[Antennas] All You Ever Wanted To Know About A Hustler 5-BTV Vertical !

[W1GOR]

Dan,

I agree with your comments regarding the elevated radials...  However,
Hustler's instructions specify insulated buried radials.   With the heavy
clay soils here, I really didn't want to do all of the work involved in
laying the radials more than ONCE...<grin>.   The final result, using fully
insulated radials, and cut to the lengths listed in the instruction sheets,
is that the 6-BTV meets or exceeds Hustler's specifications.   Ya jest
cain't ask fer moah, now kin ya...?  A'yuh...!

73, Larry - W1GOR


----- Original Message -----
From: "Dan Richardson" <k6mhe@mendolink.com>
To: "W1GOR" <w1gor@maine.rr.com>; <antennas@mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Wednesday, February 26, 2003 9:59 PM
Subject: Re: [Antennas] All You Ever Wanted To Know About A Hustler 5-BTV
Vertical !


> At 09:38 PM 2/26/2003 -0500, you wrote:
> >Dan,
> >
> >The installation instructions for the 4, 5, and 6-BTV antennas specify
fully
> >insulated radials.   The best way to accomplish this, is to bury
insulated
> >wire and seal the outer end.   Liquid insulation works very well.   I've
got
> >a 6-BTV and installed 4 radials per band.  Each radial is made of
insulated
> >14 AWG stranded wire.  I chose a bright red wire that will show up well
> >against the green grass...  Up here in Maine, frost heave occasionally
> >causes shallow-buried radials to creep to the surface during the spring
> >thaw.   So far, I've avoided running over the red radials with my ride-on
> >lawnmower...
> >
> >73, Larry - W1GOR
>
> Larry,
>
> It is my understanding that elevated resonate radial systems would indeed
> need to be insulated, but that would require nothing more than not
> permitting the wires to touch anything and placing insulators at the end
> supports of the radial wires. However, a buried radial system is not a
> resonate radial system as a ground-plane antenna, although the radials may
> be at calculated resonate length the effect of ground surrounding the
wires
> changes things a lot. Buried radials' purpose is to provide a low
> resistance return path for the loop current and as such antenna operation
> will not have any notable change if the wires are bare or insulated.
>
> However, because of your unique QTH problems covering the wire with a red
> covering seems like a good idea. <g>
>
> very 73
> Danny
>