It seems that High Sierra is like a number of other screwdriver antenna
companies that live in California or Arizona, where they never encounter
winter weather with the salt fog spray that is common when driving in
northen climates in the winter time.
I rebuilt my 1800HS so many times I finally tired of it (the guide on
the mast finally fell off, because the tiny screws threads through the
thin mast all stripped out), and decided to get a HiQ, based on
recommendations from a friend (unfortunately, he lives in Tennessee and
so doesn't see the kind of winter weather I get in SE Michigan).
After one winter on a trailer hitch mount behind my Durango, the antenna
quit working (motor stalled), and I sent it back for repair. Charlie at
HiQ called me and asked "what did you DO to this antenna?" I said,
"Nothing special, just used it on my vehicle over a Michigan winter."
According to Charlie, the inside of the mast was solid salt rock
crystal. To his credit, although I think at the time the antenna was
just out of warranty, he replaced the entire unit for free.
So, I used it through that next summer, but by November, I had traded my
Durango in for a Ram pickup, and wanted to change the mount to a
stake-mount on the pick up bed just behind the cab, for clearance for a
5th wheel tow, and also to try to keep it out of the salt fog. I
actually never got around to mounting it until a few weeks ago, and had
left the antenna stored in the garage over the winter. When I tried it
out, the motor was stuck again. I've not had time to contact HiQ again,
and I understand that Charlie sold/transferred the ham radio portion of
the business to someone else, so he can concentrate on DoD contracts,
which I'm sure are much more lucrative than the ham trade. I fear that
this time I'll end up having to pay to replace the antenna, and these
things are definitely not cheap.
So, long story short (too late): Is there anyone on the list using
somebody's much-vaunted screwdriver design that has actually survived
northen winters where they use salt on the roads, without a lot of
maintenance headaches? I would think that with the advent of the KX3, a
lot more folks on this list will be considering going HF mobile.
73,
-- Dave, N8SBE
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