Topband: Beverages

[k3bu at optimum.net]

> When I first acquired my 20 acres, the first thing I did was put up
> a 1300 ft long beverage, 10 feet high. It had terrific front to
> back ratio ... regardless of termination. I eventually determined
> that 2/3 of the wire was ineffective due to attenuation of the
> signal. You should do a current attenuation test with a clamp
> on RF ammeter to determine the loss at your QTH, which could
> be less than mine. Then you can determine how long of a beverage
> is worthwhile.
> 
> Rick N6RK
> 

The benefit of long Beverage besides mentioned F/B is that it has sharper pattern and lower angle of the main lobe. Depending on propagation angles it can be benefit or detriment.
For contester  it is advantageous to have short and long Beverages, especially for remote areas, like JA. 
I have seen situations when long Bev (1600') on a sloping terrain was worse to Eu than Inv Vee. When shortened to about 600' it was a "killer".
Then long phased Bev at W8LRL were hearing JAs while short ones were "dead". 
Makes big difference in a contest. 
 
Yuri, K3BU.us
www.MVmanor.com