Identifying Antennas

[W9GB]

I thought the early HyGain TH-3 used an element/boom style like in photo.

List of old Wilson antennas that will become new Comet models.
http://cometantennas.net/Products.html

eMail: tom@cometantennas.net
Phone: 815-244-3500

[K9XR]

Yep it did, but it had 4 traps per elament and used that type of split element for all of the elements including the parasitics. I was referring to the driven element clamps with the insulators. In one of the pictures you can see the bracket that uses U-clamps to hold a complete element to the Bracket.

[N7YMW]

The driven element is like a stamped clamshell piece that goes around the boom then the driven elements slide into that and get clamped in. I just found pictures of it at the old house from when they had the crane take it down. It appears to have a smaller non trapped 5th element about 3/4 of the distance between the reflector and driven element. I'm looking at pictures of a wilson SY-1 and it appears to be that, doesn't explain the hygain balun though. The vertical appears to be above the beam on the end of the mast.

[W9GB]

Mark -

Most amateurs in Midwest, in this era (1960s), either bought Hy-Gain (Lincoln, NE) or Mosley (St. Louis).
Your description of 5 elements sounds like the Hy-Gain TH-5, but that boom is 2" tube and 19 feet long -- and you stated ~ 25 foot boom.
That antenna went through revisions and upgrades (at least 2) over the past 50 years, BUT that feed system looks like some Hy-Gain antennas.

IF you measure the tubing sizes and full lengths used for elements and boom,
that should decide if it is a Wilson or Hy-Gain.
You can also count the number of traps in REFLECTOR, TH-5 had 2.
Hy-Gain also used damper ropes in some tubes, in their later designs.

[K9XR]

Maybe the fifth element is a reflector for either 15 or 10 but most likely for 10 to give it a little better f/b on 10. A lot of the Hy-Gain Antennas did that also. Yep the Clamshell and the insulators look very much like a Hy-Gain driven element set-up. Back in thos days about the only two baluns around were the Hy-Gain BN-86 and the Unadilla, which was mostly thought of as a center insulator for a dipole. Most guys didn't even use them. We either just rolled a bunch of coax up or if you were adventurous Yould make a split coaxial balun. They worked pretty well and didn't break very often.

The driven element is like a stamped clamshell piece that goes around the boom then the driven elements slide into that and get clamped in. I just found pictures of it at the old house from when they had the crane take it down. It appears to have a smaller non trapped 5th element about 3/4 of the distance between the reflector and driven element. I'm looking at pictures of a wilson SY-1 and it appears to be that, doesn't explain the hygain balun though. The vertical appears to be above the beam on the end of the mast.

[K9XR]

Greg, I'm sure it isn't a Hy-Gain because of the one-piece reflectors and directors. The Hy-Gain antennas use the Clamshell brackets for all elements, not just the driven element. Also the Hy-Gain Driven Elements (The TH-5 had two) had 4 traps on each element. PS I wish I could type faster.

[N7YMW]

Here's the picture I found. Looks very much like an SY1. Directions to the house always ended with "look for the tower"

tower_with_antennas+2.jpeg

[N7YMW]

Ok, found the SY1 manual at BAMA. It's an SY1, measurements I took off the elements match what's in the manual. I found the 5th element (good movie btw), so looks like it's missing the little angle bracket/guy support for the boom. I'm sure that the cable is coiled up around here somewhere in a box. I'm also trying to find the rotator, found the controller. It's a CDE CD44.