On Tue, 15 Dec 2009 08:46:03 -0500, PeterD wrote:

On Tue, 15 Dec 2009 01:38:43 -0500, mm
wrote:

1) I plan to bring the antenna into the attic, unfolded, of course.
For those who have seen one, or better yet, installed one, is it
possible with a Winegard antennas, or any other brand, to start with a
folded antenna, unfold an element a little bit, remove it completely,
and reattach it in the fully unfolded position? (I"m afraid they
might be riveted on, loose enough to open but able to be removed.)

All are riveted that I know of. So IMHO, no.

That makes sense. It's not a Tinker Toy, and one certainly doesn't
want it coming apart on top a mast. In fact, someone in NYC, on Fifth
Avenue was killed about 20 years ago when someone dropped a curtain
rod out of a window. I don't know how big the rod was, but I have the
image not that it hit him on the head but that it stabbed him.

For a LP antenna, each element is contributing signal. Other designs
vary. You probably would creat a slightly non-linear response removing
one elemement, but that's life. Could you bend the element a bit?

I suppose. It offends my sense of how one treats something new, but
these are only partly works of art. They're meant to do something.

If I broke an element, would a replacment have to have the same cross
section, or would anything the same length made out of the same
material (aluminum), work well?

3)I won't need an assistant for aiming because I have a co-ax splitter
in the attic, I'll bring a tv up, and I'll have RF remote control for
the DVDR tuner. So: Should I use a color tv, or is a (lighter) B&W
tv just as good?? ...

Use the largest, best TV possible.

Okay, I'll use color.

4) .... I'll certainly screw the connector on, but with weak
signals, like distant channels, does it matter if the connection is
tight?


It may help prevent oxidation and future bad contact.

Okay, I'll do that too.

I wonder why Meat Plow thinks I'm trolling. This antenna could
easily last me 30 years if I live so long. It's worth doing it right.

Thanks a lot.

Thanks again.