EASY UP MAST FOR CC&R HAMS

This is my third antenna article for eHam related to the antenna struggles of us homeowners bound by development CC&R's. Towers and beam antenna's are a NO-NO in our world and we need to make do with whatever radiator we can get away with. I have written about the decent qualities of properly installed attic dipoles (for stick built houses) and using rain gutters for working the low bands as a serious option. However, Mother Nature intended for antenna's to roam free and clear in the open spaces and this has been my goal for 4 years now, since I moved to the present QTH.

The development I live in is a series of connected Cul-De-Sacs where our small backyards all meet with each other. Mine is one of the best ones, fairly flat and about 55 wide x 25 feet deep from back of the house. Unfortuantely in new developments all the trees are taken down so all new ones are low and small, nothing to throw a wire up into. In the past I have installed my Cushcraft R5 in the backyard during the winter months and no one complained at all, and I would take it down in the Spring as I am paranoid of lightning from T-Storms. Living on top of a small mountain, lightning is a concern with a vertical.

As the Solar Cycle declines 20 meters is shutting down earlier and I depend on 40 meters more and more for DX. I have had success using a Van Gordon G5RV Junior antenna with its 52 foot flat-top in the past installed in my attic. A couple of years ago my XYL suggested we purchase a kids play house which is homemade from a set of plans you buy with all the wood. She also sold me on this as a potential base to mount an antenna, so off to work I went and Bob Villa would have been prood of me!

Last year it hit me to build and attach to this playhouse a simple wooden mast constructed of 3 - 2x4's each 10feet long. I would use a 10 foot long PVC pipe then attached to that via 2 large U-Bolts to reach a final height of 25 feet. I put an L-bracket on the top of the pipe with hose clamps and a pulley with rope and I had a short but solid mast to hold the center of my G5RV antenna. I sloped the 2 legs down to nearby trees and Bam! New aerial in the air, low but still in the clear and on top of a NJ mountain too boot!

So here it is, 2 digtital photos of my present installation. Antenna works VERY well on 20 & 40 meters with my rigs internal tuner, and my MFJ-949 external tuner gets me on the other bands. Its not a great performer on 15 meters compared to my attic dipole cut for that band, but does OK. On 20 no problems working DX and just last nite on 40 meter CW I worked 8Q7DV Maldives (that's an all time new one for me!) and 4X4FC in Israel. All with just 100 watts by the way. No neighbors are complaining of this contraption (at least not yet) so as long as it doesn't cause any rukus, its there for good.

I simply used galvanized deck screws for attaching the 2x4's together, drilled a few holes for the PVC pipe (rigid type, not the thin walled type) and put this together in about an hour. It was easy to drag up to the playhouse and mount via some 2 x 6 wooden brackets, also attached via deck screws. Has withstood 45 MPH gusts so far and hardly sways at all in a stiff breeze. I wish it was more like 35-40 feet high for 40 meters but I am not that brave to make such a big mast in this neighborhood.

So even though you may have to live with CC&R's, depending on your neighbors you may be able to get away with this mast/playhouse option to get an aerial up and in the clear. If so let me know how it turns out and see you on the low bands!

73's de N2LK