Interesting subject. The two big X factors in success that are seldom mentioned are propagation and most importantly-operating skills. The other day I set out for a short SOTA activation wanting to set up a portable 2 element vertical beam developed by JP1QEC. I’ve used it with good results on 20M as compared to my typical end fed. Anyway-I forgot the poles which are essential to properly erect it,so what to do? I usually pack a variety of small portable wire antennas ,so not wanting to waste the outing I tossed a wire into a fairly low tree branch. My intended band 20 was packed with contesters fun the NAQP and furthermore the answer wouldn’t load below 3:1 despite extra radials Well-let’s try 30 and 40 just because. It turned out 30 was open and I managed 3 ‘S2S’ (summit to summit) contacts,and one on 40. Probably NVIS,but Antenna strength was better than I expected-I worked my 4 for a valid activation and a few more beside. Definitely less than optimal antenna but sometimes you just need to get out and operate. As I tell my CW students-get on and operate with what you’ve got.
Dan Presley 503-701-3871 danpresley@me. com n7...@arrl.net > On Aug 4, 2020, at 02:08, K8TE <billama...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Kevin is on to something when he compares antennas instantly which I assume > from his description. Most antenna anecdotes state something like "It works > much better than...I had up previously. But, both antennas aren't up and in > use at the same time. > > My good friend Alan, K0BG, puts it very well. "WORKs is an acronym which > means WithOut Real Knowledge." Why? Because the performance assertions are > not comparative like one gets when using two WSPRLit transmitters on two > antennas at the same time over time. Those data will show which antenna > performs better and how consistently better one antenna is than the other. > In every case when I compare antennas, they always out-perform one or two > others at some point in time. But, one of the three performs better on > certain bands at certain times, most, but not all of the time. > > This past Saturday, I frequently noted one dipole out-performed the other on > a specific station at a specific time, regardless of the band (40m and 20m). > I had callers answer my CQ's that I could not here on the other dipole and > that was true for both dipoles most of the time. They would "change places" > at different times for the same paths. Being able to instantly switch > between antennas (K3 with internal ATU) helped me make more contacts than if > I had just one of those dipoles, both about the same height, but at nearly > right angles to each other. When I had a vertical in the air, it would > sometimes out-perform both dipoles over the same paths. > > Every antenna "WORKS", even a dummy load with imperfect coax. Some antennas > generally out-perform others. Don't tell me yours works better than mine > without scientific proof, not anecdotes. W8JI has done a lot of antenna > modeling and on-the-air comparisons in making assertions about antennas' > performance. I recently read his statement about end-fed wires being a cult > today. He goes on to explain their failings don't appear when using QRP and > with no other antenna available for comparisons. > > As N0AX wrote, "The best antennas is the one that is up in the air." or > similar words. He also wrote the half wave dipole is simple and it works > well and makes the best first choice. I would add, the higher the better > until it's a half wavelength high. K9YC has done modeling that points this > out and debunks most of the NVIS myths that abound in which users state we > need to lower our antennas for NVIS. > > I use end-fed wires when appropriate--SOTA, POTA, and on county lines were > simplicity and rapid deployment matter more than RFI, most of which I can > mitigate or ignore. I use dipoles at home and most are resonant. I also > use WSPRLite to get scientific performance data before I assert they WORK or > which one is better. As I wrote above, I will keep both those dipoles > because they both out-perform the other at times. As my antenna farm grows, > one dipole will remain as my measurement "standard" so I can truly say my > new antenna (nothing short and shiny) out-performs my dipole. And yes, > neither is perfect so I use a tuner when necessary on certain > bands/frequencies. > > 73, Bill, K8TE > > > > -- > Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/ > ______________________________________________________________ > Elecraft mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm > Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net > > This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > Message delivered to n7...@arrl.net ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com
