Topband: Experiences with inverted L

[Ulrich Weiss]

hi Evan,

I have worked most of my 240 ctys on 160m with a similar setup... vertical
section abt 45 ft. going up to the top of my tower (at a distance of abt 4
ft.)... horizontal section about150 ft. sloping into the neighbour's
garden... about 25 buried radials to the boundaries of my lot (between15 ft.
and 60 ft.)...
electrically it is a 3/8 lambda on 160 and I tune out the inductance by a
piece of rg-213 (actually integrated into the vertical part) with an SWR
<2... on 3.8 and 3.5 I replace the capacitor (Coax) by an inductor and
obtain an SWR <1.5 at both ends of the band (I actually switch the coils for
80m in series with the braid of my coax-capacitor, while on 160 I switch the
feedline coax to the inner conductor of the coax-capacitor, which is
well-insulated at the upper end)...
as you say, this is not the antenna to win a 160m competition, but it keeps
me fairly competive even when working such rare ones as UA0MF, BQ9P or
FT5XO...
as all vertical antennas it's success depends on the ground resistance...
with less than abt 15 radials, you'd better use a (half-wave or loaded)
dipole, even if lower than 1/10 lambda - especially in a hilltop qth...
I'd recommend to try either of them and take your final choice afterwards...
give it a try - topband is really a thrill
regards

Uli, DJ2YA

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <K9SQG at aol.com>
To: <topband at contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 01, 2005 3:17 AM
Subject: Topband: Experiences with inverted L


> Fellow 160 meter enthusiasts,
>
> I just joined the reflector and wonder if anybody could share their
> experiences with inverted L antennas, something along the lines of what a
35-40 ft
> vertical section and 90-100 ft horizontal section might perform like with
say
> 16-25 radials, about 100 ft long, buried.  This is the antenna I'm
planning to
> erect, if it is worthwhile.  Modeling efforts of others indicate it has
some
> potential, not a barn-burner, but at least it would get me back on the
band after
> a 35 year gap.  But with very limited time, I'd rather not put up an
antenna
> that will perform poorly for stateside contacts, hi.
>
> 73s,
>
> Evan
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