I'am Your Newest Subscriber Here In Florida I Love My Antron 99 Antenna I Just Got A Used Ground Plane Kit For My Antron 99 At The Ham Radio Fest 25.00 US
@Tony-rl2fr3 жыл бұрын
Planning a base station setup. This video and SOME of the comments are still helpful in 2021. Thank you!
@Shanedog769 ай бұрын
you had your arm in the way when you where putting the dialectic Greece on the mast!
@georgeballinger3525 Жыл бұрын
Hi, I got your link from Far Point Farms. I am thinking about putting a ground plan kit on my Tram 1499. Do you think this GPK1 will fit? I notices your put the collar up above the PL258 connector. Was that by design or by the instructions. Thank you
@AndrewMurphy83833 жыл бұрын
also for people that might be reasding this that delectric greas is not going help with the metal sezing unless u use alum ant size compound u can get it from the car part store
@gerowen3 жыл бұрын
No I just use the dielectric grease to hopefully keep water out and prevent corrosion. It's not being used as a lubricant or an anti-seize or anything.
@Bocephus697 жыл бұрын
Nice video man! What diameter pipe did you have the antron bolted on? Thanks
@gerowen7 жыл бұрын
I believe it was 1.5 inch, but it may have been 2 inch. I basically got the largest pipe that the U bolts that came with the Antron would actually fit around.
@DynoDieselWagon2 жыл бұрын
1.25"
@ericdee68022 жыл бұрын
Did you forget to paint the fiberglass?
@gerowen2 жыл бұрын
I use clear coat when I paint mine just to make sure I don't get anything metallic or weird that might mess with it. Have considered using latex paint, but haven't gotten around to it yet.
@JasonCooper-wu1qj Жыл бұрын
Basic radio no 3k radio
@christophersmith11556 жыл бұрын
DONT USE DIELECTRIC GREASE IN THE HOLES. A polarized dielectric material A dielectric (or dielectric material) is an electrical insulator that can be polarized by an applied electric field. When a dielectric is placed in an electric field, electric charges do not flow through the material as they do in an electrical conductor but only slightly shift from their average equilibrium positions causing dielectric polarization.
@jonathanwarner18444 жыл бұрын
Air is a dielectric. A dielectric is anything in a gap between two oppositely charged electrical conductors.
@577buttfan2 жыл бұрын
Ive been using dielectric grease on all my antenna fittings for 35 years and never had any problem.They come apart just as clean as day I put them together
@richardkistner55492 жыл бұрын
Took me 40yrs to finally understand that Dielectric grease is NON-CONDUCTIVE! Read the permatex lable
@markvylonis Жыл бұрын
Im a newbie, what about using anti seize on those ground plane connection ? Not sure ?
@christophersmith1155 Жыл бұрын
im not sure. I would have to read the lable of ingredents
@trailbossx29 ай бұрын
,,,,,,good vid,,,I just bought the a99 kit, with the radials, included,,,and like to do research, on assembly, beforehand,,,,very thorough vid, showing all the steps,,,really like the folding tower, too,,,great job,,,hamfests, sell military tower, complete field kits,,,about 100 bucks, will get ya, 30 feet, or so, guyed,,,I got 2, for dipoles, but im thinkin, on puttin the a99gp, up there,,,,did ya notice much diff, on shootin dx?,,,,,thanks for posting,,,de NV1H,,,,😎
@ottronics64575 ай бұрын
All you got to do is put two coats of ceramic coating on those to block the UV light saves a lot of mess over the paint method.
@Fox250R3 жыл бұрын
Put this kit on my A99 and honestly didn't notice anything different. Garbage
@stelthy1003 жыл бұрын
I KNOW THIS IS AN OLD VIDEO. BUT I HAVE A SUGGESTION FOR ANYONE READING THE COMMENTS WHEN YOU INSTALL AN ANTRON 99 on a pole that IS NOT GROUNDED RUN A SEPARATE GROUNDING WIRE FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE ANTENNA FROM ONE OF THE CLAMPS TO A GROUNDING ROD IT WILL HELP WITH STATIC NOISE AND LIGHTING STRIKES STRAIGHT THROUGH YOUR COAX TO YOUR RADIO. ✌️😉
@rickyfernando88643 жыл бұрын
I know it's pretty randomly asking but does anybody know a good website to watch newly released tv shows online?
