Broomstick aerial

Any way of finding out? You could be right as I took it off when I got home and put it back on for this trip. I did notice a kink in the cable.

Very hard to check continuity as the cable on the Broomstick end is usually permanently fixed. You should be able to check for a short by checking resistance across the centre wire and the shield wire if it has no resistance then a short is the answer.

How would you do that? with a multi meter? unfortunately I bought it at Port Macquarie so cant go back to them to get it checked. Do you know anywhere in Sydney?

Really appreciate your knowledge, and help

Any Auto Electrician, or electronics workshop can check it. If you own a multi meter you can do it yourself. Set it on Ohms and see if there is any resistance across the shield and centre wire.

They work a hell of a lot better if you clean the bugs off them, don't know why but they do.

Better if mounted on the roof rather than a bulbar.

Have mounted mine on a roof top fitting that was used with CB aerial years ago.

Peter

unfortunately we need the internet to earn enough money to be able to get away to the back blocks.

aren't they illegal?

It was beside Burrinjuck dam. We could get one bar of phone reception with the phones (no aerial) but would go in and out. You need at least 3 bars of 3G to get a good data connection. When we went to the top of the valley to open but still hilly country (about 8kms) we were getting full 4G on both the phones and the modem. I assume from near Yass about 30km's as the crow flies.

Previously the aerial would increase the reception from intermittent one bar to 3 or 4.

Also I rechecked the model number and it is in fact a mid range gain aerial at 6.5dBi. which should have been a bit better.

Thanks for your help

According to Telstra's coverage map you shouldn't be getting any signal, bks. :-). See below:



All I can suggest is get a suitable aerial, the bigger the better(?), get it up as high as possible, and maybe move around the campsite to ascertain whether there might be sites with improved reception. If the phones show a bar or two, then with a suitable aerial and good positioning, your signal should improve. Have seen some tradies in Longreach area with longer 3G aerials, and about 9dB I think, that give greatly improved reception.

If your income depends on use of Internet, then it wouldn't hurt to ring that Telco mob, and talk to someone knowledgeable there. It would be worth getting the best, for your situation, and regardless of cost, you should reap the rewards.

With UHF & phone frequencies, any increase in height can make a huge difference to RX/TX. Back in another life was using UHF handhelds extensively, and sometimes to improve the signal, all one had to do was hold the h'held as high as possible at arm's length, and talk using the remote speaker/mic. Often made a marked difference.

Bob