Jon Kimmel wrote: >Mark...I feel like an idiot...please explain the arrow shaft. Hollow fiberglass? Is the tape helical?
I "rolled" it around a small diameter dowel to get it started, and then slid it down the shaft longways (see enclosed photo), before soldering to the coax. Arrow shaft is something Wicks used to sell, 0.33" outside diameter, 0.0225" wall, made of fiberglass. I assume it's the stuff arrows are made from, but I used it for conduit (matches the mahogany interior nicely) for cables and wires, as well as the antenna, and even as a very lightweight "fuel level stick" that I marked in gallons, to carry with me in the plane. I don't see it on the Wicks website now, but I'm sure it still exists somewhere. Carbon fiber seems the latest rage in arrow shafts, but obviously that's not the preferable shaft material for an antenna. Several large soda straws taped together would work, but the fiberglass shaft is more elegant. It comes in 3' lengths, as I recall. Let me know when you find a source...I need to order some more! Thin wall aluminum tubing would work OK as well...maybe less trouble too. See enclosed image below... -- Mark Langford ML at N56ML.com http://www.n56ml.com
