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I have tried a couple of antennas on the truck (2002 F250 SuperCab), all with varying results. The major investment for a while
was a Tarheel 400 with their mount and a custom stand. I tried the whip on this as well as the DX Engineering Hot Rodz cap hat. All with some success. Then I switched to a High Sierra HS1800. I hope my experiences
with the equipment helps you make a decision and some of my testing results on the Tarheel and High Sierra help you design your system. Also check out notes on Controllers
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ScrewDriver Antennas
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Tarheel Antenna: This is the antenna I enjoyed
for a long time.
It promises 160M to 10M with a whip. There is a one year guarantee on the unit, which I can attest the company lives up and goes beyond. (But now I am past the one year) Dont get me wrong: I really enjoyed this unit and was delighted with the antenna, but I ran into problems (see my testing results) that finally led me to install another one and retire this one.
This picture is the antenna installed on my vehicle. My son made a mount I bolted to the truck bed. I originally
had it mounted on the tool kit, but found that the kit bent when in high winds at highway speeds. (When I had a whip installed.)
Tarheel support is terrific.. and I had to use it. The original Quick Disconnect mount broke. Upon inspection it
was found to be inferior metal, which Tarheel recognized and told me that had a bad shipment.
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The plastic ring that insultated the mount from the antenna kept degrading in the sun, so I cut up some drainage pipe as
a replacement (this worked but doesnt look pretty) The bottom plastic end cap ended up getting destroyed when going off the end of the rail. I use the antenna for quite a while, but I think I just got a lemon. Then
combined with operator error, some software bugs in the AMAC controller, it broke and this time for the final time.. I think I had a “lemon” and do not suggest anyone shy away from Tarheel based upon my experience
alone.
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High Sierra: This antenna promises
6.9Mhtz (40M) to 60Mhtz (6M) with no whip and high quality construction. (They all do that!) The mounting arrangement looks solid and by the web site this looks like a popular antenna. The eham reviews
are good, so a fine candidate. The only downside is the listed frequency coverage: it would be nice to have some more coil length to get down to 3.5 Mhtz. But 80M is not that important to me and I would
rather have 6m when mobile than 80M. Impressions and Testing results on the HS1800PRO
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The KJ7U looks like a great antenna. It promises wider frequency coverage than the HS1800: 160M to 6M which is terrific. In addition, the web site pitches a different construction which is impressive. They claim only needing a bottom hole to mount it, again impressive. Larry replied to my email quickly. So I decided to order one and test it. The winner between the HS and the KJ7U will be on the truck.. the other will be used as a vertical at my vacation home. Impressions and testing results on the Predator!
Here is an enthusiastic review of the antenna.
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Mobile Antenna (Ordering Phase) Comparison
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Model
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Price
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replied to email quickly?
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Claimed Freq Range
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Web ordering
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Tarheel
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400
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$369 + Shipping +mount/etc
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yes
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160-10 with whip
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no (fax in form)
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KJ7U
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Predator
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$290 + $32 shipping
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yes
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160-6 with whip
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yes (uses Yahoo)
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High Sierra
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HS1800
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$420 + shipping
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yes
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3.5-30 with whip (inc) 6.9-60 no whip
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no (no times on site)
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Controllers
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You need a controller of some sort to move the screwdriver.. my own experience
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Copyright 2004 by Philip P. Thompson, All rights reserved.
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