Quodos to you Lord Callum! With your generous support "The Dude" took your basic idea for a multi-band vertical and put a new spin on it. If only all You Tubers would support each other in this way, rather than hide their own failings (by not reading instructions for example!!) , more people would take a good idea and modify it to meet their own needs. Our pastime is a rare beast, a technical hobby that works just as well by experimenting with known basics, rather than delving deep into PhD territory. It may not always work, but, hey that is half the fun, taking an idea and seeing if it works! Great fun video, with a serious practical application. Keep up the good work and development both!! Jim M7BXT
funny, i just found your channel. I subscribed for mainly one single reason: This dude has a 3d printer. :) Combining ham radio and 3d printing is pure love :).
I'm handicapped but not totally. I have spinal stenosis (arthritis in the lower back) and an enlarged heart, which is at almost normal capacity. I was thinking of an antenna that would do for my conditions, then I remembered that I had added your video to my favorites. Thank you very much. I'm glad you had this video. I may go ahead and give this a try.
Took this idea and gave it a tweak to fit my setup. Mounted to a metal garage roof that measures about 27ft x 35 ft. Already had a mount for 3/8x24 antenna, just mounted 4 ham sticks each 9 inches out from center. 10, 15, 20, and 40m. 20 is the only one that I couldn’t get below 1.2 on FT8. 10 and 15 are below 2 across the bands. 20 is flat enough if I could just get it down lower across the band. I tried it with 80m in the center, but it was a total tuning nightmare. Thanks for the video and great idea.
I did end up using only three sticks, because I had an issue when I added the fourth, which was also 80. I assumed my issue was coupling effect, but if you're on a roof, you probably have them spaced out a little bit better? Glad to hear it's starting to work! I also need a 15 m or 17 m contact to Hawaii on sideband with a ham stick in the back of my truck, so they do a decent job for what they are
@@HAMRADIODUDE I’m just getting started in Ham radio. Was doing FT8 on a long wire and a cheap vertical antenna using an MFJ manual tuner, but saw this. Video and had to try it. Mine isn’t portable and used the metal roof as my ground plane. I can tune any 4 of the 5 that I have, I just can’t get all 5 with any of them in the center unless I use combination of full size and mini sticks. I want full size sticks for 10, 15, and 20 for voice without need to adjust them. I’ll keep messing around with them. Maybe try 5 or 6 spaced out a bit more and see. This part of the hobby has me hooked, the tinkering around with stuff. KC3TJQ
@@matthewkitchen5425 awesome. I think you're in the right mindset, try to space them out a bit more. Experimenting is the best part of it all for me. Time and effort gets results, and it's just cool to say, "I did this and worked the world". Congrats on getting involved and I hope you continue to enjoy it!
FB on a creative build. I would have never imagined using hamsticks in this configuration. Hamsticks are a large part of my antenna arsenal for mobile ops. Keep up the creative approach to ham radio.
I think you may enjoy part 2..... It will have a mobile ops segment! Thanks! Take care, and hopefully the weather is turning for you all . I sure miss it out there
Definitely. And to add to that, the ability to learn new things. I never was great with tools and putting things together, but somehow with radio/radio related activities, I can see the whole picture and I'm constantly coming up with ideas and learning how to use new tools. And even learning the difference between fine and corse thread 🤣. Thanks!
@@HAMRADIODUDE I have been watching your vids and have noticed how you relate to new operators, and making a point in the way the new ham can understand. I rec'ed my ticket in 82, went all out for a year, then my job/jobs/assignments took me/my time away. When I decided to startup again, it was about 4 years ago, but still have more than an hour of Tx. and find with all the new stuff out there, I feel like a novice. My rado was a 101zd, then 902dm old tube stuff. lol, No DMR, email, patch, GPS, no nothing. :)
@@HAMRADIODUDE Thanks Sean, I'll look forward to part 2. I've been subscribed for some time but didn't realise what a body of good work you have here. I'll check them out. Thanks again.
Good video. Fun to watch the build. I have a 23' flag pole antenna. The aluminum pole is separated from the base. At the base we used sheets of aluminum to surround the base of the antenna. From there we attached radials. About a foot from the pole I have an automatic antenna tuner. Loads up on most all the bands. And it works very well. Thinking about making a video on how this works. Put "old glory" at the top of the pole and HOA knows nothing!!!!!
Hi Sean, Enjoyed the video. Nice you are thinking out of the box using Hamsticks. As you mentioned, the radial and antenna plates strength can be improved with more 3D printing and if made from metal. One thing you confused is 3/8"-24 is the fine thread and the 3/8"-16 is the coarse thread. Stay safe. 73 WJ3U
I sure did confuse it. Next time I'll get it right. Currently, I sent this out to a guy for some metal fabrication. I have 4 plates made, as I have a bit of an idea. Stay tuned for more :)
Love this, though you have coarse and fine backward. My first POTA activation was K-1001 using hamsticks on a music strand. I switched between 20 and 40 SSB and did fantastic.
Good old James Pate. I made it there once. I was super concerned about the power lines surrounding the area, but it was fine. I'm going to try to do some more with the antenna this week and try to get some plots and more data. Thanks for the correction.
Give me a few days to send you something out Paul. I have some extra 3D prints left over.. If you don't hear from me by Friday, just shoot me a message.. These ones are yours bud
I like your design so much that the only thing I'd change is to use red wires for the radiating elements, and black for the radial elements. Works just as well either way, though. Well done!
