[TowerTalk] Crowd sourcing ideas on making antennas look better

[W0MU Mike Fatchett]

Not sure how long the Krylon will hold up.  People are using it on 
SteppIRs repainting the fiberglass tubes with mixed results. The marine 
paint holds up much better and it is more expensive.  I painted my 
SteppIR with Krylon and it is holding up in Colorado at least the side I 
can see from the ground.  I have not been top side on the tower in a 
long time to see what the sun is doing to them.

The problem with any of this is that I don't think you can do any of 
this at the factory.  Scraping paint off to make good connections would 
not be my idea of fun.

Maybe you could get the aluminum supplier to dump some dye into their 
batch for you and make your aluminum black, gray, green, etc.  Not even 
sure that is possible and no clue how much you would have to buy if they 
could do it.


W0MU


On 10/31/2016 2:42 PM, Bob K6UJ wrote:
> Bill,
>
> As you know the aluminum is pretty shiny when it is first installed 
> but it dulls after being
> up for awhile.  That is one consolation that you might tell the customer.
> I would probably try Krylons flat camouflge spray paint.  Might be 
> good, especially
> if he has trees, etc on his property.  If I remember right we 
> discussed this on Tower Talk
> in the past and someone used the camo paint.
>
> Bob
> K6UJ
>
> On 10/31/16 1:21 PM, Bill Hein wrote:
>> This is Bill from Force 12.
>>
>> Had a customer ask about making a vertical antenna look nicer. Most 
>> of us
>> know that 'mill finish' aluminum tubing - as is typically used in 
>> antenna
>> construction - may have scratches and blemishes, which don't affect
>> the electrical performance but might have a cosmetic impact when 
>> viewed up
>> close.
>>
>> Power coating looks great but is not inexpensive. Spray painting 
>> works fine
>> at HF frequencies if one is careful to mask the overlapping conductors
>> before painting. Are there other viable options short of painting to 
>> treat
>> the aluminum tubes?
>>
>> 73
>>
>> BIll AA7XT
>> Glade Park CO
>> DM59pa
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