that's a very nice build! I made a gray hooverman (with hats). I used an 8 foot piece of PVC brick molding, and cut off pieces for my cross members. I only needed 5 4 inch lag screws, some self tapping roofing screws, and 15 feet of 10 gauge copper wire. oh, and a balun of course. nice thing about the brick mold was that it was exactly two inches. So, I added a reflector using display board and aluminum foil. good enough for my attic! again, nice job! I enjoyed it.
Dear Brent, I believe there are a few things that you could do that will absolutely increase the strength, it would be the bolts should be insulated from the elements also the crossed wires should be separated maybe to a least 1" apart and last but not the least important is that the wires to the Balun Transformer should not be close to the metal frame. These things that should be corrected WILL cause interference and distortion to the signal. Check your strength meter before and try correcting these things and let us know how it does on the meter. I have seen where the wires of the Balun with the insulation on touching the element and it weakened the signal badly and pulling the wire away from the Element increased the strength to where it should be. Hold your elements on by Hot glue so you can remove the bolts and then test the Strength of the signal.
Great video Mr. Brent, thanks. One small possible problem are the connections where copper and aluminum meet. Over time, the joint will corrode due to electrolysis, especially in wetter regions. There are commercial, grease-like products you can apply to the contact area. The easiest, longer term solution would be to use aluminum wire. Just my 2 cents : >). Thanks again!
it would be better to use solid copper wire for the whole job..soldered together. and in the plastic why not drill two holes ...after drilling drill two shallow larger holes to sink the screws in the plastic and cover with silicone .. check out deep south videos ....Danny Hodge is a antenna guru he has a channel on here
I apologize for being so critical of your project because clearly you take pride in your work and you spared no expense. A little constructive criticism would have been far more appropriate.
Yes metal and plastic is the way to go. Otherwise the moisture in wood can attenuate the signal by grounding the signal or shorting it to another signal. A simple Tip: Here is a tip for you and others who want to build a bowtie antenna like this: We are dealing with radio frequency energy, not DC current. So it is not very right to believe that wires can be close but not touch. Close wires are like a capacitor, and the radio currents short right through the insulation. I would keep the signals at least 1/4" away from each other. In your bowtie the potential problem occurs in two places: 1. Where the lead wires cross over: You should have a spacing of about 1/4" to 1/2" gap between wires at the crossover point. Raise one of the wires over the other 1/4" or more. 2. Where the element bolts pass beside the metal beam: The bolts are so close to the metal that there is likely some RF shorting of the radio signal between the element and the beam causing attenuation (even though the bolts are not touching). Your construction is so neat and sturdy. Good going.
Not really. Not wood. Depending on what kind of wood and how much moisture it really doesn't make much difference what makes a difference, is the distances. Any dielectric between two metal plates, will cause a capacitive reactance. While you're antenna itself, well act as an inductive reactance circuit. Combine you get Xc trying to match Xl. You can figure out the math through any app that in a tuning circuit, show you the reactants values, and combined with frequency mathematically, you can make it hum, or in parlance, react. Mathematically, I squared some values, LOL just doubles others. Some others, I left same. Well if Sam worded this is between the two points in dipoles, Square lengths oh, and just doubled widths. You can play around and charm them yourself. But remember, wavelength wavelength wavelength. Reactance reactance reactance. I live in Langhorne Pennsylvania, apply the highest point between New York and Philadelphia. Equidistant between
The Finish equidistant between Trenton New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I'm pretty high up. With my antenna about 25 feet off the ground, I got 107 channels. That's without a Balun. Is today July 25th 2020 come on going to produce another design in the yagi Forum, that will produce about (GUESSING)125 channels. That is an estimate. Will be using a Transformer balun, also less connections in the coax, and more tailored to wavelength. I'll get in about 125 channels, but then how many getTV broadcast channels do you need?🤣😅
Ive been considering doing something with my current average aerial. I didnt make it, all i could think about was WHY, am i so bored, great excuse to head out and buy a new one, YAWN, cheers.
