| WB7VTY |
Rating:  |
2022-04-18 | |
| Excellent Mast |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
These masts are great if used as intended. As one reviewer put it, they arent towers. They cant be beat for the price. I have had the same 20 foot jackite for 7 years now. I wouldnt hazard a guess as to how many times Ive used it for SOTA, POTA, Field Day, or other portable operations, but a ton when you add them all up. The antennas that I use on it are a roll up J-Pole for 2 meters, and a couple of different end fed wires. Usually these are suspended from the top section and it handles it fine. For heavier antennas I will hang them from the next section down. The only aspect of the pole that isnt ideal for some purposes is that it is still just shy of 4' long when collapsed, but I have had it strapped to my pack in brush and its not terrible. Just something to be aware of. The only problem I have had with it was my own doing. At one point I broke the plastic bottom cap off of it but a trip to the hardware store to get a piece of PVC Pipe, a PVC Cap, and some silicone sealant, took care of that. The PVC pipe slipped over the bottom of the mast perfectly and is held in place by silicone sealant. Then the PVC cap over the end of the PVC pipe is also siliconed in place. In the end the PVC was a better solution anyway as its now much stronger on the bottom. I guy it at the top of the bottom section just using braided surveyor / masons line you can buy at almost any home improvement store. That stuff works great, its plenty strong, small, light, and you can get 500 feet of it for about 10 bucks. With that setup I can have the jackite ready to support an antenna in about 2 minutes. So, after 7 years of use and abuse, its still going and works perfectly. You cant beat it for the money. One suggestion... do something to make the top cap captive so you dont loose it if it pops off. I attached a tether to the cap and then attached the tether to the mast with some heat shrink tubing. The cap comes off pretty easy and this keeps you from loosing it. The jackite has enabled many many hours of portable radio fun.
73
Joe
WB7VTY |
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| KC7JNJ |
Rating: |
2018-07-05 | |
| Love them |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| It is not a tower guys. These are for light wire antennas. I have had one of these on the peak of my roof for five years. I have a ultiamax DX 100 running up it vertically. It has servived 50mph winds and very very hot summers and cold winters. I have another one I use in the park, I ground stake and run my par end fed tri bander up it. I run a 13ft fishing pole I ground stake and run the tri bander from the top of this over to the top of my 28ft jackite pole. Both have worked well for a long time. |
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| K8JHR |
Rating: |
2012-07-10 | |
| Excellent |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I use two 30 foot Jackite fiberglass poles to support a wire loop receiving antenna in the back yard. They have stood up to the searing heat, and bitter cold, and huge temperature swings of the SW Michigan climate, which ranges from 110 degrees F hot in the summer, to 15 degrees below 0 F cold in the winter, with plenty of wind, rain, snow, and humidity along the way.
Very flexible, light weight, and easy to deploy. If I was a QRP guy, I would have one to support light wire antennas in the field. They collapse to around 4 feet in length, and are easily and quickly telescoped to full length. I applied some electrical tape on the joints, for extra grip, and they have been up for nearly 6 years now, with no issues, and no required maintenance, and they still look pretty good with low UV damage so far.
For around a $1 a foot, you cannot go too far wrong with these nice fiberglass poles.
Just My take... // James - K8JHR // |
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| KJ5XX |
Rating: |
2011-07-05 | |
| Great construction, Great price |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
First, I have to say that at least one of the reviews on here is really a review of the seller where the Jackite pole was purchased, and not of the Jackite mast itself. If you have a bad experience with a retailer, this is not the place to give a review unless the retailer and manufacturer are one and the same.
That said, I purchased my Jackite 31' mast off eBay, and had the mast in 4 days.
I purchased to construct my own version of the popular "ZeroFive" verticals. I was really pleased with the sturdy construction, and how easily the mast went up and down. It gets pretty windy here in North Texas and the Jackite seems to just flex and take the wind well. As others have mentioned, these masts are designed to fly windsocks, so you wouldn't want to put something up that is going to cause a heavy wind load.
I also live in a CC&R community and plan on putting this antenna up when I'm operating and down when I'm not. I've mounted it to a 3' section of 3" PVC, with a custom sleeve that narrows the 3" down to fit the diameter of the Jackite pole to provide better support at the top of my antenna support. The bottom of the PVC has a 3" PVC end cap with 3' section of 3/8" rod that is then pushed into the ground. The perfect support for portable operation, and gives me the flexibility to easily put the antenna up and take it down - a 30 second operation.
The price is also right. I paid $60 on eBay from "OneStickyBeak". Fast service. (just a comment on the seller - not a review ;) ). |
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| KA2QWC |
Rating: |
2010-03-24 | |
| ok |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
These mast do have there place for portable communcation however, they are not that robust.
