[TriLUG] 2.4 Ghz signal distance issue - your thoughts?

[Greg Brown]

All:

I have a network on the Carolina Outer Banks.  I have one wireless
link connecting two parts of the network toghether.  The distance
between the two access points is roughly 300 yards.  The access points
themselves are WRT54G units running OpenWRT, one in AP mode and one in
WET mode (the device in WET mode connects, via cat5, to a Cisco 1200
802.11b unit that the users connect to).

Both OpenWRT boxes are connected to 14 Dbi Yagi antennas (antenex
units).  The problem is the signal fades out, and on a regular basis
which isolates the Cisco 1200 from the main network (and thus isolates
the users who complain about this, loudly.   I have the antennas moved
up about 15 feet into the air and they are pointed directly at each
other.  They are both on the same channel, 8, and there are ZERO
obstructions between the two antenanns.  I can put both into AP mode
and I seem to get a strong enough signal from both so that they reach
each other, but clearly something is amiss.

I am thinking of swapping out the Yagis for 14 or 24 DBI
omnidirectional antenans.  My hope is that the more focused signal
will carry a greater distance thus providing a reliable link between
the components of the network.  At best, when the current system is
running, I can only link at 1 meg with much less throughput (for the
RF overhead).  Ideally I'd like to connect at 5.5, and 11 meg would
put me into a nirvana state.

Has anyone deployed the same kind (sort-of) long-haul 802.11 link? 
What kind of antenans did you use?  Does my next step sound like a
good idea of throwing good money after bad?

Greg