One of the best builds for this type antenna like you would buy not do it yourself. The advantage is your antenna stands the chance of surviving in rain,wind and sun so many are way to flimsy to have a life outside also the signal should be better. Joints on these antennas are always a problem because of oxidation.
thenet0120002 ...thanks man! Yeah, it’s been up there for a good 4 years now in the Texas heat and still going strong. I figure when it finally fails I’ll just have a good time making another one...improved with a lot of the comments on the video here.
You should always show how many channels you get and the reception the end game on these builds. Nice build but missing the result how good in use is it. A picture answers that.
How did you calculate element length and phasing distance?? Also you are using a 4.1 balum 300 to 75 ohm, wondering how you calculated impedience? Thanks
I couldn't find the question, so I will ask: You stated it picked up 40 some channels inside? The important thing is how far from the broadcast antennas are you? Range does matter on these antennas, whether a booster is required. I also agree with some of the other comments, aluminum and copper have strange properties. They will have electrolysis happen when connected to unlike metals. It is a small static discharge that will eat through the metal over time.
Matt Hargrove...yeah, I really should have used aluminum wire. Oh well...I’ll use it on the next one when this one fails. It’s been mounted up on my roof now for about 2 years and it’s still going strong. Also, yes, after I first built it I hooked it up inside my house and got LOTS of channels. I’m about 28 miles from the majority of the broadcast sites in my area. Thanks so much for the comment!
That's Really Cool ! I tried one similar and works excellent except unless I tilt it a little more toward the sky I can't get ION or it's trail stations so maybe I'll try one like yours.
@mdr ramrod...VHF television broadcast stations are around 200Mhz. So I just used an antenna length calculator that I found on the internet to calculate the length of a quarter wave dipole antenna for 200Mhz.
+mdr ramrod Well thanks for the compliment! Yeah...mine works VERY well. My house is approx 30 miles from the majority of our local broadcast locations. I have the antenna mounted up on my roof and facing the location of those broadcast towers and my signal is very strong.
I would have used screws or used a tap on the plastic, definitely get the transformer wire away from the aluminum back, the last point is that the connections are copper, aluminum and steel, it will corrode very quickly.
Looks great but copper would make better elements. Easier to bend without breaking and no bimetallic corrosion where your elements touch your 14 gauge wire ( could solder )
Charles Tait GREAT THOUGHT!! I just might try that on my next one. The copper might be a tad more expensive...but probably not much since they're relatively small gauge. Thanks for the comment!!
Copper is not the way to go on an antenna. Remember, these usually are made to be outside in the weather and the wind there can bend copper tubing pretty darn easily. Me, I would not recommend copper, myself. Soldering the joints is easy enough to do with the 14 ga galvanized metal. Home Depot usually sells 6' rods of this stuff in a 50 pack for abut $17.99 dollars where they stock the drop ceiling materials in their stores. It is used for tie downs in dropped ceilings, but is found where the foam ceiling pieces are located there and not in the section where you will find Armstrong ceiling tiles and such.
Do you have a listing of the various nuts, washers and bolt sizes you used in this build? It would make going to the box store easier for picking them up without guessing. Thanks.
a1930ford ...so yeah...major fail on my part for not giving those details...and now it’s been so long since I built it I can’t remember. I want to say that everything was 1/4 inch and varying lengths. I know that’s not very helpful...sorry, but the lengths are not really all that important obviously. Good luck with your build!! Send me a pic when you’re done...I’d love to see it.
I was wandering around the lumber dept. of the local Menards big box and saw a piece of vinyl about 1-1/4" or 1-1/2" square x 8 or 12 ft long for under $7.00. Much cheaper than HDPE.
This is actually very, very cheap and the plastic cutting board can be easily glued together to make different sizes and shapes. I did this all the time in making GoPro camera mounts for my motorcycle sidecar rig. The Dollar Store or even Walmart has an endless variety of sizes and thicknesses to choose from and they are indeed cheap and easy to cut.
For insulators.....cut up plastic milk jugs and place in a Teflon coated pan. Heat to melt at 350 degrees in oven. Let cool and cut to what ever shape you like.
Wow, looks better than anything I could buy! Does it make any difference where the VHF dipole sits in the antenna? I would think moving it up (top) and away from the bowties would prevent any interference between the them.
