A99 Opinions Please

Bucko · Apr 18, 2015

After being out of the CB for 12 years I decided to hook things back up. Being I don't have my Raker 4 anymore I thought I would stick up the A99 Solarcon, long ways from the Raker I know but was easy to install. It appears do pretty well but just wanting an opinion on this antenna. Will the Ground Plane option be worth it?

PrimeNumber · Apr 18, 2015

It's good. I've enjoyed mine for 3-1/2 years now, still running strong. Works great for CB, and if you move into ham it'll do 10, 12, 17, & 15 meters as well with a minimal tuner.

It has a good take-off angle for skip. That takes away from some its local performance, but it's still pretty good even there. Ten miles between two of these things atop 20' masts is pretty easy most of the time, and you might get 20 miles if you have some luck.

I skipped the radials. They might help some for skip propagation, but they supposedly don't help for local stuff. Even without them, I've worked from South Africa to Hawaii on this thing on 10m ham (very similar to 11m CB) at 90 watts. Once even hit Scotland on 12 watts CB SSB. So the radials don't seem to be essential. If I had it to do over again, I'd probably still skip the radials.

There are better CB antennas out there, but at the price this is a solid performer.

JayMojave · Apr 19, 2015

Hello Bucko: A couple of things here to consider.

The A99 is a quick and easy install antenna that works, but has its limits in performance. These non ground plane antennas seem to have interference problems with neighbors electronics at times where the ground plane antennas seem to have less interference problems.

The ground plane antennas has a better elevation pattern for both local and skip contacts. Yes the ground plane antenna has a better performance than the non ground plane antennas.

As far as pricing goes I believe the A99 Antennas are going for around 80 dollars and the Hy-Gain SPT-500 are going for 150 dollars. This Hy-Gain 5/8 wavelength ground plane antenna is a tried and true very good working antenna that lasts for years and years. These antennas years ago where called the Hy-Gain Penetrator 500, and where advertised to take 1500 watts of power. And the A99 I would not put that much power to.

Hy-Gain

Good Luck

Jay in the Great Mojave Desert.... All of our historic sites seem to just be holes in the ground, so if have seen a hole in the ground you have it.

freebird63 · Apr 19, 2015

Go with the penetrator 500

KC4RAF · Apr 19, 2015

+1 with the Hy-Gain SPT-500 .

It is one heck of an antenna. Actually, it out performs just about any in it's class. Money will spent.

freebird63 · Apr 19, 2015

If I didn't live in an apartment I would have a base setup with one. My last base antenna was a shakespeare army stick...it was a good antenna..but.

TheSpaceMann · Apr 19, 2015

freebird63 said:
If I didn't live in an apartment I would have a base setup with one. My last base antenna was a shakespeare army stick...it was a good antenna..but.

If you live in an apartment and can only have an antenna out the window, you can build a simple ground plane with 2 or 3 nine foot whips! Make one the radiator.and stand it as vertical as possible, and the other ones the radials dropping down at a 45 degree angle.

freebird63 · Apr 20, 2015

I have very nosey management and would notice it. Heck I would love to string up my 20 meter wire...but they would see that and as cheap as these places are am sure my 100 watt radio would cause some type of interference. Its more fun to set up in mountains and talk on the radio

TheSpaceMann · Apr 20, 2015

freebird63 said:
I have very nosey management and would notice it. Heck I would love to string up my 20 meter wire...but they would see that and as cheap as these places are am sure my 100 watt radio would cause some type of interference. Its more fun to set up in mountains and talk on the radio

Can you put up a regular TV antenna or a satellite dish? You can often use those to disguise a CB antenna.

Burninglight10 · Apr 21, 2015

I have 2 A99's running two base stations (completely legal) and am very satisfied with them. Their only weakness if you can call it that is being that you recieve and transmit in all directons. That being said 20 mile conversations are common.

Bucko · Apr 21, 2015

Thank you for all the opinions so far, it has been very helpful for my experience with this type of antenna is zero.

SCPD · Apr 22, 2015

On the side

freebird63 said:
If I didn't live in an apartment I would have a base setup with one. My last base antenna was a shakespeare army stick...it was a good antenna..but.

A lot of how you can work out of an apartment depends on the building's siding. If it's metal, you're kinda screwed, other than getting something in a window, or out on the patio.

