Topband: K9AY Loop Question

[Lloyd - N9LB]

Hello Pete,

Gary - K9AY is a "local".  I've spoken with him in person about this same issue that I experienced at my QTH.  The loop geometry is not real critical but a good ground is extremely important.  I have poor soil conductivity here.  

Gary recommended putting a radial wire directly under each of the loops extending several feet beyond the edge of each loop.  Also be sure to use common mode chokes on the RF and control lines.

73

Lloyd - N9LB

-----Original Message-----
From: Topband [mailto:topband-bounces+lloydberg=tds.net at contesting.com] On Behalf Of N4ZR
Sent: Thursday, January 14, 2021 8:24 PM
To: topband reflector <Topband at contesting.com>
Subject: Topband: K9AY Loop Question

I'm in the process of putting up a K9AY loop, using the Array Solutions/Wolf RF control boxes.  I had the antenna up last year but it didn't seem to work very well, and I'm looking for suggestions.  A couple of areas for which I've found no answers:

How important is the geometry of the loops?  Illustrations I've seen seem to imply that the lower legs should slope upward somewhat to the corners, but without dimensions other than the total length of the loops.

The ground around the antenna slopes slightly toward one side - should I attempt to get the corners in the same plane, or the same distance above ground?

The relay box is mounted on the central fiberglass pole is approximately
2 feet above ground.  Is this dimension important?  The relay box is grounded to a ground rod very close by.  Last year I experimented with also laying a couple of radials on the ground under the loops.  I read that suggested somewhere, but don't know if it's a good or bad idea.


--
73, Pete N4ZR
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