TopBand: inverted-L versus dipole

[Steve Ireland]

Dear Tom,

I tried, I really tried, but my QTH still stinks for verticals.  My angle is
that if I can't get close to performance of a bent dipole at 50' with an
inverted-L and the inconvenience of 50 radials at 8' high running all over
the major portion of the back end of the block (in an 80' x 100' square
configuration, complete with perimeter wire), then maybe the location just
don't suit them and I am beating my head against a brick wall.

Maybe there are others out there doing the same - beating their heads
against a brick wall and building bigger and bigger earth systems. 

I have no argument that verticals should be better than horizontals in most
QTHs if they are properly installed -  I had one in the UK where they worked
'gang busters.'  Believe me, my latest version was properly installed, it
just don't work as well as my dipole.

Hope you are keeping well and those scorpions are leaving you alone.

73,

Steve, VK6VZ
PS Next winter, I'll increase the earth system to 100 radials and try again... 


At 09:34 AM 10/20/97 +0000, you wrote:
>> To:            <topband@contesting.com>
>
>W2EQS / 9 W9NFC (Charlie SK) worked DXCC with a low dipole, but he 
>was usually five S units weaker than me (he was in Indiana, I was in 
>Toledo).
>
>Here in Georgia with rocky clay (4 mS/m) my vertical still 
>skunked a dipole at 100 ft. 
>
>Perhaps this is because all of my verticals always used good radial 
>systems.
>
>> Sometimes a good low horizontal can be better than a good high vertical -if
>> your soil is poor, maybe most of the time.  My bent low dipole has got me
>> over 90 countries on 160m.
>
>I'm not so sure anecdotal "I worked X country" reports mean 
>anything at all in the long run. Working DX is a matter of time and 
>persistence, more so than ten or twenty dB of signal strength. After 
>all, I've worked VK's who were mobile and worked VK's from my mobile 
>on 160...and antennas like that are only about one percent 
>efficient at best! 
>
>Listening to DX since 1963 on 160, the outstanding signals always 
>been from verticals. Not that low horizontals can't be heard, they 
>can be. Just not as well.  
>
>73, Tom W8JI
>
>--
>FAQ on WWW:               http://www.contesting.com/topband.html
>Submissions:              topband@contesting.com
>Administrative requests:  topband-REQUEST@contesting.com
>Problems:                 owner-topband@contesting.com
>
>


--
FAQ on WWW:               http://www.contesting.com/topband.html
Submissions:              topband@contesting.com
Administrative requests:  topband-REQUEST@contesting.com
Problems:                 owner-topband@contesting.com