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Grand Junction, Colorado |
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Grand Junction, Colorado |
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After waiting patiently (??) for my SteppIR 4 element antenna to arrive, that magic day finally happened! My first impression after the UPS guy shows up
with the boxes: I'm buried in shipping peanuts!! The antenna arrived safely, with no damage, and it's largely due to about five cubic feet of shipping
peanuts that protected everything. The user's manual was placed conveniently on one end of the box. Fortunately, I opened up the right end!
Otherwise, I'd be buried in peanuts looking for it!
After taking everything out of the boxes, I performed an inventory, and all the parts and pieces were there. One thing concerned me at this point, and that
was the mast pieces (7 of them) appeared to have been "used". After reading further, I noted that SteppIR assembled the mast as part of their production
process. That accounted for the numerous twist marks on the end of the mast pieces that fit together. This practice allowed them to machine and drill
the bolt holes with greater precision. I had little problem getting the bolt holes aligned, which speaks well of their machining processes.
Be sure to put the thin film of "connector protector" on the male ends of the boom pieces before inserting them. Makes it go much easier,
and protects against corrosion. Yes, I was in a hurry and forgot to do this on the first connection I made, resulting in my having to take two pieces apart
(and fortunately, that was pretty easy). Read the manual through a couple of times before you start - I read the manual through about 3 or 4 times, but
I still overlooked this basic step. I attribute it to the excitement and wanting to get on the air as quickly as I could!
Installing the mast/boom plate is fairly easy, but it has to be done so that the plate is absolutely vertical. That will ensure that the elements are horizontal
when the antenna is put in place on the tower. The instructions are fairly good in explaining how to do it, and SteppIR's "EZ Eye" bolt helps take some of the
fumbling out of it all.
To make sure things were aligned properly, I used a small level to be sure that the antenna was horizontal by placing it on the EHU
plate nearest the location of the mast/boom plate. Once that was horizontal, I used a second level against the mast/boom plate and then adjusted it using
the "EZ Eye" bolt until the vertical plane was aligned. Double check the levels, and you're set. Tighten the U-Bolts on the boom/mast plate to cinch it down.
The next step is to install the stepper motor housings. Be sure that the housings are aligned properly when looking down the mast. Each housing has a
long and a short tube sticking out of it. One housing is installed in the opposite direction as the rest, as pointed out in the instructions. Be sure all the
housings are properly aligned and bolted down. And, be sure that the DRIVEN element housing is in the proper location (yeah, I originally put it in the wrong
spot). You'd hate to have to bring the antenna back to the ground to turn around one of the housing units. Glad I discovered this before I got any further
along!
There are LOTS of nuts and bolts holding the EHUs (8 on each unit) to the boom. Double check to be sure you haven't missed any. Additionally, SteppIR
recommends that you double check the FACTORY installed nuts and bolts to ensure they are tight. I did find several that were not tightened securely. It
pays to be careful, take your time, and be sure it's put together right!
When taping the control cables on the boom, I was careful to route them away from the nuts and bolts holding the boom together, as well as the joints
where the boom pieces came together to preclude the cables from being worn over time by the sharp edges. I placed a small strip of tape over the joints,
then taped the cable at the joint to preclude movement.
The next step is to connect the cables together at the antenna, and to the controller cable that runs to the shack. My antenna is located over 200 feet from the house, so I had to use the 33 VDC power supply to make sure there was enough "punch" to move the motors as SteppIR intended. Wiring the cables was pretty easy, using the diagram provided in the assembly manual.
Using the electrical tape provided, I taped all the joints on the fiberglass elements. Putting the self-vulcanizing tape over the joints on the fiberglass
elements turned out not to be a problem at all. I had heard that some people felt there wasn't enough tape provided. Not true. Cutting the tape precisely
to the lengths specified resulted in a fair amount of tape left over. Be careful, since the tape will quickly adhere to itself. While you're putting it on the
joints, if it happens to touch itself or another taped section, it will start to bond immediately. Quickly separate it, and you won't have problems.
Moving the antenna outside, I connected the control cable to the SteppIR, which was an easy task. (Note - be sure to run the SteppIR cable from your operating location through the house wall before wiring it to the antenna - the end with the DB-25 connector is hard to wiggle through the walls otherwise!) Placing it inside the PVC pipe to protect it from the elements was not too difficult, but be careful that you don't disconnect any of the wires.
At this point, I
decided to check to be sure that the antenna was functioning. so I hooked it up to the controller and turned it on. With my wife pressing the buttons on the
controller in the house, I stood by the antenna and heard, with great delight, the stepper motors moving the elements inside the fiberglass tubing! WOW!!
Success!
The next, critical step was to figure out how to actually attach the SteppIR to my US Towers fold-over tower....that was something to ponder. I had considered using a boom truck until the solution popped into my mind. I'd let the tower act as a crane! I put the antenna together, then laid it in front of the tilted over tower. My problem aligning the antenna with the tower was more challenging, since the tower is elevated on that block of concrete. If your tower base is level with the ground it should be easier. You'll need to bring the antenna to the tower so that the elements are positioned where they will be when the tower is raised. Some elements will be laying on "top" of the tilted over tower/mast before you start raising it up in the air.
If there is sufficient slack, you can attach the truss to the mast and use that as the "rope" to hoist the antenna into the air when you raise
the tower up to about a 20 - 30 degree angle of elevation. If not, then a rope will do. Tie it to the mast plate, and then to the mast, leaving it loose enough
that it will have the freedom to pivot toward a vertical position as you begin to raise the tower. As the tower is raised and the antenna is pulled along, my
wife pushed the bottom of the antenna so that it eventually became vertical and the mast plate was "close enough" that I could move the antenna to align
it. She held it in that position while I climbed a ladder (resting against the tower) to reach the mast plate and bolted the mast plate to the mast. The rest
was "easy".
At this point, I was able to use a ladder to climb up and bolt the mast/boom plate onto the mast using the four U bolts provided. I taped the coax and
controller cables to the mast, and then raised the tower the rest of the way. I placed an inverted "Cool Whip" container over the thrust bearing on top
of the tower to preclude it from snagging either the control line or the coax cables. That worked great! Voila! Done!
The best part is, it works great!! The first two contacts I made were with Bolivia and then Costa Rica. The third was Botswana! Each time, there was a
pileup for these stations. Each time, I gave my callsign ONCE, and the operators came right back to me - and I was running 10 watts of power! Both signal
reports were 59 plus! To date, I've worked 310 countries with this amazing antenna! You can't ask for more! I hope your installation goes as well as mine
did!
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