[BULK] - [TowerTalk] OWL?

[Steve Katz]

> They also sell #12 superweave, which has 259 strands, and is
> insulated with PE.  I use this for antennas.  It's great to work
> with, and very robust.  Contemplating use of same for OWL...
> but would need to find spacers, to make it up.  
> 
> //Having worked with this stuff a lot, my impression is it's too flexible
> to make open wire line that would hold reasonably constant
> impedance...unless you used spacers maybe every inch or two, in which case
> you've approximated ladder line.  -WB2WIK/6
> 
> Then comes the questions about spacing/line impedance/visual and
> wind profiles.  I've always wondered about losses in ladder line,
> where 20% of the line is solid PE spacer.  What happens when this
> stuff is run at high vswr? 
> 
> //Ladder line works well under high SWR conditions.  Loss in the line
> isn't from the dielectric.  Almost all the loss in transmission line is
> Ohmic in nature, i.e., from the skin resistance of the conductors.  The
> reason air-dielectric coaxial cable has less loss than solid dielectric
> coaxial cable isn't due to reduced dielectric loss; it's due to the
> reduced dielectric constant which allows the use of a much larger diameter
> center conductor to achieve the same impedance.  The Ohmic (skin) loss of
> that conductor is the major contributor to attenuation in coaxial cable of
> any construction, so the larger it is, the better.  -WB2WIK/6
> 
> Jim/n2ea
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 
> See: http://www.mscomputer.com  for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless
> Weather Stations", and lot's more.  Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with
> any questions and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
> 
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk