new 55 merlin base antenna

[bob85]

eddie, its how i interpret what they say about removing the hat and using a full 1/4wave though i also think theres a typo in there too as they seem to contradict themself and what other sources say hats do to bandwidth,

looking at what w8ji says about coils and hats i would think theres more to it that using any old coil with any old hat,
freecell said as when i asked about turning my 10k into a gr45 style by putting the 27" and 22" shafts together then make a hat above the coil,
could it do what the goldenrod gr45 claims if you get it right, im not sure but i wont discount it purely on the grounds that hats and coils all have losses,
you can put up with some loss if the signal is stronger where you want it to be.

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

Cylon Base star - now there's a reference from the past! LOL

Battlestar Galactica | SCIFI.COM

 

[niterider]

Give up on the quarter wave concept.. Get you a larger antenna from Jay or Mr. Coily. There is very few situations when a quarter wave will have better signal than a 5/8th wave to .64 wavelength antenna.

 

[Hope]

can u pls tell me how to contact the maker of the merlin 55 so I can order one for my husband pls :headbang

 

[mackmobile43]

can u pls tell me how to contact the maker of the merlin 55 so I can order one for my husband pls :headbang

You're a good wife.
Merlin-Antenna

 

[Needle Bender]

can u pls tell me how to contact the maker of the merlin 55 so I can order one for my husband pls :headbang

if it was my wife id be happyest with one of these
Solarcon IMAX-2000 24' Omni-Directional Fiberglass Base - eBay (item 180622822616 end time Mar-09-11 12:27:00 PST)

 

[loosecannon]

is it just me or does anyone else see the irony of this thread being brought back to life at the same time the other "capacity hat" thread is going on???

too funny.
LC

 

[radioreddz]

Merlin LOL LOL

 

[jazzsinger]

can u pls tell me how to contact the maker of the merlin 55 so I can order one for my husband pls :headbang

lol, do you not like him or something?

do yourself a favour, if you really want to buy him something like that get him a starduster m400, will probably work slightly better and will cost a hell of a lot less, and its a proven design thats been around over 3 decades.

 

[Needle Bender]

i replaced my stardustre with a imax and everybody is stronger and on my transmit to

 

[jazzsinger]

i replaced my stardustre with a imax and everybody is stronger and on my transmit to

i don't doubt it,

but as Hope was looking at 1/4 wave ground plane antennas i suggested one that is every bit as efficient as a merlin 55 (if not slightly better) and no doubt a damn sight cheaper, it also has a thinner profile which means it won't have as much windloading and can be mounted on slightly less heavy duty masts (read cheaper) than a merlin.

theres also a few instances that a starduster will blow a larger antenna away,especially on short hop skip like sporadic e as its higher radiation angle is more suited to short range dx. infact a 1/4 wave gp is very difficult indeed to outperform on short range skywave.it also has the benefit of unlike the merlin it has no coil to blow/create loss.

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

jazz , since a starduster/m400 is basically a dipole with the bottom element split into 3 pieces and spread out a little bit ........ how do you think a merlin would compare to the dipole ?
both vertical and both at the same feed point .

 

[Marconi]

I've been talking to Hawaii almost evey day lately with my Marconi 7x which is a version of the Starduster. I also had the M7x up when I talked to England, Ireland, and several other European countries coming to the US a while back, and that was when I had it on the 34.5' mast like I've been using until 02/27/11. It is funny when I don't see much difference between an A99 and a Sigma4, all heck breaks loose, and when I hear guys say the Starduster will basically only talk short skip, while I'm talking to Europe from the Texas Gulf coast, that just doesn't make sense to me. I believe other guys experiences even when I don't see the same results. Am I just lucky or unlucky?

Here is my recap averages for my test on the same mount @ 34.5', feed line, and radio so far.

The following AT's were all mounted on 34.5' mast.
6.9 Wolf
6.8 A99
6.7 S4
6.7 M7x

Both the GM & 7x are on the new higher mast by 9.666' feet to 44' feet.
7.3 GM
6.9 M7x

In previous comparisons side-by-side, the GM at various heights on the same 34.5' mast showed an average over 10 Signal Reports of:

7.3 GM








Click below in my signature to check out my video's. Let me know if YouTube does not permit you access without registering first, OK?

 

[unit_399]

I've been talking to Hawaii almost evey day lately with my Marconi 7x which is a version of the Starduster. I also had the M7x up when I talked to England, Ireland, and several other European countries coming to the US a while back, and that was when I had it on the 34.5' mast like I've been using until 02/27/11. It is funny when I don't see much difference between an A99 and a Sigma4, all heck breaks loose, and when I hear guys say the Starduster will basically only talk short skip, while I'm talking to Europe from the Texas Gulf coast, that just doesn't make sense to me. I believe other guys experiences even when I don't see the same results. Am I just lucky or unlucky?

Eddie -

I think you and I are experiencing the same thing...Heresay BS! Your experience has been that there isn't any difference between an A99 and Sigma (on-the-air), and I agree. Freecell once told me, " an omni antenna is an omni antenna is an omni antenna, and properly setup they will all work the same. There is maybe a few 10ths of a Db difference, but you will never hear it." He went on to say that the loudness of your signal has more to do with the proper setup of the antenna, then the type of antenna it is. For instance, we all agree that Rf travels on the surface of the radiating element (skin effect). Yet the two ALUMINUM sections of an Alpha V5/8 (and many other antennas) are held together with a STEEL clamp. Does this make a difference ? I dunno. But when I ran a V5/8 years ago, replacing the clamps with aircraft quality pop rivets lowered the SWR slightly.

I just think that when it comes to antennas, we have to use common sense and do whatever it takes to make the setup right. My rule of thumb has always been," if you're not sure something you want to do will help, but you know it won't hurt...DO IT !


- 399

 

[Marconi]

Eddie -

I think you and I are experiencing the same thing...Heresay BS! Your experience has been that there isn't any difference between an A99 and Sigma (on-the-air), and I agree. Freecell once told me, " an omni antenna is an omni antenna is an omni antenna, and properly setup they will all work the same. There is maybe a few 10ths of a Db difference, but you will never hear it." He went on to say that the loudness of your signal has more to do with the proper setup of the antenna, then the type of antenna it is. For instance, we all agree that Rf travels on the surface of the radiating element (skin effect). Yet the two ALUMINUM sections of an Alpha V5/8 (and many other antennas) are held together with a STEEL clamp. Does this make a difference ? I dunno. But when I ran a V5/8 years ago, replacing the clamps with aircraft quality pop rivets lowered the SWR slightly.

I just think that when it comes to antennas, we have to use common sense and do whatever it takes to make the setup right. My rule of thumb has always been," if you're not sure something you want to do will help, but you know it won't hurt...DO IT !


- 399

399, I called for you a couple of times the other day on my Marconi 7x and my Wolf .64 GP. You were talking to another operator and when you returned to the air you had to leave due to a storm coming your way.

You had a nice signal with big audio into the States at the time. Only later did I suspect that you might be the 399 on the forum and I posted something about the experience in some thread here.

Ole' Grampa, Corpus Christi, Tx was calling you, my handle on the air.

Thanks for your words of support, I will keep this in mind as I continue to compare my antennas.