Awesome! Funny, entertaining and very easy to follow. You guys make a great team! A great idea and we'll thought out from all your sleepless nice, we are thankful to your lack of sleep.😄👍
If you do experiment, I'll be curious of your thoughts. One of the things that intrigued me about it was how small it was. As soon as the weather gets better, I'll probably do another video on it
Hey Sean, nice one,.. I use the 1979, allot for portable ops, but also have hamsticks, i have been contemplating something similar but using the 3 magnet, mag mount with several antenna base options, also with bolts to offset the magnets to raise the plate with the mounts and have several options,., your innovative, and great to watch,.. cheers n enjoy yr radio, 73
Good afternoon! I just modified the design slightly for use with. 3 magnet design. Part was sent for fabrication and should be here later next week. I'll get some photos up! It's a good thought for the magmount
First, thank you for actually linking a timestamp. So many times people don't do this and I just refuse to watch my whole video to figure out what they were asking. As far as the spacer goes, I have not. I suppose thinning down one of the base pieces and then filling in the larger holes for smaller holes would do the same job. I've been pretty busy lately, and I'm trying to finish up about four jobs and then in December I Was going to try to catch up with things. I'll put this on the list. Thanks for understanding
Great video. I would have thought that you would need more distance between the elements. The problem you referenced w the SWR adjustment I have seen on my WRC with the dual collar configuration. Initially I thought you would have each band with its own PL259. Then I realized they were all linked. Back in my CB days when I used twin 108 inch whips I had to have a co-phasing hookup. The whips needed to be at least 108 inches apart. I can see that this is very different. I am intrigued.
I have another part I made, which is in actual production now. Once it arrives, I should be able to test both horizontal and vertical for comparison. I hope to have an answer for you within a month (production takes a minute) Thanks!
Wow! What a cool way to use hamsticks! I completely agree with David Englund below in the comments. Then maybe the assembly could possibly use the rooftop as a ground plane too!
Oh you mean a fan dipole, yeah I have several of those. I build antennas for fun and for the experimentation aspect of things. But not everybody who live in an apartment and only have a patio, have enough room for halfwave dipoles, vertically or horizontally.... This is a solution for them. Personally, since this video I have a remote station with a flex radio and different antennas. Cheers
I see what you're asking, I think. You're asking if I would make a multi-band hamstick vertical instead of how I did it? Sure but I need to wait for it to get warm. I'll have to come up with a unique mount
any negatives to this design? , having multiple sticks wired together , does it mess with the ohm loads or anything like that, I assume how it works electrically is the antenna that resonates with the tx frequency gets most of the power and the others just act like resistance.
that is a neat idea.. but I have a question. IF I understand you correctly the antennas are all fed by the same rg239? how does that work? I can't wrap my head around that. anyway.. thx for the inspiration 73 from Germany
I believe (and if I'm incorrect, someone feel free to educate me) electricity will take the path of least resistance. So when transmitting, the antenna system should use the 20m antenna, provided you're near 50ohms (1:1) with that antenna. I hope this helps
Maybe I'm missing the point, but would it be even simpler if the bottom radial fixture was a square aluminum plate? This would eliminate the need for all the interconnecting wires and lugs because that plate would provide a large grounding surface to mount the radial bolts. That would also eliminate the need for two "X" plates to be 3D printed. Overall, this is a nice design. I had not considered the possibility of mounting multiple hamsticks clustered together vertically.
I watched this video after it popped up in my feed last week. Then last weekend I did a couple POTA activations. After returning home I pulled the video back up as I was considering copying / modifying the design. I heard you say your call sign and thought "that sounds familiar", checking my logs I realized we made a park to park contact during my activations. (KK4MQN) So did you happen to be using this antenna this past weekend when we had our qso?
I was testing another thing I built. I should be testing the HSC sometime tomorrow, as the weather will finally cooperate. Ideally, a video would be out soon. And that is awesome regarding the contact! Have a good one!
@@HAMRADIODUDE If you are testing after 22:00 UTC Thursday from a park on 20m I'll probably catch you again. I've been hunting POTA pretty hard this week. Also look forward to seeing what you were testing the weekend assuming you videoed it!
I have had this idea for a while but was thinking of making a plate that attaches to my Mag mount to screw 3 or four ham sticks onto so I wouldn't have to get out to change bands during POTA and stuff like that.
That's what I'm working on right now, surprisingly. Some people last night gave a few great suggestions and it really got me thinking. I think it's a great idea because then really there's even less set up. Hopefully I'll have a photo or a drawing or something in the next couple of days. Let me know when you build yours! I'm curious to see
@@HAMRADIODUDE Right now I am dealing with sourcing the 3/8-24 couplers because everywhere wants a fortune for them. Thinking I might have to go thru McMaster-Carr to get them.
Would be interesting to see what impact a metal base has on the tunability of that arrangement. Also, I'd be inclined to want to space the sticks further apart from each other.
The spacing may be the cause of some of the issues, as others have stated. I definitely agree. When I designed this, I had the spacing correct for two of the four elements, but a triangular shape would have probably been better. Regardless, no harm no foul the spacing is still approximately five and a half inches apart between each of the elements and 8 inches from end to end element. In the future, I may try to do the triangular shape with 7 inch spacing
Very cool idea ! I wonder with the antenna tuning its similar to a 6BTV and starting with the lowest band first (i.e. 10 m) and tune the other elements is the way to go. I would also use the excellent RigExpert MultiSWR to help as well. Will put this on my list of projects 'to do', would be a fun build for PoTA.
