My Ham radio hobby(new thread, old one is buried) [Archive]

fivegunner

06-19-2016, 04:40 AM

I operate field day from home as a 1e category since the entire HF station is 100% solar powered.

Mary W0AAT

Hi , nice looking tower and antennas. are you getting ready for field day? its 4;30 am here as I am going to a ham fest today . what type of equipment do you use. best regards Frank. KD8OHS :lovebooli:Fire:

w5pv

06-19-2016, 07:06 AM

Made my first contact in 1975 and mostly work the low bands on inverted Vee but the best antenna that I have had was a 160 meter loop up about 35 feet and with a tuner you could work all bands,another good antenna is one cut 90 feet on each leg use 600 ohm feed line (use #14 copper wire spaced 6" apart) and a 4 to one balun and a tuner. Capable of working all bands.The only draw back is the balun will become saturated and you have to replace it ever so often.Until my hearing went south 90% of my work was CW.

myg30

06-19-2016, 10:06 AM

Mary, Congrads on the moon bounce. I never got into vhf much except fer mobile operations.
The shack here is an FT-890at and running an indoor dipole 40-10m. Not real active these days.
If plans go well an we retire in 4 yrs, I promise myself to be more active ham !

73, Mike

Beagle333

06-19-2016, 10:33 AM

My part of it is all mobile. I was 10m only for a few years in 80s and 90s. I have a shoebox of QSL cards from around the world that I worked pretty hard to get, all from the front seat of the ol' pickup, with a 25W Uniden President HR2600 and a mag-mount antenna. I don't stay up that late anymore though. ;) All of my chatter goes on 2m now through the local repeaters (still from the truck with a trusty mag-mount and Kenwood TM-241A).

popper

06-19-2016, 12:42 PM

Nice phased Yagi array! Really nice NF meter too. You use a Rotector to phase it? Guys I worked with for KU arrays did a #2 stripline rig to replace the 'cowboy' coffee cans - cowboy broadcast antenna was ~100 mi away. 2 meter stuff was all experimental stuff when I was a kid, but they were bouncing scanner stuff off the moon.Don't think they could get the NF below ~5db back then.

OS OK

06-19-2016, 01:25 PM

That's a great picture...looks like two moons rising in the night sky. I've enjoyed a modified long wire with auto tuner...all the bands work well and it's exciting to talk with New Zealand or some far off place like that...haven't reinstalled the Ham since moving to this ridge top location...to dang scared of the potential for lightning as it takes much more than arresters to protect the eqpt. and home once you have drawn it's attention.
It makes me a little miserable every time I stop to gander at the boxes full of radios and such, still packed away from our move.

KI6ITU...over...

myg30

06-19-2016, 02:23 PM

That's why I'm on an in door dipole. I don't climb either anymore so limitations exist.
That picture Mary should be on cover of QST !!

Mike WA2DLN

Echo

06-19-2016, 05:20 PM

Ex-W5HZM (Hollyhocks, Zinnias, and Marygolds), I was a Ham (and FCC Certified 2nd Class RadioPhone engineer) at one time. Hammarlund HX-50 exciter, home brew linear (2 811's in parallel, grounded grid, 2kv on the plates(!)), and Drake 2b Rx. Worked that rig - until I got a job working as a communicator in the Looking Glass program. Talking on the radio (HF SSB, VHF, UHF) between airplanes, and to the ground, and on telephone - we had a Dallas phone number in our plane - caused me to gradually lose interest. When I retired, I donated most of my stuff to the local MARS program - but sold the Hammarlund & Drake.

MaryB

06-19-2016, 10:43 PM

I no longer climb either! US Tower TMM433hd crank up. All the way down the crossboom is at 13 feet and the bottom antennas are reachable off a step ladder. I use am AlphaSpid AZ/EL rotor so I can literally rotate 180 in elevation and put the top antennas at the bottom for service!

