A video blog of me installing my brand new Solarcon GPK1 on my A99 base station antenna. The GPK1 is a ground plane kit for the Solarcon/Antron A99 antenna.
Hi, thanks for sharing this, that 148GTLDX brought back memories when I saw it lol...great radios!...probably one of the better 11m CBs I had before moving to HF. I ran mine through an A-99 too, 3el Yagi & 2el Quad mounted at 60ft, worked great & made me a lot of friends all over the world.
Thanks and great job on the video. I am about to set up my a99 for the first time and you most likely eliminated at least 3 trips to Home Depot from my installation.
Thanks for watching! I sincerely apologize for the horrendous audio quality; I've since bought a better camera, but at the time all I had was a cheap (well it was $100) Cobra action cam.
Hey Marcus - There is a product called “30 Second Outdoor Cleaner” that would make your house look like Brand New in about 20 minutes - all the way around. It comes in a gallon jug at places like Lowes. Spray it on - wait 30 seconds and hose it off. No Scrubbing. It might even enhance that beautiful antenna that you installed. Thank You for the video. Today is Jan. 2, 2021 and I am ordering mine next week. Happy New Year my friend.
Has your GPK help up well i the wind? I want to add the GPK to my A99, but was curious about how the GPK handles the weather... I mean physically, not technically. Does it blow around alot in the wind, etc?
Great job, Marcus. Could you explain how you constructed the hinged base on the ground for the 4x4 lumber and also what did you use to treat the lumber to protect it from the elements?
I have the Solarcon A-99 currently on a MFJ-1919EX I ordered the GPK-1 it will be here today I’m hoping to do better dxing, I also use an antenna tuner which I think will help even more with the GPK hopefully I catch you in skip land.
Hi, I got your link from Far Point Farms. I am thinking about putting a ground plan kit on my Tram 1499. Do you think this GPK1 will fit? I notices your put the collar up above the PL258 connector. Was that by design or by the instructions. Thank you
I wish mine came with that collar. Mine used a bracket that ended up making the radials offset from the anntena. Then the whole thing for blasted by lightning
I already had two of them found problem transmitting have problem I check the cable inside was detached from the coils now don't know can't day replace the bottom part.
Of all the testing I’ve ever done with more than 20 verticals, perpendicular radios at 90° always outperforms angled radiators, hands down every time. Rock on bro’s
Hey there. I have a A99 too but I was thinking about trying to use the GP kit for my 102/108in whip ant. The collar size would be perfect. You think it would work?
No washers and no grease test fit radials mark which one screws into that spot then off a ladder I set mine up nothing stripped and went fast , worked fine because I marked which radial fit into which hole so I wasn't struggling off the ladder.
@@jamesvw769 not true.i use it daily for my business. I live in the sticks in pa.without the ground plane it's useless .I've talked out as far as 40 miles barefoot. Without the kit I had to rely on hit and miss cell service.just saying.
I just sunk about a 2 foot section of 4x4 post into the ground with concrete. Then I stood another 4x4 on top of it so they were end to end and attached a door hinge to them. Put some flat brackets and such around the side to keep it upright when in use so all I have to do to lay it down is back out the screws in the flat brackets and walk it down by hand, the door hinge holds the other end still so it doesn't kick up on me.
I KNOW THIS IS AN OLD VIDEO. BUT I HAVE A SUGGESTION FOR ANYONE READING THE COMMENTS WHEN YOU INSTALL AN ANTRON 99 on a pole that IS NOT GROUNDED RUN A SEPARATE GROUNDING WIRE FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE ANTENNA FROM ONE OF THE CLAMPS TO A GROUNDING ROD IT WILL HELP WITH STATIC NOISE AND LIGHTING STRIKES STRAIGHT THROUGH YOUR COAX TO YOUR RADIO. ✌️😉
How was it to adjust for SWR when you put it up in the first place? - I am going to buy this soon... but I'd hate it if I got frustrated by adjusting the SWR for ages.... :) -tnx for a nice video :) -AP!
If we talk about the Antron 99, I was pre tuned. They're not too bad. That's what I'm running now thinking about getting the ground plan kit to add to it.
