[HCARC] Vertical Antenna Radial System

[Gary and Arlene Johnson]

Kerry,

Not planning on spending any big bucks on a radial system.  I have a bunch 
of used aluminum fence wire that I save as the goats and sheep tear up the 
fencing system.  I probably have enough for 24-30 fifty foot radials that I 
will bolt to a square piece of aluminum with the center cut out.  I'll use 
stainless bolts and nuts an put some extra NoAlox on each bolt joint.  I 
have the big garden staples for holding the radials down.  The Hustler 5-btv 
is 24 feet high if I remembere right.  The single most expensive part will 
be the stainless hardware.  I will probably check Ebay to see what is 
available there.

BTW, there is a wire fence within easy range of the antenna - would it help 
to attach to that also or is there too much chance for wind to make the 
fence move a little and introduce QRM??

Thanks for responding.  73's

Gary J
N5"BAA"



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Kerry Sandstrom" <kerryk5ks at hughes.net>
To: "Gary and Arlene Johnson" <qltfnish at omniglobal.net>; 
<hcarc at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Thursday, October 11, 2012 5:09 PM
Subject: Re: [HCARC] Vertical Antenna Radial System


> Gary,
>
> The FCC requires an AM b/c station to have 120 radials .  There is no 
> requirement for us.  I use a Butternut HF2-V with a 30 meter coil for 80, 
> 40 and 30.  The radials are aluminum electric fence wire (about a 1/4 mile 
> of wire for < $20.00 at Lowes).  I have 16 radials each one about 50 feet 
> long. I used a mfuse box ground block, about 3 inches long with several 
> holes and set screws.  I put a few radials into each hole and then screw 
> the set screw down to hold them.  The radials are strung out along the 
> ground and held down with landscape staples (also from Lowes).  I've had 
> to replace the radials once in the 5 years I've been here.  Sixteen is 
> enough.  I'm not a DX'er but I've worked Europe, JA's and VK's and all 
> states except KL7 in casual operating on 80 meters with it.  It works even 
> better on 40 and 30. I've used it on 20, 17, 15 and 10 with my homebrew 
> antenna tuner.  I'm quite happy with the way it works.  There is 
> absolutely no need to spend big bucks on a plate to attach your radials, 
> nor is there any need for fancy wire for the radials.  Ham radio doesn't 
> have to be expensive!
>
> Unless you live in a salt water marsh, no ground is good.  On the ground 
> properties maps, all of South Texas shows the same.  If you live in the 
> hill country, your ground is poor.
>
> You can't solder aluminum wire.  Even if you use copper, you can solder it 
> but outdoors the solder seems to deteriorate over time .  If it is buried, 
> it will go even faster.  The ground we have here seems to eat metal 
> quickly, so I wouldn't bury anything.  I ran my coax, about 100 feet, in 
> white plastic pipe and buried it.  I don't use any kind of "choke " and I 
> have no RF in the shack.
>
> Someday I'd like to add more radials, but it works so well I don't feel 
> any pressure to do it.  My antenna is 33 feet tall.  With a taller antenna 
> the radial system is less important.  The Hustler antennas are fairly 
> short, I believe, and with the traps, a good radial system is more 
> important.
>
> If you think about resonant radials as in a ground plane, be aware that 
> the antenna has to be probably at least a quarter wave above ground. 
> Putting it on a ten foot pole with a set of 80 meter quarter wave radials 
> won't hack it.  The manufacturers who have all their fancy names and 
> odd-ball schemes for eliminating radials on ground mounted vertical 
> antennas are swindlers, in my opinion.
>
> Kerry
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----
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