Maco V5000 & V58 Antenna

[Galaxy 959]

Do any of you guys run either of these antennas? Looks as if there the same except the power handling. Also do any of you do the coax formulas that I see people talking about? Like if you needed 50' minimum for your coax run and you were using LMR400. What would the length need to be for a base station? Thanks for any info. Forgot to add that this would be used on 11 meter cb band.

 

[midnight special]

they are the same antenna just one is set up in the tuning area to handle more power,,,, as for the coax in my opinion the length is just what you need to reach your equipment,,, i dont want to argue about it but that what works for me mobile and base,, it is entirely up to you to use what you think you need,,,
i use the maco v5/8 and is a better antenna for me because i live in city and a99 type tear up tvs and telephones,,,,,run 4 watts into a99 get complaints run 500 watts in maco never hear a word from neighbors,,,

 

[222DBFL]

There is another thread floating around that goes into some good detail about tuning antennas and coax length. The thread is something along the lines of To 7/8 or not, that is the equation. Do a search for the topic and it should come up, it will give you a good idea about coax length and how things works. I won't go into detail here as this is such a touchy damn subject man!! But in general, no coax length shouldn't matter, but there are exceptions to this and thus the reason for me saying it a touchy subject. JMHO. BTW both the antennas you listed above from what I have heard can be a bit of a PITA to setup for some people. If you have messed with antennas that are similar to these than go for it, if not you might want to look at a different antenna, maybe something like the sirio Gain Master or the IMAX 2000. Again this is JMHO. Have a good one and try to check the thread out I'm speaking of as it does contain some great info as far as coax and length and antenna tuning as well. Good day.

 

[543_Dallas]

They are good antennas and perform as well as any 5/8 ground plane. There are better built antennas on the market that will take more power but they can cost 3 times as much.

Switching from an imax to a maco 5000 was a big improvement. Don't worry about the coax length and use some coax seal to keep water out of the connector. Wrap the wire from the top of the SO239 all the way to the tuning ring. Smush it around the SO239 to make sure no water can get in.

 

[Galaxy 959]

Thanks for the info guys. I will check out the thread about the coax length. I was just asking cause I've seen so much stuff about it on the net. I have the Antron 99 now on 50' of RG8U Foam. Do you think the Sirio Gainmaster would be a big improvement over the Antron 99? I don't run power just a barefoot radio.

 

[The DB]

The one and only proper formula for coax length is to use what you need to get from point a to point b, then add a little more length for wiggle room.


The DB

 

[Galaxy 959]

Ok been looking at the gainmaster and to many negative reviews. Lots of splitting and breaking.

 

[gamegetter]

you can make anything work for 11 meter dx....

as far as the gainmaster, you would want to treat it's outside with varnish or other protectant. i would recommend an annual inspection and treatment if needed.

 

[Galaxy 959]

Now the Sirio 827 and the Tornado looks like a real good one. I know I have the Sirio 5000 performer on my truck. Its just amazing.

 

[tba02]

A99->Gainmaster is a major improvement ion both the signal and lack of TVI.
Mine is fine after ~2 years.

Also the coax length reference by 222 (IMHO) is about tuning the antenna using an antenna analyzer, not so much about running the coax to the shack and daily operations (though there are some interesting nuggets in that thread). As DB stated, as much as you need plus a little, or as much as you have that makes the connection. I know I have an extra 20 feet on one line and I care not.

 

[Galaxy 959]

tba02 how do you adjust the SWR on the gainmaster?

 

[tba02]

You don't, and no need. It's pre-tuned and well under 1.5 across the 11m band and 1.1 on 10m. For 27.385 I show 1.24. I don't usually go to the lower frequencies but if memory serves me well I think it is 1.38 on CH 6/27.025.

ETA - the Gain Master is known to behave better at ~30 feet and in the clear of other antennas/objects. I personally have had various antennas at ~18 feet away and not seen any negative impact.

 

[Galaxy 959]

You don't, and no need. It's pre-tuned and well under 1.5 across the 11m band and 1.1 on 10m. For 27.385 I show 1.24. I don't usually go to the lower frequencies but if memory serves me well I think it is 1.38 on CH 6/27.025.

ETA - the Gain Master is known to behave better at ~30 feet and in the clear of other antennas/objects. I personally have had various antennas at ~18 feet away and not seen any negative impact.

Oh well that even better. My antron 99 has the tuning rings on it. The base of my antron is right at 29-30'. Its on a antenna push up pole.

 

[Marconi]

Ok been looking at the gainmaster and to many negative reviews. Lots of splitting and breaking.

I have to add my complaint to the GM too. I will report if I find FG damage when I take it down. I hope to be able to fix this problem if I'm right.

I still have my GM up, so I don't know if I'm right with my suspicions, but IMO the wire has come loose from the brass wire retainer in the tip. I think this happened during some bad weather while the antenna was bent over and the wire was stretched too much to hold. I could have set the wire slack wrong, or if I did it as instructed the slack was not enough in my case.

At first I noticed the match had changed a bit.
Next the antenna's SWR showed OK, but it would not drive over 30 watts of power.
Now the SWR is bad, but it still receives about the same as normal.

I think this was due to the weight of the wire radiator, and the wind blowing that caused the wire to slowly drop lower and lower inside the FG tubing.

 

[gamegetter]

i had wondered before whether this exact thing you mention would or could become an issue, Marconi,,,