I was glued to the video when it started with guns, Cobra148 GTL and thrash metal! I’ve read and heard lots of arguments on the GPK topic for these antennas. I’ve been using A-99s since 1988 and I’ve only had 2 all this time. No GPKs for me and have talked all over the world. I’m one of those who think if it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it! No ones been able to sway me any different. One great thing about this hobby is experimentation, so rock on. Good luck and keep up the great work!
Your legs might not be broken but you still use a vehicle for traveling. Point is not “fixing broke” it’s improving/ making better/optimizing. Rock on bro.
,,,,,,good vid,,,I just bought the a99 kit, with the radials, included,,,and like to do research, on assembly, beforehand,,,,very thorough vid, showing all the steps,,,really like the folding tower, too,,,great job,,,hamfests, sell military tower, complete field kits,,,about 100 bucks, will get ya, 30 feet, or so, guyed,,,I got 2, for dipoles, but im thinkin, on puttin the a99gp, up there,,,,did ya notice much diff, on shootin dx?,,,,,thanks for posting,,,de NV1H,,,,😎
I believe it was 1.5 inch, but it may have been 2 inch. I basically got the largest pipe that the U bolts that came with the Antron would actually fit around.
DONT USE DIELECTRIC GREASE IN THE HOLES. A polarized dielectric material A dielectric (or dielectric material) is an electrical insulator that can be polarized by an applied electric field. When a dielectric is placed in an electric field, electric charges do not flow through the material as they do in an electrical conductor but only slightly shift from their average equilibrium positions causing dielectric polarization.
Ive been using dielectric grease on all my antenna fittings for 35 years and never had any problem.They come apart just as clean as day I put them together
Also, add more wire radials to the base and watch the angle of radiation come down even lower! But always retune/check swr's after adding radials because it will change. You may think this is bs but, go add another 32 radial wires and see what happens.
SWR's??? Where do you buy an SWR's meter? I I can ever find is an SWR Meter? Must be because there is only One SWR = Standing Wave Ratio NOT a Standing Wave Ratios. LOL
I saw two videos now where the threads were bad on the A99. Hopefully solarcon improved their QC since. I also wonder if it would pay to buy a tap for that thread.
The one we received did have some obstruction on the first few threads, but we were able to thread it. We used dialelectric grease on all the threads as well. Performance of the antenna is very good.. SWR around 1:1.. needle barely moves.
I'am Your Newest Subscriber Here In Florida I Love My Antron 99 Antenna I Just Got A Used Ground Plane Kit For My Antron 99 At The Ham Radio Fest 25.00 US
Yes, I ran a 4 gauge copper wire from the mast to an 8 foot copper rod in the ground. I just used a self tapping screw with a large washer to attach the wire to the mast so it wouldn't come loose.
And if lightning hits it and burns your home down.... ALL radio antennas should not only be grounded but have a polyphaser inline to break the circuit in the event of a lightning strike and shunt to ground on the antenna side
Like Elfnet said, the grounding isn't necessarily for the proper functioning of the antenna, it's to give lightning a shorter path to ground than down my coax. Even with the grounding rod, my RG-8X would probably burn in two and my radio would be toast, but the hope is that by installing a grounding rod with as short and large a copper wire as possible, MOST of the energy from a lightning strike would go somewhere other than into the house.
If you are in a mobile home then the fire risk from lightning it a lot higher than that of say a brick home too. So grounding should be #1 priority. BTW I am an RF Engineer, I have built many many 2-way radio and cellular towers. I don't do tower work anymore, ankles say I can't XD. SO I stay on the ground and supervise lol.
@@577buttfan I have a old 1993 cobra 29 with a silver eagle 350 on a 99.... my goal is to make a contact in every state..I live in rural pa.without a beam ,dont think I'll hit Jersey or ny..too close.the old 29 kicks ass though..329 pa tick tok.
Marcus you did a good job. However i don't know, if it matters in this case, but dielectric grease does not conduct electricity and should NOT be applied directly to the mating surfaces of electric connections.
My intent was to keep water out. I figure since it's non conductive, if a little squeezes out and touches ground it won't short, and when you put it together it'll get pushed out of the way so conductors can make contact.
