Tech Info
Everything under the hood.
FAQ
Why a Tarheel
Blueprinted parts, built to last.
From 2001 through today, we've continued to refine and improve the original design. Our focus, in order: dependability, performance, and reasonable cost.
Inside Construction
- Coil stock is fiberglass — the strongest, lowest-moisture-absorption material available, hardest to work with but the better product.
- Coil wire is highest-quality hard-drawn, 100% oxygen-free copper.
- Drive rod assembly and all associated hardware: 100% stainless steel.
- Upper and lower anti-jam thrust assemblies for jam-free operation.
- A silicone-bronze coil-drive insert with a built-in grease pocket — a synthetic Teflon lubricant rated -45°F to +450°F is used once and never needs reapplying.
- Pittman high-torque 12VDC gear-reduction motor — EMI/RFI filtered for noise-free receive tuning.
- A coil-support thrust bearing (added 2001) removes vertical load and vibration, preventing SWR fluctuation once tuned.
- Decoupler machined from 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum, with custom die-cut beryllium copper fingerstock for the lowest RF resistance electrically possible.
- A factory-installed magnetic encoder, compatible with any after-market semi-automatic or automatic controller, now or in the future.
- Several of these design elements are patent protected.
Outside Construction
- Bug shield: custom molded Delrin caps with a tinted, UV-protected GE Lexan tube.
- Antenna tube: custom-extruded 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum with the anti-rotation rib molded into the extrusion — nothing separate to lose or break.
- Acid-bath chromate treatment before a powder-coat finish, for corrosion protection and abrasion resistance.
- All hardware, inside and out: stainless steel.
- Ships as a plug-and-play basic kit — everything included except the mount.
Grounding & Bonding
The ground plane matters as much as the antenna.
The best mobile antenna money can buy isn't any better than the ground plane it's mounted over. On HF, a vehicle acts more like a capacitance to ground than a true ground plane — so bonding matters as much as the antenna itself.
- Ground and bond the vehicle before installing the antenna. On composite-heavy vehicles, bond doors and hatches to the frame too — ungrounded metal affects tuning.
- Proper bonding commonly drops RFI noise by 20–30 dB. Bond the engine, hood, and sometimes the radiator for the same reason.
- DC ground and RF ground are not the same thing — a strap can be a perfectly good DC ground and still become an antenna itself at some RF frequency. Use flat braided wire for more surface area and flex; keep runs short; use 1" braid for longer runs.
- Crimp for the mechanical connection, solder for the electrical one — crimping alone lets moisture in over time. Cover abrasion-prone straps with heat-shrink tubing.
- Good bonding points: exhaust systems (wire-brush a small area, use stainless clamps), body-to-frame on body-on-frame vehicles (aim for one strap per corner), bumpers and backing plates, suspension parts, tailgates. Factory ground straps at taillights or the engine are DC-only and not sufficient for RF grounding on their own.
Maintenance
Very little maintenance, years of service.
Very little maintenance is required — you should get years of trouble-free service from a Tarheel.
- Wax the shaft and Lexan bug shield whenever you wash or wax the vehicle — waxed surfaces shed bugs more easily.
- About once a year, depending on mileage and mount location, wash the coil to remove road grime. A dirty coil shows as vertical black streaks and has no parts to replace — just clean it.
Coil Cleaning
- 01Run the antenna up until the coil is fully exposed.
- 02Remove the 3 screws in the top Delrin cap.
- 03Slide the Lexan bug shield down to expose the coil.
- 04If the coil feels sticky or dirty, wipe it with alcohol.
- 05Lightly scrub with a Scotch-Brite pad, then wipe with alcohol again.
- 06Reassemble, then wipe the outer tube and Lexan with alcohol and apply a couple coats of wax.