I'll be in the 160 meter contest with my brand new:
up in the air(sort of)
360'
end feed/bent/slopping/cattycornered
(and anything else it took to get it up)
semi-long wire
made from 6 conductor telephone wire
shorted at both ends
I call it my "GEE-WIZ IT WORKS" antenna
THANK GOD FOR MY MFJ-DELUXE VERSA TUNER 2
I really didn't think it would work out but had to try
something I was going crazy hearing everyone working Dx on
160 and couldn't even get to Dallas on my 80 meter
inverted Vee even with the tuner.
So I did all I could do:
Used bailing wire I tied 7 20' water pipes at varying
distances to my fence posts.
Strung the telephone wire up at the top using more bailing
wire to hold it to the top of the poles.
Ran the telephone wire into my shack to my tuner.
Hooked the tuner to my FT-920 and prayed.
Now the amazing part to me is:
1) Two days after I put it up we had a wind storm that
knocked out power even as far as Dallas (the day of
CQWW-CW) and the antenna is still standing just as I had
put it up originally.
2) As I said I really was hoping to at least be able to
talk to someone in Dallas or Ft Worth or even Weatherford,
but - so far I have been able to work 13 Dx stations on it
the farthest of which was Hawaii.
Oh I know good conditions no doubt, but even so:
I was amazed for 100W output and God only knows how
*little* actually transmitted or what the pattern is
(other then straight up Hi Hi)
((Next I try the metal flashing around the house Hi Hi))
So no it isn't according to spec and it certainly isn't
according to theoretical norms (in fact it is laughable)
but for what ever the reason is it seems to be enough to
get me some contacts.
So I will be in the contest with a smile and looking
forward to *any* contacts I can get.
My first exploratory on the 160 meter band so I am hoping
to use the contest this go around as a means of giving me
a sort of "real-life" antenna pattern for it.
IF YOU HEAR ME PLEASE WORK ME I WILL PUT YOU ON THE
ANTENNA PATTERN CHART :0)
73 fer nw,
Bob AD5VJ
10X# 37210, FP#-1141, SMIRK#-5177
http://www.n5iet.com/
Code may be taking a back seat for now,
but the pioneering spirit that put the code
there in the first place is out front of it all.
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