Bird proof outside aerials.

[Brian Gaff]

I'm sure either aerials are just not made robust enough these days, or maybe
its birds learning on how to destroy them, but it seems there is a spate of
elements falling off recently, and them having to be replaced These seem to
be the fairly old yagi design of straight elements ones as we are line off
sight to Crystal Palace. It is my suspicion that many of these aerials are
now using plastic saddles for the elements and it is in fact these which
crack when exposed to UV and cold.

I have an old Multibeam here that has lasted over 25 years. Its quite heavy,
and reasonably wide band and has never given any trouble until recently when
water got into the connection area, and rusted the braid clamp.

Brian

[Davey]

On Fri, 24 Nov 2023 09:09:46 -0000

Post by Brian Gaff
I'm sure either aerials are just not made robust enough these days,
or maybe its birds learning on how to destroy them, but it seems
there is a spate of elements falling off recently, and them having to
be replaced These seem to be the fairly old yagi design of straight
elements ones as we are line off sight to Crystal Palace. It is my
suspicion that many of these aerials are now using plastic saddles
for the elements and it is in fact these which crack when exposed to
UV and cold.
I have an old Multibeam here that has lasted over 25 years. Its quite
heavy, and reasonably wide band and has never given any trouble until
recently when water got into the connection area, and rusted the
braid clamp.
Brian

Maybe the birds are following the human population and putting on
weight? Our local pigeons are certainly not lightweights, and nor are
the crows.

[Brian Gaff]

Funny you should say that, recently a load of green Parakeets has moved in,
and they are also fat. I thought they mostly ate fruit, but I could be
wrong.
If you walk down a quiet road with a wind blowing you can often hear the
elements of aerials rattling as if they are loose. Good sturdy aerials just
sing as the wind blows.

I was playing around with a discone the other day, just before it got cold,
and using that as a TV aerial works well here, so why anyone would bother to
have the aerial outside here is a mystery. Mine is in the loft. The only
snag with a discone is all the stations you get up in the 800s. Some work
well, while others only appear when there is a lift on. Never seen any
foreign ones though.
Brian
--
--:
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
***@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!

Post by Davey
On Fri, 24 Nov 2023 09:09:46 -0000

Post by Brian Gaff
I'm sure either aerials are just not made robust enough these days,
or maybe its birds learning on how to destroy them, but it seems
there is a spate of elements falling off recently, and them having to
be replaced These seem to be the fairly old yagi design of straight
elements ones as we are line off sight to Crystal Palace. It is my
suspicion that many of these aerials are now using plastic saddles
for the elements and it is in fact these which crack when exposed to
UV and cold.
I have an old Multibeam here that has lasted over 25 years. Its quite
heavy, and reasonably wide band and has never given any trouble until
recently when water got into the connection area, and rusted the
braid clamp.
Brian

Maybe the birds are following the human population and putting on
weight? Our local pigeons are certainly not lightweights, and nor are
the crows.
--
Davey.

[charles]

Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

Post by Brian Gaff
I'm sure either aerials are just not made robust enough these days, or
maybe its birds learning on how to destroy them, but it seems there is a
spate of elements falling off recently, and them having to be replaced
These seem to be the fairly old yagi design of straight elements ones
as we are line off sight to Crystal Palace. It is my suspicion that many
of these aerials are now using plastic saddles for the elements and it
is in fact these which crack when exposed to UV and cold.
I have an old Multibeam here that has lasted over 25 years. Its quite
heavy, and reasonably wide band and has never given any trouble until
recently when water got into the connection area, and rusted the braid
clamp.
Brian

[Mark Carver]

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is rare)
they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

[alan_m]

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is rare)
they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Around my way I see more aerial lashings fail than aerials (apart from
the couple of square inch reflectors falling off the very cheap aerials)

[Mark Carver]

Post by alan_m

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is
rare) they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Around my way I see more aerial lashings fail than aerials (apart from
the couple of square inch reflectors falling off the very cheap aerials)

I discovered a UHF aerial reflector in our hedge a few years ago, the
morning after a storm. It didn't seem to have come from any of our
immediate neighbours !

