[Elecraft] Balun

[Richard Soennichsen]

Hi All,

            I (a Ham to be) am planning to buy a K2 in the future.  I am
planning my antenna now and am going to borrow a radio in the mean time.  I
am planning on building a simple dipole that will stretch from my rooftop to
a neighbor's tree.  I would like it to be a total of 131' long but I will
have to see.  The antenna will be fed by 450 ohm ladder line.  Some
questions:

 

Does the ladder line connect directly to the K2?

 

Do I need a balun with this setup?

 

If I cannot squeeze in the full 131" is it better to make the antenna
shorter or can I run one end of the dipole around the edge of my (flat)
rooftop to get 131'.  In otherwords one end of the dipole would be straight
will the other would have a couple of doglegs.  This scenario is also
appealling as it would place the feedline out of view of my wife.  (Feng
Shui detractor)

 

Can I use pieces of plexiglass for insulators and dipole center assembly?

 

Thanks

 

Rich