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How do i tell by the box if i am buying a 24 foot Imax 2000

J

jtrouter

Well-Known Member
Jul 7, 2015
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I have read so many posts about old versions vs newer versions of the Imax2000.
I have been checking all over the internet trying to buy a New older version before all
the problems with the shorter less than 24 foot version, And the price for buying one of the
new Imax2000 with optimizer is crazy. Anyways i finally found a seller who has a couple of
what i think is maybe the older version. The box says Max2000 and what i would like to know
is what questions do i ask them tomorrow when i call them to verify if it is the 24foot version?
Overall box length? UPC? model # stickers? If anyone can please tell me what can i ask them
to make sure is the full length 24foot version? Thank you for reading and i look forward to all
the help you all have.
 

By what means are you going to compare boxes? I don't recall fully but I think my last one arrived in a tube.

Walcot has MaxOptimizer. Has a short add-on section for 11M. Making it 4 total sections. My assumption is the other 3 sections may be slightly shorter for 10M.

Amazon still offering the Imax 2000. Pricey.

https://www.mtcradio.com/solarcon-imax-2000-base-station-antenna-10-11-meter-antenna/. $190 + $50 shipping; beats Amazon by $50.

I see the MSRP was $160 on a site listing them for $120, on some historical date.

Quote from direct depot.com:
"Q: Is it true that the manufacturer of the Max 2000 changed the electrical length of that antenna and that it will not work on the CB band?

A: This is a rumor that has been going around for the past few of years. It is inaccurate. The Imax leaves the factory pre tuned for the CB band. Solarcon did slightly shorten the antenna about 7 years ago, UPS was strictly enforcing the box length requirement and bumping them to oversized (it was only a ¼” over). This small change less than an 1” over 24’ does not have a noticeable effect on tuning.”

Q: ok the ? is your add on the I-max 2000 says 24 ft 3 8 ft section just want to make sure that is correct

A: That is correct, the IMAX-2000 24' omni-directional antenna comes in three 8' easy to assemble sections."

The remaining stock of original Imax 2000 dwindling fast.
I got my 1st Imax nearly 20 years ago. My 2nd ~ 3 years ago. If there was a <1" difference I didn't pay attention to it.

If I needed a 3rd I'd look for an alternative. $300+ for an monopole, only if it had gold plated furniture .
 
Last edited:
Alabama Buckeye said:
By what means are you going to compare boxes? I don't recall fully but I think my last one arrived in a tube.

Walcot has MaxOptimizer. Has a short add-on section for 11M. Making it 4 total sections. My assumption is the other 3 sections may be slightly shorter for 10M.

Amazon still offering the Imax 2000. Pricey.

https://www.mtcradio.com/solarcon-imax-2000-base-station-antenna-10-11-meter-antenna/. $190 + $50 shipping; beats Amazon by $50.

I see the MSRP was $160 on a site listing them for $120, on some historical date.

Quote from direct depot.com:
"Q: Is it true that the manufacturer of the Max 2000 changed the electrical length of that antenna and that it will not work on the CB band?

A: This is a rumor that has been going around for the past few of years. It is inaccurate. The Imax leaves the factory pre tuned for the CB band. Solarcon did slightly shorten the antenna about 7 years ago, UPS was strictly enforcing the box length requirement and bumping them to oversized (it was only a ¼” over). This small change less than an 1” over 24’ does not have a noticeable effect on tuning.”

Q: ok the ? is your add on the I-max 2000 says 24 ft 3 8 ft section just want to make sure that is correct

A: That is correct, the IMAX-2000 24' omni-directional antenna comes in three 8' easy to assemble sections."

The remaining stock of original Imax 2000 dwindling fast.
I got my 1st Imax nearly 20 years ago. My 2nd ~ 3 years ago. If there was a <1" difference I didn't pay attention to it.

If I needed a 3rd I'd look for an alternative. $300+ for an monopole, only if it had gold plated furniture .
Click to expand...
Thank you for the reply. Amazon is crazy expensive and i did find a supplier who does have stock of max2000's new in boxes for much less then $190. The problem is they are not returnable and i have read about many people not getting them to match well on 11 meters. I have a guy who is going to climb my 100 foot plus tree to install my antenna but i have a new Avanti Astroplane but he is worried that he will have a hard time getting it up the tree without damaging it plus he thinks he will have to top the tree so that the Astroplane hoop would clear the top and i do not want to top it So he wants/thinks using a imax would be safer would not have to top the tree and even if he is unable to mount the base above the tree top he mounted his imax where most of it was above the top and it works well, and even if he could get the Astroplane up close to the top from what i have read it will not work well if it is not clearly above the top clear of anything near the bottom of the hoop. So if i have to use a imax2000 i only have one shor to get it installed up there and the match must be right the first and only tine it goes up there. See my concerns.
 
jtrouter said:
Thank you for the reply. Amazon is crazy expensive and i did find a supplier who does have stock of max2000's new in boxes for much less then $190. The problem is they are not returnable and i have read about many people not getting them to match well on 11 meters. I have a guy who is going to climb my 100 foot plus tree to install my antenna but i have a new Avanti Astroplane but he is worried that he will have a hard time getting it up the tree without damaging it plus he thinks he will have to top the tree so that the Astroplane hoop would clear the top and i do not want to top it So he wants/thinks using a imax would be safer would not have to top the tree and even if he is unable to mount the base above the tree top he mounted his imax where most of it was above the top and it works well, and even if he could get the Astroplane up close to the top from what i have read it will not work well if it is not clearly above the top clear of anything near the bottom of the hoop. So if i have to use a imax2000 i only have one shor to get it installed up there and the match must be right the first and only tine it goes up there. See my concerns.
Click to expand...
Good luck! Share it with your tree climber

There are a few question to answer; perhaps avoiding trouble of your own making:
How are you attaching to tree?
What is your ground plane?

