How can i repair a broken element?

[cassidy1190]

I have an RS discone in my attic. Being clumsy I snapped off one of the VHF elements at the base. Is there any known way to repair these steel elements? I know that with the steel soldering would be hopeless.

[gmclam]

I did the same thing. I bought replacements from RSU. Go to your local Radio Shack and tell them you want to order REPLACEMENT parts, like for your scanner. Give them the RS # of the antenna and they should be able to do the order. I have spares left over, but I am on the other side of the country from you.

[gewecke]

If it's one of the early r/s discones with the really flimsy hollow elements,then visit your hardware store and they should have some stainless steel solid rods that can be threaded with a tap&die kit. These will replace the cheap one's it came with!
N9ZAS

[cassidy1190]

hahaha! yeah I know it is a piece of junk. I just got a $10.00 cupon for RS so i might just go and buy an entirely new one. Ill break down the one i have now for spares and parts for other projects.

[gewecke]

Originally Posted by cassidy1190

hahaha! yeah I know it is a piece of junk. I just got a $10.00 cupon for RS so i might just go and buy an entirely new one. Ill break down the one i have now for spares and parts for other projects.

Once I replaced all of the cheap aluminum hollow elements with the new tapped stainless elements it worked great! 3 of the original elements ended up on the ground below my tower after only 50 mph gusts! The threaded studs which screw into the hub were only stuck into the tubing then crimped as cheaply as could be!! Since I replaced all those elements and sold the antenna 6 years ago it's still in the air and has ALL of the pieces still up there.
I hope you have better luck with yours!
N9ZAS

[cassidy1190]

Well after hearing of the horror stories over the years about the RS discones, mine would never leave the attic on my watch. If i was puttin it on the roof i would deffinitely invest in the diamond model.

[prcguy]

I drilled out all the holes in one of my RS Discone center hubs and tapped for 10-24 which fits 3/16 threaded aluminum rod real nice. Much stronger than the original and didn't take that long to tap all the new elements.

I have some leftover stock SS elements around here somewhere.
prcguy

[kevin2525]

When all else fails try duct tape.

[gewecke]

Originally Posted by kevin2525

When all else fails try duct tape.

Problem is duct tape is not waterproof and will loosen with wind and wear. Not to mention it looks tacky!(no pun intended!)
N9ZAS

[cassidy1190]

ha, its actually being held on with electric tape right now. I don't notice much of a difference, but its just not right. I hope to buy a new discone for use and use the old one to mess around with. Maybe experiment with a thread kit like you guys are talking about.

[kb2vxa]

Only one broken element doesn't matter, when it starts looking like a Christmas tree come Easter then there is cause for concern.

"When your antenna looks like a ball of duct tape, you just might be a Redneck."
Jeff Foxworthy (?)