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Author Topic: Paint on a yagi  (Read 929 times)

N2SR

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #15 on: December 11, 2022, 04:29:52 PM »

fluorescent orange
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KF5KWO

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #16 on: December 12, 2022, 05:18:10 AM »

I put self-etching primer on my MFJ Moxon (aluminum elements) then spray painted it a dark olive green that I got from Lowe’s, one of the camo blends. The antenna is out there in the trees. We have fairly good concealment from the street, but that aluminum would have stuck out immediately.
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KK4GMU

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #17 on: December 12, 2022, 01:08:32 PM »

Did the self-etching primer create an even flatter, less visible effect than just flat paint alone would?
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KF5KWO

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #18 on: December 12, 2022, 05:17:15 PM »

@KK4GMU - the primer was to provide a good surface for the olive drab paint to adhere to. Primer was white or gray, can’t remember exactly. Before applying the primer, I sanded the aluminum elements of the antenna to help the primer adhere to it. The aluminum has a shiny sheen to it before sanding. After that, a coat of the primer or two, dry overnight, then the olive drab spray paint.
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GEORGEMINK

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #19 on: December 17, 2022, 03:12:44 PM »

Flat battle ship grey is quite effective. (Krylon)

Just a follow up. I painted my 20' vertical today using the camo paint I already had on hand. It helped with the glare and shine of the bare metal but appears really dark against the sky. I imagine that it will not be seen now at night and is a little less obvious during the day but I think the suggestion of battle ship grey is probably spot on. So I'll try that next weekend and report back.
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KC3TEC

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #20 on: December 27, 2022, 06:14:12 PM »

If your paint contains metal such as lead it may affect the propagation a little but not by much.
If you are running a boatload of power the paint may melt or smoke a lot.
That would certainly attract unwanted attention.
The problem with coats of paint is the tend to hold in heat a bit.
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WA8NVW

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #21 on: December 29, 2022, 02:07:52 PM »

Camo paint or fabric is intended to hide reflections from shiny stuff under a tree canopy.  Back even before the turn of the century, manufacturers of commercial two-way vertical antennas inside fiberglass radomes determined that a light creamy-blue was the color least likely to contrast and stand out against the sky as a background.
White jacketed #18 to #12 stranded wire is hardest for the HOA folks to find against a bright sky.  For hiding rigid antenna elements or structure, dull the (aluminum) metal surface with steel wool, then apply a coat of light sky blue latex paint.  It's non-conductive and does not smoke, burn, or melt.  No, we as consumers generally cannot buy lead based paints any more.
« Last Edit: December 29, 2022, 02:18:31 PM by WA8NVW »
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AA4HA

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #22 on: January 11, 2023, 07:53:24 AM »

One of the best I have seen for low-visibility is a powder-blue/grey paint with a flat finish.

We sometimes use it on radomes for microwave antennas when they are backed by the open sky. There are some colinears (fiberglass vertical stick) antennas that also use that color. A few times when refurbishing a site I would have them lower the antenna down so we could hand sand and refinish the fiberglass surface (also clear any drain weep holes and give a good scrub on the type-N connector to remove butyl tape residue.) I would just run down to the local hardware store and find a few rattle cans of flat blue/grey or our guys would have some extras on their truck.

(that was also a good time to sweep the antenna, colinear omni's have a terrible problem with lightning strikes blowing open the antenna in the middle of the stacked elements and the gain disappears or the antenna pattern turns in to a cloud-burner).

Of course, if your antenna is down in the trees than something that blends in with that particular background.

As far as painting goes; From a work perspective where we are constantly putting up Yagi antennas one of the nicer finishes is a powder coat black. The antenna works just fine through the finish and the flat black color seems to have some added benefit of letting the antenna warm up slightly in the sunlight to melt off any frost or ice. (Yagi antennas loose their Yagi-ness when ice builds up)
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GEORGEMINK

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Re: Paint on a yagi
« Reply #23 on: January 11, 2023, 09:24:03 AM »

One of the best I have seen for low-visibility is a powder-blue/grey paint with a flat finish.

Blue/grey was the same conclusion I came too and will try it out. Since I have not received any negative feedback from my neighbors or HOA after putting up the 19' vertical on my privacy fence I've decided to take it down and put up a 25' support and run a 84' end fed to it in a slopper configuration. I purchase grey wire and paracord for the job. I think that will be as stealthy as I'm going to get.
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