@@gerowen You should be using Penetrox "A" by Burndy, sold by DX Engineering, and it is also sold in many marine supply shops. It prevents water ingress and enhances electrical conductivity! I have been using it for about 10 years and it works great. It is also and anti-seize compound. Just brush a little on the threads and then assemble. Don't over do it as less is more in this case and an 8 oz container will last years! Also, never use it on the center pin of the connector as it can squeeze (weep) out and short the connector!
I use clear coat when I paint mine just to make sure I don't get anything metallic or weird that might mess with it. Have considered using latex paint, but haven't gotten around to it yet.
also for people that might be reasding this that delectric greas is not going help with the metal sezing unless u use alum ant size compound u can get it from the car part store
No I just use the dielectric grease to hopefully keep water out and prevent corrosion. It's not being used as a lubricant or an anti-seize or anything.
How come no one ever isolates the gpk and antenna from the metal mast and put a coax choke on the coax to keep all the transmit and receive signal in the ground plane and the antenna. With out isolating the antenna and the ground plane from the mast you will notice little or no difference!. All your did was add extra metal to the mast which was always your counterpoise the whole time.
This is partly true, because you will still have an elevated ground radial system, improving ground efficiency. But yes, to get the optimum, isolate. I have done this with a home built quarter droopy, the base was made of irrigation pipe. I used a substantial ferrite coaxial choke, and the antenna was a great performer. You will want to ground the shield for static build up and lightning strike. Do this at a strategic distance from the feedpoint (quarter wave down). I recently saw a product for this, it was a clamp for LMR400, but this ,means removing the jacket. I had a long pig tail on my antenna for the choke on mine, with a female connector on the end. Then just clamp to the outer of the feedline plug.
Phillip Osbey It looks like the gpk1 kit did its job. That kit will lower the the angle of radiation coming out of your A-99. It is better for DX work. Hence the stations farther away said your signal is louder to them. I would retune the swr rings after you install the gpk1 kit.
hi, im from mexico, and i used to live in van nuys, CA some years ago... i had the Antro 99 antenna since 1997, and its a so nice antenna, but when i added the gpk1 kitt that make me go down to south america in DX mode, it really makes a difference to DX mode, every 3 years i get down my antro99 to add some resine cover to the anntenna coz sun do its job over the original surface, so it started to have some cracks on it... so before it makes worse i decided to do some maintenance on it every 3 years... and it really has 19 years working as the first day.... so if u all are planning to go on DX mode... the Antro99 with the gpk1 kitts its a low cost great antenna... hoppe my 19-years-using-this-nice-antenna gives u some idea about that... besides... i have 15 years living back in Tapachula Chiapas (south border mexico-guatemala) and it keeps going DXs from USA to venezuela and some times brazil and peru....(it is up to the atmospheric conditions u know.....) so... have a good day and i hope i did my self a bit good explained....
Feedline of the Antron is too high for the trailer to make a difference of ground plan especially since now that he’s installed the ground plane radial kit there would be no measurable distance with or without the trailer.
I do believe you need to insulate the whole assembly from that steel mast. You may be changing your resonant freq. by creating an additional counterpoise out of the mast. I ran into this last fall when I mounted my 99 to an iron t-post. Also, you shouldn`t need radials, as the 99 is actually a dipole in it`s own right.
The A-99 is only half of an antenna and it relies on the shield of the coax for the other half. This was why so many A-99 users had RFI problems in their shacks and with the neighbors. Adding the GPK-1 to the antenna decoupled the antenna from the coax shield eliminating or at least reducing the RFI problem(s). The same could be accomplished by adding 3 or more 8 foot copper counterpoise (ground plane) wires to the top mounting clamp of the antenna and then bringing them down at a 45 degree angle (give or take a few degrees) and tying them off like guy wires with heavy fishing line or para-cord. Mounting the A-99 on a metal mast or a fiberglass pole makes no difference in its performance. The A-99 must be mounted at least 18 feet above and away from any metal objects including other antennas! The best A-99 setup I ever had was when I lived in Texas and ground mounted an A-99 and ran 16, 8 foot, 14 AWG counterpoise wires along the ground around the antenna, like the spokes on a wheel. Worked into Europe, AU, NZ, South America, Canada, Africa and Japan with an HR-2600 10 meter rig at 25 watts PEP. Also work well on my Cobra 148 GTL on 11 Meters!