Hey there, maybe you're on to something. I was tuning 40,20,15,10, but maybe I should try your way. I will have a part two out and I'll give it a shot then. Enjoy!
hahaha turning to the dark side with darth callum great concept mate, i've done something very similar using "buzzer bar" rod rest, which are m10 thread but i tapped them out with a 3/8's x 24 unf bolt, make sure you use brass or aluminium rests, as the stainless steel version won't tap, same physics as your concept,
I definitely will do more technical testing for the next video. I was fighting the weather. WSPR or FT8, Smith charts, activating parks with 10w? 😎. I was deciding what to compare it against.. maybe the dude spike ,maybe an EFHW
Actually, a few people have said that. I've been informed there's a option I need to select when uploading the files. I'll be home this evening and reupload it then. Sorry for the confusion
Good Job, in a Super Hero type voice. Be interesting to see your follow up on how you get on with it and if the DX will come. Field of Drams is amongst my Fav Films 🙂
Thats a great point. At the moment, I cannot be sure as these were probably purchased at a fest or in a bargain bin. I did later buy Shark sticks. Thanks for brining that to my attention!
HRD great video. Do you have a PDF of the final product for down load? That would be nice then just print it out tape to cutting board and drill and cut. Thanks for the idea. N9TDE
www.thingiverse.com/thing:5341713 if that doesn't work, maybe go to my thingiverse profile www.thingiverse.com/hamradiodude/. Thanks! I'm having fun building these and then improving on them. I have more coming, but also plan to build this better. Have a good one
The fourth antenna created a coupling effect which was throwing off the values. I just continued running 3 antennas and everything has been fine. I attempted to get the spacing the same separation as a DX commander.
This is really cool and has got me thinking. Rather than 3D printing big X's with a lot of mechanical stress concentrations in the arcs, why not just get a sheet of 1/2" thick plastic and cut the bottom plate 12" x 12" and the upper plate 8"x8"? Then all you would need to do is drill out the holes and maybe fillet the edges. Thinking bigger - why stop at 4 hamsticks? Add 1 of every possible hamstick (heck... even throw in a 4' firestick for 11m) and just build a porcupine. Toss a manual tuner inline to compensate for the hamsticks' narrow resonance bands and that would be able to do pretty much anything. If you really want to get crazy, you may be able to figure out how to get the hamsticks to act as a J pole for VHF, by playing with their proximities to each other. I also heard that guy from Brazil on 10m this past weekend while messing around with one of my experimental dipole contraptions made out of plumbing supplies.
The positive/negative polarization would be easier to see if you used red wire for the vertical elements and black wire for the ground radials. A small rubber o-ring would be better inside the ring connector that goes on the SO-239 terminal to make sure that it can never contact the center element.
Does anyone know of a source for the "3/8-24 to uhf so-239 female right angle antenna mount" please. Amazon are out of stock and I can't see them listed as an individual item on the MFJ website. Living in a country that has been metric for 50+ years has its disadvantages when it comes to some of these projects. Thanks
where can I get those plates??? I don't have access to a shop or tools needed to make. No 3-D printer either, no budget at all for that! just barely affording the basics!
www.thingiverse.com/thing:5341713. Call your local library and ask if they have printers and their cost to print PETG or ABS. usually it's the cost of material, which is cheaper than I'd charge
@@HAMRADIODUDE you'd think that in the heart of Silicon Valley you could find a 3-D at a library. So far my search in my county, buttkis 😐 There are only 3 UPS Stores with printers and the commercial places are pricey. I guess that's because it's expected that if you are a tinkerer in this area you would have your own printer. We do have two Dollar stores, however. 😁
Hi Sean. Just thinking outside the box on this one. If this was mounted in metal and fixed to a roof rack it would / could possibly give you one hell of a mobile antenna. Yes i know strengthening structures would be needed but i think its possible with maybe a couple more spacers up the antennas. This could be one ill look into building in the future for that very purpose. If someone is thinking the same and gets around to building it before i get a chance it would be interesting to know how they get on. All the best Dude. 73s
Thanks Sean, great idea! I would definitely like to build this. Here's an idea, how about a way to adapt it to fit on a tri-mag mount? You know, like one of those three-magnet mounts that MFJ and others sell? I use one now for either my Wolf River mini and 17 foot whip, or a straight-up 20 meter hamstick. If there was a way to mount this Hamstick Commander to the three-magnet mount...well, Wow! That would be great! Hint Hint. Nudge Nudge. Know what I mean?? :D
Hi David. I had a bit of a redesign this morning and made it so that the current plates I built, should be useable on those tram style magmounts. What I did: took out the center hole for the "billiards ball" and put in a 3/8 inch hole. I have that part out for metal fabrication now and in a couple of weeks, we should be able to test it and have some fun (I'll have a video with further information!)
@@HAMRADIODUDE Very cool. I already have a full size 20m stick. And I've got a 40m on the way. Would certainly be nice not to have to go out and switch sticks to change bands! 😁😁
Thanks. I had a really good time building this. I think I'm going to make one or two more videos, checking swr, Smith charts, making more contacts and answering questions. Have a good one!
Great project and video! Certainly a good use for those extra ham sticks that we’ve acquired and a reasonable solution.for those in apartments or with HOA restrictions. I could also see carrying this setup around in my truck for rapid multi-band POTA.
A seccnd way to use this would be just add another HamStick to the bottom instead of the radials and then mount it to a pole of some kind or a vent pipe on top of your roof.
