|
New to Ham Radio?
My Profile
Community
Articles
Forums
News
Reviews
Friends Remembered
Speak Out
Strays
Survey Question
Operating
Contesting
DX Cluster Spots
Propagation
Resources
Calendar
Classifieds
Ham Exams
Ham Links
List Archives
News Articles
Product Reviews
QSL Managers
Site Info
eHam Help (FAQ)
Support the site
The eHam Team
Advertising Info
Vision Statement
About eHam.net
|
The Four Generations
from
Frank Merritt, VE7FPM
on
August 4, 2008
View comments about this article!
The Four Generations
By Frank Merritt, VE7FPM
The First Generation:
Radio communications were initiated as a result of Heinrich Hertz and his experiments in the period about 1888. Hertz worked with many of the concepts of radio transmission that today are very common. His source of energy was a spark gap which essentially created a very wide spectrum of RF energy. In his experiments a spark gap was connected to a dipole antenna which provided a small degree of frequency selectivity. The emitted energy was received by a 1-wavelength circular antenna. This was not a refined experiment but it did demonstrate the propagation of RF. Hertz had been graduated magna cum laude with a degree in physics. He was a very practical man in his experiments. Today we have a video which was created by Dr. John Kraus who became famous for his Big Ear radio telescope that provides us with a vignette of Hertz and his radio experiments.
The key radio experiment of 1888 caused a gigantic paradigm shift for the world. The elements that were used to couple from the transmitter to the receiver were called antennas. Over the years many different types of antennas were developed to implement a myriad of requirements. The concepts that Hertz initiated were gain, directivity and polarity of the radiated energy which were the basic parameters of radio transmission. A vast range of designs have been developed that have enhanced the art and science of radio operation.
The Second Generation:
The Second Generation of radiating and receiving devices originated from a most unusual source. The First Generation of antennas was developed on the basis of Euclidian geometry. In 1975 Benoit Mandelbrot developed a desire to deal with the non-linear concepts of geometry in order to experiment with many patterns and irregularities in nature. Mandelbrot developed a new concept of geometry which he described as Fractal Geometry. He wrote the book: THE FRACTAL GEOMETRY OF NATURE in 1977 which is a sophisticated text dealing with new concepts. To say the least the Fractal is a difficult or convoluted discipline that provides a printed output which is artwork of a very abstract nature. What this leads to is that certain fractal designs have been used to create mostly microwave antennas. These antennas are either to be found in commercial service (such as cell phones) or military technology.
The Third Generation:
The stage was now set for a dramatic non-Hertzian design of radiators. The Third Gigantic Generation paradigm shifted at a Scottish university were Maurice Hately was a professor. Hately theorized that the Poynting Theorum of the 1980’s could be utilized in another manner in the late 1990’s. The general concept of a thing that converts electrical (E) and magnetic (H) energy into RF power is usually considered in it widest interpretation as a radiator. Hately theorized that the Poynting Theorum of the 1980’s could be utilized to create a radiator of a radically different design.
Hately properly concluded that the E and H fields could be developed separately, and as such they would, by proper combination, create RF radiation. This was a revolutionary conclusion! Hately and one of his students, Fathi Kabbary, set out by physics to create another class of radiator. . This resulted in the Crossed-Field- Antenna (CFA). It was their immediate goal to develop a new radiator to be used with AM broadcast stations. The CFA radiator consisted of three elements which are (1.) a circular ground plane, (2.) a ground plate which is positioned above the ground plane which created a capacitor and (3.) an inverted cone above the ground plate. An electrical phase-shifting mechanism altered the phase relationship between the input E and H fields to be 90-degrees out of phase. This resulted in a satisfaction of the Poynting Theorum to generate RF energy. Unfortunately, the CFA design did not prove to be sufficiently efficient.
The Fourth Generation:
Again the stage was set for a paradigm shift from the CFA radiator to a much advanced device. Ted Hart, a retired electronics engineer from the State of Georgia served as a ghostwriter to document the CFA radiator in a Web publication. This service enabled Hart to make the step to a radically new type of radiator. This new radiator uses two aluminum or copper cylinders of the same diameter. Copper is preferred because the edges of the two cylinders can be soldered together. Below the bottom cylinder (the cylinders are usually mounted one above the other and spaced by the diameter of the cylinders) a coil is placed , again spaced the diameter of the cylinders, below the bottom cylinder. The inductance is tuned to the desired center frequency such that the desired phase shift takes place. The top of the coil is connected to the bottom of the top cylinder and the bottom of the coil is connected to the top of the bottom cylinder. One of several methods is used to couple from a 50-Ohm coaxial cable to the coil.
This radical approach has resulted in RF radiating characteristics which exist in no Hertzian antennas. These differences are listed:
1. When the EH radiator is properly tuned it is common to experience an absolutely flat VSWR
in a range of at least 100 kHz at HF frequencies.
2. The EH radiator provides a much attenuated noise and background level compared to a
Hertzian antenna. This must be experienced to believe.
3. A very weak signal can be received very clearly. Again, this must be experienced to believe.
4. Harmonic or spurious content of the radiated energy is reducted by a minimum of -30 dB
to -60 dB below the radiated power level. This means a virtual elimination of undesired
harmonic or spurious output. This has been verified using a high-quality spectrum analyzer.
5. None of the computer programs that are used to evaluate and design Hertzian antennas
function with an EH radiator. This would indicate that the EH concept is basically different from Hertzian antennas.
6. The two short-fat dipoles (copper cylinders) do not work on a Hertzian principle. This is
a truism because all of the adopted Hertzian principles are not operative with an EH radiator.
7. The physical size for an EH radiator is classically less than 1/10 of a wavelength.
This is assumed from the cylinders which are about 8-10” each in length.
