Tube TV
10-13-2007, 01:50 AM
Does anyone have any pictures of old VHF antennas , I would like to make a stacked dipole similar to the one on the right . But I need somthing a bit more detailed .
The more elaborate the antenna the better .
I want to try and built one of these .:scratch2:
Steve McVoy
10-13-2007, 08:43 AM
Here are some pictures:
http://www.earlytelevision.org/antennas.html
kx250rider
10-13-2007, 12:42 PM
I have no photos, but I'll try to get some. Here in the Los Angeles area, there are still plenty of 1950s-era antennae in place. I see the double-stacked conical, and even a few "broadband batwing" models. With no humidity and moderate weather with no ice or tornadoes, the aluminum seems to last well.
Probably the most common is the single or double conical (double is shown in the ETF photos that Steve posted above.) There is also the possibility of finding one in new condition in an attic. Around here, it's illegal in many places to have a roof antenna. In those areas, people would install them in the attic where they hang shiny and new, 60 years later. Rather than building one, maybe you could post an ad, asking people if they have one that they'd sell, suggesting that homeowners climb up and check their attics. I bet most won't even know they have one.
Charles
wa2ise
10-13-2007, 07:17 PM
I remember seeing in TV Guide and other magazines and papers ads for a plug in TV antenna. "Use your house's electrical wiring as a TV antenna" it would say. It was a small plastic cylindar with a power plug on one end, and twin lead also running out of it. Don't know what was inside, heard there was nothing inside, not even a coupling cap to the powerline. I don't think you'd want to use the powerline as an antenna anyway, there sometimes be noise from sparky furnace motors and such to put spots in TV pictures.
fujifrontier
10-13-2007, 08:15 PM
my grandma has a Sky Star.
Here's a picture of an older vhf antenna on an apartment building nearby.
Tube TV
10-14-2007, 01:29 AM
I remember seeing in TV Guide and other magazines and papers ads for a plug in TV antenna. "Use your house's electrical wiring as a TV antenna" it would say. It was a small plastic cylindar with a power plug on one end, and twin lead also running out of it. Don't know what was inside, heard there was nothing inside, not even a coupling cap to the powerline. I don't think you'd want to use the powerline as an antenna anyway, there sometimes be noise from sparky furnace motors and such to put spots in TV pictures.
Someone gave me one of those , and it was a piece of JUNK I could pick more of a signal up with a coathanger .
I dont know if they were sold in the USA , but here in Canada in the late
1980s there were these fake satalite dish with rabbit ears things sold for $19.95 they were made in China and were really cheap and they had this tuning control that , when turned switched off one of the antenna leads , leading people to believe that it was a fine tuning control when both connections were switched on it . The dish had dipole sticking out in front of it , it was for UHF . These units were on the borderline of false advertising and did not recieve any better than the original singal antenna in most portables .
Tube TV
10-14-2007, 01:54 AM
Right now im running a really ratty old channelmaster circa 1965? Still have to restore it . It's not as clear as it used to be . But I would like to experiment with different antenna designs , the Telesine on steve's website would be a fun project . Does anyone know if the outer rings were for VHF and the inner one's were for UHF , or was one of these directors or reflectors and the small ones were elements . one thing with the Telesine , it would require a great deal of materials to build .
kx250rider that would be great if you could get some pics of those antennas especially a stack . I have never seen these types of antennas , only in books or on the net . TV didnt show up here till 1956 and the climate and damp weather has long since destroyed these . My channelmaster would be considered old .
If you could zoom in on the insulators and other connections that would be really appreciated .
kbmuri
10-14-2007, 12:03 PM
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/wire/t2fd.html
These are childishly easy to make and work pretty well.