[CQ-Contest] [TowerTalk] Skyhawk, KT36XA, opinions requested

[W0UN -- John Brosnahan]

At 19:13 10-10-07, Leigh S. Jones, KR6X wrote:
>This is interesting to hear about.  I rented N6PN's home in Reseda for
>several years where I used, on a few occasions, his KT34XA.  It had
>no such performance problem.  Believe me, I was looking for that
>problem because my friend W0UA reported similar problems with a
>KT34XA in Colorado.


Since Leigh brought up W0UA's name (call) I sent George a copy of the
note and I am including George's reply below.

The real question I have is -- Has anyone taken a KLM KT34XA with
the 15M problem and modified it with the M-squared upgrade kit and
had the antenna perform properly on 15M as well as keeping the
20/10 performance?

--John   W0UN


W0UA text below

>I was one of the first (certainly around these parts anyway)
>to try the then-new KT34XA in 1980.  And I was among the first to notice
>that it was a relative dog on 15M.  In fact, I had the antenna all ready
>to go up, ran some curves on it at half-height and 15 (and 10) were so
>out-of-spec that I stopped the proceedings & called KLM.  Erectus
>Interrruptus!  They sent me their new "capacitor" kit & I had to rebuild
>the damn thing.  2 weeks later W0CP, K5KA (then N0CP) and myself got the
>"improved" version up & it was acceptable if not impressive on 15.  20
>and 10 were amazing, and I think the unexpectedly competitive
>performance on those bands tended to render more noticeable the
>comparatively "average" results on 15.
>
>Years later I tried to resurrect that antenna when I lived in the
>mountains above Boulder.  NOTHING I did could make that thing work
>again. I assembled it exactly as it had been at my Denver QTH.
>
>K0RF and myself went over & over everything--to no avail.  Confusion?
>It was like Fathers' Day in the NBA!  I still have the antenna--whatever
>it is--in my pile of stuff.
>
>You suppose if I got the latest kit & rebuilt it one more time........
>ARRRRRRRGGGHHH!
>
>----
>W0UA
>____