Home brew PVC Antenna

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NorthCOVideo

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Well I finally got a good camera to take pictures with and I'm in the process of building a PVC antenna along with a home brew Yagi ( don't ask about specs I have no clue ). So here are some pictures I have taken it needs some work, I thinking about making this my portable antenna for camping and making a new one out of larger PVC as the current one is a bit weak.
 
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SAR923

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Tell me you're not really going to attach the coax to that antenna with alligator clips.
 

KC0QNB

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I have a couple of questions, Is the driven element one solid rod, or is it two rods?
are the directors and the reflector elements connected to each other, by a metal "boom"?
 

NorthCOVideo

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Just kinda following one that another member had made out of like a broom handle, tried to look for that topic, but couldn't find it. Like I said I have no idea about specs, just thought I would make one and see what it was like. Its 7 elements spaced 2 inches apart, each element and inch bigger than the last, starting at 4" and going to 10", total length of the tube is 18".
 
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k8tmk

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To KC0QNB:

Because the directors and reflector are parasitic elements, it does not matter if they are connected together or not. The important thing is that they are the correct lengths and lined up properly.

Randy, K8TMK
 

KC0QNB

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tnx for that info all the yagis I have seen the elements were mounted on the same metal boom, except the DE which was insulated from the boom, my bad, of course I have never built or seen a homebuilt unit, however I have built "cubical quads" over the years which to me seemed a bit easier to build and make work, complete with the electrical 1/4 wave length "transformer".
 

N1SQB

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Vey Interesting!

How long did it take you to do it and where did you get the rods for the elements?

Manny
 

tactcom42

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Tell me you're not really going to attach the coax to that antenna with alligator clips.


Is it just my eyes or is one alligator clip going to one element and the other alligator clip going to another element? sure looks like it in the first picture.if so thats not right!!! but does look good.just need to hook it up to coax better.
 

NorthCOVideo

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Ya still getting ideas to improve on it. Thinking about putting 2 up on there, but before that I need to build a better mast as this one won't support it. Also I'll have to figure out all the specs to make a worth while antenna or antennas.
 

NorthCOVideo

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Progress

Still working on building 2 Yagi's, but I have a simple one up right now. Plus pics of it hooked into my Pro-83 and 396.

Still not a final setup, getting ideas for a more permanent antenna array.
 
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NorthCOVideo

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That it is and it was a lot to fit it all too. That one isn't going to be up for much longer, I'm going to take it down and it will be used as my portable when I go camping. It will be replaced by a roof mount tripod type base, which I'm still not having any luck finding at local stores, with my home brew antennas atop.
 

rocknrun

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Years ago (during the last sunspot cycle peak) a friend of mine built a 2 element 10 meter yagi with PVC using wire inside the pipes. Worked well, but on a hot day you could drive by his house and those elements were really sagging!
 

N1BHH

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For those who say "I can't build anything" let this be a lesson for you. You can build stuff, you can save money by building it yourself. You learn along the way and gain skills you never knew you had. I love the initiative of building it yourself, bravo!
 

NorthCOVideo

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Thanks, this particular one doesn't exist in this form any more, its kinda split, part to go to the on I have on my roof and the portable I built. Most of the PVC I had laying around, I think I spent around $45 to build both.
 
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I made a 13 element Yagi out of copper wire and PVC for monitoring the digital public safety system in my area and it works pretty well. I used the Yagi Calculator that I found at http://vk5dj.mountgambier.org/Yagi/Yagi.html to create the design.

I'd like to fashion a more durable antenna out of aluminum rods for mounting permanently outdoors, but for the moment it's kind of handy for reaching some of the towers in the system that are just out of reach.
 

DewAddict

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For those who say "I can't build anything" let this be a lesson for you. You can build stuff, you can save money by building it yourself. You learn along the way and gain skills you never knew you had. I love the initiative of building it yourself, bravo!

Ditto...

Great fun trying something new and enjoying the hobby. Keep us posted.
 
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