I thought it would be a good call, but it creates so much confusion haha. People around here just say triple fox. That's harder with some DX stations, but usually we with through it
Biggest problem I see (and hear) is you keep referring to 3/8 24 as coarse thread. They are actually FINE thread. 3/8 16 is coarse thread. Might eliminate lots of confusion.
Yes, thank you. This has been commented on plenty of times and it's actually updated in the description. So that's about the most I could do to let people know that I use the word coarse instead of fine
@@BigRed1500LC Hope you enjoy. Just another note, using four antennas right there in a close manner is probably not the best solution. If anything maybe go with three antennas. In fact I could probably update the plate so it's only 3 antenna slots and space like a peace sign, if needed
@@DK5ONV thanks, Uncle. I enjoyed making it and I believe it really helped l people think about what they may be able to accomplish. By the way, why does everyone call you Uncle?
@@HAMRADIODUDE Well we HAM's are one family and because I can't be no ones Aunty I jumped in the Uncle Role. Yes I am sure you helped out a ton of people with this Video. There's a lot of helpful videos up on your channel. Just keep all the good Stuff coming I am looking forward for your next video to watch. Happy wednesday into IL-State & 73 de YFUG 🍻💯🙋♂
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Haha.. I had SUCH a lot of fun recording these.. Tom is with me today and we're giggling watching this. Good work mate!
What a blast! During the premiere, I think most people loved it!
Thanks guys for making me laugh today. Good stuff! K7KS😅
Quodos to you Lord Callum! With your generous support "The Dude" took your basic idea for a multi-band vertical and put a new spin on it. If only all You Tubers would support each other in this way, rather than hide their own failings (by not reading instructions for example!!) , more people would take a good idea and modify it to meet their own needs. Our pastime is a rare beast, a technical hobby that works just as well by experimenting with known basics, rather than delving deep into PhD territory. It may not always work, but, hey that is half the fun, taking an idea and seeing if it works! Great fun video, with a serious practical application. Keep up the good work and development both!! Jim M7BXT
Haha I laughed when I heard Callum using James Earl Jones voice! Great video all around!
So you built a spider.
funny, i just found your channel. I subscribed for mainly one single reason: This dude has a 3d printer. :) Combining ham radio and 3d printing is pure love :).
I like the Callum cameo collaboration 😃😄😁
Cal is a great person. I would call him dude, but I think that would be disrespectful.
LOL , love the videos man, I think I literally used to live just down the street from you... again great videos, NS9T
I'm handicapped but not totally. I have spinal stenosis (arthritis in the lower back) and an enlarged heart, which is at almost normal capacity. I was thinking of an antenna that would do for my conditions, then I remembered that I had added your video to my favorites. Thank you very much. I'm glad you had this video. I may go ahead and give this a try.
This looks like a much better portable antenna for my RV than others I've seen.
Dude, that's pretty brilliant. I'm stealing this idea.
Thank you sir
love the anticipation of the "actually" hams lol
Took this idea and gave it a tweak to fit my setup. Mounted to a metal garage roof that measures about 27ft x 35 ft. Already had a mount for 3/8x24 antenna, just mounted 4 ham sticks each 9 inches out from center. 10, 15, 20, and 40m. 20 is the only one that I couldn’t get below 1.2 on FT8. 10 and 15 are below 2 across the bands. 20 is flat enough if I could just get it down lower across the band. I tried it with 80m in the center, but it was a total tuning nightmare. Thanks for the video and great idea.
I did end up using only three sticks, because I had an issue when I added the fourth, which was also 80. I assumed my issue was coupling effect, but if you're on a roof, you probably have them spaced out a little bit better? Glad to hear it's starting to work! I also need a 15 m or 17 m contact to Hawaii on sideband with a ham stick in the back of my truck, so they do a decent job for what they are
@@HAMRADIODUDE I’m just getting started in Ham radio. Was doing FT8 on a long wire and a cheap vertical antenna using an MFJ manual tuner, but saw this. Video and had to try it. Mine isn’t portable and used the metal roof as my ground plane. I can tune any 4 of the 5 that I have, I just can’t get all 5 with any of them in the center unless I use combination of full size and mini sticks. I want full size sticks for 10, 15, and 20 for voice without need to adjust them. I’ll keep messing around with them. Maybe try 5 or 6 spaced out a bit more and see. This part of the hobby has me hooked, the tinkering around with stuff. KC3TJQ
@@matthewkitchen5425 awesome. I think you're in the right mindset, try to space them out a bit more. Experimenting is the best part of it all for me. Time and effort gets results, and it's just cool to say, "I did this and worked the world". Congrats on getting involved and I hope you continue to enjoy it!
Excellent idea and excellent video, Sean. Enjoyed the appearances from Callum too.
FB on a creative build. I would have never imagined using hamsticks in this configuration. Hamsticks are a large part of my antenna arsenal for mobile ops. Keep up the creative approach to ham radio.
I think you may enjoy part 2..... It will have a mobile ops segment! Thanks! Take care, and hopefully the weather is turning for you all . I sure miss it out there
I absolutely appreciate your creativity and humor. Keep up the outstanding work, Dude! Now I want one!
Great idea. I’m going to build one to use on my work truck just for grins. And not having to stop and change antennas for band changes.
This is what ham is about, having fun while trying new things/ways.
Definitely. And to add to that, the ability to learn new things. I never was great with tools and putting things together, but somehow with radio/radio related activities, I can see the whole picture and I'm constantly coming up with ideas and learning how to use new tools. And even learning the difference between fine and corse thread 🤣. Thanks!