8. The EH radiator can provide an alternate performance profle by varying the physical
parameters of the radiator. This is the experience of the author.
9. The EH radiator is very inexpensive and requires no special parts.
10. The EH radiator is relatively simple to build providing the basic procedures are used.
This discussion is based on the experience of the writer. It is to be expected that other experimenters may have different conclusions and approaches. Anyway, the EH radiator will undoubtedly be a useful RF radiator in the future.
This article has expired. No more comments may be added.
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by AB7E on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The EH antenna has been debunked in theory and practice many times over the last few years. The fact that it keeps popping up like this is a true testament to human gullibility and the eagerness of some to prey upon it. A simple Google search on "EH antenna" will bring up several links, including these:
http://home.datacomm.ch/hb9abx/antenna-eh.htm
http://www.w8ji.com/e-h_antenna.htm
http://www.omnirep.ch/eh-test_vs_gp.html
http://www.antennex.com/shack/Apr03/ontheeh.pdf
Better yet, read the thorough analysis of the EH antenna by I1RFQ in the February and March 2003 issues of antenneX.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by KB9CRY on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I don't know what generation my Yagi antennas are in.
Where's Art?
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W8JI on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
What a bunch of theoretical crap.
The EH antenna and other mystical antennas are nothing but cruel hoaxes defrauding investors. They are based on an invalid whoring of Maxwell's equations. They don't and can't even work as described.
The Fractal thing is just a convoluted view where form preceeds function. It really shows some are going backwards in science. It's like like an infinite number of monkeys sitting at a keyboard and waiting for a novel to pour out through random luck. It is like that old "rules of nine" or whatever it was that eventually died off.
Anyone who has taken and passed a basic Physics course should have learned EM radiation ties back to only one thing, charge acceleration. If these charges are all lined up in a manner that stops the effect of radiation in one or more directions, then we can have gain. None of this is driven by form before function and any antenna engineer worth anything knows that.
Articles like this actually show how backwards we are going in core education and understanding because they give credit to modern crackpots and con men.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N4CQR on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
This has been going on here, off and on for years. See: http://www.eham.net/articles/3586
ALso, and I can't find it at the moment, Steve, WB2WIK built one or experimented with one in a more recent article.
C r a i g
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by G8UBJ on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
Seems like a bit of a myopic gap between the 1st and 2nd generation. So there was no significant development for 89 years?
|
| |
|
RE: The FIFTH GENERATION
|
|
|
by KQ6XA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The FIFTH GENERATION:
Frank Merritt VE7FPM creates a fictional history about antennas.
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K5END on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Aside from the physics, the dates are amiss.
He's kidding you.
Poynting theorem was, uh, when?
Fractal HF antennas?
8" being 1/10 lambda would be on our 2 meter repeaters.
How ironic!
|
| |
|
SNAKE OIL RE: 4th Generation Antennas
|
|
|
by KQ6XA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
ANTENNA MAGIC INGREDIENTS
Some level of exoticism in the ingredients, and mysticism in the properties, deemed desirable by snake oil antenna promoters:
Radiation Resistances
EH Modes
Hz Radiation
Phased Coils
Fields In Phase
Placebo Elements
Kor Radiations
Flipped Orthogonals
Harmonic Radiations
Advanced Jibberishian Mathematics
Unlikely ingredients such as the baobab fruit are also added to the active elements, along with unspecified roots found in swamps which have remarkable effects as the dielectrics for matching coils.
One example of the magical properties and ingredients approach is the Kickapoo EH Antenna, a product of the Kickapoo EH Company of Frestonia (completely unrelated to the Kickapoo Indian tribe of Oklahoma), supposedly based on an ancient Native American EH Vertical Totum Dipole design. The EH Totum Pole was the inspiration for Al Capp's "Kickapoo Joy Juice," featured in the comic strip, "Li'l Abner".
Such promotions are part of the tradition of timeless herbal wisdom, famous among traveling doctors, as seen on the popular TV show "Technology Of The Old West". Just about any scientific discovery, phase differential, or exotic micro organism can be used as a key ingredient in a patent medicine or magic antenna. The CFA was a great example of a road show in the huckster tradition.
Amateur radio operators are summoned by antenna hucksters to invoke the power of electromagnetism to heal their mental ailments. In the 20th century, electricity and radio were scientific advances that found their way into patent medicine advertising, especially after Luigi Galvani showed that electricity influenced the muscles of frogs.
Devices meant to electrify the human body have been long sold as a miraculous benefit with proven enhancement results; EH and CFA Antennas are purported to attract Single Point Energy, which makes the body more conductive and thus your personal skywave ionosphere propagates better. Albert Abrams was another well known practitioner of obtuse quadrilateral fractal field theory, claiming the ability to interactively diagnose and treat diseases over long distances by radio, using only a simple stacked six-over-six EH Antenna Crossed Field Mandelbrot Array Quadrature Hula Loop. He simultaneously maintained his transcendental contact with only the purest hand-keyed QRP CW. It has been reported that the organic signal was so finely matched in phase with the 377 ohm characteristic radiation resistance of the universal ether, that it can still be heard on 40 meters as a Long Delayed Echo, albeit only by highly skilled, highly trained radio operators using Coherent Antennas in Reverse Quadrature with high-IM3 roofing filters.
THE "IN-PHASE PLACEBO EFFECT"
"The physician's belief in the treatment and the patient's faith in the physician, exert a mutually reinforcing effect, just like the E field and the H field of an antenna; the result is a powerful remedy that is almost guaranteed to produce an improvement and sometimes a cure." -- Petr Skrabanek and James McCormick, "Follies and Fallacies in Medicine", p. 13.
