I suppose we could say the same about electricity and lightning protection too. No such thing as a little knowledge. Either be an expert or leave it alone! My main point was that, from what I read ab
The purpose of the copper plate is to give a low impedance connection between all lines connected to it. (short low inductance) Unfortunately the center conductor is not at or near shield potential
Connecting ground rods in a circle does no good. Lightning will tend to flow in a straight line. If it is coming down a leg of the tower to a ground rod it will follow that line out away from the tow
If you want to minimize the chance of a lightning strike to your tower do not place a device on the top with sharp points. A blunt point rod should be placed at the top. The so called lightning preve
Tuned radials do not exist when buried or laid on the ground. The velocity factor on the wire is much slower when on or in the ground. 73 Gary K4FMX _______________________________________________ _
Charge can not be altered or bled off enough to make any difference. The earth can re-supply the charge many times faster than you can reduce it. It is worth reading the below article that Tom Osborn
My tower has never been hit with a rabbits foot hung on it either. Therefore it must work. 73 Gary K4FMX _______________________________________________ _____________________________________________
Running coax through metal conduit without grounding it at each end of the conduit is asking for a large arc between the coax and conduit, not recommended. 73 Gary K4FMX ____________________________
Not a myth at all. Many, including myself have seen tower bases cracked or destroyed by having only the tower mounted to J bolts in the concrete or tower section in the concrete and no additional gr
Solder will corrode in the ground or in the weather. Solder will melt when high current goes through it long before the conductor melts. 73 Gary K4FMX _______________________________________________
Sorry Bill, but my rabbit's foot is just as logical as your claim of changing the distribution of charge. I have more basis for my rabbit's foot claim, my tower has never been hit. NASSA doesn't thin
Mike, In addition to Jim's comments, remember that the current will divide pretty much equally between all radials that are attached to the tower so each will only carry a fraction of the total curre
Doug, You do realize that my comments about the rabbit's foot protector are in jest to those that claim that the bleed off type systems are seen to add protection to a tower? My point is that my absu
Yes I have. When no ground system was installed at the tower I have seen a few bases cracked and a couple with large chunks blown out of the base. Yes I have. The Skyway bridge in St. Petersburg, Fl
Doug, I am going to use your logic here. Let's review what you said in a past post: How do you know it bleed off "the charge"? How do you know it "still bleeds off the charge"? Ok, since I installed
Hi Doug, This kind of logic sounds kind of silly when it comes from someone else doesn't it? I am trying to get you to think about what you are saying and the validity of the evidence you use. Now, w
Stranded wire is fine for inside connections. The problem with it outside is corrosion of the connections points. A good ground system maintenance practice calls for inspecting and retightening all c
Yes Bill, you have it correct. When building an ideal ground system for lightning it should end up being an excellent RF ground system for a 160 meter vertical. 73 Gary K4FMX _______________________
The plasma trail is created by the step leader making contact with a streamer. The main strike follows the low impedance plasma trail. Being a low impedance allows the high currents in the strike to