Steel and aluminum should never be in contact with one another, as galvanic reaction (corrosion) will take place, especially when moisture is present. The construction looks very nice, much better than the designs attaching everything to a board.
Dawns SillyMan hey there! I honestly couldn’t say. Those are the furthest transmission sites I have from me without going to like 80 miles...and I’ve honestly never even pointed it that direction. I would say if you added some type of reflector to the back side of the antenna it should easily reach out to 50 miles or more...but truly is just a guess. Could be less could be more.
@@k5btr - With a reflector, 50 miles is a good guess. For an 80 to 100 mile deep fringe antenna, I'd recommend a Yagi style antenna. The RCA ANT3038XR antenna is a great one.
Nice job , but you need to add a reflector on the back of antenna. Like fence wire. It not only reflects fm. Signials but it also increases the range of your antenna. It will pull in more channles ...
Not always true. It all depends on what direction the RF signals are coming from. The reflector acts like a stop sign and heavily attenuates signal coming from the side where the reflector is *behind* the elements. So if you have towers on that side? Chances are you won't get signal from them unless they're very close or you get bounce back off large objects (buildings, mountains, etc) as the signal goes past your antenna and returns on that bounce.
I believe you have an Impedience mismatch using.the 4 to 1 Balun , .Matching Transformer. Did you use an ,Anetenna tunner to measure SWR?? I LIKE THE CONSTRUCTION, BUT DONT BELIEVE YOUR PHASING OR IMPEDIENCE IS NEAR OPTIMUM PERFORMANCE.
Nice build but I would have put the VHF on end separate from the UHF with it's own transformer. Then connected them both to a preamp booster.. just saying.
It's dictated by antenna theory Christina. The engineers found it to be the best way to do it. www.onetransistor.eu/2015/01/gray-hoverman-wideband-vhf-uhf-antenna.html
Well...it's been 5 years up on my roof and it's still kicking. You're right though...it will eventually corrode, but then I just get the fun of building another one! :) Thanks for watching!!
nice antenna but not good ,,vhf in the middle you loose reception,,need be separated and put on top by it self,, need be 2 antenna in one..........put reflector on the back if not close to station.....vhf needs its own reflector small
countryside Well...I guess maybe it depends on your location...but in the San Antonio TX area we still have two stations in the vhf band....9 and 12. I thought this would be the case no matter where you were in the US...but I could definitely be wrong.
Grand Rapids Michigan has 5 stations on VHF, with one on VHF-Lo (real channels 5, 7, 8, 11, and 13). Chicago has CBS on real channel 12, and a Class A (low power TV station that is offered protection from interference) on real channel 4. Milwaukee Wisconsin has an independent on real channel 5 (this station is licensed to Fond Du Lac, which is actually licensed to the Green Bay market, but somehow, the FCC allowed for this station to be moved into the Milwaukee market), and both PBS stations sharing real channel 8 (the second PBS station, which used to be on real channel 35, was sold in the reverse auction, and Milwaukee PBS moved the programming to their VHF channel). Philadelphia has stations on real channels 6 and 12. Down the line, if anymore UHF channels get eliminated, you may start seeing more stations being forced to move to 2 to 6, where most TV stations have had trouble reaching most viewers in the digital era. For 2 to 6, you need the old fashioned element type outdoor antennas, and maybe a pre-amplifier to get those stations. I was lucky to get CBS from Chicago on real channel 3, prior to June 12th 2009.
GhettoRanger ...Thank you Mr. Ray of Sunshine for your extremely helpful constructive criticism. If it’s any consolation, I did do a LITTLE research to try and select metals that wouldn’t be quite so reactive with one another...but I know it will fail some day. At that point...I’ll just spend another $30 and have the fun of building another one. Right now I’m about two years in and it’s still going strong. All of this said though...something tells me you weren’t one of my “thumbs up”. :)
@@k5btr You're welcome, I'm just trying to save someone time and trouble down the road. I don't suppose in your "research" you saw any reference to copper oxidation when exposed to the elements, that is why Danny Hodges and anyone else with experience solders all connections.
