[Antennas] Securing Ladderline

[Ron Youvan]

> I plan to erect some ladderline in a very high-wind area and would like to
> take the strain off the ladderline.

> I was thinking of threading a PVC cord though the ladder along the length of
> the feedline and then securing the cord on both ends.

> Alternatively, if the PVC cord would influence the impedance of the
> feedline, how about running the cord along the outside of one of the
> conductors and tying it to the outer conductor with cable ties?

> What are your views?

   I would use Dacron before any other, the black stuff (in 3 or 4 thicknesses)
at most hamfests for antenna erection is the best I have ever used, lasting
nearly 30 years and still going strong.  (AFAIK Dacron is mylar)

   I had 100 feet of the old 450 Ohm ladder line (with solid # 14 copperweld
wires and white 3/16" plastic separators) to a 100' (# 12 copperweld) dipole
with only a 10' piece of 1/2" (trade size) EMT (thin wall electrical tubing)
stuck in the ground and a piece of dowel driven into the other end, with a
twinlead "screw eye" standoff screwed in to it, with one round while plastic
separator going through the brown polyethylene disk in the center of the eye,
staked out in the yard 2/3 the way to under the dipole.
   Worked great until my XYL kept running the EMT down then mowed the ladder
line until I didn't have enough to reach w/o any loop hanging down.
(I moved it, cut the dipole to 64' and put up a piece of RG-11/U, I used
the original antenna for 40 es 80 meters, but lost 80 when I cut it back.
I still have it, but the dipole has so many rusty spots I am keeping it
down until I get a chance to replace the wire.)
-- 
    Ron  KA4INM