Forum Discussion

johnvb's avatar
johnvb
Explorer
Aug 26, 2014

Jack to Winegard upgrade

I know there's lots of posts out there where folks have ditched their crank-ups for the new Jack antennas.

Our 2011 Open Range came with the stationary Jack as OEM. Broke it off by way of a tree branch the day I brought it home from the dealer. The location of the antenna is on the front passenger side, perfectly positioned for catching all those low limbs.

Replaced that Jack with another, and after a year, the rotation stop broke, which allowed the small coaxial inside to snap.

So now I'm on my third, and it has crapped out also. I'm done with the Jack.

What do I need to "upgrade" to a crank-up Winegard? Other then a few tubes of Dicor caulk, I'm thinking of this:

Winegard RVW-395 Sensar IV

and one of these:

Winegard RFL-342 SensarPro White

I'm assuming the antenna above comes with what ever is needed to finish the inside (plate, crank handle, etc.)?

Do I also need one of theses, or is it included in the Sensar IV? Looks like it is included, but for some reason Amazon adds it on in a three piece package deal.:?

Winegard RV-WING Wingman White UHF Booster TV Antenna

Anything else?
Thanks
  • I"m pretty sure I'm ok with the clearances, there are some nearby max air vent though. Amazon has a great return policy, so that's covered. I'm on a tight schedule before the next trip, so went ahead and ordered. Will be going to Smith Mountain Lake, VA., not even sure if OTA reception is worthy there.

    I'll keep in mind the Jack add-on head if things are tight. I never had a problem with the Jack, when it worked. Just always paranoid about ripping it off the roof, and the miniature coaxial they use in the mast. I'm assuming that one uses standard RG6 when installing the Jack head only?

    On a non-related note, we recently bought one of those 4k Samsung curved 65" TV for the home (which is awesome!), from Amazon. Got a promotional credit to our account that more then payed for the Sensar PRO, so that was nice.
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    VERY good choice in my not very humble opinion

    You will not need a WINGMAN with a Sensar IV as .. It is included in the box already.

    The Sensar PRO is optional,, but I do recommend it..

    I use a Sensar II (I think, might be an III) with Wingman and Sensar Pro, that is very very close (Basically identical) to what you are planing to use.

    I am very happy with it (Though I do need to make one modification, but .. Well,, That will wait for like January. (Since I'm stuck in southern GA and it is outside and does not need doing where I am just now)

    This mod should not be needed on an IV though.
  • Tom makes a good point. If clearance is an issue then you could also get the mast installed and pop a Jack replacement head on your of the mast instead of the larger Sensar with Wingman.
  • Before you order the Winegard make sure you look at your roof and measure where you are going to put it, and if there will be any interference from other items up there. When I wanted to add the Wingman to my then existing Batwing, I found it would not work due to the proximity to the roof AC. So I went with Jack as a replacement. I have since replaced the Jack with the new Winegard Rayzar Air and so far so good.
  • Thanks guys. Don't know why Amazon would bundle the redundant pieces like that, but that's why I asked here.
  • The RVW-395 has everything you need to install the antenna except the caulk. The Sensar Pro is not required but it can be used in place of the included power supply and my personal opinion is that it's well worth the extra money. For the Sensar (Batwing) to work at its best it must be properly pointed. Fiquring out where the towers are as you move around can take some effort. With the Sensar Pro there is no effort and in about 10 seconds the antenna is pointed and you are ready to do a channel scan.
  • I believe that the wingman booster attachment is already included and you do not need to purchase another. It attaches very easily and is probably shipped seprately to make the shipping box smaller. You should not have to purchase anything additional from what I could see on the website links you provided.

    I have the same setup and you will be very pleased with both the performance of the antenna and the ease of tuning using the Sensar Pro amplifier.
    Barney

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