@@HAMRADIODUDE I have been watching your vids and have noticed how you relate to new operators, and making a point in the way the new ham can understand. I rec'ed my ticket in 82, went all out for a year, then my job/jobs/assignments took me/my time away. When I decided to startup again, it was about 4 years ago, but still have more than an hour of Tx. and find with all the new stuff out there, I feel like a novice. My rado was a 101zd, then 902dm old tube stuff. lol, No DMR, email, patch, GPS, no nothing. :)
I really enjoyed this! Great idea, well explained and with a sense of humour. Thanks for making the video and it's given me some ideas of my own.
Glad you enjoyed it! I came up with a few things for part two also. I'm glad it gave you some ideas! Take care!
@@HAMRADIODUDE Thanks Sean, I'll look forward to part 2. I've been subscribed for some time but didn't realise what a body of good work you have here. I'll check them out. Thanks again.
Good video. Fun to watch the build. I have a 23' flag pole antenna. The aluminum pole is separated from the base. At the base we used sheets of aluminum to surround the base of the antenna. From there we attached radials. About a foot from the pole I have an automatic antenna tuner. Loads up on most all the bands. And it works very well. Thinking about making a video on how this works. Put "old glory" at the top of the pole and HOA knows nothing!!!!!
I'd love to see this.
Hi Sean,
Enjoyed the video. Nice you are thinking out of the box using Hamsticks. As you mentioned, the radial and antenna plates strength can be improved with more 3D printing and if made from metal. One thing you confused is 3/8"-24 is the fine thread and the 3/8"-16 is the coarse thread. Stay safe. 73 WJ3U
I sure did confuse it. Next time I'll get it right. Currently, I sent this out to a guy for some metal fabrication. I have 4 plates made, as I have a bit of an idea. Stay tuned for more :)
Love this, though you have coarse and fine backward. My first POTA activation was K-1001 using hamsticks on a music strand. I switched between 20 and 40 SSB and did fantastic.
Good old James Pate. I made it there once. I was super concerned about the power lines surrounding the area, but it was fine. I'm going to try to do some more with the antenna this week and try to get some plots and more data. Thanks for the correction.
I don't have a 3D printer but the cutting board sounds like a plan. Thank you KQ4CD Paul
Give me a few days to send you something out Paul. I have some extra 3D prints left over.. If you don't hear from me by Friday, just shoot me a message.. These ones are yours bud
@@HAMRADIODUDE sounds like a plan Sean
I like your design so much that the only thing I'd change is to use red wires for the radiating elements, and black for the radial elements. Works just as well either way, though. Well done!
Probably a good idea. I'll correct that in part two! Thanks!
@@HAMRADIODUDE No problem. Thanks for the great idea for my next antenna! -K5SFC
Awesome! Funny, entertaining and very easy to follow. You guys make a great team! A great idea and we'll thought out from all your sleepless nice, we are thankful to your lack of sleep.😄👍
Cool build, thanks for this.
Thank you...That is an interesting concept...definitely something to experiment with. I have some extra ham sticks to experiment with.
If you do experiment, I'll be curious of your thoughts. One of the things that intrigued me about it was how small it was. As soon as the weather gets better, I'll probably do another video on it
@@HAMRADIODUDE will do
Another great idea from Ham Radio Dude. Thanks.
Thank you Don, truthfully. Without you, I don't think my creative mindset wouldn't have been reignited
If there is actually a use for all the hamsticks I have stored in the overhead in my wood working shop I will be greatfull for you showing it to me.
Let me know what you think!
Send them to me for proper disposal lol.
Hey Sean, nice one,.. I use the 1979, allot for portable ops, but also have hamsticks, i have been contemplating something similar but using the 3 magnet, mag mount with several antenna base options, also with bolts to offset the magnets to raise the plate with the mounts and have several options,., your innovative, and great to watch,.. cheers n enjoy yr radio, 73
Good afternoon! I just modified the design slightly for use with. 3 magnet design. Part was sent for fabrication and should be here later next week. I'll get some photos up! It's a good thought for the magmount
loved the intro!
Have you ever posted an stl for the "Simple Spacer" file as described at 3:28? Currently warming up the old AnetA8 to give this a go!
First, thank you for actually linking a timestamp. So many times people don't do this and I just refuse to watch my whole video to figure out what they were asking. As far as the spacer goes, I have not. I suppose thinning down one of the base pieces and then filling in the larger holes for smaller holes would do the same job. I've been pretty busy lately, and I'm trying to finish up about four jobs and then in December I Was going to try to catch up with things. I'll put this on the list. Thanks for understanding
Thanks guys for making me laugh today. SURE NEEDED THAT! 73
Can you pole/staff mount it? What about a ground plane? Courius!
Great video. I would have thought that you would need more distance between the elements. The problem you referenced w the SWR adjustment I have seen on my WRC with the dual collar configuration. Initially I thought you would have each band with its own PL259. Then I realized they were all linked. Back in my CB days when I used twin 108 inch whips I had to have a co-phasing hookup. The whips needed to be at least 108 inches apart. I can see that this is very different. I am intrigued.
man love your antenna ideas. you make me want to get a 3d printer and play with this stuff some. Great video keep it up.
Thanks, Spotter. I gave a 3d printer as a potential giveaway item, coming soon. 😎
Outstanding idea Dude!
Thanks! I'm having fun with the builds!
Great idea. I haven't seen it yet but what would be interesting how does a hamstick vertical with radials compare to the hamstick dipole.
