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Re: Topband: 160m Inverted L High SWR

To: Bill Stewart <cwopr@embarqmail.com>
Subject: Re: Topband: 160m Inverted L High SWR
From: Grant Saviers <grants2@pacbell.net>
Date: Tue, 01 Oct 2013 15:21:10 -0700
List-post: <topband@contesting.com">mailto:topband@contesting.com>
In order of approximate decreasing importance:

1. the elevated radials should not be grounded anywhere.
2. With elevated radials, you must have a good feedline choke at the feedpoint, about 9 turns on a type 31 "big clamp-on", and that will require RG58 or TFE RG174 if you run 1500 watts. 3. My 160m T has about the same vertical dimensions but needed another 80' total on the T top to resonate at 1835, or about 157' total wire. Keep all wires more than 18" from paralleling the tree trunk and large branches. Remember there are very high voltages at the top load wire ends. 4. my feedpoint Z is 25 ohms (per EZNEC and VNWA measurements) and a 2:1 balun brings the SWR to about 1.1 at 1835 with 6 x 125' radials at 10' elevation 5. I will add another 2 radials and probably a Hi Z choke for DC grounding. I don't expect much change in the resonant F since radials 5 & 6 had little effect. Check antennasbyn6lf.com for a lot of data about elevated radials. 6. series capacitors switched in series to the feedpoint with vacuum relays or a motorized vacuum variable is planned per W8JI's suggestion to be able to tune higher up the band.

Grant KZ1W
Redmond, WA


On 10/1/2013 2:08 PM, Bill Stewart wrote:
Good afternoon all,
I just finished installing a new Inverted L. The previous one was removed 
because
a tree fell across a set of guys on my tower, which had to be taken down. The 
new
Inverted L is strung up amongst a lot of tall (80 ft +) pine trees. The vert. 
section is
abt 55 ft & the rest is nearly flat horizontal. Total length is 130 ft/6 in. I 
am using a
4 wire c-poise abt 9 ft high of which none are directly under the horiz. 
section.
Each wire is abt 135 ft long. The min. SWR is abt 2.9:1 at 1833 khz. The SWR
curve is broad which looks odd to me. I am feeding it direct with a random 
length of
50 ohm coax. For these tests, I am using a TS-440S, which reduces power at this
value of SWR (the internal tuner does not operate on 160). Normally, I would run
vintage xmtrs, which load up ok. I will try it tonight to see if it gets out of 
the yard.
Any suggestions how I can get the SWR down below 2:1 so the TS-440S will work at
full power? I apologize if this subject has been discussed before. If so, 
please point
me towards that info.
Many thanks for any comments....73 de Bil l K4JYS _________________
Topband Reflector

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