You have to get HFTA. It's just that simple. You'll get a good picture of
what your antennas need and it will help you avoid overkill, which helps
avoid added costs. Too high an effective height can be just as bad as too
low.
Because your antenna is likely to be a big one, you're probably going to be
giving Dan at AN Wireless or the folks at Champion Radio (for Trylon) a
call. (Especially if you have to stick to freestanding.)
I would be leery of mounting something with more than one 40-m element on a
BX style of tower.
When choosing a rotator, don't merely go by the square footage of the
antenna. Some antennas with relatively small surface area can overload a
rotator based on their turning radius and weight.
For antennas, I'd check out Optibeam's OB8-4 or OB12-4 or Force 12's
Delta4XL. I'd suggest at least a Yaesu 2800 or HyGain HDR300 or something by
Create, Prosistel or Alfa for the rotator.
I know you don't want stacks, but you might want to consider a tribander at
the thrust bearing and a 2-el shorty forty above that. It's doable on the
right freestanding tower.
A bit of separation, and/or 90-degree offset, can help reduce interaction
between the 40m and 15m elements.
73, kelly
ve4xt
On 12/1/11 12:47 PM, "Andreas Hofmann" <Andreas.Hofmann@microsoft.com>
wrote:
> I have received an overwhelming response to my questions. I should have
> mentioned a few more points/requirements:
>
> - single multiband beam 40 - 10. No stacks. I am running verticals and wires
> hanging in trees and can hear ok, but are not being heard well on 40 for
> example. I want at least a few S units improvement and F/B would be great as
> well.
> - I like DX and DX contesting, but casually. Focus on Europe.
> - self supporting, no guy wires
> - low profile to appease to wife and neighbors
> - cheap. This is a hobby for me and I am not retired (:-)
> - account for the sloping terrain, so if it can be lower because of it, yes,
> yes, hence cheaper.
>
> I understand that any multi-band beam is a compromise.
> I understand that any beam might not work to its maximum into all DX
> directions (different angles needed).
>
> At this point, I want to thank all of you for your input. I will run the
> suggested software and report back with my findings.
>
> Thanks
> Andreas
> KU7T
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: towertalk-bounces@contesting.com
> [mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Joe Subich, W4TV
> Sent: Thursday, December 01, 2011 9:08 AM
> To: Drax Felton; [TowerTalk]
> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Cost effectivel Tower height
>
>
>> Isn't the a half wave high tower the general rule of thumb for a > decent dx
>> angle?
>
> No, 1/2 wave is where a horizontally polarized antenna shows its first null
> directly overhead.
>
>> After 60ft (1/2 wave on 20m)
>
> 60 ft is 0.86 wave on 20 meters (14 MHz) - one wavelength is 70 feet.
>
> If I had to choose a single tower height *over flat ground* it would be
> 70 feet. That represents 1/2 wave on 40 meters - a point that a dipole or two
> element Yagi has some decent (but not world beating) performance
> - and a useful height for an 80 meter inverted V or a place to hang inverted L
> antennas for 160 and 80. In addition, 70 feet in 1 1/5 wave on 15 meters
> (perhaps the most useful overall height for DX) and 2 waves on 10 (high but
> not too high except for short skip).
>
>> After 60ft (1/2 wave on 20m) you need more guys with Rohn 25
>
> Two levels of guying is acceptable with Rohn 25 up to 70 feet. Rohn 45 will
> go to 90 feet with two levels of guying.
>
> 73,
>
> ... Joe, W4TV
>
>
> On 12/1/2011 11:53 AM, Drax Felton wrote:
>> Isn't the a half wave high tower the general rule of thumb for a decent dx
>> angle?
>>
>> After 60ft (1/2 wave on 20m) you need more guys with Rohn 25 and the work
>> difficulty starts increasing rapidly.
>>
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>> On Dec 1, 2011, at 12:31 AM, towertalk-request@contesting.com wrote:
>>
>>> Send TowerTalk mailing list submissions to
>>> towertalk@contesting.com
>>>
>>> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>>> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
>>> towertalk-request@contesting.com
>>>
>>> You can reach the person managing the list at
>>> towertalk-owner@contesting.com
>>>
>>> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
>>> than "Re: Contents of TowerTalk digest..."