The camera I had back then was absolutely horrible. I've since replaced the camera and made other videos about my antenna setup at my new house. Thanks for stopping by though, 😊
i havent ever tried the radials.in theory the experts write in the arrl handbook,that all 1/2 wave and any end fed vertical 5/8th .64 (imax and a few others.like the original sigma.ect all need ground raduals as the other half of the antenna.and also as a doucouple device for feedline radiation and mast pipe radiation of the signal in addittion to angle if radiated signal mire toward the horizon.the copper coul inside the a99 only helos with the ohm getting closr to 50 52..u might not see all that in reality.however some rules are set.try using a 5/th wave like a super penetrator without the radials and your not gonna do much more than send a signal directly up in the clouds.
@@Wilhuff_T I have a set still in the box if you lived near me you could have the entire kit as soon as you got it out of your ass little boy. LOL It was FREE to me & I would give it to your worthless punk ass since you can't afford even the antenna & coax. I have over $10,000 worth of gear just on my Ham Radio desk not counting the 9 antennas,& over 100 CB Radios that I own. Browning Golden Eagle MK IVA,TRAM D201A,DAK Mark X,& so many more. I could buy you for what I keep in my wallet as pocket change daily. LOL
At the time I made this video I was using a cheap Chinese GoPro knockoff that had horrendous audio, and wasn't doing much editing or post processing of the videos. Sorry for the poor experience.
Planning a base station setup. This video and SOME of the comments are still helpful in 2021. Thank you!
Hi, thanks for sharing this, that 148GTLDX brought back memories when I saw it lol...great radios!...probably one of the better 11m CBs I had before moving to HF.
I ran mine through an A-99 too, 3el Yagi & 2el Quad mounted at 60ft, worked great & made me a lot of friends all over the world.
Thanks and great job on the video. I am about to set up my a99 for the first time and you most likely eliminated at least 3 trips to Home Depot from my installation.
Thanks for watching! I sincerely apologize for the horrendous audio quality; I've since bought a better camera, but at the time all I had was a cheap (well it was $100) Cobra action cam.
Hey Marcus - There is a product called “30 Second Outdoor Cleaner” that would make your house look like Brand New in about 20 minutes - all the way around. It comes in a gallon jug at places like Lowes. Spray it on - wait 30 seconds and hose it off. No Scrubbing. It might even enhance that beautiful antenna that you installed. Thank You for the video. Today is Jan. 2, 2021 and I am ordering mine next week. Happy New Year my friend.
Has your GPK help up well i the wind? I want to add the GPK to my A99, but was curious about how the GPK handles the weather... I mean physically, not technically. Does it blow around alot in the wind, etc?
Great job, Marcus. Could you explain how you constructed the hinged base on the ground for the 4x4 lumber and also what did you use to treat the lumber to protect it from the elements?
I have the Solarcon A-99 currently on a MFJ-1919EX I ordered the GPK-1 it will be here today I’m hoping to do better dxing, I also use an antenna tuner which I think will help even more with the GPK hopefully I catch you in skip land.
Hi, I got your link from Far Point Farms. I am thinking about putting a ground plan kit on my Tram 1499. Do you think this GPK1 will fit? I notices your put the collar up above the PL258 connector. Was that by design or by the instructions. Thank you
With ground plane kit the antenna works better in reception and transmission? Tks 7351
pretty cool ....thanx for sharing...202 in Texas
Nice job!
I wish mine came with that collar. Mine used a bracket that ended up making the radials offset from the anntena. Then the whole thing for blasted by lightning
I already had two of them found problem transmitting have problem I check the cable inside was detached from the coils now don't know can't day replace the bottom part.
I went with MaCO's Boomer GPRK. I like that they're flat versus angled down.
Where did you get the boomer kit? I thought they stopped making them ?
angled gives you better performance
Of all the testing I’ve ever done with more than 20 verticals, perpendicular radios at 90° always outperforms angled radiators, hands down every time. Rock on bro’s
Hey there. I have a A99 too but I was thinking about trying to use the GP kit for my 102/108in whip ant. The collar size would be perfect. You think it would work?
