Sirio GainMaster 5/8 (Beware)

Just had a couple of days of bad rain storms plus winds up to 25+mph. I use a Sirio Gainmaster 5/8 wave mounted about 30 feet from ground to base of GM. The aerial bent a little in the wind but seemed ok. Around 7pm on Saturday [10/08/19] we heard a noise like a tap coming from outside, then over the next hour several more taps were heard. I went outside looked up at the GM and the top section was swaying in the wind, hanging on by the inner aerial cable!. No radio that night.
Today Sunday [11/08/19] the wind had died down a little although gusts were up to 15+mph. I got out the ladders and went up to get the GM down. I got the T & K U bolts unfastened but the wing was making life very difficult, eventually I got the GM down.
To my surprise the top section was not broken. The jubilee clip had come loose which holds the section together. I put the section back in but I had about 25cm of wire sticking out of the top.
I checked the other 2 jubilee clips and they were very loose also, the sections had all slipped down into one another! How the clips had come loose I will never know, all I do know is that I definitely tightened them when I first put the GM up 12 months ago.
The reason of this post: If you have a GM check the jubilee clips are tight, I was lucky this time it could have been expensive if it had cracked.
Next job is to put the GM back up, might do it tonight or I might leave to the morning?
73
26-CT-2711

yes you are lucky and it might be good to check your clips at least once a year just to be on the safe side and take care up ladders in windy 15 mph gusts and with the antenna to

Got one just about new in box sitting in the spare room, had it on two large wall brackets and a pole reaching only 4ft above the guttering and when the wind slightly blew it would sway about like a mobile whip antenna, great antenna to use but it scared the old people next door so much they started to walk on the other side of the road lol to keep the peice it came down after only one month wont be going up again wasted £90 on the stupid thing. 73 Phil

Thanks for the heads up as I have one in a box waiting to get put up. I didn't know that the GM was soo whippy and I was thinking of a 6ft pole and on the chimney. Food for thought!

Very good aerials, sorry to hear your one broke.

Update on mine. It has been up over a week now and seen it whip about like a flyrod. But after the strong winds had passed it is back to straight as it was first put up.

I love mine, it brings in a bit of noise but I can handle that. It gets out well too. Hello Cardiff on SSB!

I had one here on the chimney. Good idea is to wrap the jubilee joints in some good insulating tape thus waterproofing them and stopping the clips from moving. Had mine up for 2 years and never moved.
Only took it down to replace it with a Penetrator 500.

Paul.

I have one of these in a box ready to go with T and K brackets.

Good tips thanks.

I chose it due to the range of frequencies it covers.

I hope I'm not disappointed :-)

You won't be I have had one for the last three years on my wind up mast I will admit in high winds it dose bend a lot but to date it been absolutely fine, best aerial I have ever owned.