The In-Phase Placebo Effect is the measurable, observable, or felt improvement in general health and well-being of the DX operator, combined with an increase in the Brewster angle of feedline radiation. This effect is believed by many operators to be due to the placebo itself in some mysterious way, but has been scientifically proven to be a result of careful phase alignment of the electromagnetic fields in the near field of the antenna as they interact with the human brain of the operator.
Researchers and medical doctors sometimes give placebos to patients and contest operators. Anecdotal evidence for the placebo effect is garnered in this way. Those who believe there is scientific evidence for the placebo effect point to clinical studies of ham radio operators, many of which use a control group treated with a placebo such as an EH Antenna for 20 meters. Why an inert substance, or a fake surgery or therapy, would be effective is not known. But the psychological theory is that it's all in your mind; some believe the placebo effect is due to a belief in the treatment or to a subjective feeling of improvement due to the mind's interaction with the electromagnetic field's radiation resistance when it is in the EH Mode.
.
PLACEBO DEFINED
Definition: pla·ce·bo
Pronunciation: pl&-'sE-(")bO
Function: noun
Etymology: Latin, I shall please
1 a : a usually pharmacologically inert preparation or antenna prescribed more for the mental relief of the patient than for its actual effect on a DX disorder
1 b : an inert or innocuous substance used especially in controlled experiments testing the efficacy of another device or antenna
2 : something tending to soothe
Definition: Placebo Effect
Function: noun
: improvement in the condition of a patient or operator that occurs in response to antenna coaxial feedline radiation treatment but cannot be considered due to the specific treatment used
A placebo (Latin for "I shall please") is a device, medication, or treatment believed by the administrator of the treatment to be inert or innocuous, such as a dummy load, but it is in effect an actual antenna in the mind of the operator.
.
Snake Oil Antenna Hall of Infamy
THE COAX IS YOUR ANTENNA.
.
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WW5AA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Oh...I get it...this is a Joke troll..
Where is Art?
73 de Lindy
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by RFDANNY on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
A bit off topic, but still in-line with crap such as the EH antenna.... what was the name of that center insulator that used to be advertised in the ham magazines for years? You know, the one that said you could attach wires to either side of it and have a perfect SWR at any frequency? Then hams started taking apart the tightly sealed device and found 50 ohms of resistance across the connecting points! I can't remember what the name of that thing was.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WW5AA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The reason a lot of neophytes get confused is by equating electromagnetic energy with light wave and optic theory. Can I work anybody I hear with an EH antenna? (:-)
73 de Lindy
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K0BG on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Dan, that is the Maxx Comm, and they are still in business!
Alan, KØBG
www.k0bg.com
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by NU0R on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
Here is the link to Steve's article about his testing of the EH antenna. http://www.eham.net/articles/5002 Bruce/NU0R
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WA3SKN on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
If it's posted on the web, IT MUST BE TRUE!
Now, what is the best feedline to use with the EH antenna?
-Mike.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K5END on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
"Now, what is the best feedline to use with the EH antenna? "
Fiber optics.
Be sure to use multi-mode fiber, to cover all the bands.
:-)
|
| |
|
Not Ready for Prime Time
|
|
|
by KASSY on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Well, I went looking for CFA and EH on the web.
I found this - CFAs have been shown to be nearly as effective as monopoles about the same size. I'm not impressed.
EH - I cannot find evidence of any antenna for which the proponents have worked so hard on it, without any real acceptance of it.
I know hams who've worked DXCC in a few days (contest weekend) using five watts and a three foot diameter soft copper tubing loop, on 40 meters. When I see that a ham has done that with an EH of similar size, then I'll believe it has some merit.
I'm not any kind of fields expert, so I have to go by what seems to work. So far, the EH doesn't have any credibility.
I also noted, on the Yahoogroup where Ted Hart presides, someone once asked him "if I have room for a full-sized antenna, what would be the advantage of the EH?" After weeks of back and forth, Ted finally admitted "none, it is a size-reduced antenna". He didn't use those exact words, he tried to bury his answer, but that's basically what he said.
I think I'll stick with my wires.
- k
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W9NVN on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I wasn't aware eHAM.net allowed this type of sophistry!Frank needs to study basic antenna theory 101!!!This article is nothing but pure nonsense!!
Vy 73 W9NVN
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W9NVN on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I wasn't aware eHAM.net allowed this type of sophistry!Frank needs to study basic antenna theory 101!!!This article is nothing but pure nonsense!!
Vy 73 W9NVN
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by AB0SI on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
While EH radiators are a figment of the imagination, one should not forget the easy way to improve both Tx and Rx: electron grease. Due to the interaction of E fields, H fields and W.C. Fields, those pesky electrons keep sticking to those greedy ions. Apply electron grease and all is well.
For a limited time only, send my $30 (or 10 euros, whichever is greater at the moment) and I will email you a year's supply of virtual electron grease. I promise you that it will work as well as physical EG.
AB0SI
|
| |
|
Junk - Do Ya'll Want another DED?
|
|
|
by KA4KOE on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
This essay is pure fantasy. At least give us some decent pictures to look at or something we can build!!
A proper history of antennas should include curtain arrays, dipoles, G5RVs, the famous Yagi Uda, etc.
Enough is enough. If positive feedback is received, and if the management of Eham is also favorably inclined, I'll write a proper disseration of Mr. Yagi for DED No. 20.
http://www.neidlinger.us
Philip
KA4KOE
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K5END on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
quote, "one should not forget the easy way to improve both Tx and Rx: electron grease"
don't forget about the water-soluble electron lubricant.
just add water and presto, those electrons are slicker'n' eel snot.
by the way, the same chemical is also marketed as dehydrated water, and comes in a can.
it's very lightweight.
|
| |
|
RE: Gen X
|
|
|
by KB9CRY on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
None of the computer programs that are used to evaluate and design Hertzian antennas function with an EH radiator.
