Thunderpole Tank Whip

[HotWheels]

Anyone tried or using a Thunderpole Tank Whip?

I was thinking of getting one for static dx if they are any good or should I stick to my Sirio 4000 Megawatt...

Obviously they are only good for static dx'ing on the hills what I'm after really...

any help gratefully received..

Andy

[jaybranch]

I'e heard great things about these.... maybe someone who actually has one can confirm though!

[forager]

Do a search for tank whip, there is loads of info on this forum! I've a sirio hp 4000, i've done a test and the tank whip performed better by an s point or so. Worth getting though in my opinion, nothing much can go wrong, just a 2 piece section, bulletproof, cheap enough too . . hth

[26FB156]

I have one but i haven't had an opportunity to use it yet. It comes in 2 sections and is definately a static mobile only aerial.

[076DX]

They can be a bitch to swr on magmounts.
Don't expect it to blow your 4000 outta the water coz it won't.

The 4000 are a very good antenna....

[Corblimeyguvnar]

'Tank' whips are a good bit of kit, mine was from Capital, around £15.

No problem on the mag mount, but as stated, not a huge difference from the 4000.

[Adriano9966]

I have two of these but I will agree with the above posts about it being a static only antenna it would work mobile too but it would need to be mounted low down on the vehicle say for example the back bumper bit of a drag factor though

static mobile personally I think it takes some beating as most mobile antennas for 27mhz are based on a full quarter wave anyway
if your using it for hf ham radio as well as cb its probably a good idea to replace the top section for other bands eg carry three with you for 12/11/10 metres dont know how it would work on 15 but I cant see why not

when its mounted on the cars roof dont be surprised if you get funny looks from people in passing cars due to its enormous lenth

I have had some real success with this antenna and I would reccomend it

[Mudslinger]

Mine SWR's ok on a magmount as well. The SWR is very flat across 27Mhz

Performance wise, I can't tell any difference between it and my Modulator.

[northern35s]

The best bang for buck for a commercial mobile antenna, cheap as chips, and mine has worked fine on the roof of my car, I initially had it on a Wilson mag without problem at speeds up to 40 Mph.

The 1/4WL whip has a better current distribution than a base loaded whip, however if we insert a high Q coil into the centre of the antenna we can raise the current further up the antenna, by doing this we move it away from the lossy earth as the antenna capacitively couples to the bodywork of the vehicle and the ground around it, the further we can move the current away from this the better, see images below.

Base loaded vertical



1/4WL vertical



Centre loaded vertical



The best form of loading is via a capacity hat, where we can create an almost linear capacity distribution along the whole length of the antenna, but capacity hat and mobile antenna don't often go hand in hand, that said, I've driven with a rather large capacity hat atop my screwdriver and 5' whip

The best place to mount the antenna is in the centre of the roof, any part of the antenna that is shrouded by the vehicle ie. when mounted on the boot or bumper, becomes inefficient and increases ground plane losses.

A whole shed load of info here:

http://www.k0bg.com/

[t140pete]

Does a capacity hat change the resonant frequency of the antenna ? (i.e. would the whip need shortening to accommodate the extra electrical length ?)

I may have to experiment

[freelander2]

They can be a bitch to swr on magmounts.

Mine is a bit of a git to SWR on my magmount on a freelander, still not got it right, but my mates, on a landy series 3 works VERY well indeed.

As stated, can't knock it for the price, certainly worth a squirt.

[northern35s]

Does a capacity hat change the resonant frequency of the antenna ? (i.e. would the whip need shortening to accommodate the extra electrical length ?)

I may have to experiment

Yes, remove the upper whip completely, If I fit my large cap hat to the lower section of the tank whip it is resonant across 11m, in fact it is very wide band, which is another characteristic of a cap hat, it isn't the most mobile antenna with the cap hat fitted, as my cap hat is made from two twisted strands of solid copper wire (lighting cable stripped and twisted), it's good for 40 Mph though.

Pic below is my tank whip lower section and cap hat mounted on top of my screwdriver antenna, this is my mobile 40m special

[26TM944]

Greetings.

I have the Roadking (2 piece version) and that works a treat on the hatch mount when static mobile. I've not yet tested on the mag mount, but I don't think they'll be much in the two mount as the hatch mount is at the top of the tail gate at the back and the mag mount would live about 10" forward of that.

SWL across the bands is well within 1:1.3 for most of a megahertz centred around 27.5.

I would say that the stinger and modulator are both beaten by this 102" whip - however it is not very practical mobile! I can image taking a lot of car parking florescent tubes out with this

Many years ago when I was *younger* I had an Avanti Powerstick - the white 102" solid whip - not the one with the tunable top end - and it was great - but can I find it now? Not a chance.

I used that mobile all the time on the boot of my mk2 escort!

73

Steve
26TM944

[076DX]

The best 'all round' antenna imo is the Predator 10-k which I use.
I have done side by side tests with the tankwhip and no difference.

Mine is the big single coil version and i've tested it out against various antennas with a mate parked up beside me.

The good thing about it is the low swr and fantastic bandwidth,will work from low 26 right into 10 meters with no adjustment.
Will also take serious amounts of power if you are that way inclined

Definately another 'static mobile' antenna though as it's a beast.
Here's mine and this morning I was the only one out of England working Australia on 11 meters-
I'm 6ft2 so you can see how big it is.

[StoatTB]

I think you'd be hard pressed to get a loaded antenna to outperform a full length quarter wave.