Topband: Price of Copper Going Up

[donovanf at starpower.net]

Despite the high cost of copper, there are still affordable sources of copper radial wire.  For example, 16 AWG speaker wire can be purchased on eBay for $52.25 per one thousand feet including shipping within the U.S. 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/THE-WIRES-ZONE-SW16-1000X-16-GAUGE-1000-FT-SPEAKER-WIRE-HOME-CAR-BLUE-/160851382663?pt=US_Audio_Cables_Adapters&hash=item25737d5187

Its not difficult to separate this "zip cord" speaker wire to produce 2000 feet of wire, that's affordable radial wire at 2.6 cents per foot.  One minor bit of caution, the wire separates more easily at room temperature.  The insulation hardens a bit in cold weather, increasing the effort to unzip it.

Speaker wire is   N O T   suitable for antenna construction, its has inadequate tensile strength.  But it works great for radials.  

73
Frank
W3LPL



---- Original message ----
>Date: Wed, 6 Feb 2013 20:16:23 -0800 (PST)
>From: Dennis W0JX <w0jx at yahoo.com>  
>Subject: Topband: Price of Copper Going Up  
>To: topband at contesting.com
>
>For those of you planning on putting in big ground radial systems, you might want to buy your wire sooner than later. Either that or hedge your cost by investing in copper futures! See link below:
>
>http://seekingalpha.com/article/1160971-kevin-puil-4-lb-copper-is-on-its-way
>
>73, Dennis W0JX/8
>_________________
>Topband Reflector