[TowerTalk] OCFD

[Wilson Lamb]

Jim, I'm awed by your knowledge and willingness to share.
But don't disparage things that have worked for decades.
Of course the open wire fed OCFD is not optimum, but we were asked about an 
"OK" multiband antenna.
I haven't actually used a lot of them, but my son, who knows next to nothing 
about radio, put one up and has better than expected results.
He has worked several DXpeditions, including getting through their pileups.
Not real data, I know, but I feel he's getting all that can be expected from 
an old 735 and 100W.
It's only about 30' high, with about 35' of 4" spaced line, fed by a 
matchbox.
His RF environment is semi rural, not challenging.
In my limited experience, it's quite a bit better than any of the G5RVs and 
clones I've seen.  There are no lossy baluns or mystery "coupling units".
Does it have nulls on 20m?  Sure, but he doesn't have time or interest for 
beams.
I talk to him on 40m, with S9 to 20 dB over, at a range of 175 miles.
Once you decide on a spacer design, it's a piece of cake.
He used 1/2" cpvc pipe, because he had it, and he and his kids made the line 
in no time.
The ladder snaps are fine, if you want to save time and spend a few bucks.
Obviously the tuner is key and the Matchbox is a great one.  I don't know if 
the MFJ balanced tuner is efficient or not.
So Steve, give a try, if you have time.  135' will get you on 80 and up.  Or 
go for it and make it for 160.
But remember, the longer it is, the more funky the pattern as you go up in 
frequency, with hot spots and nulls.
WL