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Re: [TowerTalk] How to mod a 40m 4-square for 10m use?

To: towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] How to mod a 40m 4-square for 10m use?
From: Michael Tope <W4EF@dellroy.com>
Date: Sat, 22 Jan 2022 18:53:37 -0800
List-post: <mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
Mike,

This presentation goes into excruciating detail on how to make all the necessary design calculation to setup and optimize the Comtek style hybrid in a 4 square array: https://www.kkn.net/dayton2011/Demystifying%20the%20hybrid%20coupler-vers-FOR%20k3lr.pdf

The presentation focuses on an 80 meter design, but there should be no reason you can't change the frequency to 28 MHz and re-run the calculations to scale it for 10 meters. Without diving into the details of the design, the extent to which stray reactance in the layout and frequency dependent component limitations compromise performance at 28 MHz is not clear to me. It sounds like a fun experiment.

Good luck!

73, Mike W4EF.........................

On 1/22/2022 2:22 PM, Mike Smith VE9AA wrote:
I am trying to go to all 4-squares like my contesting 4-sq buddy John, N8UM
in TN.

I am nearly there, having just installed a 15m one in time for CQWW CW.

There are no new dedicated 10m 4-squares to be found commercially, if my
internet searching skills
are telling me the truth, so recently I bought a 40m 4-Square (Older Comtek,
NOS)  and am hoping to mod it for 10m, but I have no idea where to start.

I'll PRESUME the capacitors need to be a different value in the exterior
switch box, but to what?...anyone have a schematic for a Comtek 4-square?
(the outdoor portion)

Apparently Tim, K3LR (DX Engineering) was not happy with the performance
from the 10m Comtek 4-squares, so is not selling them anymore. I can
definitely respect that decision to not produce a top-notch product.  I am
not looking to squeeze every fraction of a dB out of a 10m array.  I just
want something that 'works', is directional and has some modest amount of
gain.

(I have built several K1WA/K8UR arrays and am not totally happy with them)

My SO2R contest station uses a single horizontal antenna on the 2nd radio
and a bunch of vertical 4-squares on the primary radio.

Any ideas on the Comtek Mod fellas?

Tnx

Mike VE9Antenna Antenna

Mike, Coreen & Corey
Keswick Ridge, NB


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