Whats' the story if any on this one ? Brand New Old School in the box . Antenna Specialists , please excuse my pictures , I took them with my cell phone this time around. Thanks
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MIGHTY MAGNUM III 1/2 WAVE GROUND PLANE
- Thread starter Switch Kit
- Start date
WOW! With "Power Tip" radials too. 
AKA power robbing coil loaded radials. I don't mean to shoot down the antenna but just the advertising surrounding it. I remember lots of cheesy wordings from the hey day.
AKA power robbing coil loaded radials. I don't mean to shoot down the antenna but just the advertising surrounding it. I remember lots of cheesy wordings from the hey day.
don't mind the shoot down QRN , I know nothing about it , it's brand new and it's all there , just was wondering if it was any good or not and if any of the older timers around here have had any experiance with it ? Basically so I can come up with a fair price to pass it on . thanks
first to have one in my area in the early 80/81,
i was just a kid and a local guy swapped me my shaki bigstick for one, he even took me to the shop to buy it,
i got the better performing antenna no doubt,
early ones had a diamond shaped tip and later ones had circular tip,
they were prone to water getting into the coil cover in severe weather and sending the vswr high until it drained, coil covers went a milky pink in the sunlight,
i angled my radials down to 45 degrees and got slightly better reports, not 100% sure the improvement was real,
popular antenna here back in the day.
i was just a kid and a local guy swapped me my shaki bigstick for one, he even took me to the shop to buy it,
i got the better performing antenna no doubt,
early ones had a diamond shaped tip and later ones had circular tip,
they were prone to water getting into the coil cover in severe weather and sending the vswr high until it drained, coil covers went a milky pink in the sunlight,
i angled my radials down to 45 degrees and got slightly better reports, not 100% sure the improvement was real,
popular antenna here back in the day.
Thanks Bob , I suppose some kind of sealent could help take care of business if need be ? surely looks like a decent antenna , although looks can be deseving. I'd love nothing better then to hook it up myself , I just don't have the ways and means as far as condo living goes. thanks again for your input.
For cell phone those are still some damn good pictures! I can only imagine this thing would beat an antron but I cant say for sure. Used to see alot of that type of antenna around here (same construction and design) but they have been taken down or messed up by the weather. It also reminds me of the super magnum but Im not sure if that was an earlier or later design.
Switch Kit,
I don't know anything about that particular antenna. But, if it's as stated, a 1/2 wave vertical, then it should work as well as any 1/2 wave vertical antenna, it's an end-fed 1/2 wave.
The 'radials', if it really is a 1/2 wave end-fed vertical aren't really radials, but actually 'isolators', which help keep radiation from the feed line. The same thing can be accomplished by using a greater number of shorter 'radials', or a couple of coax 'chokes'. Since the 'radials' came with the antenna and since the manufacturer went to the trouble of 'tunning' them, use them.
The diamond (or circle) thingy at the top is primarily for static dissipation (static ball). It can and does act as a very small capacitive-hat, but since it's so relatively small, it's more a static-ball than anything. 'Round' is a 'better' shape for a static dissipater than a shape with sharp corners, but in general it just ain't gonna make any perceptible difference.
Are there any 'catches' with this antenna? Maybe, just depends on the size of the conductor used in the impedance matching coil at the base. It may not be a 'high' power antenna because of the size of that conductor (and the coil turn spacing), no idea.
What's it worth? How would I know?! Just depends on how bad someone wants the thing, I guess.
- 'Doc
(Have fun! I couldn't stand it if I didn't at least try it out.)
I don't know anything about that particular antenna. But, if it's as stated, a 1/2 wave vertical, then it should work as well as any 1/2 wave vertical antenna, it's an end-fed 1/2 wave.
The 'radials', if it really is a 1/2 wave end-fed vertical aren't really radials, but actually 'isolators', which help keep radiation from the feed line. The same thing can be accomplished by using a greater number of shorter 'radials', or a couple of coax 'chokes'. Since the 'radials' came with the antenna and since the manufacturer went to the trouble of 'tunning' them, use them.
The diamond (or circle) thingy at the top is primarily for static dissipation (static ball). It can and does act as a very small capacitive-hat, but since it's so relatively small, it's more a static-ball than anything. 'Round' is a 'better' shape for a static dissipater than a shape with sharp corners, but in general it just ain't gonna make any perceptible difference.
Are there any 'catches' with this antenna? Maybe, just depends on the size of the conductor used in the impedance matching coil at the base. It may not be a 'high' power antenna because of the size of that conductor (and the coil turn spacing), no idea.
What's it worth? How would I know?! Just depends on how bad someone wants the thing, I guess.
