[Mobile-Portable] HF Mobile-Use What Ever You Have-Hustler

[Tom Bates]

I use Hustlers in my antenna arsenal.  My HD coils have the heat shrink
removed, and the remaining assembly given a thick coat of epoxy insulating
varnish.  I tried dipping them in electric motor 100% solids baking varnish
and baking, and also wrapping them in semi-cured epoxy-resin-glass banding
tape.  The epoxy spray worked very well and was certainly the easiest.  I
never was happy with getting those coils dried completely as long as the
shrink was on top of them.  The glass/epoxy tape was heavy and bulky.  My
best performing Hustler is a 15M coil using a 5/8 2M whip and tuned up on
20M.  Mounted high above the pickup bed on a guyed fold-over mast, this
thing works wicked good!  Some pix on my QRZ.com bio. For the big
screwdrivers, I prefer Hi-Q and Scorpion. Bug Catchers were (are?) the best
you could buy for the least $$$, but you had to know or learn a little about
antennas to make them work best.  Too bad about the Hustler "clutch"  That
was a neat idea.  The setscrews stink.  Now that I think of it, my Webster
Bandspanners have a similar "clutch" adjustment.  I think the Bandspanner
may have been the first "adjustable coil" mobile HF antenna.  Any idea?

Happy Mobiling,

Tom  -  AA1NZ



Thomas L.  "Tom"  Bates
New Hampshire Electric Motors, Inc.
459 Province Road
Laconia,  NH  03246
(603) 524-3729    (800) 660-NHEM
  tlbates at nheminc.com
http://www.nheminc.com