I suggest appropriate size copper crush washers at the two antenna joints.
 
Last edited:
Alabama Buckeye said:
: This is a rumor that has been going around for the past few of years. It is inaccurate. The Imax leaves the factory pre tuned for the CB band. Solarcon did slightly shorten the antenna about 7 years ago, UPS was strictly enforcing the box length requirement and bumping them to oversized (it was only a ¼” over). This small change less than an 1” over 24’ does not have a noticeable effect on tuning.”
Click to expand...
If this was the case why did Pro Comm/ Road Pro make a 4th add on piece that must be installed for 11 meters to Optimize it.
( and it is bullshit that they will not sell the piece separately making you buy the whole antenna)

Bells CB stoped selling them for this reason.
There is a thread here about this if you go look.
They did this to save on shipping.

73
Jeff
 
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AudioShockwav said:
If this was the case why did Pro Comm/ Road Pro make a 4th add on piece that must be installed for 11 meters to Optimize it.
( and it is bullshit that they will not sell the piece separately making you buy the whole antenna)

73
Jeff 20
Click to expand...
Ive no idea why Roadpro or Procomm did what they do. The Solarcon MaxOptimizer, replacement for Imax 2000, has a 12" 4th segment to add in for 11M "Optimizing".

The posted quote from directdepot.com doesn't mean it wasn't originally statements from a Solarcon representative; surely sounded as such.

My first Imax 2000 was obtained > 20 years ago. The 2nd was 3- 4 years ago. They both came tuned for mid-band 11M. I tweaked them for minor local variations from factory setting. A fourth piece for the Imax 2000, unnecessary. Maybe there is/was < 1" difference between them, I didn't see it.

Who won't/wouldn't sell that 4th piece separately, Roadpro or Procomm? Reselling is all Roadpro does, correct?

http://www.palcoelectronics.com/p1003823.aspx. I don't believe I'll be calling or walking into their Michigan store. Can't record transaction details over the phone; just my way. Thanks for the lead on Imax 2000 pricing. That's quite affordable, no gold plated furniture necessary. Then there are only two ways to get a grasp on shipping cost, inflated or not.
 
Can confirm the shortened models did not tune well on 11M. I was a big fan of the Imax 2000 for years because of how simple/cheap they were (very east to shove in the top of a pine tree, my favorite application) but I couldn't get the newer models to tune right. Not sure about the newest "optimizer" models. I wish Sirio would make a higher power handling .64 gainmaster. It's perfect for trees but I'd blow one up in no time.
 
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24' Imax 2000 never was!

"Can confirm the shortened models did not tune well on 11M," 11 minutes ago.
Can you confirm that with numbers?

I found what might have been the epistle length posting on the Imax 2000. Many measurements given, none I took time to total were 24'. Some at or near .624 and some at or near .64 wavlength; none at .666...6 nor 2' shorter than 5/8 wavelength. I best recall my measuring stick was about 23.4 or 8' on the two I've owned. 3 equal 8' sections, never was; but often stated in advertising. No matter, 24' said often enough becomes fact; so say the Supremes in Spotlight Vs B.F. Buckley and Weekly Standard, the ChickenHawk Rag.
 
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Solarcon no longer makes these antennas, the are made by Road Pro.
The Optimised antenna had a 4th piece that brings the antenna back to were it was before they chopped it off to save on shipping, Big Kahuna was able to get his hands on the extension for testing, it is in one of the threads here somewhere and unless they have changed something they will not sell just the extension, you have to buy the whole antenna.

" From Bells CB Radio site: "We no longer sell this antenna because Solarcon decided to shorten the antenna so that it would ship easier. They did this without changing the tuning of the antenna so now it comes tuned for 10 meter Ham band and not CB radio".
They tell you its tuned for CB but there is one member here that bought 3 of them all three went back.
Salesmen are just that, they will stretch the truth as far as they can.

73
Jeff
 
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Base - New Imax wont tune 11m....this sucks

Took my old Imax down today and put up a new one. right at factory its 2-1 on 26.965, 1.6 on 27.405 and 1.35 on about 28.000 then shoots up after that. I put the rings in the middle and got 1.05 on 28.485 but 27.385 sucked. Just love spending $200 and risking my life for a piece of junk...
www.worldwidedx.com www.worldwidedx.com

Starting back in 2018.
I called them on the phone, but you can Never get a technically coherent person on the phone to answer a real question, you get a sales person that only knows what's on the computer screen in front of them.



73
Jeff
 
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AudioShockwav said:
If this was the case why did Pro Comm/ Road Pro make a 4th add on piece that must be installed for 11 meters to Optimize it.
Click to expand...
Because they know CBers will believe any old bullshit when it comes to antennas and be happy to part with their money to "rectify" a non-existent issue. For example here's a ground plane kit for mobile antennas, ignoring the size of the radials do you spot the problem with it functioning as a ground plane?

15-068-1_1_.jpg



Still hasn't stopped shitloads of people buying that and similar ones to improve their ground on their mobile install.
 
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So I called today to order the Imax2000 that i talked about the other day and yes it was Palco and they had it for $149. So i called today to order it and the guy says we do not have any and have not have them in a while? I told him i talked to another person the other day and he had 3 or more and i had him read me the wording from the box and this guy tells me he must have made a mistake? This whole thing has left a bad taste.....
 

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