Re: Counterbalance weight on antenna rotator? (Bob Hammond)

My antennas are mostly "center" mounted because of their length and are pretty well balanced as a result. For antennas rear mounted to the cross boom, a length of tubing extending in the opposite direction from the antennas could be used with an adjustable weight that can be positioned to achieve the correct balance. The idea of a counter balance weight is interesting, but the antennas present a variable load depending upon the elevation. The weight on the cable presents a constant load independent of the elevation. Worse yet, I use a flip mode tracking that resolves the issue of having the satellite path cross the stops of the azimuth rotor and having to rotate the antennas 360 degrees to continue tracking the satellite. But this requires 180 degree movement of the elevation rotor. The weight on a cable would then add to the weight of the antennas which would make the problem worse and make the elevation rotor work twice as hard. See a picture of my home satellite installation on qrz.com by looking up N7JK. Using an opposing counterbalance weight mounted opposite the antennas can essentially change the function of the elevation rotor to being simply a positioning device if the array is properly balanced. John Kopala N7JK ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1 Date: Sat, 5 Oct 2019 10:28:21 -0700 From: Bob Hammond [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [amsat-bb] Counterbalance weight on antenna rotator? Message-ID: CAKoB7OraohpJPFc1rQdu5_mxsY7jzAQAS7BBn7MJwjrkvR23VQ@mail.gmail.com Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8"

What do all think of this idea? Pictured is a trial weight (20 lbs). I envision using stainless steel cable instead of the nylon rope for security and safety. As the antenna crossboom is rotated, the rope unwinds.

Bob W7OTJ :56 AM Bob Hammond [email protected] wrote:

Do a lot of you, or all, use a counterbalance weight on your elevation rotor? If so, how did you implement it?

I have 3 antennas (2M, 70cm, 23cm) on my cross boom and want to reduce the load on the Yaesu rotor so it lasts longer.

73s,

Bob W7OTJ