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Author Topic: coax feed to random wire antenna  (Read 4568 times)

WB6KXJ

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coax feed to random wire antenna
« on: April 09, 2018, 05:56:02 PM »

i have to move my antenna away from my house due to unknown rf noise near my house. i have a solar electric system, not battery charger and inverter but the other kind. i'm not sure it is the noise problem because i have turned the power to the entire house at night. my neighbor has done the same. if i get 75 to 100 feet away from my house it disappears. i plan to string a random wire antenna. can i feed this wire with coax and ground the shield will it keep the noise from being picked up?
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W7XTV

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RE: coax feed to random wire antenna
« Reply #1 on: April 09, 2018, 06:48:31 PM »

A remote tuner will work the best, but if you don't have or can't buy one, then a 9:1 unun will work.  It's not perfect, but it will get the antenna's impedance down to a livable level, where losses won't be much of a problem if you use good quality coax (RG-8 or better).

A wide-range in-shack tuner will be required; the tuner in the rig must be turned off.  Your antenna will have to be at least 1/4 wavelength long at the lowest frequency to be used, but in no case should it be a multiple of 1/2 wavelength on any band.  43 feet is a good length for 40-10 meters, but it's not a "magic number."  80 feet or so should be OK if you want to include 80/75 meters.

Treat it like a vertical.  It will have to be worked against a good ground system -- either a large number of buried radials (32 or more preferred, 16 minimum, each the length of the antenna if possible), or if they are elevated, even by a couple of feet, two 1/4 wl radials per band.  I use one radial per band in my system, but two should work much better.  A single radial will radiate, which is something you may not want.  But you must use a radial system of some kind.  The coax shield alone will give you problems (poor performance, RF in the shack, etc.).

Experiment, and see what you can do.  An antenna analyzer is all but mandatory when experimenting with antennas.  You'll see exactly what you need to get a good match on all desired bands. 

Have fun!  ;D
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He speaks fluent PSK31, in FT8...  One QSO with him earns you 5BDXCC...  His Wouff Hong has two Wouffs... Hiram Percy Maxim called HIM "The Old Man..."  He is... The Most Interesting Ham In The World!

KC4ZGP

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RE: coax feed to random wire antenna
« Reply #2 on: August 22, 2018, 10:40:47 AM »


I had this antenna for forty meters PSK-31 and Olivia.

Coaxial from shack to rooftop through the attic.

To the center conductor I connected 12AWG solid copper wire seven quarter-wave lengths long. It was suspended via ropes
to trees.

To the shielding, I connected 12AWG solid copper one quarter-wavelength long suspended via rope the opposite direction.

Picture a very off-set dipole. One leg is thirty-three feet long. The other leg is two-hundred, thirty-one feet long.

An MFJ-949D to match the coaxial to the transceiver. I had RFI until I coiled the coaxial five turns near the feed point.

I burnt up the air waves said Clive in Iowa. I'm in Georgia.

Construct young man, construct.

Kraus



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