>>>
>>>
>>> Today's Topics:
>>>
>>> 1. Determine cost-effective tower height (Andreas Hofmann)
>>> 2. Re: Determine cost-effective tower height (Jim Lux)
>>> 3. Re: Determine cost-effective tower height (Dick Dievendorff)
>>> 4. Re: Determine cost-effective tower height (Gene Fuller)
>>> 5. Re: Determine cost-effective tower height (Dick Dievendorff)
>>> 6. FW: Determine cost-effective tower height (km5vi)
>>> 7. Re: Determine cost-effective tower height (Jim Lux)
>>> 8. top loaded vertical radial length (LY2KZ)
>>>
>>>
>>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
>>> -
>>>
>>> Message: 1
>>> Date: Thu, 1 Dec 2011 00:47:46 +0000
>>> From: Andreas Hofmann<Andreas.Hofmann@microsoft.com>
>>> Subject: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>> To: "towertalk@contesting.com"<towertalk@contesting.com>
>>> Message-ID:
>>>
>>> <A9B46A478518064C8E335B938C8768840EBE9F66@TK5EX14MBXC288.redmond.corp
>>> .microsoft.com>
>>>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> I have decided I need a tower to get better antennas up in the air. Thinking
>>> about the SteppIR DB 18, 40m 2 el, 20 and up 3el. Now, my property slopes
>>> pretty much in every direction by 5 degrees. I need to determine a proper
>>> tower height without breaking the bank.
>>>
>>> I was told I should run a computer program to figure a good height of the
>>> yagi for my most important directions/DX locations. In fact a friend of
>>> mine did the same (on a similarly sloping property) and he found out that a
>>> 55 foot tower would be similar to a 120 foot tower on a flat ground. Hence
>>> he put up a 55 foot crank up mast and it is rocking. He forgot the program
>>> he used.
>>>
>>> So, what tool can I use to find the optimal (not maximal) height of a tower
>>> that would work well here?
>>> Also, the tower would be setting on the side of the house with a metal roof
>>> (roof about 15 feet high), not sure if this would matter...
>>>
>>> Thanks
>>> Andreas
>>> KU7T
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>> Message: 2
>>> Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2011 16:59:54 -0800
>>> From: Jim Lux<jimlux@earthlink.net>
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>> To: towertalk@contesting.com
>>> Message-ID:<4ED6D18A.10405@earthlink.net>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
>>>
>>> On 11/30/11 4:47 PM, Andreas Hofmann wrote:
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> I have decided I need a tower to get better antennas up in the air.
>>>> Thinking about the SteppIR DB 18, 40m 2 el, 20 and up 3el. Now, my
>>>> property slopes pretty much in every direction by 5 degrees. I need to
>>>> determine a proper tower height without breaking the bank.
>>>>
>>>> I was told I should run a computer program to figure a good height of the
>>>> yagi for my most important directions/DX locations. In fact a friend of
>>>> mine did the same (on a similarly sloping property) and he found out that a
>>>> 55 foot tower would be similar to a 120 foot tower on a flat ground.
>>>> Hence he put up a 55 foot crank up mast and it is rocking. He forgot the
>>>> program he used.
>>>>
>>>> So, what tool can I use to find the optimal (not maximal) height of a tower
>>>> that would work well here?
>>>> Also, the tower would be setting on the side of the house with a metal roof
>>>> (roof about 15 feet high), not sure if this would matter...
>>>>
>>>> Thanks
>>>> Andreas
>>>> KU7T
>>>>
>>>
>>> HFTA by Ward Silver which comes with the ARRL Antenna Book is what
>>> you want. You enter in the surrounding terrain (or extract it from
>>> DEM files, etc.) and it calculates the pattern.
>>>
>>> Only works for horizontally polarized antennas, by the way.
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>> Message: 3
>>> Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2011 17:25:50 -0800
>>> From: "Dick Dievendorff"<dieven@comcast.net>
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>> To: "'Jim Lux'"<jimlux@earthlink.net>,<towertalk@contesting.com>
>>> Message-ID:<001b01ccafc8$29967cf0$7cc376d0$@comcast.net>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"
>>>
>>> I think HFTA is by Dean Straw, N6BV. In any case, it's the program
>>> you want for this. Ward edited the new Antenna Book, and included Dean's
>>> programs.
