I can't believe it's almost been a month since I put it together.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_10_22/676926_TA_63_N_at_6__with_AA_170.html

Everything went smooth except for the truck getting stuck in my yard.  The ground was a lot softer than either of us thought.  

It does seem to work great.  I've only played with it for about 15 minutes so far.
ETA:  The more I play with it the better I like it!  Just worked XE1RZL in Mexico.  S2 noise and he was S5 pointing at him.  Rotated 90 degrees to the side and he is not there, gone in the noise.

The new antenna:


The readings are pretty good in the shack but a couple bands have the best SWR a little higher up in the band than I would have wanted, but the tuner takes care of it.


The electrician installing it:


His truck down in the ground:


He couldn't get out even though it was 4WD because the suspension was sitting on the ground.  My TRD Off-Road Tacoma dug all four wheels into the ground but there was no way it was moving that.  His buddies in his diesel Excursion pulled it out no problem though!
Here's the damage.  See that black Iowa topsoil I was telling you about?

Congrats.  Jealous!

Sorry about the yard, thats nothing compared to mess I have to fix.  Keep us updated.

That looks great!

You weren't kidding about the dark soil. Bummer he got stuck.  How much did he charge ?

Thanks guys!  No big deal about the yard, I told him he could drive there and I expected ruts, just got a little more than I was thinking.  He backed in with 2WD, and when he went to re-position all the damage started.  He switched to 4WD but the sod was already opened up which meant doom.

He charges $150 an hour for the boom truck plus travel one way.  Increments over an hour are at 1/2 hour, and counting travel from his shop it was 1 1/4 hours, so we'll see which way he goes.  He didn't get the coax balun exactly how I wanted it but it's pretty close and I'd say he does really good work.  Even with the ruts I'm certainly happy!

Looks Great!  I'm sure we will have a ton of fun with that puppy!

I'm really happy with this antenna after using it for a few hours.

I wish I knew exactly how it compared to the 1978 Hy-Gain TH3-Mk3 I had up there before, but that had to go because this replaced it.  They're both 3 element Yagis on 14' booms for 20-15-10 so no big difference there that I can tell, other than less F/B on this one, all as expected.  At 30' neither one seems to pull in the weak DX that more elements up higher could.  In other words, I still can't hear weak far Asian DX in the evening that the West Coast guys are spotting like XX9R in Macao.  The propagation just isn't there and this setup isn't a band opener.

On the WARC bands I can say this pulls in signals about 2 S units better than the Cushcraft D-3W dipole I had up there, which is what I'd expect.  That's the reason for the upgrade, gain on the WARC bands.  Super happy here.  

Overall signals seem to drop more off to the sides like the main lobe is narrower and stronger.  Again, I wish I could do an A-B test with my old stuff.  I seem to be working more weaker stations too.  Maybe just because I'm testing it out, but I think I'm seeing and working a lot more weak stations that I wouldn't have heard or tried to work before.  That's for certain on the WARC bands where I only had a dipole.

I'm also certain that DirtNasty will be SUPER pleased with his up higher than mine!

Looks great!

Great job. It's amazing what a difference a good antenna makes. It may not always seem as directional on RX as you would think but it's normal because signals come in at many different angles off the ionosphere. You'll notice a huge difference when you try to transmit.

Nice looking antenna.  Its up just in time for the CQ WWW SSB contest.

That ought to make for some fun times this weekend.

Thanks, and I believe you are correct, sir!  I've been blasting through pile-ups with ease.  Just worked the #1 CQ WW SSB Contest  Australia station in last year's contest and he took the time to tell me that I was a true S7.  

ETA:  Working them off the back of the beam instead of rotating so much now.  

I just saw VK9DLX spotted and worked them on 17M RTTY.  100% copy with DM780 too.  I know the bands are good but that wouldn't have happened in my wettest dream with my WARC dipole.  It has proven itself on the WARC bands!

Back to the SSB contest...

You need to stop.  You'll have me putting mine together and duct taping it up in a tree.  

I did just order a remote antenna switch.  Then I'll be able to do direct comparison with the OCF and the Mosley.  

Looks beautiful.  

My HOA would have a fit.  

You're talking to the guy that had his on a pipe 6 feet above the ground who ran outside to rotate it by hand just to try it out before finally installing it.  Still over 20 44 hours left in the contest so I suggest you go find your duct tape!  

I really wish I could have A-B compared all of my antenna upgrades over the past couple of years.  Each small increment has been a couple of S-units.  Looking forward to your report.

ETA:  Forgot it was a 2 day contest...

This weekend must be crazy with the new beam.  I'm sure it'd be easier to gauge without all the mayhem.

Nothing like a contest weekend to wring out a new antenna and see how it performs. 73, Rob

Jokes on you.  I thought you were coming in the morning to climb the tower and hang the beam?  

I wuz nevar invited.
Don't forget to install the rotator inside the top section first. This way you won't need to cut one of the Z rungs to install the rotator. Don't ask me how I learned this.

P.S. I just spent another $400 for a climbing safety harness and several lanyards. This hobby is turning into a money pit.

Very pleased with the Mosley and the contest was a great time to test it out.  Pretty sure this one will last me longer than the last few.


The ones that it replaced were installed in October 2013:
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_10_22/668755_I_love_my_new_Yagi____Now_with_WARC_Dipole_too_.html&page=1&anc=bottom#bottom


The antenna before that was installed in May 2012:
http://www.ar15.com/archive/topic.html?b=10&f=22&t=656929


Before that I had a Hustler 6BTV