Typhoon H foam case mod for 4Hawks antenna

[KellyR]

I'm wondering if anybody has tried to modify their Typhoon H foam case lid so that a 4Hawks (or ITElite) antenna can stay on the st-16 when you put it back in the foam case & bag? It's not a huge hassle to take it on & off, but it would be nice to leave it on. Looking at it, it seems possible to cut a hole in the lid that the antenna would go through. I realize that that "exposes" the antenna to a degree, but for my circumstances I don't see that as an issue. It would still be covered by the padded bag lid. Looking at it from the side it looks like the antenna would protrude past the foam. With the st-16 out of the case I put on the foam lid & grabbed a couple of Xbox game cases to put on top to simulate the antenna & the bag zipped closed without problem. It seems to me that the top of the foam in that section isn't really doing much anyways. The foam nubs (yellow arrows) go down to the top of the st-16 & keep it from moving & the ledge with the white arrow is where the sun shield goes & would still be intact. It would be a matter of cutting out a rectangle for the antenna in the recess where the red arrow is. What do you guys think?

 

[Mrgs1]

What about getting a piece of foam and cutting that to see if it works, better than sacrificing the original lid. At least you can make a mistake and learn from it.

 

[Dilly Joat]

I'm wondering if anybody has tried to modify their Typhoon H foam case lid so that a 4Hawks (or ITElite) antenna
View attachment 17282View attachment 17283View attachment 17284

I don't know how the 4Hawks compares to the ITElite antenna which I have and I keep mine attached to the ST16 even in the backbag bag. I had to cut out the foam above the antenna being careful not to cut through the bag itself and was able to use a thin piece of foam to give some padding over the antenna. Check this thread by WingNut85: "Itelite DBS Range Extender Antenna" and scroll down to post #20 by m5zealot for photos.

 

[KellyR]

I thought about making a temp lid to practice on, but when I can order, & have delivered to my door, a whole new foam box & lid for $18 from Yuneec it seemed like I'd spend more time & money looking for foam that would work, getting it, & trying to get it to fit. That ITElite antenna is similar, but looks like the bracket is shorter. I think the 4Hawks one sticks up more because of the adjustable bracket. I figured it was worth an ask to see if anybody's cut their foam, but if not I might just give it a try when I have time & see what happens. I'll post a pic.

 

[Mrgs1]

I thought about making a temp lid to practice on, but when I can order, & have delivered to my door, a whole new foam box & lid for $18 from Yuneec it seemed like I'd spend more time & money looking for foam that would work, getting it, & trying to get it to fit. That ITElite antenna is similar, but looks like the bracket is shorter. I think the 4Hawks one sticks up more because of the adjustable bracket. I figured it was worth an ask to see if anybody's cut their foam, but if not I might just give it a try when I have time & see what happens. I'll post a pic.

Not seen it here in UK, so it's a practice piece for us, and I expect to be three times the price you guys pay in US.

 

[AH-1G]

Not seen it here in UK, so it's a practice piece for us, and I expect to be three times the price you guys pay in US.

why so much more? your gov charges outrages fees?

 

[Mrgs1]

why so much more? your gov charges outrages fees?

VAT is one thing, and the parts are much more expensive, smaller market?

 

[Steve Carr]

I think the 4Hawks one sticks up more because of the adjustable bracket.

The 4Hawks does still up higher and there isn't enough room for the antenna. You can leave the bracket in place and just cut out enough for the bracket. I'm not sure that saves any time on setup and storage.

 

[Mrgs1]

Leave the wires on, I do find the middle one fiddly to unscrew and screw back on with my big hands.

 

[KellyR]

Okay, I gave it a shot & I think it came out pretty good. I don't have a proper foam cutting hot knife, so I just used a couple of sharp knives, but I took my time making several cuts across to get through the thickness & it worked well enough for me. Although, it is a rough cut & I was considering putting some black tape around the edges to keep it from having little pieces of foam continue to fall out here & there (just not sure it's really necessary yet). To start I thought I'd just follow the lines on the inside of the lid & in the end I left it like that. The hole lines up with the inside edges (white arrows) & the ends of the center section (yellow lines). The antenna is mounted at a slightly up angle which worked out well. I tried having the antenna flat, but it made it harder to take the foam lid on & off. If I open & close the foam like it's hinged like the bag lid it actually goes on & off pretty easy. If the antenna was going to stay flat I'd probable want to cut into that center section a good 1/4" more, but the foam is pretty thick there & I'd rather avoid that. Because of the angle of the hole to the antenna it's best to open the bag separately from the foam as opposed to keeping the foam in the bag lid as you open it. There's plenty of room with the antenna sticking up to zip the lid shut & it just protrudes up slightly past the foam lid (you can kind of see it in the last side pic of the bag).

 

[Dilly Joat]

Well done, nice piece of work and thanks for photos.?

 

[Mrgs1]

I don't know if removing some material from lower portion on the insert would allow the controller to sit lower. thus enabling a portion of foam to stay on top to protection? There is more protection on the underside of the bag, all food for thought, see how it performs with your method.

 

[Sully53]

Another idea you could buy a case from Harbor Freight (30-60 bucks) to put the ground station in? That's what I did. These cases are very nice and beffy! I believe this is the case I have:

3800 Weatherproof Protective Case, Large, Black

Amazing deals on this Lg Weatherproof Protective Case Black at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

I cut the foam to fit nice and neat and never have to take my antenna off!

I can post photos later if you would like?

 

[KellyR]

Mrgs1

Good idea. I'll keep an eye on it. So far so good. It's kind of a narrow area down in there. Thoughts on cutting that out? I suppose I could just cut the whole bottom out from the underside & then add a piece that's thinner.

 

[KellyR]

Sully53

I'll check that case out, but yeah, post a pic.

 

[Sully53]

Some photos for your review...

 

[KellyR]

Nice job... thanks for the pics!

 

[KellyR]

Some photos for your review...

Out of curiosity, is your antenna secure, but lose? Mine had a wiggle to it. I ended up putting a couple of pieces of black electrical tape on the st-16 to build it up & make it a little more snug.

 

[Mrgs1]

Some photos for your review...

Ideal for storage, Im out in wilds often, nice to have two hands free if I fall or need to balance, the extra box would be prohibitive, but excellent for out of vehicle, general inspections flat walk to areas, well done!

 

[Sully53]

Out of curiosity, is your antenna secure, but lose? Mine had a wiggle to it. I ended up putting a couple of pieces of black electrical tape on the st-16 to build it up & make it a little more snug.

I put two small o-rings were the antenna bracket connects to the controller.