[SJDXA] FW: Sch Update RE: Critical TO DO Items Before ARRL 160
Bob Schenck N2OO
n2oo at comcast.net
Wed Nov 16 09:48:22 EST 2011
Another work party has been scheduled at the site on Friday. See below.
If anyone is available to assist, let us know.
(A few of us will be at the site on Thursday to work inside the shack. If
anyone wants to stop in, feel free to do so.)
See ya' in the Pileups!
73!
Bob Schenck, N2OO
President SJDXA
GO SJDXA!!! www.sjdxa.org
From: John Crovelli [mailto:w2gd at hotmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2011 9:28 AM
To: N2OO; w1gd at aol.com; Marty Grozinski; K2TW; N2HM
Cc: dave.n3rd at verizon.net; k4za at juno.com; w2no at optonline.net;
pdhutter at yahoo.com
Subject: Sch Update RE: Critical TO DO Items Before ARRL 160
Importance: High
Just spoke to Bob N2HM.
Assuming my tower project in Montgomery County PA with K4ZA goes well and
gets completed tomorrow, Bob and I will meet at the site on Friday morning ~
9 a.m. to do the following three tasks:
1. Install a stake 260 feet out from the tower to anchor the NE sloper. We
plan to pound in a regular fence stake for now. We can install a screw in
anchor later when we know everything works as designed.
2. Install the WSW sloper on the tower, and with some luck get the anchor
point rope up in a tree at the appropriate distance and height so this part
of the TX system is complete.
3. Install the short RX vertical ~ 2000 feet away up the road and into the
woods to the left, away from houses, people and power lines.
My planned ETA is 9 a.m. (might try for earlier), I can only stay until 3
p.m. Must drive to State College, PA later that evening for a Saturday job
at K3CR.
GD/3
_____
From: w2gd at hotmail.com
To: n2oo at comcast.net; w1gd at aol.com; w2cg at comcast.net; k2tw at arrl.net;
w2no at optonline.net; w2rq at embarqmail.com; bob at wyrs.org
CC: k2sg at comcast.net; dave.n3rd at verizon.net; k4za at juno.com;
n2nc at optonline.net; pdhutter at yahoo.com
Subject: Critical TO DO Items Before ARRL 160 Begins on Friday Dec 2
Date: Tue, 15 Nov 2011 21:26:59 -0500
OK...so we aren't quite ready. What else is new. We've been in this same
spot before (almost every year) and somehow made things happen.
There is still time and with careful planning and focused execution (yes
Marty it is my job to do the planning and I'm doing it...so listen up OM and
be ready to follow the execution instructions )....we can and somehow will
be ready for the ARRL 160 bell.
Heard today from our Charlette, NC spy (our yardarm maker) that W8JI
installed even more beverages this summer and will be hosting a big M/S for
ARRL160......so add them to the list of m/s competition....along with W2FU,
K1LZ, W1KM, probably KC1XX, and others....this is the BIG LEAGUES folks!
Hopefully we can get some of the critical setup items listed below done
beforehand again tackling the loop and NE sloper on contest day.
On Friday, Dec. 2, the morning of the contest, we'll begin final TX antenna
installation work starting promptly at 9 a.m. Rain or Shine. We need a
minimum of 4 and ideally 5 or more workers in the marsh by the tower to be
most efficient.
No. 1 To Do - NE Sloper Anchor
The single most important critical path item that could end up being time
consuming and difficult is installing a new anchor for the NE sloper out in
the marsh. This task must to be done to complete installation of the TX
array....so its our top priority item ...to get it done before the morning
of Dec. 2. Gerry informs me that based upon his models, the anchor needs to
be a MINIMUM of 230 feet from the base of the tower to achieve the antenna
orientation we want. Adding a reasonable fudge factor, the new anchor will
be placed at least 260 feet out. W2CG says it took him about one hour to
install the existing screw in anchor (it will be left in place).
Unfortunately we CAN'T rely upon the location of the existing anchor as a
reference point since we don't know how its exact location. So we will do
new measurements starting at the tower base and sink the new anchor at least
260 feet away (in the direction of 33 degrees Magnetic - which plus 12
degrees correction= 45 degrees true direction ). The extra 25+ feet will
provide more than adequate room for angle adjustment (by manipulating the
lower half element). One alternative is to temporarily pound a regular
fence stake into the marsh at the estimated position, and install the
permanent screw in anchor at a later date. For expediencey, this might be
the way to go.
No. 2 To Do: Secure WSW Sloper Anchor Point and Perform Sloper Installation
With all efforts last Sunday focused on installing the big loop and NE
sloper, nothing was done on the other side of the tower to install the WSW
sloper. Fortunately there are no guy wire obstructions on the west side to
contend with, only some near field trees which we've been successful getting
around in the past. The challenge will be establishing an anchor point used
to pull away the center of the sloper. We know that if the anchor were on
the ground it would need to be about ~230 feet from the tower. But going in
a straight line WSW from the tower, there is a tree line and the trees are
much too thick to thread a rope out the needed distance through the woods.