>>>
>>> Dick, K6KR
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: towertalk-bounces@contesting.com
>>> [mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Jim Lux
>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 5:00 PM
>>> To: towertalk@contesting.com
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>>
>>> On 11/30/11 4:47 PM, Andreas Hofmann wrote:
>>>> Hi,
>>>>
>>>> I have decided I need a tower to get better antennas up in the air.
>>> Thinking about the SteppIR DB 18, 40m 2 el, 20 and up 3el. Now, my
>>> property slopes pretty much in every direction by 5 degrees. I need
>>> to determine a proper tower height without breaking the bank.
>>>>
>>>> I was told I should run a computer program to figure a good height
>>>> of the
>>> yagi for my most important directions/DX locations. In fact a friend
>>> of mine did the same (on a similarly sloping property) and he found out that
>>> a
>>> 55 foot tower would be similar to a 120 foot tower on a flat ground. Hence
>>> he put up a 55 foot crank up mast and it is rocking. He forgot the
>>> program he used.
>>>>
>>>> So, what tool can I use to find the optimal (not maximal) height of
>>>> a
>>> tower that would work well here?
>>>> Also, the tower would be setting on the side of the house with a
>>>> metal
>>> roof (roof about 15 feet high), not sure if this would matter...
>>>>
>>>> Thanks
>>>> Andreas
>>>> KU7T
>>>>
>>>
>>> HFTA by Ward Silver which comes with the ARRL Antenna Book is what you want.
>>> You enter in the surrounding terrain (or extract it from DEM files,
>>> etc.) and it calculates the pattern.
>>>
>>> Only works for horizontally polarized antennas, by the way.
>>> _______________________________________________
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> TowerTalk mailing list
>>> TowerTalk@contesting.com
>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>> Message: 4
>>> Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2011 21:09:30 -0500
>>> From: "Gene Fuller"<w2lu@rochester.rr.com>
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>> To: "Dick Dievendorff"<dieven@comcast.net>, "'Jim Lux'"
>>> <jimlux@earthlink.net>,<towertalk@contesting.com>
>>> Message-ID:<E2520ACDBCEE43858C2FEB22186E5240@FamilyRoom>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
>>> reply-type=original
>>>
>>> Agreed, HFTA is the way to go. ARRL Antenna Handbook ed 21 includes
>>> the software and instrustrutions you will need. A little hand held
>>> GPS will give you your tower location, and a fair bit of
>>> determination for the novice, will give you a great picture of what you have
>>> to work with.
>>> Gene / W2LU
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Dick Dievendorff"<dieven@comcast.net>
>>> To: "'Jim Lux'"<jimlux@earthlink.net>;<towertalk@contesting.com>
>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 8:25 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>>
>>>
>>>> I think HFTA is by Dean Straw, N6BV. In any case, it's the program
>>>> you want for this. Ward edited the new Antenna Book, and included
>>>> Dean's programs.
>>>>
>>>> Dick, K6KR
>>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: towertalk-bounces@contesting.com
>>>> [mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Jim Lux
>>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 5:00 PM
>>>> To: towertalk@contesting.com
>>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>>>
>>>> On 11/30/11 4:47 PM, Andreas Hofmann wrote:
>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>
>>>>> I have decided I need a tower to get better antennas up in the air.
>>>> Thinking about the SteppIR DB 18, 40m 2 el, 20 and up 3el. Now, my
>>>> property slopes pretty much in every direction by 5 degrees. I need
>>>> to determine a proper tower height without breaking the bank.
>>>>>
>>>>> I was told I should run a computer program to figure a good height
>>>>> of the
>>>> yagi for my most important directions/DX locations. In fact a
>>>> friend of mine did the same (on a similarly sloping property) and he
>>>> found out that a
>>>> 55 foot tower would be similar to a 120 foot tower on a flat ground.
>>>> Hence
>>>> he put up a 55 foot crank up mast and it is rocking. He forgot the
>>>> program he used.
>>>>>
>>>>> So, what tool can I use to find the optimal (not maximal) height of
>>>>> a
>>>> tower that would work well here?
