How Long Has Your Vertical Base Station Antenna Been Up?

[De_Wildfire]

Just curious, how long has your vertical base station antenna been up and what type is it? I have an imax 2000 that has been up since 2006 with the same coax buried underground going out to the antenna. What's the history of your vertical? I guess soon,the coax and my iMAX 2000 will need replacing.

[MDYoungblood]

My longest owned vertical is a Avanti Sigma II (model AV-170), bought it right before Antenna Specialist bought the patent and discontinued it, think I got it in 1976 and it was discontinued in 1979. I still have it but it hasn't been up for a few years. It was up a good 30 years before ever changing the coax, the SWR went up and I found water had migrated into the braid. It is sitting in the garage, cleaned up and waiting to be installed again.

3's

Greg

[443 Arizona]

about 35 years with same coax, still working good. plain old RG8 coax and an old Hy-Gain 5/8~

[De_Wildfire]

Wow, I still may have a few years left on it. I did use that rubberized stretch tape and wrapped it real good at the connection point. I bet the prices have doubled if I bought one today. I paid $105 at the local truck stop that also sold base antennas.

[Stoneman]

I have a Antron 99 on the roof of the garage, it's been out there since 2000, same RG8 coax...The antenna is holding it's own, only change is the color, it's like a darkest green color...

[RFHobbyist]

My current antenna, a repaired, gifted Solarcon A99, has been up almost two months with RG-8X coax. The antenna is at least twelve years old; I was given it in 2015 by its previous owner when he replaced it with another vertical. I'd stored it all this time.

The aforementioned repair was replacing the SO-239 at the bottom of the downtube; its mating PL-259 had been cross-threaded with pliers and was nigh impossible to remove. I cut off the end of the tube and fashioned a bracket to hold a replacement SO-239.

Before this, the longest I'd had an antenna up was seven years, with my beloved Radio Shack Archer "Super Maxim" halfwave and RG-58/U coax.

[De_Wildfire]

Those A99's are great antennas. I talk to many stations around the country who run those verticals. Yesterday, at sunset, I talked to this guy in TX on his deck who was running 10 watts on with his A99 eight foot off the ground on a tripod. The frequency was clear and he was giving me a S-4.

[295 antenna]

I have been using my proComm patriot 12' cb antenna for 11 years. I have made contacts all over the world.

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[De_Wildfire]

295....It sounds like a very stable antenna and it keeps up with the other verticals on the market.