Magnet and antenna base separated

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STEVE392

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I have use a train tenna with my Yaesu 270R in my F150. When I got my new truck i ran the wire down the middle pillar between front and rear doors. At some point the wire got pinched and I had to repair it by soldering the wires back together. Shortly after that the base plate for the magmount separated from the actual magnet. I can pull the antenna assembly off and the magnet stays on the truck. Will either of these issues cause reception issues? I am thinking about getting a new cable and replacing the patched one, but not sure what to do with the magnet issue.

Here is the link for the antenna in case nobody is familiar with the antenna.
DPD Productions - Railroad Base & Mobile Antennas: TrainTenna, Voice Communications, ATCS, Data
 

jonwienke

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Will either of these issues cause reception issues?

Both will.

You can't just solder coax together and have it work right. And if the magnet fell out of the base you have a serious problem. The base forms a capacitor with the vehicle body to couple the antenna to the vehicle. If the magnet fell out, there are likely broken wires in the base.

The antenna is not worth fixing. Get another, preferably from a different manufacturer.
 

dlwtrunked

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Both will.
You can't just solder coax together and have it work right. And if the magnet fell out of the base you have a serious problem. The base forms a capacitor with the vehicle body to couple the antenna to the vehicle. If the magnet fell out, there are likely broken wires in the base.

The "antenna is not worth fixing" is wrong. It should be "the mount is not worth fixing".

I have used magnetic mounts for many years. Having the magnet become unattached even happens with top grade mounts like Larsen. The DPD antenna just uses a NMO connector so any NMO mount for that will work. Agree though about feed line. When feedline breaks, it is time to replace the mount.
 

jonwienke

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You're right. I missed that the mag mount was NMO.

Keep the antenna, but trash and replace the mount and coax. If possible, go with something other than a magnet mount.
 

haansgruber

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Feb 16, 2010
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Liquid Nails

Use liquid nails to re-fasten the magnet to your antenna
It will never come off again
Don't do it while it's on the auto!

Comes in a tube like caulking

73'

haans )
 

Rred

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In most magmounts, the magnet is just glued in place and the antenna has only a capacitive contact to the sheet metal being used as a ground plane. And that's all it needs to work effectively. So if the magnet came unglued, clean the surfaces, let them dry, and reglue it with a THIN layer of glue. Liquid Nails or other "Crazy Glue" type product should work very well. You want a THIN layer to get the proper capacitive contact.

On splicing coax...Guys, that used to be documented in the old old ARRL books among other places. The usual advice was to actually cross the conductors (shield to center, center to shield) when making the splice. But either way...making a splice in the coax used in a RECEIVE ONLY antenna, is not such a big deal. It isn't going to create an impedance bump or an SWR problem as it might for a transmitter.

And since the OP hasn't said he has had any performance problems...I think all he needs for now is the tube of Crazy Glue, and some alcohol and paper towels to clean out the old glue and dirt.(G)

Any radio shop can sell him 15 feet of new coax, complete with the right radio connector, and he can just replace the whole antenna cable when it is convenient, too. No big deal.
 

lu81fitter

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Marshall County, Illinois
I agree!!

Drill a hole and install an NMO mount.

I used mag mounts for a long time. TOO LONG! Once I drilled an NMO in, I never looked back! Looks better, no cable pinching in doors, and performs better, too. And you don't have to worry about it falling off. My truck is a 2500HD Silverado. Truck roof is 6'3". It has an 18" whip on the roof and I drive in and out of a 7 foot garage door opening daily. No problem. Drill it and forget it.
 
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