GhettoRanger ...hmmm...soldering the connections...now see, THAT is good feedback...and a good idea. I knew there had to be more to your vocabulary. I don’t think in my video I ever claimed that this was the best antenna ever built or that it would last 10 years. Just a fun little project that has much to be perfected.
Great antenna. I struggled through this video until 19:23. You repeat yourself so many times i couldnt take it anymore. Long, boring, repetative, ( all metals.com. i know, i know!) and just to hard to push through it. Next one, cut to the chase.
that's a very nice build! I made a gray hooverman (with hats). I used an 8 foot piece of PVC brick molding, and cut off pieces for my cross members. I only needed 5 4 inch lag screws, some self tapping roofing screws, and 15 feet of 10 gauge copper wire. oh, and a balun of course. nice thing about the brick mold was that it was exactly two inches. So, I added a reflector using display board and aluminum foil. good enough for my attic! again, nice job! I enjoyed it.
For insulating material consider a plastic cutting board from the dollar store near you.
Dear Brent, I believe there are a few things that you could do that will absolutely increase the strength, it would be the bolts should be insulated from the elements also the crossed wires should be separated maybe to a least 1" apart and last but not the least important is that the wires to the Balun Transformer should not be close to the metal frame. These things that should be corrected WILL cause interference and distortion to the signal. Check your strength meter before and try correcting these things and let us know how it does on the meter. I have seen where the wires of the Balun with the insulation on touching the element and it weakened the signal badly and pulling the wire away from the Element increased the strength to where it should be. Hold your elements on by Hot glue so you can remove the bolts and then test the Strength of the signal.
Great video Mr. Brent, thanks. One small possible problem are the connections where copper and aluminum meet. Over time, the joint will corrode due to electrolysis, especially in wetter regions. There are commercial, grease-like products you can apply to the contact area. The easiest, longer term solution would be to use aluminum wire. Just my 2 cents : >). Thanks again!
it would be better to use solid copper wire for the whole job..soldered together. and in the plastic why not drill two holes ...after drilling drill two shallow larger holes to sink the screws in the plastic and cover with silicone .. check out deep south videos ....Danny Hodge is a antenna guru he has a channel on here
Brent, this is one cool antenna you have made. Would you give us some information on the performance from the unit Sir ?? Thanks
Did you notice any increase in range with a reflector ??? Thanks
I apologize for being so critical of your project because clearly you take pride in your work and you spared no expense. A little constructive criticism would have been far more appropriate.
Yes metal and plastic is the way to go. Otherwise the moisture in wood can attenuate the signal
by grounding the signal or shorting it to another signal.
A simple Tip:
Here is a tip for you and others who want to build a bowtie antenna like this:
We are dealing with radio frequency energy, not DC current. So it is not very right to believe that
wires can be close but not touch. Close wires are like a capacitor, and the radio currents short right
through the insulation. I would keep the signals at least 1/4" away from each other.
In your bowtie the potential problem occurs in two places:
1. Where the lead wires cross over: You should have a spacing of about 1/4" to 1/2" gap between wires
at the crossover point. Raise one of the wires over the other 1/4" or more.
2. Where the element bolts pass beside the metal beam: The bolts are so close to the metal that there is likely
some RF shorting of the radio signal between the element and the beam causing attenuation (even though
the bolts are not touching).
Your construction is so neat and sturdy. Good going.
Not really. Not wood. Depending on what kind of wood and how much moisture it really doesn't make much difference what makes a difference, is the distances. Any dielectric between two metal plates, will cause a capacitive reactance. While you're antenna itself, well act as an inductive reactance circuit. Combine you get Xc trying to match Xl. You can figure out the math through any app that in a tuning circuit, show you the reactants values, and combined with frequency mathematically, you can make it hum, or in parlance, react. Mathematically, I squared some values, LOL just doubles others. Some others, I left same. Well if Sam worded this is between the two points in dipoles, Square lengths oh, and just doubled widths. You can play around and charm them yourself. But remember, wavelength wavelength wavelength. Reactance reactance reactance. I live in Langhorne Pennsylvania, apply the highest point between New York and Philadelphia. Equidistant between
The Finish equidistant between Trenton New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I'm pretty high up. With my antenna about 25 feet off the ground, I got 107 channels. That's without a Balun.
