Hi Doug,

http://www.mcmaster.com

McMaster-Carr has massive amounts of just about anything at reasonable prices.

They ship from all over the country, I got my 6' 3/8" al rod next day delivery

for the ground ups ship fee ! (atlanta whse to my qth in tn )

Their website is very fast and works great over dialup or faster connections.

Good luck with the project

Al



Doug wrote:

I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)

On Mon, 18 Oct 2004 01:14:11 GMT, Al wrote:

Hi Doug,

http://www.mcmaster.com

McMaster-Carr has massive amounts of just about anything at reasonable prices.

They ship from all over the country, I got my 6' 3/8" al rod next day delivery

for the ground ups ship fee ! (atlanta whse to my qth in tn )

Their website is very fast and works great over dialup or faster connections.

Good luck with the project

Al



Doug wrote:

I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)

Texas Towers sells seamless, hard Al tubing in sizes that nest
correctly. It's not flimsy and it's not particularly cheap but it is
the correct material for beam antennae. For small (UHF and up) stuff,
use the hobby shop nesting brass tube and rod.

Russ

wrote:

Dave, buy fishing rod material
and cover with aluminum foil
Art

I've tried the Al foil thing, and it is too fragile IMO. The foil fails
at the connection points, and the acidic nature of modern rain tends to
wreck it otherwise. What I made was destroyed in a couple months. The
white gunk that forms on regular tubing over time, and pits it, goes the
whole way through Al foil, which I think has only one side! ;^)

On this subject, has anyone tried that aluminum tape? That stuff is a
bit thicker, and the wider stuff might have nice BW qualities, as well
as be pretty stealthy.

- Mike KB3EIA -

The secret is: "arrow" antennas are made from arrows. Yes, archery arrows.
The hardware that attaches the arrows to the boom is (again) arrow hardware,
that's used for mounting certain types of arrowheads to the arrow shafts.

--

"Doug McLaren" wrote in message
...
I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)

Another approach you may want to take is the Arrow Antenna concept,
but built of WA5VJB's Cheap Yagis. Cheap Yagis work great and have
simple tuning requirements. I did a Google search and came up with
someone who had done exactly this.
http://www.g6lvb.com/HomebrewArrow.htm
There is a link in the article to a page with Cheap Yagi dimensions.

A somewhat smaller antenna is a combination of a Yagi (although you
could easily use the Cheap Yagi design) and a Moxon.
http://www.qsl.net/vk3jed/2m70cmant1html.html

http://on6sat.com/links/ is an extensive list of links related to
satellite operation, with lots of antenna links.

Good luck
W4KMA

On Sun, 17 Oct 2004 16:58:00 GMT, "Doug McLaren"
wrote:

I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)

So I hit Home Depot, and the closest thing I found to the approprite
beams was 1/8th inch steel rods. (Basically piano wire.)

It ought to work, and is stiff enough to not bend much under gravity,
but it's heavy, and I'll be holding this thing ...

The local hobby shop has more piano wire that's smaller, but it's
still steel, and as you get smaller, it looses the needed rigidity and
it sags too much.

The instructions suggest hollow alluminum tubes, which should be light
and strong, and a good conductor to boot, but where can I find these?

Also, I've seen Yagi instructions that suggest a that the beams not be
insulated from the boom, and I've seen instructions that say they
should be insulated from the boom (or the boom should be an insulator,
like PVC pipe.) Does it make a big difference? Does it affect the
dimensions of the antenna?

Thanks in advance ...

My local hardware store, a chain of the "Do It Center" hardware franchise,
has just started carrying aluminum tubing in 6 foot lengths in diameters
ranging from about 3/8" to about 1.5". Prices are not cheap, but not
outrageous for the small amounts you will likely need.

--
-larry
K8UT
"Doug McLaren" wrote in message
...
I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)

So I hit Home Depot, and the closest thing I found to the approprite
beams was 1/8th inch steel rods. (Basically piano wire.)

It ought to work, and is stiff enough to not bend much under gravity,
but it's heavy, and I'll be holding this thing ...

The local hobby shop has more piano wire that's smaller, but it's
still steel, and as you get smaller, it looses the needed rigidity and
it sags too much.

The instructions suggest hollow alluminum tubes, which should be light
and strong, and a good conductor to boot, but where can I find these?

Also, I've seen Yagi instructions that suggest a that the beams not be
insulated from the boom, and I've seen instructions that say they
should be insulated from the boom (or the boom should be an insulator,
like PVC pipe.) Does it make a big difference? Does it affect the
dimensions of the antenna?

Thanks in advance ...

--
Doug McLaren, , AD5RH
The face is familiar but i can't quite remember my name. Oh, there it is.

Try aluminum arrows

"Doug McLaren" wrote in message
...
I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)



---
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Just about all aircraft builder supply places carry aluminum tubing as
well. I would think the 6061-T6 grade would be great for antennas as it
is quite corrosion resistant and fairly hard and thus more resistant to
bending under ice buildup if your locale supports the formation of ice

Try http://www.aircraftspruce.com/menus/me/aluminum.html

Scott
N0EDV


Hal Rosser wrote:

Try aluminum arrows

"Doug McLaren" wrote in message
...

I'm looking to make a 2m/70cm yagi antenna for working satellites.
The plans are out there, and it seems quite simple. (Or I could pay
$73 to Arrow Antenna, but I'll give it a shot myself first.)




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--
Scott
http://corbenflyer.tripod.com/
Building RV-4
Gotta Fly or Gonna Die