As most of my friends in NARS know, I have been using a Hustler 6BTV multi-band vertical for the past 2 and a half years. It is concealed inside a long piece of PVC pipe configured as a flagpole. An ugly flagpole but it still passes the deed restrictions and keeps the vigilantes off my back. I have a piece of rope about a third of the way up the pole that is intended to counter gusty winds that predominantly come from the North. This arrangement has served me well, allowing me to log over 200 countries.

A couple of months ago, I was out in the garage one afternoon watching an approaching storm. As is often the case, the rains came down in buckets. In less than a minute, the winds came screaming out of the West at near-hurricane force, driving the rain sideways. The winds subsided to almost dead calm almost as quickly as they ramped up. I stood there stunned at what apparently was a microburst. I peered apprehensively toward my flagpole and discovered it laying on my neighbor’s tree. Oh oh, this can’t be good, I thought. I looked around the neighborhood and noticed that a palm tree two doors down had been snapped in half. Good thing I did not have one on my property.

I went over to the leaning pole to try straightening it. The resistance I experienced told that the antenna inside was bent. I relaxed a little knowing that perhaps I could straighten it out. I tied a rope about halfway up the pole and proceeded to pull it back to vertical. I applied considerable force to pull the pole up. As I neared vertical, the pole suddenly swung around toward me and was now leaning close to the house. Yep, this definitely was not good. If it wasn’t broken before, I feared it was broken now.

The next day my son and I lowered the stricken antenna to ground. As I pulled off the pipe, I noticed the mounting base support pipe was bent. The pipe is about a foot or so in length and inserts in the first section of the antenna. The wall thickness of the pipe is an eighth of an inch. The pipe had been bent to about 30 degrees from vertical by the wind load on the PVC. Figure 1 shows the damaged support as well as the first section that was also slightly bent.

The rest of the antenna was intact with no signs of damage. Normally, I would have used a large vice to Armstrong the bent pieces back to vertical. However, being workshop-challenged in The Villages, that was not to be. I have always believed a garage is for vehicles.

The next step was to contact DX Engineering to order a new base support and first section. While I was waiting for the new hardware to arrive, I thought of how I could strengthen the base to mitigate wind damage in the future. I recalled an article from an amateur in Colorado who strengthened his beams by inserting sections of tubing as the element junction points for increased rigidity. I borrowed this approach on my 40-meter beam to withstand the wind and ice of New England. After 20+ years the beam is still up and still straight. (At least it was when I sold the place.)

I made a trip to the local big box store and found a 3-foot piece of tubing that fits snugly inside the base support pipe and protruded about halfway out. The idea here is that, once the first section is clamped in place, the added piece acts as a stiffener that will prevent the first section from bending. I used this same principle when I installed my mast on my tower by inserting another pipe inside the mast. It too has never failed. Many thanks to John, WS1E for the idea. Figure 2 shows the modified configuration.

I reassembled the antenna and slid it back into the PVC pipe. My son and I hoisted the pole back in place on my base mount. For future protection, I added another piece of rope to tie down to the West. (Don’t tell the XYL!) A check of SWR across the bands showed that I was back in business.

Now that things are back to normal, I leave you with these words of wisdom for your next antenna project:

When the wind blows,

Gently, my antenna will rock,

When the wind howls,

Down it will come with a hard knock.

Ed, K2TE