With regular dx openings happening on 10/11 meters I got interested in putting up a dedicated mono band antenna and found the Penetrator to be a great vertical performer. I have been able to find antenna(s) in older neighborhoods that the owner(s) where happy to see them off there roofs for $20.00 or even free. I can’t help to wonder the fate of how many of these great antennas have ended up in the landfill.
For those looking to restore/rebuild a Penetrator antenna for 10/11-meter use. Here is a parts list I put together after rebuilding a couple antennas myself. A lot of the parts are still available through Hy-gain and are used on some of there current Ham antennas the part numbers are different than the original penetrator parts list.
The base insulator will have to be drilled and tapped but that’s easy if you have a drill press or have a steady hand to drill it with a hand drill. Use M1 to mark where your hole needs to be and use a #25 bit and a 10-24 tap. The matching network(s) you will have to hand bend but if you still have your original one use that as your guide. I use a vise and some PVC to make the bends once I got the hang of it I can bend up a set in about 15 minutes. The aluminum rod I got from a local scrapper and it was cheap $3.00 for a 10’ Copper will work to and it is easy to mold but it’s not as ridged as the aluminum rod.
There are people out there selling replacement parts and have a very nice product, but for those who prefer to do there own work this maybe helpful.
“Hy-Gain parts for penetrator #500 rebuilding”
Top hat radials (4) # 173499 $.57 ea
Top Insulator (1) # 463056 $3.12 ea
Base Insulator (1) # 863427 $6.90 ea
Base bracket (1) # 160043 $7.32 ea
U-Bolts (2) # 543792 $2.37 ea
Insulator rod support(s) (2) # 463642 .55ea
S0-239 Connector (1) Radio shack or online
1/8” Alum rod or #10-12ga solid cu wire (Use to make your matching network and beta matcher)
Hy-Gain 662-323-9538
All the nuts, bolts and hose clamps can be purchased at an Orchard supply hardware store. I used scotch brite to clean up the aluminum tubing and a dermal tool to clean up the inside of the mating tube sections. If you are looking for Aluminum tubing to replace missing or damaged parts try dx engineering, Texas towers or Hy-gain as they may have tubing used on current antennas. I upgraded the antennas I rebuilt using all stainless steel and brass hardware and used noalox/pentrox on the joints to keep oxidation to a minimum. if your antenna is complete you can rebuild it to good as new condition for less than 30 bucks! And have the satisfaction of doing the work your self.
.
For those looking to restore/rebuild a Penetrator antenna for 10/11-meter use. Here is a parts list I put together after rebuilding a couple antennas myself. A lot of the parts are still available through Hy-gain and are used on some of there current Ham antennas the part numbers are different than the original penetrator parts list.
The base insulator will have to be drilled and tapped but that’s easy if you have a drill press or have a steady hand to drill it with a hand drill. Use M1 to mark where your hole needs to be and use a #25 bit and a 10-24 tap. The matching network(s) you will have to hand bend but if you still have your original one use that as your guide. I use a vise and some PVC to make the bends once I got the hang of it I can bend up a set in about 15 minutes. The aluminum rod I got from a local scrapper and it was cheap $3.00 for a 10’ Copper will work to and it is easy to mold but it’s not as ridged as the aluminum rod.
There are people out there selling replacement parts and have a very nice product, but for those who prefer to do there own work this maybe helpful.
“Hy-Gain parts for penetrator #500 rebuilding”
Top hat radials (4) # 173499 $.57 ea
Top Insulator (1) # 463056 $3.12 ea
Base Insulator (1) # 863427 $6.90 ea
Base bracket (1) # 160043 $7.32 ea
U-Bolts (2) # 543792 $2.37 ea
Insulator rod support(s) (2) # 463642 .55ea
S0-239 Connector (1) Radio shack or online
1/8” Alum rod or #10-12ga solid cu wire (Use to make your matching network and beta matcher)
Hy-Gain 662-323-9538
All the nuts, bolts and hose clamps can be purchased at an Orchard supply hardware store. I used scotch brite to clean up the aluminum tubing and a dermal tool to clean up the inside of the mating tube sections. If you are looking for Aluminum tubing to replace missing or damaged parts try dx engineering, Texas towers or Hy-gain as they may have tubing used on current antennas. I upgraded the antennas I rebuilt using all stainless steel and brass hardware and used noalox/pentrox on the joints to keep oxidation to a minimum. if your antenna is complete you can rebuild it to good as new condition for less than 30 bucks! And have the satisfaction of doing the work your self.
.
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