Hi, Rick
Well, 14 ga stranded wire should be fine for radials - although you might
want to pre-stretch it.
I have occasionally used smaller gauge wire - 16 gauge or even 18 gauge
stranded with black PVC insulation for lower visibility.
Regards,
Charlie, K4OTV
-----Original Message-----
From: Topband [mailto:topband-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Rick
Kiessig
Sent: Friday, December 14, 2012 9:30 AM
To: topband@contesting.com
Subject: Topband: Optimal radial wire type and gauge?
The recent talk about optimizing the number of radials has me wondering
about the optimal type and gauge for radial wire. I've been using #14
stranded, insulated copper, but for no reason other than it's readily
available in 500 ft spools at a decent price. With the cost of copper being
so high these days, is there a better choice? If so, how do we know it's
really better? And is there an easy way to trade off cost vs. effectiveness?
I can't use mesh at my QTH, so I need to stay with actual wire.
73, Rick ZL2HAM
_______________________________________________
Topband reflector - topband@contesting.com
_______________________________________________
Topband reflector - topband@contesting.com
|