ELT 121.5 / 406 Antenna recommendation

[OR75]

looking for  a recommendation for a 121.5 / 406 ELT antenna 

The Artex whip antenna is a piece of shit and I am surprise they are allowed to even sell them.  Tow of them broke and I am tired of throwing good money after bad in those

Looking for a recommendation on antenna type and mount location.

My current antenna is right behind the baggage door (so between the two comm 7 antennas)

 I do not not want to go the route of under the dorsal fin as it opens a new can of worms with riveting and paint ...  

[KSMooniac]

I think each 406 ELT is certified as a system with the included antenna. You'll have to look in your installation manual to see which options, if any, there might be...

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[OR75]

10 minutes ago, KSMooniac said:

I think each 406 ELT is certified as a system with the included antenna. You'll have to look in your installation manual to see which options, if any, there might be...

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No ... i need to replace it with a TSOed antenna .... else a company like RAMI would not make any ELT antenna

[KSMooniac]

I'm not sure which ELT you have, but as an example the Artex ME406 installation manual lists two options: 110-338 (rod) and 110-773 (whip). You are not free to substitute other antennas, TSO or not, since they're not in the installation manual that governs the certification. Page 49 states clearly "use only antennas approved for use with the ME406 Series ELT." To use something else you would need approval from the FAA or a DER.

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[jaylw314]

5 minutes ago, KSMooniac said:

I'm not sure which ELT you have, but as an example the Artex ME406 installation manual lists two options: 110-338 (rod) and 110-773 (whip). You are not free to substitute other antennas, TSO or not, since they're not in the installation manual that governs the certification. Page 49 states clearly "use only antennas approved for use with the ME406 Series ELT." To use something else you would need approval from the FAA or a DER.

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I thought there was an option to install the antenna under the dorsal tail fairing for the Artex 406?

[FoxMike]

I understand the whip antenna can be installed under the dorsal.

[MIm20c]

1 hour ago, KSMooniac said:

I'm not sure which ELT you have, but as an example the Artex ME406 installation manual lists two options: 110-338 (rod) and 110-773 (whip). You are not free to substitute other antennas, TSO or not, since they're not in the installation manual that governs the certification.

KSM is correct. Even the units from the same company have different antennas they are certified with. The more expensive units normally have more latitude allowing a larger selection of antennas (however some of the higher end antennas are really expensive). 

1 hour ago, jaylw314 said:

I thought there was an option to install the antenna under the dorsal tail fairing for the Artex 406?

You can but it still needs to be an approved antenna. They just bend the antenna to fit, they can be bent but not multiple times. The important part is the black ticker portion (for the 406). 

[jaylw314]

6 hours ago, MIm20c said:

You can but it still needs to be an approved antenna. They just bend the antenna to fit, they can be bent but not multiple times. The important part is the black ticker portion (for the 406). 

Ah, so it's just a standard antenna for the Artex unit but just bent to fit.  That's good to know, I was thinking about doing that someday...

[MIm20c]

4 hours ago, jaylw314 said:

Ah, so it's just a standard antenna for the Artex unit but just bent to fit.  That's good to know, I was thinking about doing that someday...

I’m definitely not the authority on this but the factory used/approved 406 elt is the 1k ish slightly older version that comes with a shorter antenna. The 500 ish unit comes with a longer (another 6 inches?) antenna that might not fit. The black section is longer and not as flexible on the cheaper antenna so you might not to be able to bend it where it needs to be bent.