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5/8th Antenna question

Wiskey Delta-40

W9WDX Amateur Radio Club Member
Oct 18, 2011
468
65
38
Bradshaw Mtns Arizona
Ok I got a what appears to be a Maco 5/8th GP...

The weird thing is the ground plane attachment is isolated from the boom? unlike the other I have in the antenna pile..
Can some one shed some light on this.. is it suppose to be this way or was prevous owner trying some thing funny.

I know there is many different variants on this model..... Next question how do you know for sure if it a Maco or what ever.


Thnx WD-40
 

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I don't know whether it is a Maco or not, but the radials isolated from the vertical except at the bottom end of the tuning ring is typical.
 
well the bottom end of the tuning ring is also seperated from the main pole... It is attached to the where the radials hook up and the top of the ring attaches to the main pole.. HMMMM:confused:
 
well the bottom end of the tuning ring is also seperated from the main pole... It is attached to the where the radials hook up and the top of the ring attaches to the main pole.. HMMMM:confused:

That's correct. When the coax is attached to the antenna the braid will be attached to the radials which are connected to the bottom of the ring, and the center conductor to the strap that is tapped to the ring for a proper match. The top of the ring is attached to the vertical radiator. It looks odd, but that is how it's done.
 
could it be the maco copy made by jet stream. or some one tooks sum bits and pieces to make a home made copy. looks pretty good.
 
isn't the MACO a copy of the the old sigma 5/8 ?

no, the sigma5/8 was a full 5/8 and had a 22 1/2 feet tall radiator element and the coax conecter was inside the bottom mounting tube and had a copper coil to ground plus the whole ring was isolated from ground and fed with rf from inside.
that one looks like somebody was trying to isolate the entire antenna from contacting the mast. maybe they made a choke coil to out of the coax trying to get rf out of there tv or shack
 
no, the sigma5/8 was a full 5/8 and had a 22 1/2 feet tall radiator element and the coax conecter was inside the bottom mounting tube and had a copper coil to ground plus the whole ring was isolated from ground and fed with rf from inside.
that one looks like somebody was trying to isolate the entire antenna from contacting the mast. maybe they made a choke coil to out of the coax trying to get rf out of there tv or shack




Needle Bender,
You hit it right on the head..... The piece of coax I got with this did have a choke on it 5 wraps about 4-5 inches in diameter.. These items where all part of the deal I got... I wouldnt think about putting a Henry 2K into this antenna but people have done strange things before....





http://www.worldwidedx.com/general-ham-radio-discussion/131895-did-i-get-robbed-deal-year.html


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ part of that deal
 
Aside from it having the appearance of a homebrew, it is normal to this type of antenna.

The difference in the photos you posted, and the one below, is only yours had a ring for tapping/matching, and this one has a coil. Everthing else is the same.

4085b.jpg
 
Look closely at the matching ring system on this Maco 5/8 antenna. The bottom of the ring is directly connected to the radials with the top of the ring directly connected to the vertical, and the center conductor of the coax is tapped into the ring for matching (not my writing on the photo).

images
 
Needle Bender,
You hit it right on the head..... The piece of coax I got with this did have a choke on it 5 wraps about 4-5 inches in diameter.. These items where all part of the deal I got... I wouldnt think about putting a Henry 2K into this antenna but people have done strange things before....





http://www.worldwidedx.com/general-ham-radio-discussion/131895-did-i-get-robbed-deal-year.html


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ part of that deal

if you got the 6kc am filter in that transmitter then you got about the best am audio on the planet. sweet deal. wanna double your money?:drool:
i wouldnt worry about loading up the henry into it as long as its only driven with about 25w. that antenna should handle at least 1kw pep. you could add a 10 turn coil to the radial mount around the fiberglass to ground to help bleed off static.
maybe you should try a new penetrater. what antenna do you have up right now? id sure love to hear that station on the air!:pop:
 
I'm afraid that's another one, that grounding gets rid of static. Sorry, no it doesn't.
- 'Doc

Hey 'Doc, didn't you know that grounding is the way of the future, and cures hemorrhoids to boot.

I would like someone to do a simple video demonstrating a way to stop static in your receiver, and really prove static is being eliminated in the process.
 

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