This week found us wrapping up the K4VZA installation. A few stumbling blocks–mostly the old Hy-Gain 6M Yagi I had taken down over on the Eastern shore of NC; it simply did not or would not load or act like an antenna. The original owner had some sort of hairpin match installed, instead of what Hy-Gain shows in their manual–a Beta match. I do not know the history of the antenna, so cannot say if this was a mod or simply an earlier version of the beam. In any case, Chuck elected to buy a 3L Cushcraft & that’s what we installed. Everything went off without a hitch, until we got to the rotator. Which checked out perfectly on the ground. Up on the tower, save for the solendoid engaging, it’s simply dead. Tried every trick I knew. Finally, in desperation, brought it to ground. Still dead at the end of a six foot jumper! Gave up & went to lunch. Came back & Joe walked over & hit the switch. Rotator worked perfectly. Now, of course, we have the very real dilemma of “Do we install it, or not?” Client eager to get on the air (it’s his first ham radio tower in 50 years of hamming), so up it went. Worked perfectly, stop-to-stop, etc. So ended Thursday. Of course, come Friday morning, it no longer turns. Since this is a refurbished Ham IV, I am now convinced it has to be something in the control box. Will set up something on the workbench & get a known-working controller & then take that over & see what happens. My refurb guy assures me he is using lithium grease, so despite the cold temperature, I do not feel that could be an issue. We shall see.
Very weird outside this AM–a freezing fog, which envelopes you as you walk outside, seemingly freezing on your face/hands immediately.
stay tuned….
