Topband: spacers for ladder line

[Hardy Landskov]

Garry and others,
Yes his insulator looked good and was pricey IMHO but there is one more 
thing to consider. Out here in AZ that THHN wire insulation will crack and 
fall off within a year so the grip on the insulator will  probable be 
reduced noticeably and may not even be strong enough to grip the wire.
Case in point: I put up a window line Beverage using DXE's insulators with 
the snap in pegs. They are starting to crack will probably have to be 
replaced after this Summer. The 551 window line has lasted about 15 years 
but it too will have to be replaced. RG213 is the same way, about 15 years 
outside and it's done.
The only coax that looks brand new after 25 years is the LDF4-50A.
YMMV.....
73 Hardy N7RT


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Garry Shapiro" <garry at ni6t.com>
To: <topband at contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 2010 6:47 PM
Subject: Re: Topband: spacers for ladder line


> Re ladder line:
>
> At Dayton, one exhibitor was a small outfit called TennaMax,
> _http://www.73cnc.com/_
>
> Offered were weighted knobs for various radios---and a very handy spacer
> for open-wire lines. The black Delrin spacers--trademarked as
> LadderSnap-- are designed for #14 AWG THHN house wire, which snaps into
> the spacers, which are repeated every 18" or so. Spacing between wires
> is 4" for a nominal 600 ohms. They are offered in bags of 70 (100') for
> $35 and 175 (250') for $80m plus shipping; these are domestic prices.
> See the website.
>
> At roughly half a buck each, these spacers are a bit pricey, IMHO, but
> they do the job painlessly and efficiently. OTOH, the price per foot of
> finished line, including the THHN wire, is less than $.40/ft, which
> compares quite favorably with good coax.
>
> I have no connection to the vendor, but remembered this thread when I
> saw their display.
>
> Garry, NI6T
>
> On 5/9/2010 8:43 PM, Trent Fleming wrote:
>> Friends,
>>
>> For a variety of reasons, mostly to reduce the visibility of the antenna,
>> I'm going to move the center point of my G5RV into a tree (which is
>> currently the support for one end of the antenna.)  Drop the ladder line
>> straight down, and use a switch box to alternate between traditional G5RV
>> dipole and a Marconi with radials to try and improve my Topband and 80m
>> signal before next winter.  I want to space the ladder line off of the 
>> tree
>> to avoid detuning to the extent possible.  I need suggestions for what to
>> use to accomplish this - I've seen suggestions for pvc pipe and wooden
>> dowels boiled in parafin/wax . . . any other ideas?
>>
>> I'm fully aware that this is not an optimal setup, but I have to avoid
>> visibility of the antenna if at all possible, and the ladder line is just
>> too much of an eyesore as it hangs right now.
>>
>> Your suggestions are much appreciated.
>>
>> 73,
>>
>> Trent
>> N4DTF
>>
>>
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