@mohamedterry1683 жыл бұрын
@Ricky Fernando Lately I have been using Flixzone. Just search on google for it :)
@keatonmaurice74933 жыл бұрын
@Mohamed Terry Yea, have been watching on flixzone for since april myself :)
@jonasjohnathan60743 жыл бұрын
@Mohamed Terry Yea, been watching on Flixzone for years myself :)
@landryizaiah27883 жыл бұрын
@Mohamed Terry Thanks, I went there and it seems like a nice service :) I appreciate it!!
@kelpfl7 жыл бұрын
Thanks and great job on the video. I am about to set up my a99 for the first time and you most likely eliminated at least 3 trips to Home Depot from my installation.
@gerowen7 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching! I sincerely apologize for the horrendous audio quality; I've since bought a better camera, but at the time all I had was a cheap (well it was $100) Cobra action cam.
@355k136 жыл бұрын
Hi, thanks for sharing this, that 148GTLDX brought back memories when I saw it lol...great radios!...probably one of the better 11m CBs I had before moving to HF. I ran mine through an A-99 too, 3el Yagi & 2el Quad mounted at 60ft, worked great & made me a lot of friends all over the world.
@Jeff-sp7bg4 күн бұрын
Cb is HF.....27.385 lsb has 90% of all HF traffic from 1-32 mhz
@Deo-d6pАй бұрын
I know this is an older video, but the information it provides is still useful! Thanks Marcus for taking the time and efforts to post this video! Real life and real solutions!!!
@unclequack54455 жыл бұрын
No washers and no grease test fit radials mark which one screws into that spot then off a ladder I set mine up nothing stripped and went fast , worked fine because I marked which radial fit into which hole so I wasn't struggling off the ladder.
@thebobbit27404 жыл бұрын
So did I :). good move :)
@unclequack54454 жыл бұрын
@@thebobbit2740 Great Bobbit let me know what channel your on . glad it worked.
@jimmycake7143 Жыл бұрын
better to spray some ACF-50 on hardware then wipe down. Corrosion control
@gc30983 жыл бұрын
Hey Marcus - There is a product called “30 Second Outdoor Cleaner” that would make your house look like Brand New in about 20 minutes - all the way around. It comes in a gallon jug at places like Lowes. Spray it on - wait 30 seconds and hose it off. No Scrubbing. It might even enhance that beautiful antenna that you installed. Thank You for the video. Today is Jan. 2, 2021 and I am ordering mine next week. Happy New Year my friend.
@coryboyd79586 жыл бұрын
The kit they sent me for the ground plane is different! Mine was a plate not a ring.
@garymiddleton6585 жыл бұрын
built in ohio 7134 RAILROAD STREET • P.O. Box 176 • HOLLAND, OH 43528
@OrcaBoat37 жыл бұрын
Has your GPK help up well i the wind? I want to add the GPK to my A99, but was curious about how the GPK handles the weather... I mean physically, not technically. Does it blow around alot in the wind, etc?
@jimmycake71433 жыл бұрын
remember die electric is non conducting and may interrupt shield side connection.
@jermainroachford24593 жыл бұрын
Great job, Marcus. Could you explain how you constructed the hinged base on the ground for the 4x4 lumber and also what did you use to treat the lumber to protect it from the elements?
@Dallas-Rife-UDX-347-Tennessee4 жыл бұрын
My GPK was a total pain in the rear too , I bout never got it to thread
@577buttfan2 жыл бұрын
So does the GP kit actually make a difference worth wild Dallas?? Got my new coax on today and shes workin good!!!
@Undertaking-Life3 ай бұрын
I thought you were going to paint the Antron?
@ArntPetterAndersen5 жыл бұрын
How was it to adjust for SWR when you put it up in the first place? - I am going to buy this soon... but I'd hate it if I got frustrated by adjusting the SWR for ages.... :) -tnx for a nice video :) -AP!
@markjones21854 жыл бұрын
If we talk about the Antron 99, I was pre tuned. They're not too bad. That's what I'm running now thinking about getting the ground plan kit to add to it.
@johnnywood80823 жыл бұрын
Do you have to ground it ?
@jackson48615 жыл бұрын
Mine came with un cut threads too, bad quality control at Antron.