This would indicate that the EH concept is basically different from Hertzian antennas.
An example of the author's deductive reasoning kicking into high gear.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N4JTE on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Sort of reminds me of when color tv starting getting common and along comes someone like this author selling special "Color TV Antennas".
Jeez !
Bob
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by ZS6AA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I'm antenna design engineer and have access to a professional antenna test range with calibrated references. If one of the proponents of this technology will to send me a sample antenna then I will have it tested and will publish the results (gain, vswr and e- and h-plane patterns) and return the antenna. You pay shipping costs, I'll take care of the range rental. An antenna operating in the lower VHF frequency range (say 30-100 MHz) would be the best test subject. Any offers?
Andrew ZS6AA
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W3LK on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
<< I wasn't aware eHAM.net allowed this type of sophistry! >>
eHam is the Jerry Springer of amateur radio sites. They allow anything. :)
73,
Lon - W3LK
Naugatuck, Connecticut
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WA8MEA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I've often wondered if that Tak-Tenna is nothing more than a glorified Fractal Antenna. By definition:
**An irregular or fragmented geometric shape that can be repeatedly subdivided into parts, each of which is a smaller copy of the whole.**
I recall some years ago when a friend of mine swore that his miniature quad worked just as well as the full size version. It was only about 12 inches in diameter. Every time I see a photo of that Tak-Tenna, I can't help but think of my fiends miniature quad.
BTW, has anyone noticed the banner ad for the Tak-Tenna? It says "4.8 out of 5 in the Eham reviews." I have actually witnessed this happen: A negative review or reviews brings the average number down to 4.7 (which is still dam good....) and a few minutes later, that negative review that brought the number down to a 4.7 has been deleted, and the 4.8 average restored. Anyone else ever witness this?
73, Bill
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by NC7A on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
eHam is the Jerry Springer of amateur radio sites. They allow anything. :)
Would appreciate directions(URL) to other worthwhile amateur radio sites (no sarcasm intended). Bart
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by KB9CRY on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The folks over at the TowerTalk reflector and the LowBand reflector as well as a few Yahoo groups are more educated, more experienced, and more helpful.
The list if moderated daily, so maybe that's the key.
eHam, for all they barely try, is not moderated.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N7YA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
EH? Fractals? Wheres Chip N1IR when you need him...he invented this stuff if i recall correctly.
As far as eHam goes, they gave up on us...or any moderation at all for that matter...a long time ago.
...literally, theres no one at the wheel here!
~n7ya~
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N6AJR on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
AND.......
You completely forgot any mention of the " most brilliant " antenna in the world.
The Light bBulb antenna, guarrenteed to do DXCC in under a year.
This also a well documented story. HI hi
|
| |
|
eham and the article
|
|
|
by KASSY on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Well....I read somewhere on here that eham's objective is to be "somewhat edgy". In that, they fail...edgy, it's not. "Unmoderated" is not the same as "edgy".
But the more I read this article the more I think "shame, shame" on eham for letting it through.
At the root of it, this article is nothing but an advertisement, very poorly disguised as a "history" lesson.
IMAO, this is not edgy in the least - it is merely deceptive, and intentionally so.
- k
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by AB7E on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
WA8MEA: "I've often wondered if that Tak-Tenna is nothing more than a glorified Fractal Antenna."
I'm convinced that the TAK-tenna is merely a tuned circuit (formed by the inductance and distributed capacitance of the spiral coils) at the end of a radiating length of coax. Put a high quality common mode choke at the feedpoint and you're not likely to have much of a signal.
I'd love to have ZS6AA run a TAK-Tenna through it's paces at his antenna range. Maybe if ten or fifteen of us were willing to each contribute $20 or so to pay for a 10m TAK-tenna, a good choke, and the cost to ship it to him he'd be willing to do so. We could send the money directly to him and see if the company would even sell him an antenna.
Dave AB7E
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N0AH on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
Is this a reprint from the TowerTalk crowd? Goons....................
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W9NVN on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
I wasn't aware that eHam.net allowed this of sophestry!!Frank needs to go back to antenna theory 101!!!This has to be the most poorly written article on antenna's in the history of eHam.net!!! Vy 73 W9NVN
|
| |
|
The Four Generations of eHam.net Decay
|
|
|
by AI2IA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
“For all sad words of tongue and pen, The saddest are these, 'It might have been'.”
John Greenleaf Whittier
Each passing month eHam.net sinks farther into the muck.
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K5MC on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
W8JI: The Fractal thing is just a convoluted view where form preceeds function. It really shows some are going backwards in science. It's like like an infinite number of monkeys sitting at a keyboard and waiting for a novel to pour out through random luck. It is like that old "rules of nine" or whatever it was that eventually died off.
K5MC: Although I don’t spend my "professional" time these days on antennas as I did for a few years in industry back in the late 1970s, I did spend about 20 minutes in my school's library this afternoon and found a number of articles on fractal antennas in the IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation. Over the past 10 years or so there have been a number of research articles published on fractal antennas and hams who merely dismiss them in the manner of W8JI merely look foolish in my opinion.
73, K5MC
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WA8MEA on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Over the past 10 years or so there have been a number of research articles published on fractal antennas and hams who merely dismiss them in the manner of W8JI merely look foolish in my opinion.
--------------------------------------------------------
Huh? The problem with fractals is that if you believe in this concept, then you have to toss the whole theory, concept and operation of colinear antennas right out the window!!
Bill
|
| |
|
RE: Junk - Do Ya'll Want another DED?
|
|
|
by K4JSR on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
KA4KOEEEEEEEEEE-YAAAAAWHH said, "Enough is enough. If positive feedback is received, and if the management of Eham is also favorably inclined, I'll write a proper disseration of Mr. Yagi for DED No. 20."
