Before I became a Ham (Amateur Radio Operator) I got my introduction to
2-way communications via CB-Radio. Hey can't argue too much about it that's
how I met my wife some 31 years ago. Anyway I remember (during the Boom
times) how many manufacturers produced some pretty good antennas that seemed
to have great gain and results. I always wondered why they never applied
some of their methods to Amateur Radio Antennas (well not Shakespeare
because of their high lightning susceptibility).

I wonder how many of the old standard base station antennas are still around
in use or for sale? Such great antennas as the Avanti PDL Quad or Avanti's
Astro Plane or MoonRaker series, or Shakespeare's "Big Stick" which was so
prone to catching Lightning, or the original "Starduster"? I know that now,
these days the Starduster and the Astro Plane are built by the same European
business that purchased the rights to build each but for this post I'm not
talking about the newer Astro Planes or Stardusters but rather the original
models. The Big Stick I think has just faded away but I know there are
still some out there.

Maybe it was just youth but I thought those were great antennas and the only
Amateur antenna that I really sang praises about was a HyGain HyQuad which
actually stood up to an ice storm pretty well for me. Sold long ago but
wish I still had that thing. I think the only ones that liked it better
than me was the birds.