[Andy Burns]

Post by alan_m

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their
"ruggedised" aerial didn't sell at all well. Contractors never
got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is
rare) they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Around my way I see more aerial lashings fail than aerials (apart from
the couple of square inch reflectors falling off the very cheap aerials)

I used one of those nylon ratchet straps on mine, that's held up fine,
what didn't last was the steel clamp supplied with an aluminium aerial,
I'd expect Blake to know better really ... I don't really trust myself
to use a roof ladder these days.

[alan_m]

Post by Andy Burns

Post by alan_m

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their
"ruggedised" aerial didn't sell at all well. Contractors never
got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is
rare) they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Around my way I see more aerial lashings fail than aerials (apart from
the couple of square inch reflectors falling off the very cheap aerials)

I used one of those nylon ratchet straps on mine, that's held up fine,
what didn't last was the steel clamp supplied with an aluminium aerial,
I'd expect Blake to know better really ... I don't really trust myself
to use a roof ladder these days.

In the days of analogue I used to have a large chimney mounted aerial
and at times still got poor reception.
These days a small log periodic is mounted in the loft and that gives
reliable reception.

[tony sayer]

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is rare)
they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Logs are very wideband aerials, far better than Yagi's that have been
"tweaked" gain may not be so good tho...

[Mark Carver]

Post by tony sayer

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is rare)
they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Logs are very wideband aerials, far better than Yagi's that have been
"tweaked" gain may not be so good tho...

Well, the present ones are only tuned for Ch 21-48, to match our brave
new world of no telly above 700 MHz in Band V.

In fact response above 700 MHz is undesirable now of course.

[Brian Gaff]

Which is a great pity. for some reason avoidance of co channel interference
at all cost in the analogue days now has become how crowded can me make the
band and still get away with it most of the time.
It will be a sad day when everything goes on line, then some probably
foreign hacker will take the whole countries comms down and just walk in and
take over. Eggs in one basket syndrome.

Incidentally, the heavier birds did not like the multibeam as the elements
bent when they tried to land on them and there was very little flat area in
any case except on the driven element and the reflector. Antiference made
one with no flat areas except the boom, which likewise was not bird
friendly, so these issues must have been known of for many years.
I once had a helical beam for uhf, but it simply was not tough enough and
the plastic bits holding the helix stable tended to break off, and the mesh
reflector got bent. Good idea, but a little impractical and also prone to
receive both V and H signals in the same directions.

Brian
--
--:
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
***@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!

Post by tony sayer

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is rare)
they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.

Logs are very wideband aerials, far better than Yagi's that have been
"tweaked" gain may not be so good tho...

Well, the present ones are only tuned for Ch 21-48, to match our brave new
world of no telly above 700 MHz in Band V.
In fact response above 700 MHz is undesirable now of course.

[Brian Gaff]

Yes, I think that is so in some places, but to be honest a bent coat hanger
would round here.
The Jbeam I mentioned has not been made many years, and it was rugged in
that the elements were rods, slightly cranked and mounted on plastic x
sections that were bendy, a and still in fact are. Everything was riveted
together by the look of it with small castings for the connections from the
skeletal slot driven element and the reflector.
As has been said, I guess it was just too well built, and even had a aching
transformer in the insulator. If it had not been for the water ingress, it
would have still been working, and I think it was the coax outer pvc that
eventually let the side down.
Brian
--
--:
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
***@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!

Post by Mark Carver

Post by charles
Many years ago an aerial manufactuer told me that their "ruggedised" aerial
didn't sell at all well. Contractors never got call backs.

When I see new TV aerials pop up round here these days, (which is rare)
they are usually Log Periodics, and not yagis.