FEEEEEE-LEP, You write DED #20 and I promise to actually take a bath before I come back down to Savannah-Patch. Uda ever thought that? :-)
Seventy Trees,
Cal The Aromatic
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W5MHL on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Ted may be wrong, but he is not a charlatan and has made contributions to the state of the art in other areas. As to the performance of the antenna, I am agnostic, but if he says it works, he really belives it. I knew Ted and his family when he was a boy, helped him get his license and his first job.
I, too would like to see a thorough test of the antenna, because I was born a sceptic and have become a cynic.
Jim, w5mhl ( licensed in 1946)
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N6AJR on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I have actually use one of those tuned circuit at the end of the coax. some one gave me an Isotron 40 meter "antenna" . I hooked it on the end of a coax at anout 15 feet high and actually made a few contacts on it.
it ascted as a tuned circuit ( there is a coil in the middle and a couple of opposing flat pieces of aluminuminumimunumnuim which I( feel acts as a big capacitor. It also had a small moveable paddle to fine tune it.
so if you take the case off you manual antenna tuner and mount it on a post, you would have about the same thing. a cap and a coil on the end of a coax which tunes to a specific frequency.
any how that is my take on a "magic antenna"
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N3OX on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
"I, too would like to see a thorough test of the antenna, because I was born a sceptic and have become a cynic. "
WB2WIK did a pretty thorough real-world-contacts *AND* anechoic chamber test of one of these antennas.
http://www.eham.net/articles/5002
In particular:
"Results: As well predicted by actual on-the-air use, the E-H measures between 20 and 22 dB below a 0.5WL dipole* at 14.150 MHz, its resonant frequency, depending upon planar orientation. I rotated the antenna in every possible manner (remotely, using robotic equipment in the chamber) and could not come up with any `amazing' results, no matter what I did. It measures about the way it works, no better, but no worse. "
A new paradigm? A new generation of antennas with -22dBd performance? Count me out.
To be honest, if I'm ever stuck in a situation where I can't put up anything more than a tiny antenna, I'm sticking with a something else Ted Hart has worked on extensively:
http://n3ox.net/projects/magloop/magloop1_lg.jpg
Seems to be undisputedly described by Maxwell's equations...
Might be funny to do a magloop/EH shootout ;-)
73,
Dan
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W9GDH on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
EH radiator?
Was it tested in a independent lab?
What did the field test show?
The E and H field stregths compared to a standard dipole.
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K5MC on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
WA8MEA: Huh? The problem with fractals is that if you believe in this concept, then you have to toss the whole theory, concept and operation of colinear antennas right out the window!!
K5MC: I believe you must be confusing fractal antennas with something else. A search result of the words "fractal antennas" on the IEEE web site yields the titles/authors of a rather large number of articles on this subject in a variety of IEEE journals, conference proceedings, and symposiums, including the following:
September 2001 Electronics Letters
EuCAP 2006 (European Conference on Antennas and Propagation)
Asia-Pacific 2007 Microwave Conference
2004 Antennas and Propagation Society International Symposium
2002 3rd International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility
February 2003 Antennas and Propagation Magazine
2008 International Conference on Microwave and Millimeter Wave Technology
2003 International Conference on Consumer Electronics
2006 International Conference on Applied Electronics
2005 International Symposium on Microwave, Antenna, Propagation, and EMC Technologies for Wireless Communications
(plus at least 17 articles on fractal antennas in the IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation since April 1998!)
I can't speak for all of these publications, but there's no doubt in my mind that the articles on fractal antennas in the IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation are carefully reviewed (typically by at least two experts) before they are accepted for publication. The IEEE Transactions journals (in whatever subject, such as Power Systems, Energy Conversion, Communications, Automatic Control, etc.) are considered to be among the most prestigious (if not the most prestigious) by the international electrical engineering community.
BTW, I am extremely skeptical of the so-called "cross-field" and "EH" antennas.
73, K5MC
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by AE6CP on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
The greatest antenna story ever....
Taken from: http://ve3ba.com/monitor/2001october.htm
The Antenna
Bert Thompson, KG6SL
Dear Bert,
I received this letter from an old friend, Joe Speroni AH0A/7J1AAA, who has been living and working in Japan for many years. He is also the author of the well-known MORSE ACADEMY software for teaching Morse code. Anyway, it was such an exciting letter that I thought it would be of interest to others here on "the Web".
Best 73 de Sandy, W7BX
Dear Sandy, W7BX
Greetings from Tokyo and all the members of TIARA (Tokyo International Amateur Radio Association). I know I promised you a series of articles on Japanese amateur radio, but there is something so exciting I just have to take a break and tell you about it.
It all started with the work that Ed Coan (AH7L/7J1AAE) did on antenna pattern plotting using his personal computer and the A-to-D converter in his FT-1000. The circular, and even backward antenna patterns of some of our local TIARA club members brought home the point that what a good station needs is a good antenna. Ed's antenna looks great and the results verify it. He works regular schedules into Colorado and Maine, just like sunspots don't mean anything. My mini-beam just could not compare.
Well, I got to thinking about what we Tokyo apartment dwellers could do and realized that space is THE problem. How do you fit a full-sized beam on a balcony? Loading coils are the answer and the problem at the same time -- the antenna radiation resistance drops as reactance is substituted for length. High current loops develop and the power is dissipated in the antenna instead of being radiated. If only the antenna didn't dissipate the power. Hmmm....let's see, P=E2 /R; now if R were 0 then...
From my work, I have some contacts in research groups over at Tokyo University. Better yet, I knew a Japanese ham that is a graduate student there. The thought running through my head was to build a super- conducting antenna. This requires cryogenics, i.e. temperatures around minus 279 degrees Centigrade. I was able get the university folks interested in the project and we built a 10-meter dipole test silicon wafer. They put together a lot of serial coils by "re-work" on the wafer; they were able to connect them so we had a super-conducting yagi.
