On a much more basic level than some of the other replies - and for my simple, straight 40-foot run: 1. Be certain to use "sweeps" rather than "90 angle" fittings. The sweeps provide a more gentle cu
I noticed the standing water in my previous conduit by pulling a rag through it. I then hooked up a shop vac (running in reverse) and actually blew water out the far end. The problem may have been du
Simple suggestion: Ask the SteppIR people for a control-box connector with a few feet of cable on it. (That is, do not try to solder one yourself. It is difficult to do accurately without a proper ji
Good news on the first step. Now try connecting a good shop vacuum (hooked up in reverse, to blow air) to one end of the conduit and see what you can blow through it. It might be a considerable amoun
If it can be done without too much trouble, try adding another 100' to the control line. This should help determine if the problem is due to transmission line aspects of the control cable. Is the gro
Any suggestions where I can find Prelube 6 in local stores? (I ran out of my current can. I like to spray the cable every time I crank my tower down -- about every 6 months). Bill - W2WO ____________
I have the same combination: TX-455, 3-element SteppIR; also Ham-IV rotator, a terminated inverted V (a few feet below the top) and a half-sloper (at top of second section). I let the coaxes and cont
theory that the sliding joints and steel cables may not have the best connections. The connection reference was for good RF connections between the tower sections. This would seem to be important fo
place with 10 or 20 mil thick pipe wrapping tape. I tape the cables to the standoff arm before they enter the sweep. I did the same when I first set it up. However, after fooling with several cable
I have a 3el SteppIR on a UST 455 with a 10' mast -- about 6' sticking above the tower. I routinely lower the tower and crank it over without problems. (The standard winches provides good arm exercis
For what its worth, I live next to a small mountain (or a big hill, depending on your reference points) that is about 15 degrees high to the west. This blocks my path to the south Pacific. I can work
I added the 34/40 option while the antenna was still on the tower, but my tower was cranked down and tilted over. The "platform" is very close to the mast area and you could reach it from the vertica
1. Don't even THINK of using anything less than 3" PVC (or whatever material) and 4"" is better. Three coax runs will look very lonely in a 3" or 4" pipe, but you will be happy you used a larger pipe
FWIW, I had lots of water in a buried conduit for several months (without knowing it). Something prompted me to pull a rag through and it came out soaked. I connected a shopvac, in reverse mode, and
You now have multiple responses and you can believe all of them. I have the same half-sloper connected near the top of my 55' crankup (suspended several feet from the top, to increase the distance fr
My experience with the Autek has not been good. The readings are simply too unstable for easy use. I believe this has been discussed many times in various places. The specs for the units are good, bu
The interaction between various wire antennas may be more than "minor". I have a half-sloper on a tower (a two-wire version, for 160, 80, 40). The tower becomes the primary half of the antenna and sh
For what its worth: I think almost everyone who runs cables underground eventually wishes they had used a conduit of some kind. It seems there are always control cables to be added, another feed line
I have a similar halfsloper (40/80/160) attached to a 55-foot crankup tower with a SteppIR on top, I initially attached the sloper to the top of the tower, but later moved it to the top of the middle
I had the 5-band Cubex for several years. It was an excellent receiving antenna and a good transmitting antenna. I think it was the best receiving antenna I have ever had, especially for very low-sig