That's why I'm on an in door dipole. I don't climb either anymore so limitations exist.
That picture Mary should be on cover of QST !!

Mike WA2DLN

MaryB

06-19-2016, 10:54 PM

I have a pair of FT-991 radios(one is dedicated to 2m, other is hf/6m and 70cm), Beko HLV-1000 1,000 watt 2 meter solid state amplifier, AlphaSpid Big RAS az/el rotor on the 2m Array, Hygain Ham IV on 6 and 70cm, 4x M Squared 2M12 yagi's on 2 meters and an M2 4 port power divider. I have an M2 6M5XHP yagi on 6 meters and an M2 432-9WL on 70cm on tower #2.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd248/maryalanab/IMG_20150913_0242214301_zpsutm2zmsh.jpg

My custom built(by me) radio desk!

6m and 70cm tower

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd248/maryalanab/IMG_20151203_1542413401_zpsyhmgdzjh.jpg

On HF I use a base tuned 43 foot vertical on 80m,40, 30m, 20m, and 17m and a base tuned 22.5 foot vertical on 17m, 15m, 12m, and 10m. 17 can be better on one antenna over the other depending on conditions and radiation angle I need. The 43 foot vertical is better for stateside on that band and the 22.5' is better for DX usually due to a lower radiation angle. Looking into an antenna for 160 meters but I have zero trees that can act as supports for a dipole. Thinking maybe a low sloper off the rohn 25 tower next to the house... The 2 antennas should help as a capacity hat.

Day we raised the towers we had the first snow of the year last fall. Got the boom truck stuck in 3 inches of sloppy wet snow and had to use a 4wd truck to tow it out. House brackets are homemade and way stouter than the rohn versions. I know what my winds are like and I have to build stuff to survive 90mph winds at least once a year and 60+ in winter conditions.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/dd248/maryalanab/IMG_20151203_1542462951_zpspmy09gai.jpg

MaryB

06-20-2016, 12:05 AM

Preamp that is inline right now is .5DBnf, my spare is a .27 that I need another high power relay to finish then figure out a housing for it all.

Nice phased Yagi array! Really nice NF meter too. You use a Rotector to phase it? Guys I worked with for KU arrays did a #2 stripline rig to replace the 'cowboy' coffee cans - cowboy broadcast antenna was ~100 mi away. 2 meter stuff was all experimental stuff when I was a kid, but they were bouncing scanner stuff off the moon.Don't think they could get the NF below ~5db back then.

ozarkhillbilly49

06-20-2016, 02:49 AM

congrats on the moonbounce mary. i am mostly a low band op. shack is a full dress k3 driving a drake l7. matching is handled by a kilowatt johnson matchbox. antenna is a full wave 80mtr. loop feed in the middle of a leg with 450 ohm ladderline. 73's to all. aa5ez

popper

06-20-2016, 12:51 PM

Back in the 80s when I was doing RC135 stuff, 2DbNF was great but wideband 1-2, 4-8-8-12 Ghz. We did TSS & N.B. NF for VHF. Mini SMA connectors were 0.2Db. Is that K3 a Collins?

WebMonkey

06-20-2016, 12:59 PM

https://www.qrz.com/db/KB0WLF

that's me
:)
I enjoy hf digital modes and the ssb satellites the most but work everywhere I can.
'monkey

TCFAN

06-20-2016, 02:44 PM

I was never a Ham but my dad was a long time ham radio operator.Got his first license in the late 1930,s.His call letters was W0FNN and then when he got his extra class he changed it to K0AW.It would be interesting to me if any one ever worked him. He was good about sending QSl cards.He passed away in 2014 at the age of 98 years and 7 months.
Here is a photo taken in better days..........

http://i755.photobucket.com/albums/xx200/TCintheOzarks/clyde%20raido%20room-1_zpsofe31dkl.jpg (http://s755.photobucket.com/user/TCintheOzarks/media/clyde%20raido%20room-1_zpsofe31dkl.jpg.html)

OS OK

06-20-2016, 03:01 PM

That is a great picture, he built a remarkable looking shack...I wonder if his spirit still sits that chair? Bet you can sit there and feel his presence!