Is today July 25th 2020 come on going to produce another design in the yagi Forum, that will produce about (GUESSING)125 channels. That is an estimate. Will be using a Transformer balun, also less connections in the coax, and more tailored to wavelength. I'll get in about 125 channels, but then how many getTV broadcast channels do you need?🤣😅
Those fairly thick plastic cutting boards are a good plastic to use.
obviously its works, surprised works as it was built no mention of a reflector even by the comments from i just watched this 3 years later
Ive been considering doing something with my current average aerial. I didnt make it, all i could think about was WHY, am i so bored, great excuse to head out and buy a new one, YAWN, cheers.
One of the best builds for this type antenna like you would buy not do it yourself. The advantage is your antenna stands the chance of surviving in rain,wind and sun so many are way to flimsy to have a life outside also the signal should be better. Joints on these antennas are always a problem because of oxidation.
thenet0120002 ...thanks man! Yeah, it’s been up there for a good 4 years now in the Texas heat and still going strong. I figure when it finally fails I’ll just have a good time making another one...improved with a lot of the comments on the video here.
Nice video I just found your video on my phone how does it work yet today do you need a reflector
You should always show how many channels you get and the reception the end game on these builds. Nice build but missing the result how good in use is it. A picture answers that.
How did you calculate element length and phasing distance?? Also you are using a 4.1 balum 300 to 75 ohm, wondering how you calculated impedience? Thanks
I couldn't find the question, so I will ask: You stated it picked up 40 some channels inside? The important thing is how far from the broadcast antennas are you? Range does matter on these antennas, whether a booster is required. I also agree with some of the other comments, aluminum and copper have strange properties. They will have electrolysis happen when connected to unlike metals. It is a small static discharge that will eat through the metal over time.
Matt Hargrove...yeah, I really should have used aluminum wire. Oh well...I’ll use it on the next one when this one fails. It’s been mounted up on my roof now for about 2 years and it’s still going strong. Also, yes, after I first built it I hooked it up inside my house and got LOTS of channels. I’m about 28 miles from the majority of the broadcast sites in my area. Thanks so much for the comment!
Excellent instructions, Brent
That's Really Cool ! I tried one similar and works excellent except unless I tilt it a little more toward the sky I can't get ION or it's trail stations so maybe I'll try one like yours.
@mdr ramrod...VHF television broadcast stations are around 200Mhz. So I just used an antenna length calculator that I found on the internet to calculate the length of a quarter wave dipole antenna for 200Mhz.
+mdr ramrod Well thanks for the compliment! Yeah...mine works VERY well. My house is approx 30 miles from the majority of our local broadcast locations. I have the antenna mounted up on my roof and facing the location of those broadcast towers and my signal is very strong.
I think it would work well for you...especially if you're in an area that doesn't have any major terrain between you and the broadcast towers.
I would have used screws or used a tap on the plastic, definitely get the transformer wire away from the aluminum back, the last point is that the connections are copper, aluminum and steel, it will corrode very quickly.
I wouldn't attach the VHF elements to the UHF ones though.
Looks great but copper would make better elements. Easier to bend without breaking and no bimetallic corrosion where your elements touch your 14 gauge wire ( could solder )
Charles Tait GREAT THOUGHT!! I just might try that on my next one. The copper might be a tad more expensive...but probably not much since they're relatively small gauge. Thanks for the comment!!
I have seen a video using just Clothes hanger wire. I have a roll of 1/8th inch Galvanized Fencing wire. would that work just as well.?
harriscreekcentral Yeah...that may work just fine! Give it a shot and let me know. Thanks!!
Copper is not the way to go on an antenna. Remember, these usually are made to be outside in the weather and the wind there can bend copper tubing pretty darn easily. Me, I would not recommend copper, myself. Soldering the joints is easy enough to do with the 14 ga galvanized metal. Home Depot usually sells 6' rods of this stuff in a 50 pack for abut $17.99 dollars where they stock the drop ceiling materials in their stores. It is used for tie downs in dropped ceilings, but is found where the foam ceiling pieces are located there and not in the section where you will find Armstrong ceiling tiles and such.
