn in 65 - 100 MPH winds. Fortunately, for those that ended up with permanent bends or breaks i had far less money in them than most do for there store-bought models.

Good luck with your purchase.

What do I have up now? A homebrew Moxon, and a vertical sleeved dipole. Also a loop in the attic just in case the others fall over. There are two or three EFHW verticals I built in the area that others are running with good results.