TopBand: 3b7rf

[Donald I Field]

The "Spratly Group" tried everything (not out of ignornace, out of
desperation!! If we wasted time, it was our time we were wasting ...) -
Beverages, loops, low dipole, you name it. But when static is continuous
20dB over 9,
then even a 20dB improvement in S/N (I wish!) still leaves most sigs several
S points below the noise! I guess the 3B7 group have a similar problem -
they were S7 here the other evening on 160, called CQ for about 20 mins and
then disappeared, despite a huge pile-up at this end. They have my sympathy!

I also note Bill's comments about timing of 3B7RF. Again, it's impossible to
get this right. We were criticised for being too late in the year ("why
didn't you go in January when there was a longer period of mutual
darkness?" - answer, the resort was closed for the monsoon season; "why
didn't you go around the Equinox?" - answer, because we all have jobs to do,
and this was the one winter window when we could all get leave). If only all
plans could be based on keeping the topband crowd happy. Again, the 3B7
crowd have my sympathy. It's a great effort - I worked them on 6 bands in my
first two evenings of chasing them. Now have 8 bands - just 160 to go.

My regards to the topband crowd who will be at Dayton. Can't be there this
year as it's my daughter's 18th birthday on 15th May - there we go again,
l'il old distractions getting in the way of radio ...

Don G3XTT

(member of the Spratly team)
-----Original Message-----
From: Tom Rauch <10eesfams2mi@mass1-pop.pmm.mci.net>
To: K1ZM <K1ZM@aol.com>; topband@contesting.com <topband@contesting.com>
Date: 11 May 1998 05:25
Subject: Re: TopBand: 3b7rf


> Date:          Sun, 10 May 1998 16:17:38 -0400 (EDT)
> From:          K1ZM <K1ZM@aol.com>

Hi Jeff,

Here's where all this silly folklore about loop antennas comes back
to hurt us.

> They will try a short beverage or a magnetic loop perhaps tomorrow night -
I
> explained the loop to George, and I think he got it's design okay - if
they
> can come up with an 800 pf trimmer cap.

I don't know why DXpeditions waste time with so called "magnetic
loops". The Spratly group did the same thing.

The signal from a lightning bolt, once you are a few miles from the
bolt, is exactly the same ratio of electric to magnetic fields as a
signal from a transmitter.

The "magnetic loop", once you are several loop diameters from
the so called "magnetic loop" has exactly is exactly the same ratio
of electric to magnetic field response as any other antenna.

The only way to discriminate against QRN or any non-nearfield noise
is with a directive antenna. Either a EWE, or a Beverage. A single
loop is a waste of time.

Unless they have something arcing a few feet from the antenna causing
noise that by a stroke of luck happens to be near-field electric
field dominant, they might as well just use an attenuator pad on
their TX antenna as use a loop.

73, Tom W8JI
w8ji.tom@MCIONE.com

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