- 'Doc
(Have fun! I couldn't stand it if I didn't at least try it out.)
Thanks Doc , I'd love to try it , but like I said. IM just a fan of old school stuff. It's all there and never put together , the parts look well made , like you said , those may not be ground planes ,but there solid and then the outter smaller radials (isolators) screw right into them. Instructions call the top section (anti-static rods hence a static ball and or top hat .these are not diamond shaped as the pictures show , they are round) is what you basically said. The antenna is 17FT 2inches after completion.IM guessing vintage 1978 to 1981 on this one.
IM just a fan of old school stuff. It's all there and never put together , the parts look well made , like you said , those may not be ground planes ,but there solid and then the outter smaller radials (isolators) screw right into them. Instructions call the top section (anti-static rods hence a static ball and or top hat .these are not diamond shaped as the pictures show , they are round) is what you basically said. The antenna is 17FT 2inches after completion.IM guessing vintage 1978 to 1981 on this one.
Thats awesome switch kit. Let me if you come up with a price , I may be interested. Not to use it but just to keep. I remember when these were new in the early 70's.
They didn't last long and they were trouble in the rain.
Thanks for showing us this . brings back alot of memories.
They didn't last long and they were trouble in the rain.
Thanks for showing us this . brings back alot of memories.
Sure thing seedkey , I still say , if water was a problem with these ? Why not just use some kind of none conductive sealent of some kind ? IM no antenna expert but it surely looks as good as the many that I have used over the years , I've always been a Wilson/Maco ground plane kind of guy for the most part over the years. I would have thought those were ground planes on this antenna but Doc apparently has set me straight on that. It also says you can mount this on wood ? Does this mean this antenna does not need a ground plane to work ?
The forerunner of this was the A/S Super Magnum, my first ever "for real" CB antenna back in 1965. The SM had the four 9' horizontal radials and was supposed to compete equally with the Hy-Gain CLR-2, which was a 5/8 wave with three 9' radials. Guess which one worked better? 1/2 wave or 5/8? The SM sold for $32.95 at that time. As previously stated, the A/S had a drain hole in the radiator just above the coil (which did turn pink), SWR would be high after a rain till the thing dried out after a day or so in the sun.
The version shown above is a newer model from A/S. I was given one about 15 yrs. ago that had been destroyed in an ice storm. I added the short "radials" from it to an existing A-99 I had (just for sh*ts and grins) at a 45 degree angle like the A-99 GPK. Saw no difference with or without the homemade GPK, local, DX, TVI, nothing. Still have the pieces from it in one of my antenna parts piles in the garage attic.
Just my $.02. 8)
The SM sold for $32.95 at that time. As previously stated, the A/S had a drain hole in the radiator just above the coil (which did turn pink), SWR would be high after a rain till the thing dried out after a day or so in the sun.The version shown above is a newer model from A/S. I was given one about 15 yrs. ago that had been destroyed in an ice storm. I added the short "radials" from it to an existing A-99 I had (just for sh*ts and grins) at a 45 degree angle like the A-99 GPK. Saw no difference with or without the homemade GPK, local, DX, TVI, nothing. Still have the pieces from it in one of my antenna parts piles in the garage attic.
Just my $.02. 8)
Funny you should post this. I just got one yesterday, but it has the white insulator in the base. Its HEAVY!
sorry to hear you got one Chief , well ,I mean IM happy for you , but I figure your antenna clocks would have been turning on this one . I know your passion for them. Maybe next time. Peace
Hello Swich Kit:
Those Super Mag Antennas work reasonable well. I used one for a few years. But mounted at 50 feet above the ground, the strong Santa Ana Winds broke the base insulator after being up for a couple of years. The vertical element was at a 45 degree angle, and the matching coil in the base was stretch out. After the winds hit.
If water gets in, yeah just use RTV saling it at the top, and drill a drain hole in the bottom.
If I was gonna put it up I would black tape the base insulator part to keep the sun off it. I think thats what weaken mine. When they madre those base insulator pieces, I think the manufactures didn't fully understood the effects of the Sun.
Jay in the Mojave
Those Super Mag Antennas work reasonable well. I used one for a few years. But mounted at 50 feet above the ground, the strong Santa Ana Winds broke the base insulator after being up for a couple of years. The vertical element was at a 45 degree angle, and the matching coil in the base was stretch out. After the winds hit.
If water gets in, yeah just use RTV saling it at the top, and drill a drain hole in the bottom.
If I was gonna put it up I would black tape the base insulator part to keep the sun off it. I think thats what weaken mine. When they madre those base insulator pieces, I think the manufactures didn't fully understood the effects of the Sun.
Jay in the Mojave
Switch Kit said: