[TowerTalk] Copper grounding bus bar

[Perry - K4PWO]

You just need to take extra care with "cleanliness" and preparation of any 
mechanical/electrical connections.  Aluminum oxide is an excellent insulator 
so you have to clean (burnish/sand) all connection points and apply "no-cro" 
paste as quick as possible.  The oxidation only takes moments to take place.

73 de Perry - K4PWO

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jeff Carter" <towertalk at hidden-valley.com>
To: <towertalk at contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2007 2:46 PM
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] Copper grounding bus bar


> I've always wondered about that, skin effect being what it is and all. 
> Why
> wouldn't aluminum be just as good in this particular application?
> Considering cost, why wouldn't it be vastly better?
>
> I've never met anybody who was worried about the propagation velocity of 
> their
> ground system.  Then again, I don't know everybody, either...yet.
>
> Jeff/KD4RBG
>
> On Wednesday 12 September 2007 15:38, Jim Lux wrote:
>> Terry wrote:
>> > I'm looking at copper sheet on these sites to be used as a SPG plate
>> > about 16" x 16".  What would be the minimum thickness to be
>> > "self-supporting" as opposed to laminating it on some substrate as
>> > Polyphaser does?
>> >
>> > 73 de Terry KK6T
>>
>> unless you want to solder directly to the plate, why not use aluminum.
>> It's a lot cheaper, much easier to work with (drilling thick copper is a
>> chore, tapping even more so, prepare to buy many spare taps and use lots
>> of lube.. soldering to a big sheet of thick copper would require a
>> fairly high output torch, too).  I'd find it hard to believe that the
>> conductivity difference would be significant (for DC & line frequency,
>> the thickness of the aluminum helps, for RF, it's a big flat surface
>> either way).  A wide variety of lugs are available, and a nice tapped
>> hole in the aluminum will make fairly good contact.
>>
>> If you feel that the copper is important, slap a big piece of copperclad
>>   PC board material on top of the aluminum, or stick copper flashing on.
>>   You could also put copper foil tape on the aluminum in places where
>> you think it's important. 3M makes a kind with conductive adhesive.
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> TowerTalk mailing list
>> TowerTalk at contesting.com
>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk
> _______________________________________________
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> TowerTalk mailing list
> TowerTalk at contesting.com
> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/towertalk