>>>>> Also, the tower would be setting on the side of the house with a
>>>>> metal
>>>> roof (roof about 15 feet high), not sure if this would matter...
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks
>>>>> Andreas
>>>>> KU7T
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> HFTA by Ward Silver which comes with the ARRL Antenna Book is what
>>>> you want.
>>>> You enter in the surrounding terrain (or extract it from DEM files,
>>>> etc.) and it calculates the pattern.
>>>>
>>>> Only works for horizontally polarized antennas, by the way.
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> TowerTalk mailing list
>>>> TowerTalk@contesting.com
>>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> TowerTalk mailing list
>>>> TowerTalk@contesting.com
>>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------
>>>
>>> Message: 5
>>> Date: Wed, 30 Nov 2011 18:19:50 -0800
>>> From: "Dick Dievendorff"<dieven@comcast.net>
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>> To: "'Gene Fuller'"<w2lu@rochester.rr.com>, "'Jim Lux'"
>>> <jimlux@earthlink.net>,<towertalk@contesting.com>
>>> Message-ID:<001801ccafcf$b4a4c4d0$1dee4e70$@comcast.net>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>>>
>>> Google Earth is another (free) tool that you can use to determine the
>>> latitude and longitude of your specific antenna location.
>>>
>>> Dick
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Gene Fuller [mailto:w2lu@rochester.rr.com]
>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 6:10 PM
>>> To: Dick Dievendorff; 'Jim Lux'; towertalk@contesting.com
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>>
>>> Agreed, HFTA is the way to go. ARRL Antenna Handbook ed 21 includes
>>> the software and instrustrutions you will need. A little hand held
>>> GPS will give you your tower location, and a fair bit of
>>> determination for the novice, will give you a great picture of what you have
>>> to work with.
>>> Gene / W2LU
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "Dick Dievendorff"<dieven@comcast.net>
>>> To: "'Jim Lux'"<jimlux@earthlink.net>;<towertalk@contesting.com>
>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 8:25 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>>
>>>
>>>> I think HFTA is by Dean Straw, N6BV. In any case, it's the program
>>>> you want for this. Ward edited the new Antenna Book, and included
>>>> Dean's programs.
>>>>
>>>> Dick, K6KR
>>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: towertalk-bounces@contesting.com
>>>> [mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Jim Lux
>>>> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 5:00 PM
>>>> To: towertalk@contesting.com
>>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Determine cost-effective tower height
>>>>
>>>> On 11/30/11 4:47 PM, Andreas Hofmann wrote:
>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>
>>>>> I have decided I need a tower to get better antennas up in the air.
>>>> Thinking about the SteppIR DB 18, 40m 2 el, 20 and up 3el. Now, my
>>>> property slopes pretty much in every direction by 5 degrees. I need
>>>> to determine a proper tower height without breaking the bank.
>>>>>
>>>>> I was told I should run a computer program to figure a good height
>>>>> of the
>>>> yagi for my most important directions/DX locations. In fact a
>>>> friend of mine did the same (on a similarly sloping property) and he
>>>> found out that a
>>>> 55 foot tower would be similar to a 120 foot tower on a flat ground.
>>>> Hence
>>>> he put up a 55 foot crank up mast and it is rocking. He forgot the
>>>> program he used.
>>>>>
>>>>> So, what tool can I use to find the optimal (not maximal) height of
>>>>> a
>>>> tower that would work well here?
>>>>> Also, the tower would be setting on the side of the house with a
>>>>> metal
>>>> roof (roof about 15 feet high), not sure if this would matter...
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks
>>>>> Andreas
>>>>> KU7T
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> HFTA by Ward Silver which comes with the ARRL Antenna Book is what
>>>> you want.
>>>> You enter in the surrounding terrain (or extract it from DEM files,
>>>> etc.) and it calculates the pattern.
>>>>
>>>> Only works for horizontally polarized antennas, by the way.
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> TowerTalk mailing list
>>>> TowerTalk@contesting.com
>>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ___________
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> TowerTalk mailing list
>> TowerTalk@contesting.com
>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>>
> _______________________________________________
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk@contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>
>
> _______________________________________________
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk@contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
>
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