Topband: Inverted L - newbie questions

[Jeff Blaine]

An inverted L without radials is a random length wire and the 
measurements are of no meaning until there is a ground system to make up 
the other half of the antenna.

But to Wes point, the 259 and big 160m antennas is a recipe for going 
nuts.  You don't even need a high powered BC station - even a low 
powered station a pretty far distance away can cause the 259 to give 
results in error.  A VNA or something like the Rig Expert are FAR more 
robust in this application.

73/jeff/ac0c
alpha-charlie-zero-charlie
www.ac0c.com


On 8/21/19 12:04 AM, Wes wrote:
> How many high-powered BC stations do you have around?
>
> Wes  N7WS
>
> On 8/21/2019 8:55 AM, N4ZR wrote:
>> I just put up an inverted L, with a vertical length of about 60 feet, 
>> and a total of 135 feet.  It is fed through 16 turns of RG-400 on a 
>> ferrite core at the base. There are, as yet, no radials.
>>
>> Because I was impatient to see what was going on, I grounded the 
>> shield to a single copper-plated ground rod and connected my MFJ259B. 
>> I expected a high R value, and I got one - 112-122 ohms. But 
>> surprisingly (to me), lowest SWR was at 2.070 MHz, and X remained at 
>> zero over quite a wide range - all the way down to about 1.7 MHz.
>>
>> Is this all to be expected?  I plan to put down at least minimum 
>> radials in the next few days, and would expect the R value to drop as 
>> I do so. Am I off-base?
>>
>
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