TCFAN

06-20-2016, 03:23 PM

That is a great picture, he built a remarkable looking shack...I wonder if his spirit still sits that chair? Bet you can sit there and feel his presence!

It was a life long hobby for dad.Unfortunately when he passed the house was sold and most of his ham "stuff" was disposed of.Lots of it went to the city dump because we could not find any one that wanted any of it.He was old school and eveyone we tried to give the stuff to didn't want to mess with the old type radio equipment. I threw away several thousand vacuum tubes new in the box because no one used them any more and E-bay was not worth the trouble.

farmerjim

06-20-2016, 03:33 PM

The old stuff will work after an EMP. The new will not. I still have my 75 watt CW (Morse Code for you non hams) tube transmitter that I built to get started in Ham Radio. I still have boxes of spare tubes, but not thousands. WB5SZT

OS OK

06-20-2016, 03:39 PM

Gee, I'm sorry to hear that, mostly the old schoolers understand the equipment your father had. I was schooled in it in the Corps but like the newer fellas gravitated to the newer, flashier and easier to operate newer equipment. The old stuff was 'rock solid' and to hear of all the vacuum tubes in the dump might make some of the hams out there cringe a bit!
I had opportunity to help an old Army vet of 80 years old re-setup his shack like the one your father had, built racks for the pull out eqpt., erected his tower rotator and beam and was proud to do so for him...eventually his children may do the same with his eqpt. Perhaps the local club in 'Hangtown' will take it.

At least you have the picture...worth a thousand memories...OS OK

kfarm

06-20-2016, 06:59 PM

Still on the air since '72, advanced class. 73's WB5VOF.

ozarkhillbilly49

06-20-2016, 07:20 PM

woodbutcher

06-20-2016, 08:42 PM

:smile: Great thread guys and gals.Brings back a lot of memories.One gentleman who used to let me sit and listen in on the doins,used the cw a lot.And Sweet Jesus,when he cranked up the key it sounded like a machine gun.He was a retired Navy radio man.He has since gone to that great ham fest in the sky.God bless his soul.He found a bunch of declassified WW2 Navy code books in a real Army-Navy surplus store.Sent some to a bunch of his retired buddies.
Boy did they have fun with their nightly yak fests.Hehehe.
Good luck.Have fun.Be safe.
Leo

MaryB

06-20-2016, 10:59 PM

I love the old stuff but my back says n to lifting it anymore! Some of those transmitters were 75+ pounds... last one I restored was a Johnson Ranger... I need to get my hands on an HW-101 or something like it that is light enough I can lift. Be good backup to the solid state rigs.

It was a life long hobby for dad.Unfortunately when he passed the house was sold and most of his ham "stuff" was disposed of.Lots of it went to the city dump because we could not find any one that wanted any of it.He was old school and eveyone we tried to give the stuff to didn't want to mess with the old type radio equipment. I threw away several thousand vacuum tubes new in the box because no one used them any more and E-bay was not worth the trouble.

AZ-JIM

06-20-2016, 11:37 PM

Congrats on the moon bounce, its one of the things I want to do eventually. Too much working and not enough time for radio right now. I run an Icom 706 MKIIG with a ground mounted vertical or a loop that runs around the perimiter of my property. The loop works well, my first contact on it was in Italy. Truthfully the whole thing works really well for as small as the investment is. I could only imagine what it would be like to have a tower with a beam and a fully adjustable tx/rx. I do like the dipole for camping trips too.
Good luck and good dx, 73

