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Re: [TowerTalk] guage of wire for 500 watt antenna?

To: "towertalk@contesting.com" <towertalk@contesting.com>
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] guage of wire for 500 watt antenna?
From: N1BUG <paul@n1bug.com>
Date: Sun, 3 Dec 2017 05:20:47 -0500
List-post: <mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
Physical strength is probably the main factor. I successfully ran 1500 watts into an inverted V made of a single conductor from of WD-1A field wire. I believe it is slightly larger than 20 AWG. It has four tinned copper strands and three steel strands for strength, along with some *very* tough insulation. I've had no problems with this. I used this wire because it is strong and relatively light weight. It was an inverted V at the top of a 25 foot fixed aluminum mast sticking out of a 75 foot tower. I needed relatively small, light wire as big stuff would have broken or bent the mast. In the past I have run similar power into inverted V antennas using all copper wire of similar or smaller size, but wire breaking in storms was a problem.

Paul N1BUG


On 12/02/2017 05:00 PM, Gary Slagel via TowerTalk wrote:



I'm hoping to get to Belize to work ARRL DX CW contest this year and I'd like to 
take my Elecraft KPA500/KAT500 and operate 500 watts. I will be at a friends 
house and not next to the ocean so I'm thinking of getting a doublet up in the air 
as far as I can on a fiberglass pole, feeding with 450 ohm ribbon and tuning it on 
10 thru 40 and maybe 80M.
The fiberglass pole won't take too much weight so I'd like to go as small as I can on the 
wire.   Any suggestions or input?
Thanks, Gary KT0A
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