@Kim if the whiskers are 4 inches from the reflector the birds can find a easier place to land
Thank you for clarifying the "HD" naming; I was suspecting that. One reason for such naming is to confirm use while another is pure marketing hype.
Do you have a listing of the various nuts, washers and bolt sizes you used in this build? It would make going to the box store easier for picking them up without guessing. Thanks.
a1930ford ...so yeah...major fail on my part for not giving those details...and now it’s been so long since I built it I can’t remember. I want to say that everything was 1/4 inch and varying lengths. I know that’s not very helpful...sorry, but the lengths are not really all that important obviously. Good luck with your build!! Send me a pic when you’re done...I’d love to see it.
I was wandering around the lumber dept. of the local Menards big box and saw a piece of vinyl about 1-1/4" or 1-1/2" square x 8 or 12 ft long for under $7.00. Much cheaper than HDPE.
Reporposed plastic cutting board material could also be used for the insulators.
Excellent thoughts good goat and Richard.
This is actually very, very cheap and the plastic cutting board can be easily glued together to make different sizes and shapes. I did this all the time in making GoPro camera mounts for my motorcycle sidecar rig. The Dollar Store or even Walmart has an endless variety of sizes and thicknesses to choose from and they are indeed cheap and easy to cut.
For insulators.....cut up plastic milk jugs and place in a Teflon coated pan. Heat to melt at 350 degrees in oven. Let cool and cut to what ever shape you like.
Awesome
Wow, looks better than anything I could buy! Does it make any difference where the VHF dipole sits in the antenna? I would think moving it up (top) and away from the bowties would prevent any interference between the them.
Bud E ...I would say moving them definitely wouldn’t hurt anything, and like you said, it may even help. Thanks for the comment!
Steel and aluminum should never be in contact with one another, as galvanic reaction (corrosion) will take place, especially when moisture is present.
The construction looks very nice, much better than the designs attaching everything to a board.
Was noticing that. It looked like stranded aluminum wire.
It looks beautiful but 26 miles is nothing. How does this perform on more distant tv signals?
Dawns SillyMan hey there! I honestly couldn’t say. Those are the furthest transmission sites I have from me without going to like 80 miles...and I’ve honestly never even pointed it that direction. I would say if you added some type of reflector to the back side of the antenna it should easily reach out to 50 miles or more...but truly is just a guess. Could be less could be more.
@@k5btr - With a reflector, 50 miles is a good guess. For an 80 to 100 mile deep fringe antenna, I'd recommend a Yagi style antenna. The RCA ANT3038XR antenna is a great one.
What's the reason that you didn't show the actual effects of this antenna on your TV?
Where the beam and nuts and washers are so close, just drill or rout out about a 5/8" to 3/4" hole, plenty of room, very nice looking antenna, regards
LLuE88 oh yeah!...another very good idea!! Thanks!
Nice job , but you need to add a reflector on the back of antenna. Like fence wire. It not only reflects fm. Signials but it also increases the range of your antenna. It will pull in more channles ...
Not always true.
It all depends on what direction the RF signals are coming from.
The reflector acts like a stop sign and heavily attenuates signal coming from the side where the reflector is *behind* the elements. So if you have towers on that side? Chances are you won't get signal from them unless they're very close or you get bounce back off large objects (buildings, mountains, etc) as the signal goes past your antenna and returns on that bounce.
I believe you have an Impedience mismatch using.the 4 to 1 Balun , .Matching Transformer. Did you use an ,Anetenna tunner to measure SWR?? I LIKE THE CONSTRUCTION, BUT DONT BELIEVE YOUR PHASING OR IMPEDIENCE
IS NEAR OPTIMUM PERFORMANCE.
do you know what part number is ?
Good video Thanks
Nice build but I would have put the VHF on end separate from the UHF with it's own transformer. Then connected them both to a preamp booster.. just saying.
Ronald Towe ...not a bad idea. Next time I build one I just might try that. Thanks!
Why do the wires have to Criss cross in both places?
