[Antennas] Maxon atenna questions

[Craig Smith]

Good deal on the Moxon project, Eric.   

You would use center to center measurements when using tubing.   Actually the Moxon is fairly forgiving, and if you build to the dimensions given in the Moxon Generator program your antenna will probably work fine on the first try.   If not, just adjusting the length of the wire portion on the driven element side of the side insulators will tune it precisely.   I built one for 10 meters and it worked great without any need for adjustment.   Less than 1:1 SWR and terrific bandwidth with the expected directionality and F/B ratio.    Incidentally, the antenna is called a "Moxon" rather than a "Maxon".   It is named after Les Moxon who developed it (or at least popularized it).   You will find a fair amount of detail on it in his antenna book, but the Moxon generator program will give you all the info you need to build one.

Above 2 meters, a Moxon is probably not used much since the length of full half wave elements is so small.  Yagis may be the proper choice there since with 3 or more elements you can get more gain still in a very small volume.

73  Craig  AC0DS


On 27, Jan2013, at 11:57 AM, Eric Mynes wrote:

> Since I don't have a 2m antenna that would work in the SSB/CW portion of
> the band and I like to build antennas, I decided to build a maxon on 2m.
> Now, I began thinking of what I could use to build this antenna.  I ran
> across 2 aluminum walkers at a thrift store for a couple bucks each one
> day.  Humm...  Aluminum with 90 degree or real close bends in them
> already.  Sounds like an antenna in the making already.
> 
> That now brings up questions that I hadn't thought of.  So, I thought I
> would ask the group here to see if any one as insite on them.  First, I'm
> using a Maxon Rectagle Generator software I found online to calculate my
> deminisions.  It calls for side "A" to be 29.05 inches to make the antenna
> resident on 144.5 MHz.  Now, my walker uses 1 inch in diameter aluminum.
> Do I make the measurement from inside the bend to inside the bend?  Do I
> make it outside to oustide?  Or, do I make my measurement from middle of
> the tube to middle of the tube?  I figure on 12 or 14 guage wire it
> wouldn't matter, but at 1 inch tube, that is a lot of variance by making
> measurements from the wrong location.
> 
> If all goes well with this 2m antenna, I plan on building another one for
> 6m.  Even though I don't need another 6m antenna, I just like to build them
> for the fun of it.  Ideally, I'd like to build one on 440 too.  Of course,
> I'd use wire for that one.  It would give me a 440 antenna to use with if I
> ever decide that I'd like to try to work some 440.
> 
> 73,
> Eric
> k8ohz
> 
> -- 
> A wise man once said nothing.
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