Scored a AS-3886/TRC-191 Military Discone. Covers 30-88 MHz @ 100 Watts CW 200 Watts PEP. Guy was getting ready to dumpster it.
Scored a Military Discone
- Thread starter kc8gpd
- Start date
- Status
zguy1243
Member
SWEET! Nice catch. Wanna sell it?
nah,
got an icom 706mkiig that want's on 6 meters real bad. the discone will be used there
got an icom 706mkiig that want's on 6 meters real bad. the discone will be used there
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2004
- Messages
- 499
Hmmmm, an omnidirectional antenna with no gain.
Well good luck with that !
Well good luck with that !
On 6 meter sideband it won't matter. If the conditions are correct for 6 meter propagation a wet shoelace will almost work.
I bet that discone will kick some ass on lowband and 6.
How about some pics.
I bet that discone will kick some ass on lowband and 6.
How about some pics.
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2004
- Messages
- 499
Hi 0468,
Mind explaining your statement? I like to learn.
And I didn't say that discones do nothing or are worthless.
Mind explaining your statement? I like to learn.
And I didn't say that discones do nothing or are worthless.
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2004
- Messages
- 499
Perhaps because they are needing to cover a wide bandwidth with one antenna and not have to mess with antenna tuners. They need to be able to dial a frequency and key the mic without worrying about it.
??
??
kf4pep
Member
For 6m SSB use look at it like this... band opening can be sporadic-e, tropo, or something else, and to hit it you need the porper direction and take off angle.
With a beam you get one direction and a pretty low off angle. With a high gain ommni you get no directionality, but a low take off angle.
With a no gain omni you essentially send RF everywhere. 6m being what it is, when it is open you don't need much power, you just need to be sending that power to the "sweet spot".
Compare it to a flashlight and a bare light bulb....
With a beam you get one direction and a pretty low off angle. With a high gain ommni you get no directionality, but a low take off angle.
With a no gain omni you essentially send RF everywhere. 6m being what it is, when it is open you don't need much power, you just need to be sending that power to the "sweet spot".
Compare it to a flashlight and a bare light bulb....
ReceiverBeaver said:
I like learning, too. =)
Antenna gain is referenced to another antenna, usually either a dipole, or an imaginary isotropic radiator. A dipole has about 2 db gain over an isotropic radiator. A discone has about 1 db over isotropic, or -1 db referenced to a dipole.
A real isotropic antenna, if it could be easily done, could be the perfect antenna for applications that need spherical coverage. It would radiate just fine, in all directions. I sometimes think there's a misconception from some folks that zero gain means it won't radiate at all, which is simply not true.
I have an AS-3886 also and it is useable much higher than 88MHz, it covers the entire VHF high band just fine. They’re not fragile either. Hey Beaver, it sounds like your not sold on these giant Discones for low band. What other antenna can you name that covers as much BW and can be used on transmit?
prcguy
prcguy
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2004
- Messages
- 499
Hi guys,
For myself, I have no need to cover all of 6 meters. I live out in the boonies and there are no repeaters within reach with any setup except a multi-element vertical beam on a very tall tower. I don't have or want a tower. So anything above the ssb portion is moot.
Next, some of ya'll points may be valid but you guys are in the extreme minority. You just don't see hams rushing out to utilize unity gain antennas when gain antennas are available and have proven results. An exception is the HF G5RV type wire antenna but most users are more or less forced into using those as they have limited space and can only put up one antenna to cover many bands. If they had a bigger yard or more trees ect...they'd put up something else.
Another example is 2 meters. Yeah a discone will transmit there but again you'll find extremely few hams using one for their everyday base antenna to work a variety of repeaters in a 50 mile radius. They just don't have the range because they have no gain. Now if all you need to do is get into one repeater 5 miles away then fine.....some folks do just that. But like I said, it's an exception and a minority operating position. There's a reason for that.
Use your discones and have fun. But if you gave me one I'd sell it and put the money towards something better.
For myself, I have no need to cover all of 6 meters. I live out in the boonies and there are no repeaters within reach with any setup except a multi-element vertical beam on a very tall tower. I don't have or want a tower. So anything above the ssb portion is moot.
Next, some of ya'll points may be valid but you guys are in the extreme minority. You just don't see hams rushing out to utilize unity gain antennas when gain antennas are available and have proven results. An exception is the HF G5RV type wire antenna but most users are more or less forced into using those as they have limited space and can only put up one antenna to cover many bands. If they had a bigger yard or more trees ect...they'd put up something else.
Another example is 2 meters. Yeah a discone will transmit there but again you'll find extremely few hams using one for their everyday base antenna to work a variety of repeaters in a 50 mile radius. They just don't have the range because they have no gain. Now if all you need to do is get into one repeater 5 miles away then fine.....some folks do just that. But like I said, it's an exception and a minority operating position. There's a reason for that.
Use your discones and have fun. But if you gave me one I'd sell it and put the money towards something better.
kf4pep
Member
Keep in mind that gain in a vertical can have its downsides as well. Here in the mountains if you are in a deep valley a high gain antenna will not always get out as well as a 1/4 wave, and likewise on a ridge where I live a lower gain antenna lets me reach stations just below in the valley better, but the higher gain omni gets the distant stations better.
Likewise many here would rather run a 1/4 for mobile use because all our repeaters tend to be 2000-4000ft HAAT and the low gain radiation pattern seems to work better.
Likewise many here would rather run a 1/4 for mobile use because all our repeaters tend to be 2000-4000ft HAAT and the low gain radiation pattern seems to work better.
ReceiverBeaver said:
Count me among the few. I can regularly access 440 repeaters 75 miles away, and yes, it IS my main FM antenna. More than anything, I like the versatility... I can hook pretty much anything to it and it just works. I'm not hung up on 'gain', primarily because it's not as necessary as one would think it is - at least in MY application.
As to 'no gain, no range', it ain't quite that simple. Antenna gain is just one of several important factors in weak signal reception, antennas are probably just the easiest to work on. But considering my 2 watt ht can talk on 440 to a repeater 75 miles away with margin to spare, the range vs gain argument falls on deaf ears here. Obviously they're not for everybody. But remember, the OP got himself a military antenna. If it's good enough for them...
PRCGUY, how many times have you had snuffy drop the mast while
taking it down? I know from experience when I was a Signal
Officer for a Mech Inf Bn that it does not take kindly to being dropped.
Most often when dropped, if it hit anything on impact except very soft
ground, it had to be replaced.
The RC-292 might sustain a chip on the ceramic, if hit hard, but
would work again after dropping.
taking it down? I know from experience when I was a Signal
Officer for a Mech Inf Bn that it does not take kindly to being dropped.
Most often when dropped, if it hit anything on impact except very soft
ground, it had to be replaced.
The RC-292 might sustain a chip on the ceramic, if hit hard, but
would work again after dropping.
Last edited:
zguy1243
Member
Im guessing the low ban version is much larger. Cause the 197GR UHF version is built like a tank. Guess the low band version is more Flexible?
Dropping it often messes up the matching network inside
the base. It is easy to tell because your reflected power
is about equal to your input power.
My experience with them was in the mid 1980s,when they
were just coming out, so that they might have made
them more rugged later.
the base. It is easy to tell because your reflected power
is about equal to your input power.
My experience with them was in the mid 1980s,when they
were just coming out, so that they might have made
them more rugged later.
Last edited:
- Status
Similar threads
