On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 23:30:35 -0600, Derek Cohn/WB0TUA wrote:
>Would I be better off adding wire to the antenna or having the
ends
> higher in the air. I primarily operate 80, 40, 30, and 20 CW.
> Any advice?
I am a huge fan of 3-wire dipoles fed with 50 or 75 coax, where
there is a center insulator (and balun) and 3-resonant dipoles
attached to it. See the ARRL handbook for details. Cut each dipole
for the same length you would as if it were the only one there. I
made spacers by simply cutting 1/2" PVC conduit into 15" lengths
and drilling holes in each spacer roughly 3/4" from each end at at
the center. For wire, go to Home Depot or your favorite electrical
supply store.
A 3-wire dipole cut for 80, 40, and 20 will work quite well on 30
and 15 meters. I suspect it will also work on 17, but I'm only
guessing about that.
There's a photo of 3-wire dipole cut for 20, 15, and 10 at the
following link (5th photo on the page):
http://audiosystemsgroup.com/K9YC/k9ycant.htm
I've used this antenna and another like it on Field Day, and it
worked very well (we were #3 in 3A, and #16 in all categories). I
have a 160/80/40 version of it at W6BX, and had another one there
for 40/30/20 that we lost due to vandalism that also worked quite
well, and that we'll reinstall when we have time.
Jim Brown K9YC
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See: http://www.mscomputer.com for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless Weather
Stations", and lot's more. Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with any questions
and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
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