@OldManBoxing2 жыл бұрын
I have the Solarcon A-99 currently on a MFJ-1919EX I ordered the GPK-1 it will be here today I’m hoping to do better dxing, I also use an antenna tuner which I think will help even more with the GPK hopefully I catch you in skip land.
@josephwilkins39827 ай бұрын
Where’s your ground wire
@eddiemarconi34204 жыл бұрын
Marcus you did a good job. However i don't know, if it matters in this case, but dielectric grease does not conduct electricity and should NOT be applied directly to the mating surfaces of electric connections.
@gerowen4 жыл бұрын
My intent was to keep water out. I figure since it's non conductive, if a little squeezes out and touches ground it won't short, and when you put it together it'll get pushed out of the way so conductors can make contact.
@jfrphoto013 жыл бұрын
@@gerowen You should be using Penetrox "A" by Burndy, sold by DX Engineering, and it is also sold in many marine supply shops. It prevents water ingress and enhances electrical conductivity! I have been using it for about 10 years and it works great. It is also and anti-seize compound. Just brush a little on the threads and then assemble. Don't over do it as less is more in this case and an 8 oz container will last years! Also, never use it on the center pin of the connector as it can squeeze (weep) out and short the connector!
@barryinn1778 Жыл бұрын
cannot hear a word you have been saying, no audio.👎
@gerowen Жыл бұрын
At the time I made this video I was using a cheap Chinese GoPro knockoff that had horrendous audio, and wasn't doing much editing or post processing of the videos. Sorry for the poor experience.
@DynoDieselWagon2 жыл бұрын
Dielectric Grease is an antennas best friend
@1OFGODSOWN5 жыл бұрын
I hope you put the coax seal over the electrical tape & not directly over the PL-259? You did not show it so we can only guess?
@1OFGODSOWN7 жыл бұрын
Big waste of money on the ground plane kit in my opinion.
@CONFUCIUS-f2x6 жыл бұрын
1OFGODSOWN According to a broke fat ass like you. Not everyone is poor you know.
@glennclark74726 жыл бұрын
i havent ever tried the radials.in theory the experts write in the arrl handbook,that all 1/2 wave and any end fed vertical 5/8th .64 (imax and a few others.like the original sigma.ect all need ground raduals as the other half of the antenna.and also as a doucouple device for feedline radiation and mast pipe radiation of the signal in addittion to angle if radiated signal mire toward the horizon.the copper coul inside the a99 only helos with the ohm getting closr to 50 52..u might not see all that in reality.however some rules are set.try using a 5/th wave like a super penetrator without the radials and your not gonna do much more than send a signal directly up in the clouds.
@1OFGODSOWN5 жыл бұрын
@@CONFUCIUS-f2x I have a set still in the box if you lived near me you could have the entire kit as soon as you got it out of your ass little boy. LOL It was FREE to me & I would give it to your worthless punk ass since you can't afford even the antenna & coax. I have over $10,000 worth of gear just on my Ham Radio desk not counting the 9 antennas,& over 100 CB Radios that I own. Browning Golden Eagle MK IVA,TRAM D201A,DAK Mark X,& so many more. I could buy you for what I keep in my wallet as pocket change daily. LOL
@jackson48615 жыл бұрын
Looks more complete with the radial kit, and it can’t hurt, in fact it has to help in some instances.
@ericdee68022 жыл бұрын
I purchase from "Copper electronics" alot, great company to work with!!!
@VictorVictor-hq7ui2 жыл бұрын
Your camera skills are appalling.
@gerowen2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching!
@andydavidson3 жыл бұрын
so is it worth fitting the radials? did it improve the antenna?
@DynoDieselWagon2 жыл бұрын
Absolutely
@ervincuevas50464 жыл бұрын
I already had two of them found problem transmitting have problem I check the cable inside was detached from the coils now don't know can't day replace the bottom part.
@antenaseinterfacescb4 жыл бұрын
With ground plane kit the antenna works better in reception and transmission? Tks 7351
@coryboyd79584 жыл бұрын
I wish mine came with that collar. Mine used a bracket that ended up making the radials offset from the anntena. Then the whole thing for blasted by lightning
@jeffcoolhdАй бұрын
Great video
@hartleyhomesteadmichigan60414 жыл бұрын
Nice job!