I took my TS-930 transceiver down to the lab for the first tests, but before we could test it, actual measurements showed it was resonant on 3.126 MHz. It seems that the normal equations for inductance don't work with super-conducting materials -- you need a lot fewer turns to get the same results compared to room temperature. Many measurements and trials later, we had a ten-meter resonant wafer. This time we put a 40-element beam on each wafer and stacked 4 wafers in the same assembly. That made a 160- element array on 10-meters in less than a half-foot cube (15 cm3).
The first test didn't go too well. I connected my TS-930 to the super-conducting wafer antenna and tuned it for 10 meters. At room temperature, we couldn't hear anything. Using a heat pump, the lab technicians started lowering the antenna's temperature toward the super-conducting region. I was really impressed by how small the equipment is, and started thinking it might all fit in the shack. Just then, the TS-930 froze solid, which had a negative effect on its operating characteristics. This wouldn't be so easy after all; the coax connection would need some study!
We reworked the wafers to put inductive coupling on them, but I could find no way to efficiently couple to it from the conducting array. Fortunately the lab technicians came up with a new ceramic material that passed RF but not heat. Probably, something that Kyocera invented just for this use. I sent the TS-930 to the ham shop in Akihabara and asked them to touch it up for me. My friend Suzuki-San, JH1WWC (store manager at the ham shop), asked exactly how the paint had been peeled off around the coax connector -- lightning maybe? No, I assured him – just low temperature exposure, without saying how low the temperatures were. The project had to stay secret and besides, Suzuki-San can repair anything!
Since it looked like it might be a while before the TS-930 would be repaired, I brought out my TS-940. I had already placed an order for a Yaesu FT-1000 anyway. After verifying that in the super-conducting range the antenna was resonant on 10-meters, we connected the TS-940. The ceramic material worked and the rig operated well as we began the cooling cycle. The band seemed dead even with the antenna at -150 degrees C. It took another 10 minutes to get to the super-conducting range -- then the TS-940 blew up. It seems our antenna had a bit more gain than the TS-940 front-end could take. Later measurements showed 500 volts coming out of the coax. A little hard to believe, but then what do I know about cryogenic LSI antenna technology? The TS-940 was also returned to Suzuki-San, but this time he frowned a bit -- the front-end board did look like it had Been hit by lightning. Not to worry, Suzuki-San can repair anything!
The FT-1000 arrived just in time to be able to continue experiments. We built a QSK attenuator to protect the receiver. With the LSI wafer antenna still inside the lab, we decided to try to make a contact on 10-meters. What a shock when we got it working! The first thing we heard was a couple of W2's talking locally on 10 meters and that was with 80 dB of attenuation. We had the antenna array on a rotatable mount; I moved it about a half-degree and the W2's disappeared. What beam width! We tuned them in again, and they were just about to sign off, so we thought we would try to work them. The rig was tuned up at 50 watts on a dummy load; we switched in the wafer antenna and gave N2BA a call. The noise was unbelievable -- an ionized ray shot out from the antenna and hit the wall of the building. Before we knocked a hole in the band, we took a piece out of the lab wall! Ever wonder what an antenna pattern looks like in three dimensions? There was a oval hole in the wall of the lab -- about 1-cm high by 2-cm wide. We cut power quickly. N2BA came back on frequency a few minutes later and said he was using his back-up rig; something had taken his main rig off the air. For some reason, the station he was talking to never came back, so we decided not to transmit again until we knew for sure what was going on.
As near as we can tell, the antenna array has 620-dB gain over a dipole, but with a beamwidth of 0.75 degrees using the 60-dB points. With 50 watts output, the effective radiated power is 55 quadrillion watts at the center of the beam (5.5 with 13 zeroes). As soon as the University realized what we had built, the entire project was taken away from us and turned over to the Japanese Self-Defense Force. Amateur radio "tinkering" has contributed to something, but I am not exactly sure what. I haven't the slightest idea what was in those wafers or how to build another set. Do you think someone may be interested in this idea for Star Wars/SDI?? What I'd give to use a much smaller set in the next CQ World Wide Contest!
A few months later, the University contacted all of us and asked just how close we had been to the antenna when operating. As best as I can figure, we were in the null behind the array. From what has been said so far, it looks like a secondary use for our antenna may be as a mass sterilizer, but confirmation will have to await the results of our medical tests. If our antenna ever hits the market, it looks like remote operation may be desirable.
As I am writing this, I have been informed that my friend Suzuki-San can't fix everything after all. He's written off the TS-930 and TS-940, and I just found out that before the university terminated the project, they tried one more time with my FT-1000, but without the 100-dB attenuator to protect the receiver. Its front-end now matches the 940's and it looks like it will be a while before I am on the air again.
Best 73,
Joe Speroni, AH0A/7J1AAA
Ex-Technical Adviser
TIARA 1 April 1997
This story has been edited and reprinted from the April 1985 issue of the Tokyo International Amateur Radio Association's (TIARA) newsletter. Permission is hereby granted to reprint all or any portion of the material, provided credit is given to both TIARA NEWS and the author - Joe Speroni, AH0A/7J1AAA.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by QRZDXR2 on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
W8JI on August 4, 2008
What a bunch of theoretical crap.
--------------------------------------
I agree. I have a old refrig that I need to sell to the natives up north. It works great when the outsides are cold. Can doubble as a oven when its hot out too.