@Lorne Johnson The stainless steel whips sag very badly & the GPK is total BS & a waste of time,effort,& money.
they strip very easily if its crooked going in at the slightest amount. I believe they are soft
copper lugs!
Mine came with un cut threads too, bad quality control at Antron.
Is this antenna better for doing DX or for local contacts?
No washers and no grease test fit radials mark which one screws into that spot then off a ladder I set mine up nothing stripped and went fast , worked fine because I marked which radial fit into which hole so I wasn't struggling off the ladder.
So did I :). good move :)
@@thebobbit2740 Great Bobbit let me know what channel your on . glad it worked.
I hope you put the coax seal over the electrical tape & not directly over the PL-259? You did not show it so we can only guess?
The kit they sent me for the ground plane is different! Mine was a plate not a ring.
So did this imporve your loudness at 30 miles and how did it improve the dx if any? Been looking at this kit.
Waste of money.Stay far far away from this BS Snake Oil.
Ground plane kits the A99 dont do anything its been proven many many times. Waste of money.
@@jamesvw769 not true.i use it daily for my business. I live in the sticks in pa.without the ground plane it's useless .I've talked out as far as 40 miles barefoot. Without the kit I had to rely on hit and miss cell service.just saying.
Did you have to check your swr?
You got a vide on how you made that antenna pole that bends looking to do something like that here
I just sunk about a 2 foot section of 4x4 post into the ground with concrete. Then I stood another 4x4 on top of it so they were end to end and attached a door hinge to them. Put some flat brackets and such around the side to keep it upright when in use so all I have to do to lay it down is back out the screws in the flat brackets and walk it down by hand, the door hinge holds the other end still so it doesn't kick up on me.
I KNOW THIS IS AN OLD VIDEO. BUT I HAVE A SUGGESTION FOR ANYONE READING THE COMMENTS WHEN YOU INSTALL AN ANTRON 99 on a pole that IS NOT GROUNDED RUN A SEPARATE GROUNDING WIRE FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE ANTENNA FROM ONE OF THE CLAMPS TO A GROUNDING ROD IT WILL HELP WITH STATIC NOISE AND LIGHTING STRIKES STRAIGHT THROUGH YOUR COAX TO YOUR RADIO. ✌️😉
I know it's pretty randomly asking but does anybody know a good website to watch newly released tv shows online?
@Ricky Fernando Lately I have been using Flixzone. Just search on google for it :)
@Mohamed Terry Yea, have been watching on flixzone for since april myself :)
@Mohamed Terry Yea, been watching on Flixzone for years myself :)
@Mohamed Terry Thanks, I went there and it seems like a nice service :) I appreciate it!!
My GPK was a total pain in the rear too , I bout never got it to thread
So does the GP kit actually make a difference worth wild Dallas??
Got my new coax on today and shes workin good!!!
How was it to adjust for SWR when you put it up in the first place? - I am going to buy this soon... but I'd hate it if I got frustrated by adjusting the SWR for ages.... :) -tnx for a nice video :) -AP!
If we talk about the Antron 99, I was pre tuned. They're not too bad. That's what I'm running now thinking about getting the ground plan kit to add to it.
Do you have to ground it ?
I was glued to the video when it started with guns, Cobra148 GTL and thrash metal! I’ve read and heard lots of arguments on the GPK topic for these antennas. I’ve been using A-99s since 1988 and I’ve only had 2 all this time. No GPKs for me and have talked all over the world. I’m one of those who think if it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it! No ones been able to sway me any different. One great thing about this hobby is experimentation, so rock on. Good luck and keep up the great work!
Your legs might not be broken but you still use a vehicle for traveling. Point is not “fixing broke” it’s improving/ making better/optimizing. Rock on bro.
,,,,,,good vid,,,I just bought the a99 kit, with the radials, included,,,and like to do research, on assembly, beforehand,,,,very thorough vid, showing all the steps,,,really like the folding tower, too,,,great job,,,hamfests, sell military tower, complete field kits,,,about 100 bucks, will get ya, 30 feet, or so, guyed,,,I got 2, for dipoles, but im thinkin, on puttin the a99gp, up there,,,,did ya notice much diff, on shootin dx?,,,,,thanks for posting,,,de NV1H,,,,😎
All you got to do is put two coats of ceramic coating on those to block the UV light saves a lot of mess over the paint method.
