[Mobile-Portable] Screwdrivers and whips

[qrv at kd4e.com]

It may help to add a stinger to the whip the same as some add a stinger
to a 43' vertical (for 80 & 160m).

The other option, avoiding mechanical complexity, is a loading coil -
another way that a 43' vertical is made more resonant on 80 & 160m.

We can load bedsprings, rain gutters (at least the metal ones),
ladders, & grandma's metal art sculpture in the flower garden -
but that doesn't mean we do so efficiently or with any decent pattern.

I have an OPEK multiband mobile antenna with taps which I plan to
test soon.  My guess is that a 20' stinger clamped to the tip and
run to a non-conductive pole on the opposite corner of the vehicle
will work a whole lot better on 160-40m than the vertical alone.

We shall see ...

Meanwhile, that West Mountain Radio TARGETuner looks promising
1.8 - 54. MHz 2.0 - 800 Watts SWR Range: 1.0:1 to 9.9:1 - preferably
I'd ask them to lose the Powerpole connectors on mine.
http://www.westmountainradio.com/product_info.php?products_id=targetuner

Does LDG or MFJ have anything with similar features?

David KD4E

> The K0BG site is like a Handbook for HF mobile operations. Whether or not
> you believe an efficient HF mobile station can be built on-the-cheap, you
> are sure to find some good tips and practical info of various
> installations here.
>
> My own experience is that the ~108" whip with auto tuner is relatively
> stealthy (as stealthy as a 108" whip can be), but , even when installed
> high
> up, has poor radiation efficiency on freq's below about 14 Mhz. The tuner
> will make the transmitter happy but a lot of energy is being lost into the
> ground and vehicle chassis, and not going into the ether where it belongs.
>
> Of course you can make contacts at 40M and 80M (even 160?!?) with a whip,
> but the reality is a tuned antenna with an excellent vehicle ground
> distribution (and no noise) will give you 3-6 dB or more radiation
> efficiency.
>
> As with all things, your mileage may vary.
>
> http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=12686
>
> 73
> de k0dan



-- 

David (NOT Dave) Colburn, KD4E - Nevils, Georgia USA

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