az-jim

Detroitdanm

06-21-2016, 03:43 AM

smoked turkey

06-21-2016, 09:13 AM

I was first licensed in 1961 as WN0ATU, and now am WA0ATU (Always Tune Up) and Extra class now. Unfortunately a huge ice storm broke my Mosley CL-33's boom. At that point I lost interest and took down the 100 ' Rhon 25 tower and need to sell my remaining Collins KWM-2A, 30L1, and accessories. It is a wonderful hobby and I never thought in a hundred years that I would be an inactive ham radio operator. I loved 20 meter CW as well as SSB. I also like to work the long ones on the other side of the pond (DX we call it). My XYL (wife) has a general class and is KA0MOY. My two boys were also licensed. So we were a ham family. Great memories. I knew TCfan's dad very well. He was a great guy. Terry I know you miss him, but as was said you have so many good memories and wow what a nice picture of him in his shack. Good thread. Thanks Mary for getting it going. 73 to all.
Stan...aka smoked turkey & WA0ATU.

Minerat

06-21-2016, 09:58 PM

.....
Not to sidetrack the thread, but could anyone point me to where I could learn a bit more about this fascinating hobby, but at a beginner level?

Try the ARRL web site (American Radio Relay League) http://www.arrl.org/home they are a good place to start. You can probably find local radio club from their list and just call the contact for the club. They can set you up with an Elmer (mentor). Don't be afraid to call for help Hams tend to like helping a novice and show off their shack.

I just pulled my mobile out of the old pickup and haven't looked into installing in the new one yet. My Elmer went SK in March (KI0LA - SK) and I'm kind in a holding pattern. Think I'll start studying for my General in his memory.

MaryB - Nice picture too.
73's KC0GPT

MaryB

06-21-2016, 10:10 PM

My old FT-897d with the lines in the display is in my truck. I need to find an external display for it because I am not putting $300 worth of parts into that radio! Mostly run 20m mobile and I use the Maritime mobile net as a marker to tell me where I am lol I also have a 40 meter whip for the truck for winter use. Working DX while rolling down the road is fun!

aspangler

06-21-2016, 10:53 PM

First ticket was in my hand on june 3-1970. WN4RAV loved cw and still do. CW will pucnh through when nothing else will. I have an FT101ex with external VFO and a phone patch. I only work 15meters with it though. Not enough time to get another antenna up right now. Also have 3 vhf ht's and two dual band mobiles. Pretty active on the local repeaters late at night. I upgraded my class to Advanced years ago but never changed the call. Great pics and great memories in this thread.
73 de WB4RAV in TN.

mac60

06-22-2016, 04:33 PM

no popper the k3 ain't collins thank god!! it is a modern rig made by elecraft out in California. i have never been impressed with collins gear. but that is just me. i do have a hallicrafters sr-2000 hurricane i am working on tho.the k3 has the best receiver in it i have ever worked with. i am a firm believer that the receiver is the heart of a station . 73's to all. aa5ez

I was stationed at USCG commsta San Francisco/NMC. As I understood it, the receiver site was designed by Collins. All the receive equipment was Collins. Each of the operator consoles had 4 Collins receivers (if I remember right they were model 651). That was in a different life though. Everything was state of the art for it's time (late 70's - early 80's). ZUT.

MaryB

06-23-2016, 12:09 AM

Lots of indoor antenna choices these days to get on HF. Need to operate low power but it can be done! I need to work on my CW this winter, I am really rusty and it is still used quite a bit on weak signal VHF.

Still looking over ideas for a 160m antenna, highest I can get anything is 27 feet so looking over options...

ozarkhillbilly49

06-23-2016, 12:39 AM

mary think about shunt feeding that moonbounce tower. with that yagi array on top it makes fer darn good tophat!! bet that little tower shunt fed would amaze you on the top band. i got a few big variables if you need one.

gilgsn

06-23-2016, 06:02 AM

I got all my licenses in September of 2012 and made my first contact in CW using a K1 I built from a kit. I later built a dozen other kits including a K2. Briefly owned a KX3. Now I am back to France after losing everything in a boating mishap (svdagny.com) including my radios. I did manage since then to get a Weber MTR and RT-320. I have a KX2 on order... You guys find me on the reverse beacon network when I'm using CW: F4WBY. My US call sign is AK4YH.