Nice video man! What diameter pipe did you have the antron bolted on? Thanks
I believe it was 1.5 inch, but it may have been 2 inch. I basically got the largest pipe that the U bolts that came with the Antron would actually fit around.
1.25"
Sweet steering wheel cover.
When you first started out to the post office in your truck. On the start of the video...lol
I have one with a president washington, what radio do you use.
Cobra 148 GTL
DONT USE DIELECTRIC GREASE IN THE HOLES.
A polarized dielectric material
A dielectric (or dielectric material) is an electrical insulator that can be polarized by an applied electric field. When a dielectric is placed in an electric field, electric charges do not flow through the material as they do in an electrical conductor but only slightly shift from their average equilibrium positions causing dielectric polarization.
Air is a dielectric. A dielectric is anything in a gap between two oppositely charged electrical conductors.
Ive been using dielectric grease on all my antenna fittings for 35 years and never had any problem.They come apart just as clean as day I put them together
Took me 40yrs to finally understand that Dielectric grease is NON-CONDUCTIVE! Read the permatex lable
Im a newbie, what about using anti seize on those ground plane connection ? Not sure ?
im not sure. I would have to read the lable of ingredents
Also, add more wire radials to the base and watch the angle of radiation come down even lower! But always retune/check swr's after adding radials because it will change. You may think this is bs but, go add another 32 radial wires and see what happens.
SWR's??? Where do you buy an SWR's meter? I I can ever find is an SWR Meter? Must be because there is only One SWR = Standing Wave Ratio NOT a Standing Wave Ratios. LOL
I saw two videos now where the threads were bad on the A99. Hopefully solarcon improved their QC since. I also wonder if it would pay to buy a tap for that thread.
Michelle Pucca my threads were stripped from the factory as well
The one we received did have some obstruction on the first few threads, but we were able to thread it. We used dialelectric grease on all the threads as well. Performance of the antenna is very good.. SWR around 1:1.. needle barely moves.
@@MicheIIePucca Ground plane kit should NOT affect the SWR. The kit is Snake Oil & totally a waste of time.money,& effort.
I have five A-99 and Four out of five of them needed either re-tapped or rethreaded , the only one that was right was from 1988. Rock on bro.
I just installed mine. You can read my rant about the threads of you'd like on this post. Unacceptable 9n Solarcons part
I'am Your Newest Subscriber Here In Florida I Love My Antron 99 Antenna I Just Got A Used Ground Plane Kit For My Antron 99 At The Ham Radio Fest 25.00 US
is that grounded? I see its on a 4x4 deck beam but did you ground the mast?
Yes, I ran a 4 gauge copper wire from the mast to an 8 foot copper rod in the ground. I just used a self tapping screw with a large washer to attach the wire to the mast so it wouldn't come loose.
An Antron 99 does NOT need or require a ground.Read the instructions.
And if lightning hits it and burns your home down....
ALL radio antennas should not only be grounded but have a polyphaser inline to break the circuit in the event of a lightning strike and shunt to ground on the antenna side
Like Elfnet said, the grounding isn't necessarily for the proper functioning of the antenna, it's to give lightning a shorter path to ground than down my coax. Even with the grounding rod, my RG-8X would probably burn in two and my radio would be toast, but the hope is that by installing a grounding rod with as short and large a copper wire as possible, MOST of the energy from a lightning strike would go somewhere other than into the house.
If you are in a mobile home then the fire risk from lightning it a lot higher than that of say a brick home too. So grounding should be #1 priority.
BTW I am an RF Engineer, I have built many many 2-way radio and cellular towers. I don't do tower work anymore, ankles say I can't XD. SO I stay on the ground and supervise lol.
so is it worth fitting the radials? did it improve the antenna?
Absolutely
you had your arm in the way when you where putting the dialectic Greece on the mast!
Great 👍
Dielectric Grease is an antennas best friend
How far can you get out with this thing man and at what wattage? Thanks!😀
I put 1.8KW through mine for years.
