M400 STARDUSTER OWNERS: Poll & Info please.

[cominatyalive]

Thanks guys,

I've come to a decision to keep my Imax for the time being. 1 S unit is not enough for me to make a move to the Maco. But as I stated before, I love the Maco just the same. Everyone knows it is a copy of the famed Penetrator. The M400 is a cute little, inexpensive antenna. I believe that for the money, one could have a decent set-up. No, I do not believe it can compare to the others, however, for what it is, it ain't half bad. My direction will be to continue improving my Imax.

I want to go to 11 & 12 meters in the future as well. I believe that The Imax is the best choice for the dollar for the direction I am heading. I suppose there is nothing left to say here about the M400 unless someone has had good experiences with distance with it. But 1/4 wave is just not enough for my liking. If anyone else has nothing left here, Robb, or whoever can close this thread. A hundred thanks to all of you.


James

 

[Savoir Faire]

Best part of Starduster

Wish I had been apart of this poll originally.

Best part of any Starduster antenna was the radials.

I used one of them on ball mount and spring in my truck and had a great SWR from 24.890 to 29.700 and only had to use Antenna tuner in rig above 29.000.

I was able to operate 10 to 12 meters as an amateur running 1200 watts mobile.

I talked all over the world with good signals.

There you go.

 

[hotrod]

well i havent used one myself .but i know some that have .
plus from the reviews i got online. its not gonna outtalk a 20 ft. antenna
but for under 100.00 its the best in that area.i think if its quieter
than the imax ,a99 ,ect type antennas then its worth it cause
you can add things later to bring up your tx. but bring up rx
sometimes can be diffucult.id rather have better ears cause
if ya cant hear them ya cant talk to them.ive been considering one

 

[n0zna]

The starduster was the 1st base antenna we had in 1967.We ran it till 1977.Got a new astroplane,had it up 3 weeks.It was a TVI getter.We went back to a new avanti starduster,and no problems.I run a a99 now,and thinking of getting another starduster for 11 mtr only.The a99 with my new ft450d tunes from 6 mtrs to 20 mtrs....73s de n0zna/JW

 

[Tacklebox]

I currently run the Sirio model after a storm got my Imax a couple months ago. This antenna, for my setup is considerably quieter than the Imax. I am close to power lines and a transformer is in my front yard and the noise just about went away. Receive is good and and I talk skip just as good as the Imax did. For the price I say it is worth it.

 

[jon666]

i have seen a few on fleabay

 

[hotrod]

I currently run the Sirio model after a storm got my Imax a couple months ago. This antenna, for my setup is considerably quieter than the Imax. I am close to power lines and a transformer is in my front yard and the noise just about went away. Receive is good and and I talk skip just as good as the Imax did. For the price I say it is worth it.

thanks . how high ya got it mounted?how is it locally? your not the first to report quieter
recieve with a starduster

 

[Tacklebox]

I have it 35 ft. to the coax connector. As far as local I never had anyone ask if I changed antennas, so the difference was minimal. For my setup I am actually happier with this over the Imax. I have also found from 26.800 thru 27.755 the swr's stayed below 1.5. I run a stock 2950DX, no extra power, and the combination works great.

 

[edfiero]

Back in the 80's I had a generic 1/2 ground plane, while my friend across town had a Starduster. The Starduster always did better on DX. Around local it was only slightly better, Largely due to the fact it was mounted 50 feet up while mine was only 30.

Can't say how the Sirio compares

 

[hotrod]

bump up too top. this is interesting

 

[HomerBB]

I made a 1/4 wave GP from scratch:

This thing rocked locally, and did well with DX. It outperformed an A99 on the same mount at 20' up for a station we mounted it for.

Additionally, I have owned both an original and homebrew Astroplane. Mounted at more than one wavelength - 36' - they both have done remarkably well equal to or exceeding some other antennas, 1/2 waves. dipoles, 5/8 waves. Only my homebrew Vector 4k among the set of antennas I've tried has been consistent in outperforming the AP at height.

I currently have the homebrew AP above the Yagi and am talking effective local with it, and making good DX contacts all over the country and into Europe and Australia. The flatside four element Yagi does better most of the time, but occasionall the condidtions let the AP compete.

Conditions.

 

[Marconi]

bump up too top. this is interesting

Hotrod, I currently have my SD'r up with my Gain Master on another mast, and both are the same height. The bottom of the SD'r is at the same height as the bottom of the coil on the GM. The GM is still about 6' feet higher at the tip. I saw a little difference in favor of the GM when I had the SD'r lower, with the two mounted at the same height to the top of the supporting mast. Setup like this the tip of the SD'r was a good 10' feet below the tip of the GM.

I haven't been working my radio of late, but when I did the local signals looked about the same, regardless of distance, most of the time. It was hard to tell, like first one then the other occasionally showing best with some signals. DX looks to be about the same.

They are 36' feet apart and that may not be far enough apart, but I not sure I would be able to see much difference if they were 100' feet apart. This just might be my location at work, because I hear guys report much bigger differences all the time, so you may get different results.

Here is a link to my work with my SD'r vs. Gain Master.

http://www.worldwidedx.com/cb-antennas/96822-marconi-testing-original-starduster-vs-gain-master.html

 

[Marconi]

Homer, did you ever notice or try and check to see if your A/P mounted over your beam had some affect on the match, if you could tell? I can't remember.

Is the A/P noted here the one you made?

 

[hotrod]

thanks homer.. im really not worried about what talks dx the best.
talking 40-60 miles groundwave is what i love to do. and i can do it
on my sirio 2016.normally.but if it starts to rain mty recieve gets noisy
and cant hear much over 20 miles. plus i gotta use 250 whiskeys on ssb
reguardless of conditions.the starduster was always said to be a very quiet
antenna.i thought that may help my recieve.
the a/p ive heard good and bad stories some say it was a tvi monster
others say its a great dx antenna but lousy locally. and im sure location
plays a huge rule.for me im in a vally with other valleys about 5-10 miles away
in different directions. which i have a hard time getting over them without a little help.
over flat land i do really well

 

[Marconi]

Hotrod, I have found through experience with the A/P and the New Top One that TVI problems can be due to a simple contact point problem in just one of the many connections points on these antennas...not making good contact. The top hat setup should be one of the first areas to check. Due to the way some top hats are constructed, it is hard to tell if they are secured well and are making good contact or not. The antenna may still work if one of these top hat radials is loose, but it will act badly with TVI.

The antenna is also very reactive to stuff that is too close to the bottom of the antenna, but I don't think I have ever heard anyone agree with me on this. It is my opinion that such situations can also cause TVI in the A/P, otherwise I find them remarkably good regarding TVI. This is why I asked Homer the question above in this regard. He is a good observer and I'll go along with whatever he says on this issue.