It's dictated by antenna theory Christina. The engineers found it to be the best way to do it. www.onetransistor.eu/2015/01/gray-hoverman-wideband-vhf-uhf-antenna.html
Maybe heat the aluminum with a torch so it don't break when bending......just a thought.
what length are the aluminum rods cut to? (for bowtie elements)
12 inches
I also have to tell you that copper and aluminum do not like each other there will be corrosion over time especially out in weather.
Well...it's been 5 years up on my roof and it's still kicking. You're right though...it will eventually corrode, but then I just get the fun of building another one! :) Thanks for watching!!
In the Hoverman design you don't need wire to connect everything together.
Or maybe you should have routed the grooves before you cut the plastic into sections.........
nice antenna but not good ,,vhf in the middle you loose reception,,need be separated and put on top by it self,, need be 2 antenna in one..........put reflector on the back
if not close to station.....vhf needs its own reflector small
Good information, thanks
I did not think we were using the VHF frequencies for TV anymore.
countryside Well...I guess maybe it depends on your location...but in the San Antonio TX area we still have two stations in the vhf band....9 and 12. I thought this would be the case no matter where you were in the US...but I could definitely be wrong.
Grand Rapids Michigan has 5 stations on VHF, with one on VHF-Lo (real channels 5, 7, 8, 11, and 13). Chicago has CBS on real channel 12, and a Class A (low power TV station that is offered protection from interference) on real channel 4. Milwaukee Wisconsin has an independent on real channel 5 (this station is licensed to Fond Du Lac, which is actually licensed to the Green Bay market, but somehow, the FCC allowed for this station to be moved into the Milwaukee market), and both PBS stations sharing real channel 8 (the second PBS station, which used to be on real channel 35, was sold in the reverse auction, and Milwaukee PBS moved the programming to their VHF channel). Philadelphia has stations on real channels 6 and 12. Down the line, if anymore UHF channels get eliminated, you may start seeing more stations being forced to move to 2 to 6, where most TV stations have had trouble reaching most viewers in the digital era. For 2 to 6, you need the old fashioned element type outdoor antennas, and maybe a pre-amplifier to get those stations. I was lucky to get CBS from Chicago on real channel 3, prior to June 12th 2009.
countryside - In East Tennessee / Western North Carolina area we have in use these physical (actual) VHF channels: 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 13.
Here in Corpus the major networks are VHF@@k5btr
@@brucebeverly2629 yeah north of knoxville we got a mixed bag as well
Yak-yak-yak
Dude I spent 28 minutes and never saw a picture quality.......................
The word is ALUMINIUM!!!
In Texas, we remove that last "I" and that makes it easier to say. :)
No such thing as hd antennas
Antenna snob lol...
Omg
Wow way to show how not to do it!
That is a shit antenna, just wait until all those different metals do their thing along with oxidation. Enjoy it while it lasts.
GhettoRanger ...Thank you Mr. Ray of Sunshine for your extremely helpful constructive criticism. If it’s any consolation, I did do a LITTLE research to try and select metals that wouldn’t be quite so reactive with one another...but I know it will fail some day. At that point...I’ll just spend another $30 and have the fun of building another one. Right now I’m about two years in and it’s still going strong. All of this said though...something tells me you weren’t one of my “thumbs up”. :)
@@k5btr You're welcome, I'm just trying to save someone time and trouble down the road. I don't suppose in your "research" you saw any reference to copper oxidation when exposed to the elements, that is why Danny Hodges and anyone else with experience solders all connections.
GhettoRanger ...hmmm...soldering the connections...now see, THAT is good feedback...and a good idea. I knew there had to be more to your vocabulary. I don’t think in my video I ever claimed that this was the best antenna ever built or that it would last 10 years. Just a fun little project that has much to be perfected.
Satisfaction in building something and getting use out of it is priceless to some. I get it some don't. @@k5btr
Looked like stranded aluminum wire to me. I couldn't see the print in the spool.
Great antenna. I struggled through this video until 19:23. You repeat yourself so many times i couldnt take it anymore. Long, boring, repetative, ( all metals.com. i know, i know!) and just to hard to push through it. Next one, cut to the chase.
Try listening to "that other guy" ! Brent done a great job explaining everything.