Gil

Hooker53

06-23-2016, 07:50 PM

You learn something new everyday on this forum. I had no idea so many shooters was also hams. I'm kC4CTU. I'm an Extra. Worked and confirmed about 235 countries. The first 100, (DX Cent)was on a HW-101 I built with an inverted Vee. Loved that rig. My HF rig now is a Kenwood 930 into an Exp 14 9.8 DB gain beam up 90 feet on a tower. I'm not very active now but have all my rigs in a 6 foot roll top just waiting till I retire. Again. Ha. IV been toying with the idea of a Icom 706 MKIIG set up in my Suburban with a screwdriver. 73's Dit Dit.

Just Duke

06-23-2016, 11:59 PM

Nice setup Mary.
I have couple Yaesu FT 2000's on my ebay watch list.

Just Duke

06-24-2016, 12:06 AM

FT 897D for mobile and vehicles

TXGunNut

06-24-2016, 12:30 AM

Fascinating hobby. Built a Radio Shack crystal radio kit almost 50 yrs ago and actually obtained a CB license (KAKS8150?) before they became unnecessary. A childhood neighbor was a ham, fascinating stuff but never pursued it.

TXGunNut

06-24-2016, 12:33 AM

MaryB

06-24-2016, 01:32 AM

No can do with a super sensitive preamp at the power divider on the cross boom!

mary think about shunt feeding that moonbounce tower. with that yagi array on top it makes fer darn good tophat!! bet that little tower shunt fed would amaze you on the top band. i got a few big variables if you need one.

gilgsn

06-24-2016, 03:05 AM

Ah, and I forgot to mention my site: radiopreppers.com

Gil

packnrat

06-24-2016, 03:57 AM

just bought a house, sad for me i sold my tower.
so need to get the moneys up for a new one. might try stringing up some wire and see if it works here.
as i live in a valley with hills all around me.
lots of the native rock has iron in it. good bad?

KG6TGU.

MaryB

06-24-2016, 09:52 PM

If you have the space a low loop will get you on 80 and 40m out to about 600 miles or so(cloud warmer radiation pattern). On 40, 30, and 20m I use a 43' vertical and it works well. I have the auto tuner at the base so losses are minimal. about 60 radials under it, a mix of 65', 33', and whatever I could fit in some directions. I will work on 80m but tuning is iffy so I am building a matching network for at the base.

Nose Dive

06-26-2016, 10:32 PM

mtnman31

06-26-2016, 10:56 PM

AAAAUUUUGGGHHHH!!! You guys want me to cut my tongue out, cut off my ears and stuff asparagus up me nose!!!

I can't put up my HF antennas due to he HOA... my 2m rigs are already on 'notice' from them about 'interference'....

I need to move out and get where I can get my antennas back up and talking again......

All my equipment is 'in the attic' and wasting away....... gee do I miss HAM RADIO.....

Nose Dive.... KC9OHL

Cheap, Fast, Good. Kindly pick two.

Can you use a temporary antenna - like a pneumatic or military type erectable? My HOA at my last place wouldn't let me have anything up permanently. If it was temporary and not attached to the house, it was okay. It wasn't necessarily allowed, it just wasn't prohibited so, no one could say anything. Besides, I was good about putting it up only when in use, which was mostly in the evenings.

MaryB

06-27-2016, 01:14 AM

HOA CAN NOT do **** about you transmitting! That is up to the FCC and they cannot regulate it no matter how much smoke they try to blow up your rear.

AAAAUUUUGGGHHHH!!! You guys want me to cut my tongue out, cut off my ears and stuff asparagus up me nose!!!