I have another part I made, which is in actual production now. Once it arrives, I should be able to test both horizontal and vertical for comparison. I hope to have an answer for you within a month (production takes a minute)
Thanks!
What is the distance between the ham sticks in a dc commander configuration? What is the suggested number of ham sticks in a dc commander?
Great video and idea too
Wow! What a cool way to use hamsticks! I completely agree with David Englund below in the comments. Then maybe the assembly could possibly use the rooftop as a ground plane too!
You and David both gave me ideas. I need to order one of these magnetic mounts
Would you consider using 4 vertical diapoles? No ground plane. Center mast up in the air.
A lot less complicated. KA8FRL
Oh you mean a fan dipole, yeah I have several of those. I build antennas for fun and for the experimentation aspect of things. But not everybody who live in an apartment and only have a patio, have enough room for halfwave dipoles, vertically or horizontally.... This is a solution for them. Personally, since this video I have a remote station with a flex radio and different antennas. Cheers
Um no. You’re building a fan dipole. I was talking about vertical polarization without radials
I see what you're asking, I think. You're asking if I would make a multi-band hamstick vertical instead of how I did it? Sure but I need to wait for it to get warm. I'll have to come up with a unique mount
I ordered a few shark ham sticks and I’m going to try to make what my idea is. Don’t know If it will work trying is most of the fun. 4:03
any negatives to this design? , having multiple sticks wired together , does it mess with the ohm loads or anything like that, I assume how it works electrically is the antenna that resonates with the tx frequency gets most of the power and the others just act like resistance.
that is a neat idea.. but I have a question. IF I understand you correctly the antennas are all fed by the same rg239? how does that work? I can't wrap my head around that. anyway.. thx for the inspiration 73 from Germany
I believe (and if I'm incorrect, someone feel free to educate me) electricity will take the path of least resistance. So when transmitting, the antenna system should use the 20m antenna, provided you're near 50ohms (1:1) with that antenna. I hope this helps
@@HAMRADIODUDE the simple things, we are forgetting always about the simple things. your explanation is totally right. I should have remember that :)
Maybe I'm missing the point, but would it be even simpler if the bottom radial fixture was a square aluminum plate? This would eliminate the need for all the interconnecting wires and lugs because that plate would provide a large grounding surface to mount the radial bolts. That would also eliminate the need for two "X" plates to be 3D printed. Overall, this is a nice design. I had not considered the possibility of mounting multiple hamsticks clustered together vertically.
Yeah definitely. Two plates, one for radials, one for antennas. Thanks!
Where do I go to order the mount for the antennas. Also is there a wire diagram when putting them all together?
Just this video.
I watched this video after it popped up in my feed last week. Then last weekend I did a couple POTA activations. After returning home I pulled the video back up as I was considering copying / modifying the design. I heard you say your call sign and thought "that sounds familiar", checking my logs I realized we made a park to park contact during my activations. (KK4MQN)
So did you happen to be using this antenna this past weekend when we had our qso?
I was testing another thing I built. I should be testing the HSC sometime tomorrow, as the weather will finally cooperate. Ideally, a video would be out soon. And that is awesome regarding the contact! Have a good one!
@@HAMRADIODUDE If you are testing after 22:00 UTC Thursday from a park on 20m I'll probably catch you again. I've been hunting POTA pretty hard this week. Also look forward to seeing what you were testing the weekend assuming you videoed it!
@@rwfunacct tomorrow looks better anyway (raining again) I'll shoot to do it tomorrow. Thanks!
I have had this idea for a while but was thinking of making a plate that attaches to my Mag mount to screw 3 or four ham sticks onto so I wouldn't have to get out to change bands during POTA and stuff like that.
That's what I'm working on right now, surprisingly. Some people last night gave a few great suggestions and it really got me thinking. I think it's a great idea because then really there's even less set up. Hopefully I'll have a photo or a drawing or something in the next couple of days. Let me know when you build yours! I'm curious to see
@@HAMRADIODUDE Right now I am dealing with sourcing the 3/8-24 couplers because everywhere wants a fortune for them. Thinking I might have to go thru McMaster-Carr to get them.
Would be interesting to see what impact a metal base has on the tunability of that arrangement. Also, I'd be inclined to want to space the sticks further apart from each other.
The spacing may be the cause of some of the issues, as others have stated. I definitely agree. When I designed this, I had the spacing correct for two of the four elements, but a triangular shape would have probably been better. Regardless, no harm no foul the spacing is still approximately five and a half inches apart between each of the elements and 8 inches from end to end element. In the future, I may try to do the triangular shape with 7 inch spacing
Thanks for the suggestions, by the way! Have a good one
Very cool idea ! I wonder with the antenna tuning its similar to a 6BTV and starting with the lowest band first (i.e. 10 m) and tune the other elements is the way to go. I would also use the excellent RigExpert MultiSWR to help as well. Will put this on my list of projects 'to do', would be a fun build for PoTA.
Hey there, maybe you're on to something. I was tuning 40,20,15,10, but maybe I should try your way. I will have a part two out and I'll give it a shot then. Enjoy!
hahaha turning to the dark side with darth callum
great concept mate, i've done something very similar using "buzzer bar" rod rest, which are m10 thread but i tapped them out with a 3/8's x 24 unf bolt, make sure you use brass or aluminium rests, as the stainless steel version won't tap, same physics as your concept,
How close can you place the ham sticks to each other.
The Ham Commando should be the name of the next project.
Curious - Would you set this up on WSPR and test how far you get heard? I would love to see how efficient a hamstick is.
