Topband: Beverages

[W0AH@aol.com]

Beverage construction?

    My original terminated NE beverage averages about 6' -7' above ground and 
slopes down a hill ending up 100'' lower over its 650' length.  I seem to 
hear the Europeans OK with it.
The elk walk under it in winter, but a couple of deer with huge racks managed 
to take it down this summer.
  
    A newer E-W 600' beverage runs down a hill for 300' (to about 75' lower 
than starting heigth) and back up a hill for another 300'.  Seems to work OK.
Nothing scientific here.  Only comparisons are with the 90' vertical.  The 
beverages are almost always better in their favored directions.
Conclusion:  Don't worry.  Be happy.  Put up a beverage over, around, through 
whatever obstacles you have.  Do it now!  It will only take a few hours. It 
will probably work just fine.  Then, after becoming used to your beverage(s) 
performance, do your homework, design, planning, preparation and put up the 
"ultimate" beverage(s).  Please report back here and tell us if there was any 
improvement and how much.
 
     By the way, 160M is quiet enough in the morning to actually hear some DX 
(not so at night).  VK3IO and I exchanged 559's yesterday morning.  I was 
only running 200 watts because one of my top loading wires had broken off, 
and the SWR with just one top loading wire is pretty darn high.  I'll try to 
fix it this week ( I love aspects of climbing my 90' tower- mainly getting 
back down to the ground safely  :)  and then get my amp going for the season.

Doug  W0AH  central Colorado



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