I agree with you, that is the way my manual shows the installation.
This put the radial hubs flat, metal to metal, on the top of the metal mounting bracket rather rather than sitting on top of the thick part of the insulator.
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New spt500 gamma
- Thread starter Van Lifeson
- Start date
I agree with you, that is the way my manual shows the installation.
This put the radial hubs flat, metal to metal, on the top of the metal mounting bracket rather rather than sitting on top of the thick part of the insulator.
Van, I never owned a SP500. I showed an image for what my most recent manual for this antenna appears to show for installing the top insulator. All my manuals show the insulator is installed from inside and between the ends of the antenna mounting bracket. IT IS NOT INSTALLED FROM ABOVE LIKE THE VIDEO IN BOB'S POST #6 SHOWED WHERE THE CLOSE UP OF THE ANTENNA IS UPSIDE DOWN.
The base assembly part is said to come per-assembled, but you have to install the radial brackets and the radials...so you must remove the 3 x 1/4" nuts, washers, and bolts. So, it you did this and slide the insulator down inside the mounting bracket a little, all you have to do is slip the radial brackets down over the top of assembly #5 to the top of the mounting bracket, slide the insulator back up into position, line-up everything, and reinstall the insulator hardware. Tighten down everything and the assembly #5 should be complete and ready for the rest of the radiator and the top hat.
Then maybe check the DC continuity.
The base assembly part is said to come per-assembled, but you have to install the radial brackets and the radials...so you must remove the 3 x 1/4" nuts, washers, and bolts. So, it you did this and slide the insulator down inside the mounting bracket a little, all you have to do is slip the radial brackets down over the top of assembly #5 to the top of the mounting bracket, slide the insulator back up into position, line-up everything, and reinstall the insulator hardware. Tighten down everything and the assembly #5 should be complete and ready for the rest of the radiator and the top hat.
Then maybe check the DC continuity.
That is fine and it might make sense. I don't know the stresses at this point in the real world due to wind and weather, but If that is the way in came, I would not worry about it.
I just looked back a some old images I had from others who posted pictures and I saw this insulator in several positions over time. I used these images to help me with a better understanding for how to model this antenna.
I never was aware of a problem here, but in Bob's post #6 video it looks like "More Jello Please," who made the video, either got his antenna with the insulator installed wrong or he took the assembly #5 fully apart and changed how the insulator was to be installed, and set it in from the top instead of from the bottom of the antenna mounting bracket. ??????????????
Van, the way your insulator is setup looks fine with me, but my manuals seem to show the tall side is up instead of the short side.
Keep us posted.
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The pic Van lifeson posted of the short side up probably has less chance of splitting the plastic in high winds,
what i don't like is how short the insulative path is when the radial hub sits flush with the insulator, its flat too,
looks like a recipe for swr issues with rain once some wet dirt has accumulated around the radiator & hub or even arcing with high power,
imho under bracket with long side up is the best compromise,
it gives a good insulative path length above and below the bracket for least chance of vswr or arcing issues,
at the expense of a little more chance of splitting the plastic in high wind,
the other positions are either worse insulators or weaker in wind or both.
what i don't like is how short the insulative path is when the radial hub sits flush with the insulator, its flat too,
looks like a recipe for swr issues with rain once some wet dirt has accumulated around the radiator & hub or even arcing with high power,
imho under bracket with long side up is the best compromise,
it gives a good insulative path length above and below the bracket for least chance of vswr or arcing issues,
at the expense of a little more chance of splitting the plastic in high wind,
the other positions are either worse insulators or weaker in wind or both.