I definitely will do more technical testing for the next video. I was fighting the weather. WSPR or FT8, Smith charts, activating parks with 10w? 😎. I was deciding what to compare it against.. maybe the dude spike ,maybe an EFHW
A quick press of a tuner will give you a good consistent swr
how small is your printer? might be time to upgrade to a Sidewinder X2 size printer.....
Love the idea! Is the Thingiverse link broken or is Thingiverse broken again?
Actually, a few people have said that. I've been informed there's a option I need to select when uploading the files. I'll be home this evening and reupload it then. Sorry for the confusion
I just logged into thingiverse and resaved it, and it appears to be working now.
@@HAMRADIODUDE Works now! Thanks again for sharing the files
Good Job, in a Super Hero type voice. Be interesting to see your follow up on how you get on with it and if the DX will come. Field of Drams is amongst my Fav Films 🙂
Thank you! Follow-up will happen, but may take a few weeks! I'm definitely do a POTA with it too.
Whose sticks are you using. Some are better than others.
Thats a great point. At the moment, I cannot be sure as these were probably purchased at a fest or in a bargain bin. I did later buy Shark sticks. Thanks for brining that to my attention!
HRD great video. Do you have a PDF of the final product for down load? That would be nice then just print it out tape to cutting board and drill and cut. Thanks for the idea. N9TDE
Hey great suggestion. Tomorrow I'll be uploading the thingiverse file and when I do, let me see if I can come up with a way to make a pdf template.
It is a very interesting call sighn, It does not pull up on the ULS? Why is that? Seriously the FCC data base does not recognize this call sign.
What Callsign?
@@HAMRADIODUDE lol sorry man , i hadf a senior moment , cool callsign
Awesome idea. I had thought about trying that with my President Lincoln, But, then I thought, "That's crazy." Lol.
The thingiverse link isn't working. Thanks for the great content and DIY motivation!
www.thingiverse.com/thing:5341713 if that doesn't work, maybe go to my thingiverse profile www.thingiverse.com/hamradiodude/. Thanks! I'm having fun building these and then improving on them. I have more coming, but also plan to build this better. Have a good one
Are the antennas too close?
The fourth antenna created a coupling effect which was throwing off the values. I just continued running 3 antennas and everything has been fine. I attempted to get the spacing the same separation as a DX commander.
This is really cool and has got me thinking. Rather than 3D printing big X's with a lot of mechanical stress concentrations in the arcs, why not just get a sheet of 1/2" thick plastic and cut the bottom plate 12" x 12" and the upper plate 8"x8"? Then all you would need to do is drill out the holes and maybe fillet the edges.
Thinking bigger - why stop at 4 hamsticks? Add 1 of every possible hamstick (heck... even throw in a 4' firestick for 11m) and just build a porcupine. Toss a manual tuner inline to compensate for the hamsticks' narrow resonance bands and that would be able to do pretty much anything. If you really want to get crazy, you may be able to figure out how to get the hamsticks to act as a J pole for VHF, by playing with their proximities to each other.
I also heard that guy from Brazil on 10m this past weekend while messing around with one of my experimental dipole contraptions made out of plumbing supplies.
Neat concept!
Thank you!
The positive/negative polarization would be easier to see if you used red wire for the vertical elements and black wire for the ground radials. A small rubber o-ring would be better inside the ring connector that goes on the SO-239 terminal to make sure that it can never contact the center element.
Hey what happened to the comment where you made fun of me for the way I speak? I really wanted to enjoy that one with everyone.
I was pointing out how complicated the English language can be. You did a great job on your video.
Go get a piece of aluminum screen door wire. Use standard nails to stake it to the ground. Works on a balcony too!
Great tip. I recently watched Michael's video, kb9vbr. Looks like a great solution!
Ha, love the intro!
Does anyone know of a source for the "3/8-24 to uhf so-239 female right angle antenna mount" please. Amazon are out of stock and I can't see them listed as an individual item on the MFJ website.
Living in a country that has been metric for 50+ years has its disadvantages when it comes to some of these projects. Thanks
W5swl.com
If they won't ship, let me know and I can help you out
what if you got some Copper sheet to make contacts with?
this would be flat and neat just cut it to the shape of your plastic.
Good luck.😊
Thanks! Yeah copper sheets and aluminum at ace hardware, that would definitely do the trick
Thanks for the suggestions!
Thanks for sharing! Excellent build! 73 KJ6IHZ ✌
where can I get those plates??? I don't have access to a shop or tools needed to make. No 3-D printer either, no budget at all for that! just barely affording the basics!
www.thingiverse.com/thing:5341713. Call your local library and ask if they have printers and their cost to print PETG or ABS. usually it's the cost of material, which is cheaper than I'd charge
@@HAMRADIODUDE you'd think that in the heart of Silicon Valley you could find a 3-D at a library. So far my search in my county, buttkis 😐
There are only 3 UPS Stores with printers and the commercial places are pricey. I guess that's because it's expected that if you are a tinkerer in this area you would have your own printer. We do have two Dollar stores, however. 😁
www.sjlib.org/how-do-i/3d-printing/#:~:text=The%20Library%20reserves%20the%20right,when%20the%20Library%20is%20closed.
@@HAMRADIODUDE where is this? Oh, Washington State. Cool..
