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Maco Y quad,,,,, going back up a 3rd time. Talk some sense into me

TruckerKevin

TruckerKevin

KD9NTD
Nov 9, 2017
234
142
53
58
Buckner, Illinois
www.qrz.com
Bought this antenna 2 years ago. Within the first week, the cheesy copper reflector came off. Okay, I pulled it down and fixed it. (Takes 4 men to lower and raise my tower).

Then a week later the rotator stripped and the cheesy cheap copper wire broke again. I left it dangle for a year and a half and lived in spite like it was a dirty ex wife and just talked on my Antron.

I finally pulled it down the other day. I straightened it all out, tightened all the joints, replaced the rusty screws, remeasured and realigned it, replaced the cheap braided copper with some solid stiff 8 gauge, and redid the copper connectors with my own design so I don’t have a repeat.

Now I balk at the thought of buying another rotator. I’m thinking about just pointing it north, so I can pick up north and south traffic on I-57 which I live close to, and hoisting it up and not looking back.

Is this just a bad idea? I can’t shell out the coin for another rotator right now. Is this the sort of antenna that absolutely must be turned a lot? I figured since it has a vertical then I should still be able to get out locally and maybe pick some far away stuff up. It will be 20 feet higher than my Antron.
 

Sounds like you had the wrong rotator to start off with. Some people get lucky using a cheap rotator but that is all it is. Luck. Those little U-100 or U-110 type offset TV type rotators should never be used with an 11m yagi in my opinion. Most of them have a plastic main drive gear and do not last long in heavy winds. Just giving you a heads up for the next rotator.
 
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I saw that one yesterday.

Since posting this I’ve looked up the specifications on my antenna and even as big as it is it only has 3.9 Square feet of wind load. I’m thinking I might be able to get away with a light duty set up such as this

https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/ysu-g-450a/reviews/

Add another $160 for the conductor cable.

So what little over $400 might get me going. Which is still a good chunk of change right now but it least it’s brand new. I’m always a little nervous buying used stuff on eBay
 
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TruckerKevin said:
Okay do you have any suggestions on which rotator may work ok? It will probably set me back a couple months but I guess I gotta do what I gotta do
Click to expand...

With that size of antenna pretty much anything from Hygain will work. As long as it is bell shaped it will be fine. IIRC the smallest Hygain rotator will handle twice what your antenna is and that is a good safety margin. The smallest Yaesu will also be more than adequate.
 
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The Yaesu 450 rotor/controller will work fine as far as wind load and "K" factor.

However, unless you are experienced with the silly Yaesu cable pin connectors, they can be a problem.
Also, if it fails and you can't fix it yourself, then just throw it away,... Yaesu repair service is non-existent.

The recommendation to use an Alpha Spid is not even in the ball park.:(

You will be best served to buy a new Ham IV type rotor, they are dependable and easily repairable. Many are avail on the used market.

If you are leary of buying a used rotor, there are used ones available that have a reputable guarantee.

http://www.rotor-doc.com/

their web site sucks. you have to jump between two different companies to get the prices.

https://www.normsrotorservice.com/

Norms has a rebuilt Ham 3 rotor and controller for $449 and a Ham M (with an old type controller) for $359.

either will work well for you.

I can personally vouch for Norm's, you may pay a few $ more, but, you will get a rotor that will work as it should.

Good Luck
 
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Captain Kilowatt said:
Mike........that's like using a Freightliner tractor as your daily driver to drop the kids off at school and make a stop at the store on the way home. Let's be more practical.
Click to expand...
It is practical. This rotator is unbeatable opposite to Yaesu, Kenpro and similar crap with plastic gears inside. I use one of those since 20 years, another one more than 10. No issues.
Here,at 320$ price tag there is no competition for it.
Mike
 
sp5it said:
It is practical. This rotator is unbeatable opposite to Yaesu, Kenpro and similar crap with plastic gears inside. I use one of those since 20 years, another one more than 10. No issues.
Here,at 320$ price tag there is no competition for it.
Mike
Click to expand...


Well my G-2800DXA does NOT have plastic gears in it nor do pretty much all the Hygan rotators. The 2800 actually has steel planetary gears.The cheap Kenpro and Alliance rotators had a main motor gear and spur gear that was plastic however. You might be able to buy an Alpha Spid for $320 there as it is basically a domestic product. Over here they START about $800 and go to nearly $2000 and are EXTREME overkill for what he is looking at turning hence my statement that it is just not practicable. There are MANY more practicable and VERY capable rotators for his small antenna.
 
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