[Lowfer] Antenna Questions

[Peter Barick]

Jim and others,

I support Bill sage advice. He put theory into practice and was and is an ardent LF loop practioner. Plus, his east coast loops played well on many LF receiving setups, including mine in the MidWest. This is not to say others using any variety of a vertical antennas have fallen short in putting out good signals. In the right environment they work very well. It gets to what is the most effective for the least work, as I see it. If one has the "sky hooks" over which to string up a 50X50 loop, as you indicate having, then give it a try.

My take on verticals, and I used one for some years: They get corrupted around vegetation, like nearby sappy trees. Many residential areas are loaded with trees, so if tall enough, used them to form a loop which is not affected in their limbs. But also consider the directivity of the loop (in the plane) and absent with a vertical.

Confession: Last night I searched for sites showing LF loop lore, but found broken links, bad memory (mine) and disappointment looking. Where are they now? Also I hoped others would have chimed in ... hmm? Thanks Bill.

Lastly, Where are Bill's Loop Articles sited now?

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>>> Bill Ashlock <ashlockw at hotmail.com> 03/03/09 8:54 PM >>>
Hi Jim,
<...>
First, don't take this too negatively, but I'm not so fond of your "tinkering" approach in achieving a sound antenna design. Based on about 10 years of LF antenna design work, I have found that there are far too many variables to handle without a theoretical approach you may end up spending a lifetime without learning anything about how to optimize your design and make it match the unique set of variables at your home base.
Here are my comments and suggestions on TX loops:

1. Invest in a compound bow having a pullback of at least 50lbs so you can place a leader line well over to top of your trees. Ebay is a good source. The trees, themselves, offer an excellent support system, and only a minimal amount of supporting devices or ropes are needed.
[Beware: What goes up also comes down. Be kind to neighbors!]

2. Study my two articles on loop design particularly the second one. Gain an understanding of the factors that effect the loss resistance of the loop conductor (Rac). Realize, also, that maximizing the loop area for a given configuration is extremely important.
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