Your money is better spent by investing in a few "LongJohn" Painter poles available at Home Depot or Lowes. Although they are only 24' extended and 8' collapsed they are far superior in construction and load bearing. |
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| KE4NU |
Rating: |
2009-11-06 | |
| Up and On the Air quicky |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
| I needed a mast for portable deployment and this works good. I got mine off ebay for a good price. First, I tried my Par end fed antennas. Wow I was up and working dx in less than 3 min. I next put a homebrew slimjim for 2 mtrs on it. Fed with RG8X I was up in a minute or two hitting repeaters way out there. These poles are great for quick portable setups. You have to remember they will not hold much weight so keep it to a minimum. No heavy coax, baluns, I'd even use light wire if possible instead of 14 or 12 ga. The manufacturer recommends taking it down if the wind gets over 25mph. If I was to use it in a windy setting I'd reinforce it and guy it to prevent breakage...I'll be using mine next field day...just my 2 cents.. |
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| VE1VOX |
Rating: |
2009-08-24 | |
| Excellent! |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| I wanted a lightweight vertical for IOTA trips. Decided on the Jackite pole and bought one from the "biggest seller on ebay". Received it quick with no issues. Assembled the antenna winding 33' of wire on the 31' pole hooked to a 4:1 Unun with 6 counterpoises and VC1W was on 10m-80m with a tuner. (80m was a surprise) The pole is lightweight, quick to assemble, and has very little wind load. Although we used guys on the mast they would not have been needed, but we were flying a Jolly Roger and another flag. The plastic collar on the end is now cracked but is really of no concern as it is on the very bottom. The mast was beat around a bit on the voyage out to the island and over the rocks on the beach. I'll make a tube out of ABS pipe for the next trip. Be careful not to lose the top tip if you have a green mast. We nearly did when it slipped out into long grass when we were assembling the antenna. Overall an excellent product at a great price if you want a lightweight mast for a vertical. |
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| KY6R |
Rating: |
2009-02-20 | |
| Excellent - with a caveat |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
I bought 4 of these for antenna projects, but knowing that they will only take so much stress. With my projects, these are perfect. I take out the top element - so the poles are about 24' tall - and the tip is more "stout" when the last section is removed.
The first use was to hold up a K9AY set of loops. There was basically no real stress on the pole - since the wires just hang "lazily" down from the top. I made my own little plastic channels at the top at right angles to loop the wires through.
The second use is to use 4 of these for a 4 element Bruce Array. The 24' poles keep the bottom of the array 6' off the ground and the top of the array up at the 24' point. There will be some side stress - but not much, as I won't use really heavy wire - since I only run 200 watts.
These poles have a semi gloss or matte black finish - and they are unobtrusive and hide in my backyard between the trees. I set them on aluminum poles that go into the ground 2 feet and above ground about 18". I wrapped electrical tape at the top and bottom - so I don't expect any end splitting. |
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| former_WA6L_JG |
Rating: |
2008-10-06 | |
| Light duty is the key phrase |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I enjoy remote operation, and have tried a number of different options for antenna support. The Jackite sure appears to be a great solution. It is lightweight, easy to put up, and relatively inexpensive.
The problem is that the Jackite is just too flimsy for anything but the most serene weather conditions. This last weekend, during the California QSO Party, my second Jackite snapped in half after just two QSOs. Yes, there was wind blowing, but nothing extraordinary. It was a major disappointment after planning a county expedition for months.
My first Jackite suffered a similar fate. The only good news is that different sections broke on each pole, so I will be able to salvage one good Jackite out of the two I own.
I am sure that there are applications where this pole will work effectively and reliably. But if you are planning to use it for remote operation, you may want to look for something that holds up better in difficult conditions.
73,
John, WA6L |
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| K5RIX |
Rating: |
2008-09-23 | |
| Excellent light-duty support |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
I own a 28' Jackite pole. Its application is suspending the apex of a lower-corner-fed 30M equilateral delta loop made from 26 Ga Flexweave wire. The base is inserted in a socket of 2" PVC pipe sunk into the ground. The loop plane slopes at approximately 45 degrees down to the corners which are tied to 5' PVC masts, one of which supports the 300-ohm feedline.
The Jackite mast's flexible nature is very useful; moderate tension on the antenna wire keeps the mast slightly flexed which eliminates the need for any other wind-compensation devices and keeps the wire just taut enough. Each joint is secured with vinyl electrical tape, with a stainless steel hose clamp on each smaller diameter over the tape. The mast's flex also makes it easy to lift the extended mast out of the socket, so it can be laid down out of sight when I'm away.
Used within its limits, the mast has performed very well. The small diameter and black color make it very stealthy. For my delta loop, this product is almost perfect. I highly recommend it for similar applications. |
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