For the past 10 years, I've used a Hi-Q 4/80 HF antenna, which I bought new, on my Jeep. My Jeep has been all over the local mountains, desert, and city and I've relied on this antenna for ham radio and Navy MARS communications where there are no other communications services. The antenna had been back to Hi-Q for repairs a number of times, and I had mentioned to Charlie via email on a few occasions over the years that the antenna construction design needed to be ruggedized a bit. Since my original purchase, the Hi-Q line has gone through quite a few design changes to meet the needs of the most rugged users, including both the Military customers and the weekend off-roader like me.
A few months ago, my old Hi-Q failed; this time the disk inside the coil would not move up or down even though the motor and threaded screw were turning. I took the antenna apart and concluded that the threads on the inductor plate must be worn out. Rather than send the antenna in for repair, I opted to buy a new one as I knew that the design had been radically improved.
When I received the new antenna, the first thing I noticed that the new model was about a foot shorter and the shaft with integral motor design was different. I put both antennas side-by-side and took a picture:
The old model is on the left; new model is on the right. The new antenna has the quick disconnect base attached, as well. Even though the new antenna is a foot shorter, it weighs a whole pound more, apparently due to radical changes in coil design. One problem I constantly faced with the old antenna was the top shaft loosening from the lower housing due to constant bouncing around on the rear of the jeep. Loctite and lock washers finally did the trick on the old antenna, but as you can see from the new one-piece shaft design on the new model, this problem will be a thing of the past.
Hi-Q claims that the shorter shaft on the new antennas does not affect performance at all due to the redesigned coil. I don't have any way of proving that, so I'll take their word for it. Since I already had the quick disconnect base installed on the Jeep, all I had to do is attach the wiring connector for the motor and turns counter and mount it on the vehicle. One thing to note is that these new antennas have an external reed switch for your turns counter (as opposed to the internal reed switch on the older models), which means that if it fails, you can easily switch it out yourself.
I attached my stinger with the spring base, added a hose clamp 1/2 way up the base for my guy / security line and took a couple more pics:
Here is a pic from the side showing how it is mounted on the rear tire carrier:
I already had a shunt coil, coax, & controller wires ran, so the install was pretty easy. I did a quick analyzer check and found that I could easily tune the antenna for 6-80 meters. One thing I noticed about this new antenna is that amount of adjustment needed between the 10 through 20 meter bands is significantly less, making operation much easier and quicker. Also, since the antenna is a whole foot shorter, there is a lot less leverage at the top of the heavy coil, which means it should be much more durable in the rugged Southern California deserts and mountains. All things considered, I don't think you can do much better for HF mobile communications than the Hi-Q line of antennas.
A few months ago, my old Hi-Q failed; this time the disk inside the coil would not move up or down even though the motor and threaded screw were turning. I took the antenna apart and concluded that the threads on the inductor plate must be worn out. Rather than send the antenna in for repair, I opted to buy a new one as I knew that the design had been radically improved.
When I received the new antenna, the first thing I noticed that the new model was about a foot shorter and the shaft with integral motor design was different. I put both antennas side-by-side and took a picture:
The old model is on the left; new model is on the right. The new antenna has the quick disconnect base attached, as well. Even though the new antenna is a foot shorter, it weighs a whole pound more, apparently due to radical changes in coil design. One problem I constantly faced with the old antenna was the top shaft loosening from the lower housing due to constant bouncing around on the rear of the jeep. Loctite and lock washers finally did the trick on the old antenna, but as you can see from the new one-piece shaft design on the new model, this problem will be a thing of the past.
Hi-Q claims that the shorter shaft on the new antennas does not affect performance at all due to the redesigned coil. I don't have any way of proving that, so I'll take their word for it. Since I already had the quick disconnect base installed on the Jeep, all I had to do is attach the wiring connector for the motor and turns counter and mount it on the vehicle. One thing to note is that these new antennas have an external reed switch for your turns counter (as opposed to the internal reed switch on the older models), which means that if it fails, you can easily switch it out yourself.
I attached my stinger with the spring base, added a hose clamp 1/2 way up the base for my guy / security line and took a couple more pics:
Here is a pic from the side showing how it is mounted on the rear tire carrier:
I already had a shunt coil, coax, & controller wires ran, so the install was pretty easy. I did a quick analyzer check and found that I could easily tune the antenna for 6-80 meters. One thing I noticed about this new antenna is that amount of adjustment needed between the 10 through 20 meter bands is significantly less, making operation much easier and quicker. Also, since the antenna is a whole foot shorter, there is a lot less leverage at the top of the heavy coil, which means it should be much more durable in the rugged Southern California deserts and mountains. All things considered, I don't think you can do much better for HF mobile communications than the Hi-Q line of antennas.