@@577buttfan I have a old 1993 cobra 29 with a silver eagle 350 on a 99.... my goal is to make a contact in every state..I live in rural pa.without a beam ,dont think I'll hit Jersey or ny..too close.the old 29 kicks ass though..329 pa tick tok.
I purchase from "Copper electronics" alot, great company to work with!!!
Marcus you did a good job. However i don't know, if it matters in this case, but dielectric grease does not conduct electricity and should NOT be applied directly to the mating surfaces of electric connections.
My intent was to keep water out. I figure since it's non conductive, if a little squeezes out and touches ground it won't short, and when you put it together it'll get pushed out of the way so conductors can make contact.
@@gerowen You should be using Penetrox "A" by Burndy, sold by DX Engineering, and it is also sold in many marine supply shops. It prevents water ingress and enhances electrical conductivity! I have been using it for about 10 years and it works great. It is also and anti-seize compound. Just brush a little on the threads and then assemble. Don't over do it as less is more in this case and an 8 oz container will last years! Also, never use it on the center pin of the connector as it can squeeze (weep) out and short the connector!
I thought you were going to paint the Antron?
Did you forget to paint the fiberglass?
I use clear coat when I paint mine just to make sure I don't get anything metallic or weird that might mess with it. Have considered using latex paint, but haven't gotten around to it yet.
also for people that might be reasding this that delectric greas is not going help with the metal sezing unless u use alum ant size compound u can get it from the car part store
No I just use the dielectric grease to hopefully keep water out and prevent corrosion. It's not being used as a lubricant or an anti-seize or anything.
Why didn't you just get the maxx 2000?
Then you've still got a fibre glass antenna but a hell of a lot of rf improvement on the Rx/tx
I’ve been testing imax 2k and Antron for 20 years against themselves, no measurable difference.
What State are you in ? Salyersville ???
Kentucky
How come no one ever isolates the gpk and antenna from the metal mast and put a coax choke on the coax to keep all the transmit and receive signal in the ground plane and the antenna. With out isolating the antenna and the ground plane from the mast you will notice little or no difference!. All your did was add extra metal to the mast which was always your counterpoise the whole time.
I was wondering that about my whip ant and G.P. Any ideas how to do it?
This is partly true, because you will still have an elevated ground radial system, improving ground efficiency. But yes, to get the optimum, isolate.
I have done this with a home built quarter droopy, the base was made of irrigation pipe. I used a substantial ferrite coaxial choke, and the antenna was a great performer.
You will want to ground the shield for static build up and lightning strike. Do this at a strategic distance from the feedpoint (quarter wave down). I recently saw a product for this, it was a clamp for LMR400, but this ,means removing the jacket. I had a long pig tail on my antenna for the choke on mine, with a female connector on the end. Then just clamp to the outer of the feedline plug.
so what's your opinion on the kit
Phillip Osbey It looks like the gpk1 kit did its job. That kit will lower the the angle of radiation coming out of your A-99. It is better for DX work. Hence the stations farther away said your signal is louder to them. I would retune the swr rings after you install the gpk1 kit.
hi, im from mexico, and i used to live in van nuys, CA some years ago... i had the Antro 99 antenna since 1997, and its a so nice antenna, but when i added the gpk1 kitt that make me go down to south america in DX mode, it really makes a difference to DX mode, every 3 years i get down my antro99 to add some resine cover to the anntenna coz sun do its job over the original surface, so it started to have some cracks on it... so before it makes worse i decided to do some maintenance on it every 3 years... and it really has 19 years working as the first day.... so if u all are planning to go on DX mode... the Antro99 with the gpk1 kitts its a low cost great antenna... hoppe my 19-years-using-this-nice-antenna gives u some idea about that... besides... i have 15 years living back in Tapachula Chiapas (south border mexico-guatemala) and it keeps going DXs from USA to venezuela and some times brazil and peru....(it is up to the atmospheric conditions u know.....) so... have a good day and i hope i did my self a bit good explained....
Carlos Rafael Portillo Acevedo Which kind of resin did you use? Thanks for the antenna coating information.
John
hi jstrunck i use the same resina that is used to fix boats... dont know its name... i bought it for litters at the local nautics boat store....
