[PaQSO] Where to go...what antennas to use

Wed, 5 Mar 2003 16:13:09 -0500

As is usually the case, I must agree with Ed.

Deciding what antenna(s) to use is part of the fun of going portable, and,
since it takes me almost 4 hours to get to my operating location, I must
make sure I take not only the antennas I have stashed away for this event,
but also extra wire to make new ones should something crazy happen to the
primary antennas.

Regarding 160.....I'm fortunate in that my location has ample room to erect
a 160 dipole.  The center is only about 50 feet off the ground but for this
contest, that's okay.

In fact, when considering the majority of your contacts come from PA
counties, the NVIS antennas are wonderful for this contest.  One year I had
enough room at my portable operation to erect a full size 80 meter loop.
Talk about a cloud burner!  I was really anticipating a lot from that set
up, however, that year was one of my less successful ones score wise, so
I've decided the effort involved in erecting that thing is not worth the
payback.  That could very well be a flawed assumption because of all the
other factors involved in the total score......band conditions, are you
rare, band choices, on and on and on.

So, as Ed said, we are getting together tonight for some good laughs and
radio talk, and should have all this figured out by about the 5th or 6th
beer.

73's

Bob, N3FR

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, March 05, 2003 3:22 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [PaQSO] Where to go...what antennas to use

Two topics that are sliced and diced by portables (and rovers and mobiles I
imagine also) to no end.

A single antenna (Alpha Delta; G5RV) or multiple dipoles?.......what about
160?.........should I invest the time and money in that "fishing pole"
beam?......what is the optimum height?......does directional orientation
matter?............How about a
four-square?.............NVIS?..............How to cover max geographical
territory on 40 with a single antenna, or are two different 40 meter
antennas worth the effort?..........juggle "ease of installation" with
"operational effectiveness"..........and being careful to bring everything
you need without having to hire a C5 for an airlift..........

N3FR and I have a get together this evening at a local pub (scheduled last
week) and this sudden (welcome) flurry of activity here will, no doubt,
bring those topics into the conversation this evening.

Never tire of discussing this stuff

Ed/WA3SES

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