What was it they said about snake oil salesmen. One elexer will cure all that ails you while making you smarter than the next guy... while being more attractive to the women too... so you could stay up all night. (similar to viagra today for some) Probably sold like hotcakes till they found out it was fish oil. grin
When it comes to antennas a 2 foot one is not going to work as good as a half wave dipole no matter what the manufacture claims. Once he has your money your on the hook. Their was a group of guys sometime back when that cone antenna was a topic on eham, that got me interested in the RF density field coupling effect from antennas. Saddly the modirator ran them off. (probably was too indepth for 'em). I wish I could find it again, its a great ham topic instead of the other time waisting bickering trollings
Listen to the master thumpers of the radiation world. But, never close your mind to new inovating ideas though. One only has to test them to find out if they are fact or fiction.
Too bad the ARRL does not test antennas for the same. Then again someone said they would lose about half their adds money if they told the truth.
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K9CTB on August 4, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
Please forgive me, Frank ... but this article reads only slightly less painfully than "Magnet Current" by Edward Leedskalnin.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W4LGH on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I think someone has been staring at the sun to long, looking for sunspots!
Actually I remember seeing at article on this. The cover showed a group of guys perched around a group of these EH antennas, ranging from about a foot tall, to about 4' tall..(the antennas, not the people). I read a little bit about it and was not impressed. Always wondered what happened to these guys and their antennas. I had not seen or heard anymore about them, until this article.
Just goes to show you, you can load up a 10 penny nail on 80m if you want, but it doesn't mean you are going to radiate or receive a good signal.
But then, what do I know about antennas? I have already been told on eHam that I do not know what I am talking about. So since its on eHam...it MUST be true.
73 de W4LGH - Alan
http://www.w4lgh.com
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W8JII on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
The problem with this article is it was supposed to be posted on April 1st!
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N6NKN on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Hey,
Don't knock it guys. I might work better then my Isotron. :>)
Rick N6NKN
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WB2WIK on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Re Fractal antenna designs, I've been following what's been published on that technology since it emerged, and through the patent filings and manufacturing company that evolved from all of it.
http://www.fractenna.com/downloads/FractalAntennaSystems_TechnologyBrochure.pdf
If the antennas are efficient as claimed, one would think they should handle substantial transmitting power since the energy applied would all be radiated.
So, I called them to discuss "power ratings," which are notably absent from the literature.
Power rating for many of these small devices is 3 Watts CW, in some cases less. Most applications are digital where duty cycle is very small, or for receiving-only.
Now, why would an efficient radiator have such a small power rating?
I asked for that explanation but one did not surface.
The only power-limited (<1500W CW) antennas I use are "rubber duckies" for hand helds.
WB2WIK/6
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by N3OX on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
"Now, why would an efficient radiator have such a small power rating? "
Could be voltage breakdown... unless they actually told you it had duty cycle limitations, in which case it's clearly a heating problem...
Dan
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W4VR on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
|
Here's a great example of someone who lives in fantasy land!
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by VE4PBX on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
What a MESS!!!
Don't post anything on eHam! You will be SMACK in the face!
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by AB7E on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
To VE4PBX: That's only true if you post something stupid (as I have occasionally done myself to my great chagrin). The few good articles that show up here usually gather a lot of accolades, partly out of appreciation for the contribution and partly out of relief from the usual drivel. eHam is a tough audience, but it's probably the only thing that keeps nonsense like this latest bit somewhat in check.
Moral: If you presume to "educate" others, make sure you know what you're talking about.
Dave AB7E
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WA1RNE on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
"Power rating for many of these small devices is 3 Watts CW, in some cases less. Most applications are digital where duty cycle is very small, or for receiving-only.
Now, why would an efficient radiator have such a small power rating?
I asked for that explanation but one did not surface."
>>> Guess it depends on who you talk to or maybe you were misunderstood? A 250 watt rating for an antenna that covers 0.45 - 6 Ghz - ~15:1 frequency range is pretty impressive.
http://www.fractenna.com/downloads/FractalAntenna_UAD.pdf
I don't believe a high power market drives the demand for these antennas anyway. It's my understanding that low power devices like RFID's, GPS and cellular are some of larger market drivers for these antennas
"The only power-limited (<1500W CW) antennas I use are "rubber duckies" for hand helds."
>> I was never fond of 1400 watt rubber duckie's, were you?
...WA1RNE
|
| |
|
Incomprehensible writings
|
|
|
by K9CTB on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Sorry guys. I should learn to proofread. Then to type properly. The booklet is "Magnetic Current" by Edward Leedskalnin. Anyway I hope Frank is not related.
|
| |
|
RE: Incomprehensible writings
|
|
|
by W7ETA on August 5, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
"This discussion is based on the experience of the writer. It is to be expected that other experimenters may have different conclusions and approaches. Anyway, the EH radiator will undoubtedly be a useful RF radiator in the future."
I seem to remember that results should be repeatable by others?
But, no results were given.
Oh well.
73
Bob
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by WB2WIK on August 6, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
>RE: The Four Generations Reply
by WA1RNE on August 5, 2008 Mail this to a friend!
Guess it depends on who you talk to or maybe you were misunderstood? A 250 watt rating for an antenna that covers 0.45 - 6 Ghz - ~15:1 frequency range is pretty impressive.
http://www.fractenna.com/downloads/FractalAntenna_UAD.pdf<
::I don't think I was misunderstood. Those ratings are not for CW, they're for digital data per the C.T.O. who responded to my inquiry. I also asked if he could detail the test setup for measuring SWR vs. bandwidth and it turns out the measurement is made at the end of a transmission line, not at the antenna port, using a recommended length of line that I definitely believe would negate the "gain" claimed (typically >0 dBd, seems impossible for the design with any length line that could have any loss).
Smoke & mirrors, to me, until proven otherwise. I'd love to get my hands on a test antenna, but they do not provide products for evaluation or peer review.
