[Towertalk] Is there a 2 element hf beam?

[K7LXC@aol.com]

    The original question was for a 'small' HF beam and the poster said that 
the C-3 was too 'big'. Here's my suggestion: Get a C-3SS (the smallest 
footprint C-3) and bend the ends of the elements down. You can bend 3-4 feet 
of the end element and not notice the difference. The C-3SS has 26-foot 
elements; bending each end 3-feet reduces the element length to 20-feet - a 
small enough footprint? 

    I've done this a couple of times where we had elements hitting guys or 
encroaching over the property line and it worked great. You can use sand in 
the element to prevent element kinking; check the TT archives for past 
discussions. 

    NONE of the 'small' antennas I know of (i.e. MA5, MiniQuad, Butterfly, 
etc.) are all compromises in design and offer sub-par performance - the F12 
is not a compromise and performs like a full-sized antenna. 

Cheers,
Steve    K7LXC
TOWER TECH -
Professional tower services for commercial and amateur