Brian,
For portable operation at low power, you will typically not experience
any ill effects from connecting the antenna directly to the tuner. But
a switchable 1:1/4:1 current balun (like the Elecraft BL2) can be used
to effectively increase the range of the tuner - try both positions and
see which one tunes more easily.
You might just want to have a balun in your portable kit just in case.
73,
Don W3FPR
Brian Lloyd wrote:
OK, I am convinced - keep the tuner and the wire. So, that brings up a
second question: balanced vs. unbalanced.
Wire antennas that do not require a counterpoise are usually loops or
dipoles, i.e. inherently balanced even if not resonant. Most tuners
offer an unbalanced output. SGC says, just connect up the antenna.
Seems to me that a balun would improve things and keep RF off the coax
and power leads to the tuner. But how well do baluns handle huge
mismatch?
Just off the top of my head, it seems to me that the tuner at the top
of a pole with two legs sloped down, i.e. inverted-V, would make a
pretty good omni all-band antenna.
More thinking aloud.
Brian Lloyd
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