Assemble the probe and mount in can

Now you'll need that bit of wire. You'll need a soldering iron or a friend with one as well. Cut the wire so that when it is stuck in the connector as shown, the total length of both the brass tube and wire sticking out past the connector is 1.21". Get as close to this length as you can.

When you've got your wire correctly sized, solder it into the connector keeping it as straight and upright as you can. When it's cooled, bolt or screw the assembly into your can. Put the heads of the bolts inside the can and the nuts on the outside to minimize the obstructions in your antenna. Your Done!

Connect your antenna to your wireless card or access point

To use your cantenna, you'll need a special cable commonly called a "Pig Tail". The pig tail connects your wireless card or access point to you antenna. One end of the cable will have a "N" Male connector (just right for connecting your your cantenna), while the other end will have a connector appropriate to your card or access point. For a good picture of a pig tail, take a look at:

http://www.seattlewireless.net/index.cgi?PigTail

You'll want to have a wireless NIC or access point with an external antenna connector. Otherwise, you may have to hack into the one you have to hook up the cable. I wouldn't recommend this unless you're good with a soldering iron and electronics. For this reason, I like the Agere Orinoco cards which have a nice antenna connector. Pig Tails can be hand made if you have the right tools, but it's probably easier to get a pre-made one. Try:

Fleeman Anderson & Bird

Fleeman Anderson & Bird has a "cantenna kit" for sale that includes the connector and pigtail. Choose one of the "cables" links from the menu and look towards the bottom of the list.

Fleeman Anderson & Bird has a "cantenna kit" for sale that includes the connector and pigtail. Choose one of the "cables" links from the menu and look towards the bottom of the list. Hyperlinktech

Antenna Systems

Hook up your cable, point the antenna at a friend's, and see how far you can stretch you network. Be sure to let me know (greg@turnpoint.net) how it works.

This antenna has linear polarization. That means that how you rotate the antenna will affect the strength of your signal. Usually, you will want to put the connection straight down, but experiment with rotating the can while watching the signal strength on your PC to get the best performance.

For more information, check out these resources: