[Elecraft] Antenna works too well - I'm worried!

[crstrode]

Yes, that's right, my portable field antenna is working too well.

Just as a test I constucted a 1/2 wave end fed antenna for 20 meters. I
added an electrical 1/4 wave of 300 ohm twinlead.  Per the classic end-fed
zepp, only one conductor of the twinlead is connected to the 1/2 wave
radiator.  This test setup was about 15 feet above ground at the far end,
and less than 10 feet at the feedline end.

Connected directly to the KAT1, it loaded up very easily and facilitated my
first "field" qsos with the K1.

I also tried it on 30 meters where the antenna loaded just fine in several
different configurations:

1.  One side of the twinlead disconnected at the K1
2.  One side of the twinlead disconnected at the K1 and a 1/4 wave
counterpoise tossed out into the lawn.
3.  Both sides of the winlead connected to the K1 (just like the 20 meter
configuration).

Then, just for chuckles I tried it on 40 meters - same outcome as the 30
meter test.

Every CQ I answered resulted in a QSO.

I didn't try a QSO on 15, but the darned thing sure seemed to load up with
no difficulty.

All of this cannnot be correct - I thought anetnnas were more finicky than
this.
Why does this hunk of wire and 14-feet of twinlead seem to be working no
matter which band I choose?


By the way, my QTH is not in a dream location.  I'm 25 miles inland at 250
feet ASL.  I'm surrounded by two-story houses, down in a hole in a
residential neighborhood built on very poor conductivity soil.

I gotta be doing something wrong - first of all, I'm right in the midst of
making a homebrew balun (very similar to the BL2) because I thought I would
need one for the twinline.  Since I've never even tried an end-fed antenna,
I knew that my trusty dipoles would work (a Norcal doublet is next on the
list of antennas to test).  Will the KAT1 also like the Norcal Doublet
without a balun?




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