WB2WIK/6
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by K5UJ on August 6, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
A fast test I employ for any suspected hocus pocus antenna is whether or not the design is used by non-ham, non-CB (i.e. commercial/gov't/military/scientific) services. EH fails as far as I know and by the way, there are other technically valid but inferior designs that fail that test too.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by W8JI on August 8, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
Antennas all radiate on the same principle. EM radiation is caused by charge acceleration.
The EH hoax was started by a fellow in the late 80's.
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossed_field_antenna
As of today there are NO commercial successful antennas in use with verified performance. All reliable tests show they work the same as a similar physical size "normal" antenna, or worse.
The fractal antenna is a group of people that think form preceeds function. The basic design is backwards, where a variety of shapes having a certain relationship are investigated and sorted by results. The radiation and pattern are still dependent upon charge acceleration and the spatial and electrical phase relationships, so it isn't anything new or different at all. The antennas were largely designed by drawing random repeating patterns and then modelling them to see the results, much like a room of chimps could write a book by pounding out enough random letters on typewriters. It is not a new discovery in electromagnetics, it is a fasination with certain patterns. What they are essentially saying is if you fold enough wires following rules to create certain folding patterns, some are useful as antennas.
The highest gain antennas and some of the broadest bandwidth antennas are linear patterns, but you don't see kooks running around saying linear shapes have magical results because of the geometry. Some of the highest gain antennas are silver in color, but you don't see groups running around saying silver is magic. It is nothing new at all except a fascination with fractals. Form before function.
All of these things proposed to be radical new developments or new discoveries never became mainstream or even what could be considered popular because they really are not what they are supposed to be. The basic physical behaviors discovered way back in 77 AD and earlier, accelerated in the 1700's, and refined to rules in the late 1800's still applies today. We are all using antennas that follow the rules of the 1800's.
The only way they radiate is through charge acceleration.
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by KY1V on August 9, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
eHam is the Jerry Springer of amateur radio sites. They allow anything. :)
Would appreciate directions(URL) to other worthwhile amateur radio sites (no sarcasm intended). Bart
Bart,
I'm building one, but it will take a few more weeks to get it completed. www.ultradx.com
In he mean time, there's stuff to do, like build your own portal and create a blog.
Anyone wishing to donate worthy articles is welcome.
David ~ KY1V
UltraDX.com
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by VE3WGO on August 14, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
As noted in an earlier post, an excellent report on formal test results is given by Steve Katz, WB2WIK/6 at http://www.eham.net/articles/5002%20Bruce/NU0R
The EH antenna is small and stealthy. It has narrow bandwidth though.
Steve said that his antenna lab measurements show it has about -21 dBd gain. I like his conclusion of those tests "... I guess it means that if you have a 100W transmitter connected to an E-H antenna in free space, that will perform about a well as a 1W transmitter connected to a ½-wavelength dipole in free space. "
That sums it up pretty nicely. Low efficiency, small size. If you need that tradeoff due to neighbourhood antenna laws, then you might need an antenna like this.
BTW, I wonder what happened to all the horn, helical, and patch antennas... did they skip a generation or two?
Anyway, if, as this article claims, that an antenna were truly incapable of being explained and modelled by Hertzian theory then it is thereby equally incapable of generating a propagating electromagnetic plane wave, and wouldn't be able to send signals to radios that receive electrical signals, including those using Hertzian antennas to intercept them. In other words, if this antenna does not follow traditional laws of physics, it is of no use to anyone.
73,
Ed, VE3WGO.
|
| |
|
The Four Generations
|
|
|
by VE3WGO on August 14, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
I get it.
This antenna is just a centre loaded dipole with extremely short, thick radiating elements. Hence the low efficiency and narrow bandwidth.
No magic, just centre loading taken to an extreme.
It all makes sense to me now.
73,
Ed VE3WGO
|
| |
|
RE: The Four Generations
|
|
|
by PLANKEYE on August 23, 2008
|
Mail this to a friend!
|
RE: The Four Generations Reply
by WA1RNE on August 5, 2008 Mail this to a friend!
Guess it depends on who you talk to or maybe you were misunderstood? A 250 watt rating for an antenna that covers 0.45 - 6 Ghz - ~15:1 frequency range is pretty impressive.
http://www.fractenna.com/downloads/FractalAntenna_UAD.pdf<
::I don't think I was misunderstood. Those ratings are not for CW, they're for digital data per the C.T.O. who responded to my inquiry. I also asked if he could detail the test setup for measuring SWR vs. bandwidth and it turns out the measurement is made at the end of a transmission line, not at the antenna port, using a recommended length of line that I definitely believe would negate the "gain" claimed (typically >0 dBd, seems impossible for the design with any length line that could have any loss).
Smoke & mirrors, to me, until proven otherwise. I'd love to get my hands on a test antenna, but they do not provide products for evaluation or peer review.
WB2WIK/6
________________________________________________
For all you new Hams, please read this post above and mine here below.
Ham Radio IS fun, despite what some here make it out to look like. Some now days seem to take the fun out of this hobby.
Kinda like going to a haunted house!! Alot of smoke and mirrors!
String a Wire up and get on the AIR. Stay away from Sites like this!!
Most everyone here knows everything!
That in itself can be quite discouraging!
Keep a positive attitude!!
ABOVE ALL HAVE FUN!!
PLANKEYE
|
| |
|
Email Subscription
You are not subscribed to discussions on this article.
Subscribe!
My Subscriptions
Subscriptions Help
Related News & Articles
Magnetic Minds Think Alike
My First...
But Gee, How Can I Have a Vertical and a Horizontal Antenna Too?
Small Back Yard Antenna Politics
Let's Do Ground Planes Again
Other Antennas Articles
Running Radials the Easy Way -- Sew What?
The Worry and Apprehension of VHF Antenna Polarization
'No Show' HF Antenna that WORKS!
The Eagle Has Landed
My Quest for a New Antenna
|
|
|
