[Antennas] Radials vs salt water question!

Mon, 19 Jan 2004 08:26:01 -0500

I have operated /MM for 20 years aboard "boats" ranging from 6000 tons DWT
to 214,000 tonne very large crude oil cariers. If the advantages I see have
been only "good fishing" (which at 12-20Knots is a myth!) then I don't know
the secret  why those simple Force12 vertical dipoles at 6Y5A beat a world
record either!

73,
Ron

----- Original Message -----
From: Charles Greene <[email protected]>
To: David W Sher <[email protected]>; <[email protected]>
Cc: <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, January 19, 2004 6:17 AM
Subject: Re: [Antennas] Radials vs salt water question!

> David and all,
>
> I live on Narragansett Bay with various antennas within 50' of the
> water.  I had a 20 meter vertical on the sea wall with two elevated
> radials, the sea wall being 8' above the salt water at high tide.  The
> antenna experiences losses if the return path includes the lossy ground,
> just as it does anywhere, so there's no advantage there.  I measured the
> loss in the ground return on this antenna, and it was 30 watts in 100
> watts, which actually was pretty good for only two elevated radials. The
> advantages of being near sea water is that the losses in the reflection in
> the Fresnel zone are less, so the vertical angle of transmittion is much
> lower, like one or two degrees. Check ON4UN's "Low Band Dxing" chapter 9
> for the best treatment on verticals I have seen.  I have also operated
> using an insulated back stay on my sail boat.  It works pretty good, and I
> get good results using 40 watts.  I haven't figured on how to measure the
> ground loss.  Shortly I will be operating from a 60' ocean going fishing
> boat.  I haven't decided whether to use my K2 with its antenna tuner QRP
or
> go QRO with my K2/100, as the boat has plenty of power.  Probably at first
> the K2, as we have to carry everything down to Charleston, SC for a trip
> back to New England.  For an antenna, I probably will just throw a wire
> over the horizontal section of the mast and bring it into the cabin.
>
> At 12:08 AM 1/19/2004, David W Sher wrote:
> >Salt water in general provides much better fishing than the average
> >inland site, unless it is on a river or lake.
> >
> >Dave          W9LYA
> >What wrought doG hath?
> >
> >On Sun, 18 Jan 2004 20:19:37 EST [email protected] writes:
> > > OK heres a question.....How would a ground plane with 4 radials about
> > > 10 ft
> > > up  at an inland site compare to a vertical over salt water?
> > >
> > > My gut says theyd be the same...but something else tells me salt
> > > water  has a
> > > profound effect beyond providing a good ground.
> > >
>
> - - -
>
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