@Hammerjockeyrepair7 жыл бұрын
they strip very easily if its crooked going in at the slightest amount. I believe they are soft copper lugs!
@jstrunck7 жыл бұрын
Also, add more wire radials to the base and watch the angle of radiation come down even lower! But always retune/check swr's after adding radials because it will change. You may think this is bs but, go add another 32 radial wires and see what happens.
@1OFGODSOWN5 жыл бұрын
SWR's??? Where do you buy an SWR's meter? I I can ever find is an SWR Meter? Must be because there is only One SWR = Standing Wave Ratio NOT a Standing Wave Ratios. LOL
@MrXsavageX7 жыл бұрын
So did this imporve your loudness at 30 miles and how did it improve the dx if any? Been looking at this kit.
@1OFGODSOWN7 жыл бұрын
Waste of money.Stay far far away from this BS Snake Oil.
@jamesvw7693 жыл бұрын
Ground plane kits the A99 dont do anything its been proven many many times. Waste of money.
@clydeb88652 жыл бұрын
@@jamesvw769 not true.i use it daily for my business. I live in the sticks in pa.without the ground plane it's useless .I've talked out as far as 40 miles barefoot. Without the kit I had to rely on hit and miss cell service.just saying.
@chrismiller92645 жыл бұрын
I went with MaCO's Boomer GPRK. I like that they're flat versus angled down.
@jackson48614 жыл бұрын
Where did you get the boomer kit? I thought they stopped making them ?
@richarde7354 жыл бұрын
angled gives you better performance
@jackson48614 жыл бұрын
Of all the testing I’ve ever done with more than 20 verticals, perpendicular radios at 90° always outperforms angled radiators, hands down every time. Rock on bro’s
@sergiodmota7 жыл бұрын
Is this antenna better for doing DX or for local contacts?
@anthonystephenson41802 жыл бұрын
Check, check and check it again...lol
@Gitarzan667 жыл бұрын
Hey there. I have a A99 too but I was thinking about trying to use the GP kit for my 102/108in whip ant. The collar size would be perfect. You think it would work?
@1OFGODSOWN5 жыл бұрын
@Lorne Johnson The stainless steel whips sag very badly & the GPK is total BS & a waste of time,effort,& money.
@jaylover9895 Жыл бұрын
You got a vide on how you made that antenna pole that bends looking to do something like that here
@gerowen Жыл бұрын
I just sunk about a 2 foot section of 4x4 post into the ground with concrete. Then I stood another 4x4 on top of it so they were end to end and attached a door hinge to them. Put some flat brackets and such around the side to keep it upright when in use so all I have to do to lay it down is back out the screws in the flat brackets and walk it down by hand, the door hinge holds the other end still so it doesn't kick up on me.
@Elfnetdesigns7 жыл бұрын
is that grounded? I see its on a 4x4 deck beam but did you ground the mast?
@gerowen7 жыл бұрын
Yes, I ran a 4 gauge copper wire from the mast to an 8 foot copper rod in the ground. I just used a self tapping screw with a large washer to attach the wire to the mast so it wouldn't come loose.
@1OFGODSOWN7 жыл бұрын
An Antron 99 does NOT need or require a ground.Read the instructions.
@Elfnetdesigns7 жыл бұрын
And if lightning hits it and burns your home down.... ALL radio antennas should not only be grounded but have a polyphaser inline to break the circuit in the event of a lightning strike and shunt to ground on the antenna side
@gerowen7 жыл бұрын
Like Elfnet said, the grounding isn't necessarily for the proper functioning of the antenna, it's to give lightning a shorter path to ground than down my coax. Even with the grounding rod, my RG-8X would probably burn in two and my radio would be toast, but the hope is that by installing a grounding rod with as short and large a copper wire as possible, MOST of the energy from a lightning strike would go somewhere other than into the house.
@Elfnetdesigns7 жыл бұрын
If you are in a mobile home then the fire risk from lightning it a lot higher than that of say a brick home too. So grounding should be #1 priority. BTW I am an RF Engineer, I have built many many 2-way radio and cellular towers. I don't do tower work anymore, ankles say I can't XD. SO I stay on the ground and supervise lol.
