Hello Mike Here's one variation you might consider. Like you, I have a small lot, 60 wide by 100 ft long. The back yard is 60 by 24, and my 160m vertical is in the center of my back fence. I've arran
I've been curious about the insertion loss of the 50:900 ohm matching transformers we wind for the Flag antenna, especially with the "unofficial" toroid cores I use. So I did a bit of investigating.
Larry If you have a ground-mounted radial system, then the shield of the coax should be connected to it. If you move the feedpoint up the vertical by any amount, the shield is no longer at ground pot
Well, after fighting a single-core solution to the problem, I decided to break it down into smaller bits. I now have one small binocular core transformer, made from two small toroids, that gives me a
I recently took down my 160m vertical so I could put up a taller mast. I got a good look at the coil after being out in the elements for one year. The coil was wound with 1/8" diameter copper tubing,
Herb Two questions for you. These may be outdated, but I'll ask anyway. I've heard that the gas molecules for hydrogen are much smaller than helium, and that the gas bag must be much less porous. Wil
Tony I'll coat-tail on Tom's comments. I've gone through somewhat the same exercise you are. I now use a vertical 40 ft tall with a cage structure. That is, the vertical section is three #17 wires in
Is there enough NAQP activity on 160m to make it worth while sitting up late? Never worked it before, and thinking about it. Anyone have experience with this? 73, Bob N6WG
I'm looking for some opinions. I'll be operating QRP in this contest, as I do in all the 160m cw contests. My question is about the new QRP QSO bonus in the rules. As it stands, there is no way for a
Hello Hal I'm on the edge of San Francisco Bay, way over on the left edge of things. The antenna here is a 50-ft top-loaded wire vertical. The top loading is a homebrew airwound coil and 5 30-ft top
Steve To measure inductance at the frequency of use, I use either of two instruments. I have the Autek VA-1 and the AEA HF-CIA antenna analyzers. This method would work with the MFJ anatenna analyzer
Hi Mike I have the VA-1 and the AEA HF-CIA analyzers. I use them both, but they don't tell the same story if you get very far from a low swr situation. Once you get over about a 4:1 swr, the accuracy
Dave Another possibility would be a Flag receiving loop. The pattern is cardioid, but it is reversible. So an east facing loop could also beocme a west facing loop. 73, Bob N6WG Being new to topband,
Ron "I believe the conductivity is probably not that good. There appears to be only about 6 inches of soil on top of rock." Your situation sounds similar to a fellow who tried verticals in the desert
Bill Tippett says this message went astray somehow, so here it is again. Tom For the air-wound balun on my 160m vertical, I used a plastic laundry detergent tub. It is slightly tapered, so each turn
With the SP coming up, I'm looking for a little discussion on strategy. We only get to operate 14 of the hours, so there is some opportunity to optimize the hours one uses. Here on the left coast, th
Kevin Last winter I experimented with some homebrew indoor loops to see what they might do for me. Unfortunately, results were inconclusive, as I set them up in an unfavorable location. Instead of gr
Thomas If you go to the trouble of putting your loop on top of a tower, be sure to add a rotator. this will allow you to use the loop's null to reduce the noise as much as possible. 73, Bob N6WG --Or
Don, and anyone else who has an opinion, what about connecting a ground wire under the beverage. Run it across the canyon, grounded at both ends. Use non-conducting string, whatever, to keep it a fai
Jim Both the ANC-4 and the MFJ-1026 have provision for an external input to handle the TR switching. If your rig provides a switched ground output, it can be used to the switch the noise canceller in