skyking8 Report post Posted May 19, 2011 My bat wing antenna and the support rod was damaged by a falling tree limb during some high winds. I was thinking that it might be an opportune time to change out the whole thing to something that is smaller in size. My antenna set up has the DTV Winegard wingman attachment. So I was thinking of removing that part of the assembly and making it my sole TV antenna. If would be simple to do, but I am wondering how well it would work. Or I could just go buy a smaller digital TV antenna and attach it to a shorten support arm. I'm looking for suggestions, to include a low cost antenna to replace the bat wing. We have a Kingdome system and don't watch much local TV anyway. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rossboyer Report post Posted May 19, 2011 We have found that we are watching Direct TV less and less since digital local TV broadcasts, but of course that depends on how close you are to the stations. Picture quality is much better. We are using the new Winegard with a Wingman. The amplifier in the antenna is better that the older units. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted May 20, 2011 Do not remove your over the air antenna. The best replacement for what you have is a replacement of what you have. With the move to digital TV about 75% of the digital programming moved to the UHF frequencies. While VHF was not quite so sensitive to obstructions, UHF is. Because of this, height is might and getting the antenna up in the air has a great advantage over any other option. I would just buy a new arm and/or antenna and continue on as you have in the past. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Wayne77590 Report post Posted May 20, 2011 x 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skyking8 Report post Posted May 20, 2011 I took the batwing casing apart and noticed that there is a pc board in the assembly. Assume it to be either a signal booster or an impedence/frequency trap of some sort. Sorta like a trap on a dipole to match more frequencies/bands. That seems more reasonable since there is already an 12v powered amplifier circuit in the rig. I understand the line of sight and height issues. But oddly, I am still getting several TV stations on the coax cable that's dangling loose on the roof. If I can pick up stations 30 miles away with no antenna, then it seemed logical that I can with a smaller antenna. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted May 20, 2011 There is no 12V amplifier inside a coach that has a Winegard Bat-Wing antenna. The unit inside the coach is a 12V power supply and splitter/switcher that allows the 12V power to go up the coax to the booster that you saw in the head of the antenna and then allow the TV signal to come down and out to your TV. As part of that board inside the head is the UHF antenna as well (look for the mirrored cut-outs on each side). The 2 large external "wings" are for the reception of VHF channels 2-13 and the UHF antenna inside the head is for channels 14 and up. With the move to digital TV they also moved about 75% of all broadcast channels to the UHF frequencies and the Wingman add-on is designed to as much as double the gain available to that internal UHF antenna. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skyking8 Report post Posted May 21, 2011 Bill, That makes sense. Apparently, the 12v booster is then an internal part of my switching box. I was unaware that the assembly had a UHF section. That makes the replacement decision easier. Instead of trying to repair the antenna or get a smaller one, I'll just go buy another complete Winegard batwing. As they say...plug and play. Thanks for the help. Much appreciated. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted May 21, 2011 Some Video Control Centers which allow you to select Ant, Sat, Cable, Aux, etc. also have an on/off button. If yours does, that is the 12V power supply that allows the Batwing internal booster to work properly. Glad I could help. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Koliver Report post Posted May 22, 2011 I have an old (1998) Winegard bat wing, antenna with one wing broken off about 2 inches from the base. if I understand the previous description, the broken part wont be missed, once channels 2-12 move to the UHF side. If I add the UHF booster, I should get those channels equally with the higher number channels. Am I correct? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest BillAdams Report post Posted May 22, 2011 There are still a number of digital channels that are broadcast on the VHF frequency (2-13) but that varies by location. Some areas may have everything on UHF only. When we were in Cherokee, NC the only 2 channels we could receive were analog VHF! Your antenna should still work pretty well as the half wing will still pick up a nearby VHF channel and adding the Wingman to your current antenna will give the same signal boost to the internal UHF antenna that we all get. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
