Topband: RE: Topband CQ160 contest

[Steve Flood]

Dick and Adele Bingham wrote...
a
>all worked with a barefoot IC-756PRO (100W) and a dipole whose "ends" were around 90 feet up and fed in the >center with lightweight coax ( the lossey 1/8 inch diameter 50-ohm kind). I scrapped my 160-T (90 ft vert with 80 ft >top-hat) because it performed so poorly in the USA with 16 L/4 radials AND 30=>35 degree ridges towering 7000 >feet above my valley-floor to the E&W.

>I was surprised to work ZL/VK because the wire-axis runs N/S and did not hear any JA or KL7 stations. I am >beginning to think there are no W1's other than CT and NH (maybe the real problem is a 50-degree ridge from az->bearing North thru 50-degrees-East).

>I think another dipole installed 90-degrees to the existing one and a KW is in order to improve my signal.

I also have very big mountains around me (see previous postings).  I have "gotten by" with a full size dipole at 70 feet - always wishing I could get some sort of vertically polarized system up.  I may try to get an inverted L up in the air this spring or summer.  Are you saying those ridgetops are up to 35 degrees slope from your QTH (60 - 70% slope?)WOW - I thought I had it bad.  Others have assured me that the 20 - 25 degree wave angles are quite adequate for DX signals.  

If you use a dipole on 160 and you can't get it up over 150 or 200 feet in the air (who can?), then I think you only need one as they really show no directivity at the relatively low wavelength height.  I've played with the dipole with EZNEC and it shows no more than about 2dB difference bewteen the broadside or endfire pattern.

Steve KK7UV