I can't put up my HF antennas due to he HOA... my 2m rigs are already on 'notice' from them about 'interference'....

I need to move out and get where I can get my antennas back up and talking again......

All my equipment is 'in the attic' and wasting away....... gee do I miss HAM RADIO.....

Nose Dive.... KC9OHL

Cheap, Fast, Good. Kindly pick two.

MaryB

06-27-2016, 01:20 AM

mtnman31

06-27-2016, 09:42 AM

Use 20-24 gauge copper wire ran in a tree or along the top of a fence. Basic longwire. It can make bends etc. to fit the space. Use a tuner and low power and get on the air with a hidden antenna! At one apartment I rented I zigzagged a wire along the ceiling from my bedroom, out the door and around the dining room, then kitchen then back through the living room to my bedroom. Fed it as an untuned loop and worked 65 countries in a year... using 20 watts from an ancient Kenwood TS-520SE to a tuner.

I'm using a long wire now since I am currently renting. It is strung between the house and a tree. It just over 100' long angles up from about 15' at the house to about 45' at the tree. I'm not transmitting on it, just receiving. It works but is pretty susceptible to noise and interference. I also disconnect it when not in use since I don't have any lightning protection. It has been up for three years with no problems other than this spring we had some wind and the trees got swinging and the wire ended up snapping - easy fix. It is very discreet. You really have to know where to look and strain to see it.

farmerjim

06-27-2016, 01:08 PM

When I moved from Louisiana to Montreal 2 of my suitcases (I flew up) were radio gear. The first 2 weeks I was in a hotel. I dropped a wire out the window and used a dentron super tuner with my hw-101. Two weeks later I was in an apartment on the 17th floor. Long wire out the window again. Worked back to Louisiana on 15M most nights. Moved to a different apartment 9 months later. I was on the ground floor. The super was an retired radio operator from the Greek shipping industry. He helped me run a coax up to the roof and install a loaded vertical and a long wire. All the rest of my equipment was shipped up and I added the SB 201 amp to the shack. Latter moved to a house and put up a 48 foot free standing tower. Moved back to Louisiana and all the HF gear is stored in the barn. I do carry a 2M handi talkie sometimes.
If you want to get on the air, you can do it any place above the ground or water.

Jeff Michel

06-27-2016, 01:38 PM

Some great pics in this thread, thank God, because I've seldom understood less that was typed in clear english. You hams have a lingo all your own.
Not to sidetrack the thread, but could anyone point me to where I could learn a bit more about this fascinating hobby, but at a beginner level?
Where at in Ohio?, We are having a technician class in the fall (Tiffin) if your interested in attending. If your too far, I would be happy to send you the current course study book. Study the book and you can take practice tests at http://www.qrz.com/hamtest/ then just find a place to take your test.
Good luck,
Jeff Michel KE8EKH

MaryB

06-27-2016, 11:56 PM

15 moonbounce contacts last night, 10 new countries! I had a pile up of 6-8 stations calling me for 4 hours because I am a new station and a rare grid square. Was fun but getting to bed at 6AM kind of put a crimp in my day... running tired on 6 hours sleep! But moon conditions are good again tonight!

ozarkhillbilly49

06-28-2016, 12:42 PM

congrats mary!! how much power are you running? i think you have a 4 yagi phased array don't you? last time i thought about moonbounce it was recommended that you needed a full gallon of power for any kind of success. hf power is expensive enuff!!! 2 mtr. or 440 power is even higher dollar!!! wish i could get into moonbounce but money and time are limited here.73's to all . aa5ez

MaryB

06-29-2016, 12:48 AM

750 watts, my best contact last night(made 20 more) was a single yagi station running 600 watts. With JT65b digital it is possible to make contacts with a single antenna and 160 watts when the moon is on the horizon. You will be able to work the big guys running full legal limit(or more for EU) of 1,500 watts with just a Mirage brick amp and a decent 12 element yagi. Of course this is all done on SSB mode not FM...