@@AlvinMcManus Well that's what I get for trying to help, I thought I was looking in California. Good luck
Hi Sean. Just thinking outside the box on this one. If this was mounted in metal and fixed to a roof rack it would / could possibly give you one hell of a mobile antenna. Yes i know strengthening structures would be needed but i think its possible with maybe a couple more spacers up the antennas. This could be one ill look into building in the future for that very purpose. If someone is thinking the same and gets around to building it before i get a chance it would be interesting to know how they get on.
All the best Dude. 73s
Thanks Sean, great idea! I would definitely like to build this. Here's an idea, how about a way to adapt it to fit on a tri-mag mount? You know, like one of those three-magnet mounts that MFJ and others sell? I use one now for either my Wolf River mini and 17 foot whip, or a straight-up 20 meter hamstick. If there was a way to mount this Hamstick Commander to the three-magnet mount...well, Wow! That would be great! Hint Hint. Nudge Nudge. Know what I mean?? :D
I think I'd have to take a look at one of those mounts.. I know Wq9f has one. Next time I see it, I'll take a look
Hi David. I had a bit of a redesign this morning and made it so that the current plates I built, should be useable on those tram style magmounts. What I did: took out the center hole for the "billiards ball" and put in a 3/8 inch hole. I have that part out for metal fabrication now and in a couple of weeks, we should be able to test it and have some fun (I'll have a video with further information!)
@@HAMRADIODUDE Very cool. I already have a full size 20m stick. And I've got a 40m on the way. Would certainly be nice not to have to go out and switch sticks to change bands! 😁😁
@@HAMRADIODUDE Hey, that sounds great! Thanks for going the extra mile! 😄👍
3/8 24 fine thread. 3/8 16 coarse thread. Just thought id throw that out there!
Thanks. It's been mentioned a lot in the comments. But hearing it many times is going to make it stick. Have a good one.
Great idea!
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed
great job
Thanks bro... Good to hear from you.. I have a lot of ideas stiring up... More to come. By the way... I'll be around in Julyb
You should make one for a automobile!
Thread size as you state, but you have them reversed. 24 threads per inch is a fine thread, 16 threads per inch is course thread.
Good Video
Thanks!
REALLY IN AN APRTMENT DO YOU HAVE 20FT CEILINGS ?
YOU DON'T NEED 20FT FOR A HAMSTICK.
Good job
73’s Greg KC3PMX
Hey! Thanx for sharing. Looks like a fun build :-)
N6WIP
Thanks. I had a really good time building this. I think I'm going to make one or two more videos, checking swr, Smith charts, making more contacts and answering questions. Have a good one!
So if you want to make these out of metal, there is a service called "send cut send" that let's you do that
Oh yeah! SCS is amazing.
They'll do acrylic too in case you want plastic
Somehow I can see this as a four vertical dipole antenna system on a pole.
I agree that EFHW is most likely better. HOWEVER, there's so many parks and areas that won't wires in trees. A mast may not be feasible.
Yeah absolutely. And I know a few handicapped hams who would possibly have trouble throwing a wire in a tree. This could work for them
thank you
Yeah! Thanks for watching. It was / is a fun project
Team replay here
Great project and video! Certainly a good use for those extra ham sticks that we’ve acquired and a reasonable solution.for those in apartments or with HOA restrictions. I could also see carrying this setup around in my truck for rapid multi-band POTA.
That video and the mention of brake rotors gave me all sorts of bad ideas. I wonder where I put my drill press.
I look forward to seeing the results if you do!
Creative
3/8-24 Fine...3/8-16 course
As mentioned already in the comments and description. But thank you for the correction
A seccnd way to use this would be just add another HamStick to the bottom instead of the radials and then mount it to a pole of some kind or a vent pipe on top of your roof.
Wow...
Hopefully that was a good "Wow"? Thanks!
foxtrot foxtrot foxtrot lol everyone was confused
I thought it would be a good call, but it creates so much confusion haha. People around here just say triple fox. That's harder with some DX stations, but usually we with through it
@@HAMRADIODUDE i bet. still easy to remember.
Biggest problem I see (and hear) is you keep referring to 3/8 24 as coarse thread. They are actually FINE thread. 3/8 16 is coarse thread. Might eliminate lots of confusion.
Yes, thank you. This has been commented on plenty of times and it's actually updated in the description. So that's about the most I could do to let people know that I use the word coarse instead of fine
@@HAMRADIODUDE none the less, I have a 3D printer and a bunch of ham sticks. Let the build begin. Field Day and POTA here I come!
@@BigRed1500LC Hope you enjoy. Just another note, using four antennas right there in a close manner is probably not the best solution. If anything maybe go with three antennas. In fact I could probably update the plate so it's only 3 antenna slots and space like a peace sign, if needed
Vindicated again!
Hah! Thank goodness!
Hamsticks? Why? This idea is great, but why use such an inefficient antenna with it?
😂😂😂😂💯👍👍👍🍻🙋♂
Glad you enjoyed it!
@@HAMRADIODUDE That was really a great documentary video and funny thru'N' thru
@@DK5ONV thanks, Uncle. I enjoyed making it and I believe it really helped l people think about what they may be able to accomplish. By the way, why does everyone call you Uncle?
@@HAMRADIODUDE Well we HAM's are one family and because I can't be no ones Aunty I jumped in the Uncle Role.
Yes I am sure you helped out a ton of people with this Video. There's a lot of helpful videos up on your channel. Just keep all the good Stuff coming I am looking forward for your next video to watch.
Happy wednesday into IL-State & 73 de YFUG 🍻💯🙋♂
Awesome video. Love that Callum is included.
I would love to make one of these.
de W5KAL