Carlos Rafael Portillo Acevedo Gracious
remember die electric is non conducting and may interrupt shield side connection.
has to be a 45 degree angle
Where’s your ground wire
better to spray some ACF-50 on hardware then wipe down. Corrosion control
If you could ground the antenna to you trailer it turns the whole house in to a ground plane
Feedline of the Antron is too high for the trailer to make a difference of ground plan especially since now that he’s installed the ground plane radial kit there would be no measurable distance with or without the trailer.
Check, check and check it again...lol
I do believe you need to insulate the whole assembly from that steel mast. You may be changing your resonant freq. by creating an additional counterpoise out of the mast. I ran into this last fall when I mounted my 99 to an iron t-post. Also, you shouldn`t need radials, as the 99 is actually a dipole in it`s own right.
The A-99 is only half of an antenna and it relies on the shield of the coax for the other half. This was why so many A-99 users had RFI problems in their shacks and with the neighbors. Adding the GPK-1 to the antenna decoupled the antenna from the coax shield eliminating or at least reducing the RFI problem(s). The same could be accomplished by adding 3 or more 8 foot copper counterpoise (ground plane) wires to the top mounting clamp of the antenna and then bringing them down at a 45 degree angle (give or take a few degrees) and tying them off like guy wires with heavy fishing line or para-cord.
Mounting the A-99 on a metal mast or a fiberglass pole makes no difference in its performance.
The A-99 must be mounted at least 18 feet above and away from any metal objects including other antennas!
The best A-99 setup I ever had was when I lived in Texas and ground mounted an A-99 and ran 16, 8 foot, 14 AWG counterpoise wires along the ground around the antenna, like the spokes on a wheel. Worked into Europe, AU, NZ, South America, Canada, Africa and Japan with an HR-2600 10 meter rig at 25 watts PEP. Also work well on my Cobra 148 GTL on 11 Meters!
I thought I was the only gay in the village with that steering wheel cover.
built in ohio 7134 RAILROAD STREET • P.O. Box 176 • HOLLAND, OH 43528
Basic radio no 3k radio
All that for 440kc...
Can hardly hear one word!
The camera I had back then was absolutely horrible. I've since replaced the camera and made other videos about my antenna setup at my new house. Thanks for stopping by though, 😊
Big waste of money on the ground plane kit in my opinion.
1OFGODSOWN
According to a broke fat ass like you. Not everyone is poor you know.
i havent ever tried the radials.in theory the experts write in the arrl handbook,that all 1/2 wave and any end fed vertical 5/8th .64 (imax and a few others.like the original sigma.ect all need ground raduals as the other half of the antenna.and also as a doucouple device for feedline radiation and mast pipe radiation of the signal in addittion to angle if radiated signal mire toward the horizon.the copper coul inside the a99 only helos with the ohm getting closr to 50 52..u might not see all that in reality.however some rules are set.try using a 5/th wave like a super penetrator without the radials and your not gonna do much more than send a signal directly up in the clouds.
@@Wilhuff_T I have a set still in the box if you lived near me you could have the entire kit as soon as you got it out of your ass little boy. LOL It was FREE to me & I would give it to your worthless punk ass since you can't afford even the antenna & coax. I have over $10,000 worth of gear just on my Ham Radio desk not counting the 9 antennas,& over 100 CB Radios that I own. Browning Golden Eagle MK IVA,TRAM D201A,DAK Mark X,& so many more. I could buy you for what I keep in my wallet as pocket change daily. LOL
Looks more complete with the radial kit, and it can’t hurt, in fact it has to help in some instances.
Put this kit on my A99 and honestly didn't notice anything different. Garbage
cannot hear a word you have been saying, no audio.👎
At the time I made this video I was using a cheap Chinese GoPro knockoff that had horrendous audio, and wasn't doing much editing or post processing of the videos. Sorry for the poor experience.
Please take that pink thing off of your steering wheel that should be the first thing you take care of.....
It's my wife's.
Confederate flag hat, living in a trailer...can you stereotype any better?
He did with the gravel road, 142 and Cb antenna lol.
Your camera skills are appalling.
Thanks for watching!