Topband: Elevated Radials

[Frank W3LPL]

Hi Bob,

That's a superb antenna farm you've grown in central Ohio!
Congratulations!

Your elevated systems of four radials would work even better with
more radials. You can prove that to yourself by measuring the current
feeding each radial, the currents will vary significantly depending
on the unique environment if each radial.  Doubling the number of
radials will divide the current much more evenly among 8 radials.

Unless you live on a salt march (there aren't many in Ohio ;),
horizontally polarized antennas are significantly more efficient than
verticals on every band except 160 meters, even if 80 meter horizontally
polarized  antennas ore only 70 feet high and 40 meter antennas are
only about 50 feet high.  

Unless you live on an Ohio salt marsh, verticals suffer very badly
on 20 meters and above because of inefficient ground reflections
in the far field of the antenna -- well beyond the end of the radials --
at the necessary low radiation angles of radiation on those bands.
That's why your simple Moxon performs so well on 10 meters
compared to your verticals.

73
Frank
W3LPL


----- Original Message -----
From: W3HKK at roadrunner.com
To: "topband at contesting.com" <topband at contesting.com>
Sent: Friday, January 5, 2024 11:12:14 AM
Subject: Re: Topband: Elevated Radials

Moved onto 3 rural acres about 14 yrs ago. Only had one (15') tree on
the whole property, AND I had sold my yagis and tower about five years
earlier. So I went with monoband GPs on 40-30-20-17-10.
All were 9-10 ft above ground and used 4 elevated radials.

I borrowed a used 4BTV, set it up with the included 24 radials on the
ground. Comparing it to my 20m GP showed the monoband GP to be 0.5-1.0
S-units better. So I convinced myself the 4 elevated #14 solid copper,
pvc jacketed radials were worth it.

A few years later I expanded the 40m and 20m GPs into 2 el phased
arrays, and the nice 3dB gain punches into Asia quite well. Plus the
fat forward and rear lobes give me about 300 degree useful coverage,
with a couple of nulls in between.

The only deer damage Ive had is to my SAL30 RX antenna which I only
put up 3-4 ft above grade.
(should have put it up 8 ft.). 

Elevated radials work very well indeed. 

OTOH, my 160/80m INV-L's share a common 26 radials that I roll up for
mowing season, and uncoil onto the ground for winter. 

PS Built a home brew Moxon for 10m last year and it is a good notch or
two above a single GP. 
Added a 3 el vert (Bobtail curtain) for 12 which is working well but
not at a Moxon level. Worked Bouvet with my 30m GP, and Bhutan the
year before. so the elevated radials are bringing in the rare ones. 

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Sent: Friday January 5 2024 12:00:43PM
Subject: Topband Digest, Vol 253, Issue 7

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 Today's Topics:

 1. Re: Using 4 - 6 elevated radials in lieu of 120 buried wires (Joe)

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------

 Message: 1
 Date: Fri, 5 Jan 2024 10:08:26 -0600
 From: Joe 
 To: Wes Stewart , "topband at contesting.com"
 , Jeff Blaine 
 Subject: Re: Topband: Using 4 - 6 elevated radials in lieu of 120
 buried wires
 Message-ID: 
 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed

 I guess this list doesn't pass images sorry.

 Joe WB9SBD

 On 1/5/2024 9:55 AM, Joe wrote:
 > I beg to differ on the High Maintenance possibility.
 > I live in Southwest Wisconsin the Deer hunting capital of maybe the
 > world.
 > There are deer in my yard every day.
 > We have wind storms,
 > We have Ice storms, Bad ones like take down professional broadcast
 > tower Ice storms.
 >
 > Yet my 40 meter 1/4 wave vertical has been up for 20+ years.
 > The base is up 10 feet,
 > The radials act as sloping guy wires. the ends only 2 feet above
the
 > ground. So prime Deer attack prey.
 > ?It has yet to have issues from Deer or weather,
 > View from base looking up.
 >
 > And view? during a 60 Mph+ storm.
 >
 >
 > Joe WB9SBD
 >
 > On 1/5/2024 9:38 AM, Wes Stewart via Topband wrote:
 >> ? Not me.? My radials are all on the ground and they are all
 >> appropriately shortened.
 >>
 >> ???? On Friday, January 5, 2024 at 08:05:47 AM MST, Jeff
 >> Blaine? wrote:
 >> ? ? There is another practical issue here.? I would agree that
elevated
 >> radials can work great.? But in practice, MAINTENANCE of the
elevated
 >> radials is a non-ending headache.? Around here we have deer and
ice and
 >> wind and on and on.? I ran various 40m 4SQ elevated radial schemes
for
 >> years and eventually went to an in-ground installation because I
was
 >> tired of the hassle.
 >>
 >> You are probably a far better mechanical and electrical hand than
I am.
 >> But this maintenance aspect of elevated radials is something I
don't
 >> think gets enough mention.
 >>
 >> 73/jeff/ac0c
 >> alpha-charlie-zero-charlie
 >> www.ac0c.com
 >>
 >> On 1/5/2024 8:42 AM, Wes Stewart via Topband wrote:
 >>> I was about to recommend Rudy's work. He is a prolific
experimenter
 >>> and writer; reading his stuff will answer almost anything you
ever
 >>> what to know about vertical antennas, ground systems and
receiving
 >>> antennas.
 >>> I have a folder on my hard drive with 30-40 of his papers.
 >>>
 >>>
 >>>
 >>> ?? ? On Friday, January 5, 2024 at 01:03:55 AM MST, Jim
 >>> Brown? wrote:
 >>>
 >>>
 >>> Some thoughts about that particular installation and why it
worked
 >>> well,
 >>> based on my study of Rudy Severns' excellent work on the topic.
 >> ?? _________________
 >> Searchable Archives:http://www.contesting.com/_topband? [1] -
Topband
 >> Reflector
 > _________________
 > Searchable Archives: http://www.contesting.com/_topband [2] -
Topband
 > Reflector

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