Topband: Helical vertical

[w2pm at aol.com]

I saw a few posts on here a few weeks ago - one from Herb - describing 
a helically wound 60ft vertical using the new long fibreglass 
telescoping pole from Spiderbeam.  At a hamfest here there's a guy 
selling miliary surplus 4ft section fibre/composition poles which plug 
together.  A real bargain - a 40 ft kit with guy set and base about 
30.00 and the 4 ft sections were 30.00 for > 60ft worth. These are very 
rigid, mil green.

What are the practical issues with helical winding of a vertical with 
rain and/or snow relative to SWR?  I suspect the SWR will change fairly 
dramatically under these circumstances and possibly snow could stick 
for a while.  Barefoot Im not that concerned but with the big amp I'm a 
bit concerned over rapid SWR changes with the onset of sudden wetness 
around the windings.

Im thinking of a top loaded antenna - 60 ft vert, a 2 or 3 top wires.

73

Pete W2PM
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