im thinking about changing out my wilson 5000 baseload..i use to use toplad antennas way back in day.. for a centerload i had a monkeymade mm9 . it worked good but filled up with water.
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Well they're all good antennas but like I said and everybody else has reported and tested, the shorter it is the less you're going to get out and receive. Don't really like the monkey made version I think they make flat coils which is what I read is incorrect. Also have heard about the water issue on those. I have read one guy had the coil filled with water and more at the whip hole which from what iread the whip is tapered and if some have to cut for tuning it may allow water in the shaft. Have not had any problem with my predator. I have tested just about every mobile antenna brand-name basically there is out there and it's like I said before the longer the better my best antennas and this is an order of how the antenna does transmit and receive on my vehicle is the Predator 27 inch shaft 10K single coil next comes the 108 in whip not by much but the Predators still beat out the whip on my grand marquis but it was the opposite on my jeep. The next best that I have tested is the 7-foot skip shooter. I have also tested Center load and base load antennas and I have found that the Predator 10-K single coil with different size shafts does better than all the other base and center loads. Also different size top-loaded skip Shooters which I have four beat out the center load and base loads of approximately the same lengths but did not beat the predator with shorter shafts. I must say that yes there was a difference but on the longer antennas it was minimal until you went from a longer to a shorter antenna and then it was slightly more noticeable. Fyi I have chosen the Skipshooter as far as those types and for the antennas because after the 4.5 foot I believe they use the thickest winding wire of any wound wire antenna out there that I have researched so far. These tests were done over years tested mobile to base dead key and transmit both ways about 15 miles apart in a straight line. The tests were done with my Grand Marquis with a puck mount on the trunk as well as a ham friends Mercedes Benz with a trunk lip mount and my Jeep with a roof Puck mount.
I never had any issues with a Predator 10-K single coil with Breaking, water, ice, or anything basically in NJ here. So I usually use the ss whip for stationary skip shooting, the Predator 10-K 27 inch shaft for driving around where I know the height limit or i use the 7ft skipshooter and then i use a shorter shaft on the 10k or a shorter top load skip shooter when traveling, nothing else. My jeep is 6ft high at the puck which is what i drive now.
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One guy posted in a forum post that i read that his coil actually filled up with water but he didn't know how. Another post where they were doing a review said that possibly if you have to cut your whip to adjust the monkey made antenna that it's a tapered whip and I guess if it's small enough the water leaks in and there are many posts about it taking on water. With that being said to be fair there are also many posts saying that they love that antenna. I chose not to buy it because of the flat coils which I read was not correct. The other thing was the water concern. So I brought a predator at least 9 years ago and have had no issues with it at all.