@texasracoon60158 жыл бұрын
pretty cool ....thanx for sharing...202 in Texas
@jimepage7 жыл бұрын
How come no one ever isolates the gpk and antenna from the metal mast and put a coax choke on the coax to keep all the transmit and receive signal in the ground plane and the antenna. With out isolating the antenna and the ground plane from the mast you will notice little or no difference!. All your did was add extra metal to the mast which was always your counterpoise the whole time.
@Gitarzan667 жыл бұрын
I was wondering that about my whip ant and G.P. Any ideas how to do it?
@arconeagain Жыл бұрын
This is partly true, because you will still have an elevated ground radial system, improving ground efficiency. But yes, to get the optimum, isolate. I have done this with a home built quarter droopy, the base was made of irrigation pipe. I used a substantial ferrite coaxial choke, and the antenna was a great performer. You will want to ground the shield for static build up and lightning strike. Do this at a strategic distance from the feedpoint (quarter wave down). I recently saw a product for this, it was a clamp for LMR400, but this ,means removing the jacket. I had a long pig tail on my antenna for the choke on mine, with a female connector on the end. Then just clamp to the outer of the feedline plug.
@tyrone18382 жыл бұрын
Please take that pink thing off of your steering wheel that should be the first thing you take care of.....
@gerowen2 жыл бұрын
It's my wife's.
@JasonCooper-wu1qj Жыл бұрын
Great 👍
@Dallas-Rife-UDX-347-Tennessee4 жыл бұрын
What State are you in ? Salyersville ???
@gerowen4 жыл бұрын
Kentucky
@garymiddleton6585 жыл бұрын
has to be a 45 degree angle
@73xlh4 жыл бұрын
All that for 440kc...
@johnmckinney14937 жыл бұрын
I have one with a president washington, what radio do you use.
@gerowen7 жыл бұрын
Cobra 148 GTL
@marknormankn4cwt6198 жыл бұрын
Did you have to check your swr?
@Frdzed7 жыл бұрын
I thought I was the only gay in the village with that steering wheel cover.
@MicheIIePucca7 жыл бұрын
I saw two videos now where the threads were bad on the A99. Hopefully solarcon improved their QC since. I also wonder if it would pay to buy a tap for that thread.
@KevinModz656 жыл бұрын
Michelle Pucca my threads were stripped from the factory as well
@MicheIIePucca6 жыл бұрын
The one we received did have some obstruction on the first few threads, but we were able to thread it. We used dialelectric grease on all the threads as well. Performance of the antenna is very good.. SWR around 1:1.. needle barely moves.
@1OFGODSOWN5 жыл бұрын
@@MicheIIePucca Ground plane kit should NOT affect the SWR. The kit is Snake Oil & totally a waste of time.money,& effort.
@jackson48614 жыл бұрын
I have five A-99 and Four out of five of them needed either re-tapped or rethreaded , the only one that was right was from 1988. Rock on bro.
@chrishuber48532 жыл бұрын
I just installed mine. You can read my rant about the threads of you'd like on this post. Unacceptable 9n Solarcons part
@RC-Heli8355 жыл бұрын
How far can you get out with this thing man and at what wattage? Thanks!😀
@577buttfan2 жыл бұрын
I put 1.8KW through mine for years.
@clydeb88652 жыл бұрын
@@577buttfan I have a old 1993 cobra 29 with a silver eagle 350 on a 99.... my goal is to make a contact in every state..I live in rural pa.without a beam ,dont think I'll hit Jersey or ny..too close.the old 29 kicks ass though..329 pa tick tok.
@coryboyd79586 жыл бұрын
Can hardly hear one word!
@gerowen6 жыл бұрын
The camera I had back then was absolutely horrible. I've since replaced the camera and made other videos about my antenna setup at my new house. Thanks for stopping by though, 😊
@ezbzee8 жыл бұрын
Sweet steering wheel cover.
@BluegrassPossum8 жыл бұрын
When you first started out to the post office in your truck. On the start of the video...lol
@BloodofmyKindred4 жыл бұрын
Confederate flag hat, living in a trailer...can you stereotype any better?
@jackson48614 жыл бұрын
He did with the gravel road, 142 and Cb antenna lol.