ozarkhillbilly49

06-29-2016, 02:36 AM

lordy mary!! last time i read about moonbounce slow cw was the only mode used. various tricks with at least a 6 bay array to fight faraday rotation. i gptta look into moonbounce again. specially since i got some russian radar tubes that should work well on 2 mtrs. maybe even 440. i'll poke around on the web some. mite have to hock the ranch and try eme. 73's to all. aa5ez

MaryB

06-30-2016, 01:42 AM

Having full elevation of the antennas is a plus but a simple elevation rotor can be built with a satellite dish actuator arm and a basic heavy duty hinge. My first 2m eme setup used a pipe in pipe hinge arrangement and an actuator. I used a protractor and a simple meter movement to create a new meter scale in very thin paper that read the position of the potentiometer in the actuator arm that I glues in place of the original scale. Accuracy suffered in extreme cold by maybe 4 degrees, but with a 15 degree vertical beam width it was usable! I also had a camera on the boom as a backup that fed a cheap black and white monitor. When I knew the moon was centered I drew a circle on the monitor face! Keep the moon centered and good to go! I was using an Icom IC-251a, a 160 watt Mirage brick with a modified internal preamp to get the noise figure down to .5db. I made over 4 dozen initials on CW using that setup!

MaryB

06-30-2016, 11:51 PM

bunch more moon bounce contacts last night! Up to 56 initials(first time worked) on the new system since I am starting over. The old logbook is long gone along with the QSL cards, lost in multiple moves... Having fun but conditions are not the greatest! Loss is up over 3db and on a 500,000 mile round trip that is a huge difference! Fun to hear your own echos come back after 1/2 second delay!

ozarkhillbilly49

07-01-2016, 07:49 AM

ahhh mary!!!! that sure sounds like fun! i have had the shack disconnected from ever thing for a few weeks. all i have up is a comet 3 band vertical( i call it a semi radiating dummy load) and a full wave loop fer 80 mtrs. we have had some strong little thunderstorms with plenty of lightning. i will get more active on the low bands this fall. i enjoy a good ragchew. gotta think about this moonbounce stuff tho. i got a yaesu ft-736 r. here that i don't use much. i think the front end may be a bit noisey for weak signal like moonbounce tho. a good lpw noise transverter with my k3 for a i.f. might work good. gotta scheme and plot a little. 73's to all. aa6ez

popper

07-02-2016, 12:21 PM

about 60 radials under it
Reason inverted V works so well for close work, radiation angle is low. turn upside down for cloud bounce. Directional.

GL49

07-02-2016, 11:49 PM

AAAAUUUUGGGHHHH!!! You guys want me to cut my tongue out, cut off my ears and stuff asparagus up me nose!!!

Righto. But only because I don't have any idea how to make sense of what you all are talking about. I'm reading in English, you all may as well be writing in a foreign language. :grin: You lost me once you got past the word "radio". Where's a good place to start learning about all this?

Hooker53

07-02-2016, 11:54 PM

Eham.com will set you free. It's a good start. It's a grand old hobby.

Roy
Hooker53
KC4CTU

packnrat

07-03-2016, 12:32 PM

AAAAUUUUGGGHHHH!!! You guys want me to cut my tongue out, cut off my ears and stuff asparagus up me nose!!!

I can't put up my HF antennas due to he HOA... my 2m rigs are already on 'notice' from them about 'interference'....

I need to move out and get where I can get my antennas back up and talking again......

All my equipment is 'in the attic' and wasting away....... gee do I miss HAM RADIO.....

Nose Dive.... KC9OHL

Cheap, Fast, Good. Kindly pick two.

check out these links.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=ways+to+hide+a+ham+antenna&form=EDGEAR&qs=PF&cvid=d02677954af646019a1231273f255365&pq=ways%20to%20hide%20a%20ham%20antenna&PC=DCTE

.