I know someone in a 2 story apartment years ago that just laid a big stick on the inside stairs, and was able to work around halfway decent.
If you got a patio, think about putting a 20 meter(or whatever band you want to play on) 4' whip in a flower pot, put some plastic fauna around it from a craft store, and run ground to just about anything, the patio rail, a water pipe, or run a 1/4 wave counterpoise.

If you don't have metal siding, string up a dipole, or a G5RV Jr, inside the house, on an exterior wall. Doing inside does attenuate your performance some, but if you're causing RF, no one knows who's doing it. When I first got in the hobby, I strung dipoles inside my parent's attic, and worked all over North America, and into Ireland and France. The beauty of playing with dipoles is they are cheap to make, and you'll be surprised at how well they play, even inside.

I know someone will find fault with the above suggestions, but at least you're on the air.

Seven-Delta-FortyOne · Apr 22, 2015

I just looked at that Hy-Gain on their website, and it says "Not legal for 11 Meters".

What the heck are they talking about? Power limits for CB are PEP, not ERP.

Delta

Bucko · Apr 22, 2015

My guess would be that is metal not fiber glass, guessing they think the CB user will electrocute their self in a power line?

KC4RAF · Apr 22, 2015

It is almost 23 feet tall,

thus making it illegal for 11 meters. FCC says 20 feet above ground is max for cb antennas, thus that antenna would exceed the 20 foot limit. But nobody pays attention to that rule any more! Me included.

Seven-Delta-FortyOne · Apr 23, 2015

rafdav said:
thus making it illegal for 11 meters. FCC says 20 feet above ground is max for cb antennas, thus that antenna would exceed the 20 foot limit. But nobody pays attention to that rule any more! Me included.

Oh. It's funny, I always thought that maximum height was to the mount, or antenna feedpoint. I didn't know it was to the top of the antenna. I don't have a base CB, so I'm not in violation. (Yet).

Delta

prcguy · Apr 23, 2015

Unless the rules have changed its 60ft above ground for a free standing antenna or 20ft above roof of a building or structure that would put it more than 60ft above ground. An example of this could be a 10 story building, you would be allowed to have the top of the antenna 20ft above the roof.

That's why some of the original 5/8 wave base antennas that would normally be about 23ft long were base loaded and about 19ft 2in tall so they could be legally used under all conditions.
prcguy

rafdav said:
thus making it illegal for 11 meters. FCC says 20 feet above ground is max for cb antennas, thus that antenna would exceed the 20 foot limit. But nobody pays attention to that rule any more! Me included.

prcguy · Apr 23, 2015

Its not legal because in the 1970s or so the FCC mandated all CB base antennas must survive some high voltage spec if they come in contact with power lines. Virtually all metal CB base antennas were wiped out overnight or called "10m antennas" and a plethora of fiberglass CB base antennas hit the market at once. The rule did not affect amateur or SW or any other antennas.
prcguy

Seven-Delta-FortyOne said:
I just looked at that Hy-Gain on their website, and it says "Not legal for 11 Meters".

What the heck are they talking about? Power limits for CB are PEP, not ERP.

Delta

BrettL · Apr 23, 2015

A99 is overall a great antenna. I used the bottom radials and never noticed much of a difference to even talk about. It can't stand 500 bird watts over long winded conversations. In the tallest pine trees everyone I had got struck by lightning. The M108 40ft boom horizontal antenna ontop of the mountain has never been struck in 15 years only the A99's. I prefer a 5/8 MACO b/c you can change the wire out for more watts. I also like the Hy-Gain 5/8 as well. Just don't like how you have to attach coax first then slide tube over bottom to mount to the mast pole.

Bucko · Jun 2, 2015

So far I have been very pleased with the performance. My experience over the years has been limited when it came to a vertical, mostly used a beam. I have only had 4 other verticals besides this A99, a A/S 1/2, Hustler JR27 1/2, CL2 which was very good and the Star Duster, that antenna was a gem. The ground radials is suppose to lower the radiation a bit but sounds like the radials are not worth the trouble. Being I am getting into it again I have no doubt I will be making some changes, who knows I might put another beam on the tower or a 5/8. Thanks again for the input.

A99 Opinions Please

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