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[TowerTalk] Ladder Line and Coax

To: <towertalk@contesting.com>
Subject: [TowerTalk] Ladder Line and Coax
From: K7GCO@aol.com (K7GCO@aol.com)
Date: Tue, 21 Aug 2001 04:51:58 EDT
In a message dated 8/20/01 10:57:01 PM Pacific Daylight Time, 
thompson@mindspring.com writes:<< 
 
 The main  problem with bringing ladder line or any open wire line into the
 shack lies with what I call the "hot shack" syndrome.
 With  more than one 160 meter antenna the shack was full of hot RF and
 plenty of RF feedback.   This also gets into the telephones
 radios, and even TVs that are not on cable.   Even using a tuner with a
 balun can cause a problem.
 
 This is another form of fundamental overload.  The cure is to remove the
 ladder line from the shack (by as many feet as possible).  I found that
 using a remote balun (does not matter what values..) just outside the shack
 window still causes problems although far less severe than bring ladder line
 directly into the shack.  A better approach is to move the remote balun to
 40 feet or more from the shack.   I did this with a big L I had up several
 years ago and the amount of RF in the shack was minimal. 
 73 Dave K4JRB 
  >>
If and when the problem explained above occurs, this is a good idea.  I have 
not had it so far with either a Hi-Z or a Lo-Z area at the end of the 
feedline.  At my new QTH I will have many feedlines coming in the shack and 
I'll see which one is the least troublesome if it occurs..

You mention having a remote Balun in the form of a big L.. That will match 
any Z at the end of the open wire line.  You didn't say if it was remotely 
tuned from the shack which would be ideal.  Did you have some way to prevent 
RF Spill Over around the unblanced tuner?  Measures had a good article in QST 
on how to make a form of a balanced L that would be ideal.  If remotely 
tune--ever better.

There is a way to make a L tuner remotely tuned with a 110VAC selsyn motor 
driving just one shaft.  I call it the "One Knob Antenna Tuner."  It tunes up 
real fast.

There is another L configuration I use that is actually balanced with out 
toroids  or rolls of coax for whatever it might do.  It also can be tuned on 
just one shaft with a remote selsyn.  A counter dial would be ideal for 
calibration purposes. k7gco  

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