Towertalk
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: [TowerTalk] "75-Meter Dipole Stretcher"

To: Paul Christensen <w9ac@arrl.net>, towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] "75-Meter Dipole Stretcher"
From: "Richard (Rick) Karlquist" <richard@karlquist.com>
Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2017 06:32:34 -0700
List-post: <mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>

On 10/15/2017 7:24 PM, Paul Christensen wrote:

What caught my attention was this statement in the article's second
paragraph:  "The solution is to add an inductor at a multiple of a
half-wavelength-long feed line, and its *effect will be the same* as a coil
at the dipole feed point."


I normally try to restrain myself from bashing QST technical articles,
because they are such easy prey :-)

Besides the loss problem you mentioned, a more fundamental problem is
that a half wavelength line is only a half wavelength at one
frequency, presumably the center of the band.  As you tune away from
that frequency, the 1/2 wave line is no longer just an attenuator
as you report, but it acts to reduce the bandwidth of the system.
The more multiples of a 1/2 wave, the more reduction.

The other issue is that he cut the dipole for the high end of the
band and then tuned it down with an inductor.  What I have been doing
for a long time is to instead locate a capacitor at the feedpoint
with the normally closed contacts of a relay across it.  The
dipole length is adjusted for CW, and the relay is energized to go
to phone.  An Omron MJN series relay from Mouser and a single 220 pF
1 kV mica capacitor are used.  The switchable capacitor is in series
with the center conductor of the coax at the "line" end of the common
mode choke.  The choke is just a big toroid with coax wound around
it. I mount all this in a plastic box. It works fine for inverted vees where there is a support at the center. Even if the support is just
a 3 inch thin wall irrigation pipe held up by ropes.

Rick N6RK
_______________________________________________



_______________________________________________
TowerTalk mailing list
TowerTalk@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk

<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>