[TowerTalk] LINE FOR tree strung dipoles

[Jim Brown]

On Mon, 19 Oct 2009 23:35:52 -0400, W2RU - Bud Hippisley wrote:

>> The only problem I've seen with either THHN or ROMEX is the stuff is
>> soft and your 75 and 160 meter antennas keep getting longer, and  
>> longer,

There's a practical limit to the stretching, but it does happen. I 
recently lowered and trimmed an 80M dipole that had lengthened enough 
over two years to shift it about 150 kHz down in frequency. 

There's also an "upside" the use of ordinary copper wire -- that stretch 
can absorb some of the stress when the wind blows!   

An easy solution (for solid copper) is to hard draw it.  Buy #10 or #8, 
tie one end to a rigid object (telephone pole, etc.) and the other to 
your car bumper, and pull it slowly until it breaks. I've done this. It 
works fine. 

73,

Jim Brown K9YC