Topband: BOG questions

[Mark Lunday]

OK, my wife now is convinced that I have a screw loose in the brain somewhere (she had plenty of evidence before but decided to give me the benefit of the doubt until today)....I just spent an hour in the hot North Carolina sun, wearing jeans and a heavy winter jacket so that I could wade through 300 feet of neck-high thorns and nettles and tamp those down so I could re-lay the insulated BOG wire.

I do this for three reasons:

1. I want to confirm the theory that growing grass/weeds around the original installation 11 moths ago have compromised performance

2. A nearby lightning strike Friday night wiped out something in my HiZ 4-square receiving array, and I refuse to use the 160 meter inverted L for receive, even though this is a quiet QTH.

3. Even at my age of 55, I find sudden surges of energy when involved with such projects.

I shall share my observations as the nights progress, while I investigate/diagnose/repair/replace the damaged parts on the HiZ array.

Mark Lunday, WD4ELG
Greensboro, NC  FM06be
wd4elg at arrl.net
http://wd4elg.blogspot.com
SKCC #16439  FISTS #17972  QRP ARCI #16497