@philliposbey15898 жыл бұрын
so what's your opinion on the kit
@jstrunck7 жыл бұрын
Phillip Osbey It looks like the gpk1 kit did its job. That kit will lower the the angle of radiation coming out of your A-99. It is better for DX work. Hence the stations farther away said your signal is louder to them. I would retune the swr rings after you install the gpk1 kit.
@charlyiy7 жыл бұрын
hi, im from mexico, and i used to live in van nuys, CA some years ago... i had the Antro 99 antenna since 1997, and its a so nice antenna, but when i added the gpk1 kitt that make me go down to south america in DX mode, it really makes a difference to DX mode, every 3 years i get down my antro99 to add some resine cover to the anntenna coz sun do its job over the original surface, so it started to have some cracks on it... so before it makes worse i decided to do some maintenance on it every 3 years... and it really has 19 years working as the first day.... so if u all are planning to go on DX mode... the Antro99 with the gpk1 kitts its a low cost great antenna... hoppe my 19-years-using-this-nice-antenna gives u some idea about that... besides... i have 15 years living back in Tapachula Chiapas (south border mexico-guatemala) and it keeps going DXs from USA to venezuela and some times brazil and peru....(it is up to the atmospheric conditions u know.....) so... have a good day and i hope i did my self a bit good explained....
@jstrunck7 жыл бұрын
Carlos Rafael Portillo Acevedo Which kind of resin did you use? Thanks for the antenna coating information. John
@charlyiy7 жыл бұрын
hi jstrunck i use the same resina that is used to fix boats... dont know its name... i bought it for litters at the local nautics boat store....
@jstrunck7 жыл бұрын
Carlos Rafael Portillo Acevedo Gracious
@lightsout70346 жыл бұрын
If you could ground the antenna to you trailer it turns the whole house in to a ground plane
@jackson48615 жыл бұрын
Feedline of the Antron is too high for the trailer to make a difference of ground plan especially since now that he’s installed the ground plane radial kit there would be no measurable distance with or without the trailer.
@2371305 жыл бұрын
I was glued to the video when it started with guns, Cobra148 GTL and thrash metal! I’ve read and heard lots of arguments on the GPK topic for these antennas. I’ve been using A-99s since 1988 and I’ve only had 2 all this time. No GPKs for me and have talked all over the world. I’m one of those who think if it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it! No ones been able to sway me any different. One great thing about this hobby is experimentation, so rock on. Good luck and keep up the great work!
@jackson48614 жыл бұрын
Your legs might not be broken but you still use a vehicle for traveling. Point is not “fixing broke” it’s improving/ making better/optimizing. Rock on bro.
@bonydox95 жыл бұрын
Why didn't you just get the maxx 2000? Then you've still got a fibre glass antenna but a hell of a lot of rf improvement on the Rx/tx
@jackson48615 жыл бұрын
I’ve been testing imax 2k and Antron for 20 years against themselves, no measurable difference.
@1fanger8885 жыл бұрын
I do believe you need to insulate the whole assembly from that steel mast. You may be changing your resonant freq. by creating an additional counterpoise out of the mast. I ran into this last fall when I mounted my 99 to an iron t-post. Also, you shouldn`t need radials, as the 99 is actually a dipole in it`s own right.
@jfrphoto013 жыл бұрын
The A-99 is only half of an antenna and it relies on the shield of the coax for the other half. This was why so many A-99 users had RFI problems in their shacks and with the neighbors. Adding the GPK-1 to the antenna decoupled the antenna from the coax shield eliminating or at least reducing the RFI problem(s). The same could be accomplished by adding 3 or more 8 foot copper counterpoise (ground plane) wires to the top mounting clamp of the antenna and then bringing them down at a 45 degree angle (give or take a few degrees) and tying them off like guy wires with heavy fishing line or para-cord. Mounting the A-99 on a metal mast or a fiberglass pole makes no difference in its performance. The A-99 must be mounted at least 18 feet above and away from any metal objects including other antennas! The best A-99 setup I ever had was when I lived in Texas and ground mounted an A-99 and ran 16, 8 foot, 14 AWG counterpoise wires along the ground around the antenna, like the spokes on a wheel. Worked into Europe, AU, NZ, South America, Canada, Africa and Japan with an HR-2600 10 meter rig at 25 watts PEP. Also work well on my Cobra 148 GTL on 11 Meters!