If they are Cushcraft yagis, just cleaning the surface may not be enough. I brought my antennas out of storage only to find that they had strange patterns and high reflected power. Someone was kind enough to suggest that I check for corrosion in the sleeve at the middle of each director and the reflector. While each element appears to be at solid rod with a sleeve at the mounting point, it is actually two rods crimped together by the sleeve. That was the problem, and I have not been able to find a solution. I started over and built my own antennas out of old television antenna elements using the Cushcraft booms and driven elements. I used the W7RAI program for Yagi design. My system is not pretty, but it appears to do the job better than the pretty but corroded mess I had.

Check your patterns with a field strength meter, and check for reflected power. If there are other solutions, I would like to hear them.

Leroy, W5VG AMSAT #2916

-----Original Message----- From: w6zkh@comcast.net [mailto:w6zkh@comcast.net] Sent: Thursday, July 09, 2009 7:05 AM To: amsat-bb Subject: [amsat-bb] Cleaning oxidation from antenna

Recently picked up 2 yagi's that were near coastal locations, and the boom and elements are oxidized. What is the best method to clean this? Just 'good ole elbow grease and Scotchbrite pad' or something else. Nothing seems to be pitted or deteriorated, just "ugly".

John W6ZKH

_______________________________________________ Sent via AMSAT-BB@amsat.org. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb