[Mobile-Portable] Screwdriver antenna controller

[Jim Miller]

Ground strap - I haven't seen those in over 40 years.  I didn't know they
were still available.  I also always wondered if they would "fly" while in
motion.  As I remember, they were actually for grounding the states
electricity so you didn't get zapped when getting in and out of the car.
Who carries them, worth a try.

73, Jim

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <W6OAL at aol.com>
To: <mobile-portable at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Sunday, December 04, 2005 8:37 PM
Subject: Re: [Mobile-Portable] Screwdriver antenna controller


> Hi Jim,
>
>     You might consider building on yourself if all else  fails. Rather
than
> turn counting you might consider a 555 chip and do time  counting i.e. so
many
> seconds up, so many seconds down, only active when the Vcc  is to the chip
or
> initiate pin. Myself I use the ATAS-120 on my FT-897 in the  vehicle and
find
> it just great especially coming from the days of the Hustler  resonator
days
> and the old Master Mobile, manually adjusted coil.
>     Yes, grounding (and bonding) is one if not the all  important factor
in
> mobile installations. Another trick is the graphite  impregnated rubber
strap
> that attaches to the real axle and drags on the  ground/highway. It's is
truly
> amazing how much the noise floor in the receiver  can be reduced simply by
> bleeding off the static charge from the vehicle moving  through the air.
GL in
> your mobiling,
>
> CU 73, Dave...
>
> Olde Antenna  Lab of Denver
> David A. Clingerman, Sc.D.  (CEO)
>
> ----
> Your Moderator: Dick Flanagan K7VC, mobile-portable-owner at mailman.qth.net