So the alternative is positioning a rope up in one of the trees at a height
which provides the pull away angle needed (which we've done in the past).
Two people (three is better) can get the sloper installed and the pull rope
positioned. Really want to try to have this iitem done before Dec. 2rd to
allow everyone to focus only on the more important NE radiator and loop.
No. 3 To Do: Hookup and Test the BACKUP Inverted-L TX Antenna
We shouldn't put all of our eggs in one basket, and right now making the
inverted L operational puts us on the air regardless of the progress made
completing the big TX antenna. It appeared upon inspection last week that
most everything needed is still intact from last year, the L wire is hanging
from the two short SSV towers, and the elevated radials are still there. To
make this antenna operational, the elevated radial wires need to be stripped
back and reattached to the termination bracket round lug, the unun installed
(its in the shack in the gray bucket), a 213 coax feedline (the remaining
black 9913 in the shed) run from the unun to the area of the cable box
behind the building, install the 3 yellow cable rf chokes in line at the
shack end of the coax, and finally attach the last chock to the 8X coax
labled 'T antnena'. One hour lis probably all the time required to
complete the physical configuration of the L. Some fiddling with the
vertical and/or the elevated radials may be needed to get it zeroed in on
1830 Khz. Testing will require coordinating efforts with someone in the
shack who will supply RF and relay back SWR readings. Est. Time: 1 hour
No. 4 To Do: Clean up, identify and label shack cabling.
This task is already scheduled for this coming Thrusday morning 11/17.
N2OO, W1GD, and N2HM will be on-site to get the tangled mess of cabling
behind the table straightened out, organized, and labled. They will confirm
that the beverages are wired properly to the permanent feed lines installed
in conduits which enter the basement. W1GD will also take SWR readings on
the beverages to partially confirm their operation. And if time permits,
someone will work on connecting up the Inverted L. Minimum time: 3 hours
REQUEST: Check continuity of third 8X coax cable that exits the pvc pipe on
the NE side of the building, which is currently considerd BAD...its not in
use. If possible put a new coax connector on the outside end of this 8X
cable so we can use it as the feedline for the short vertical. Otherwise,
we need to have nother coax cable entering the building some other way.
No. 5 To Do: Install Short RX Vertical 2000' from shack.
This is a two person job. We want to relocate the vertical this year, to
make it more physically secure (e.g. less obvious) in a more remote
location, removed from the houses on Murphy Drive. As a benefit, the short
vertical wiil end up being even further away from the TX antennas. The RG6
will be run up the station drive, through the gate, then up the road toward
Rt. 9 about ~1700 feet then make a left turn into the woods and install the
vertical about 300 feet in from the road, well removed from the power lines.
An appropriate diameter sappling will be found and cut down, the 20' of
tubing attached to the sappling stump with 3 inch ubolts, and the top
loading wires deployed to tieoff points equally spaced in a square ~25 feet
away from the vertical. Wire up the matching network, lay down and connect
four 65 foot radials, and its done. Est. Time Reqd: 2 hours Tools and
Materials required: hand saw, two ubolts to secure the vertical to the
stump, 4 two foot pieces of rebar, four sixty foot wires for radials, sledge
hammer.
No 6 To Do: Listen for power line noise sources along Rte 9. Report
anything significant to AC ELECTRIC as soon as possilble and followup until
repairs are made.
I've asked N2HM and N2OO to handle this task since they travel the sections
of Rte 9 we're concerned with almost daily.
No. 7 HOW to Change Loop Geometry and/or orientation to successfully clear
the 6th guyset
Note: If items 1 through 6 can be completed before Friday Dec 2nd, we can
focus all of our efforts on completing installation of the loop and NE
sloper on the day of the contest. A big 'if' but something we should shoot
for.
This item is to explore what modifications can be made to the geometry of
the loop, particularly the down leg that is closest to the SE guy set, to
incease loop clearance from the SE guys. Tom K2TW reported difficulty
getting his down leg wire away from the 6th guy set because the angle of the
loop at the apex was too narrow (the loop is not an equalateral triangle,
the down legs are longer than the bottom leg, so the angle at the top is
predictably narrow, something much less than 120 degees).
The goal is to position the apex of the loop ABOVE the sixth guyset, as high
as possible on the tower, which means pulling the loop apex all the way up
to the pulley. There is more than ten feet between the pulley and guy
attachement point directly below the pulley. To take full advantage of the
height of our new yardarm, it appears we need to change the geometry of the
loop somewhat to increase the width of the apex. When the yardarm was
installed, I took a good look at how this would work and came away with the
thought that with sufficient apex angle the loop wire would easily have
sufficent clearance on both sides of the top guy when both sides of the loop
were pulled away. The SE side would be somewhat more critical than the
North side, since we're also pulling the base leg of the loop away from the
tower about 16 to 18 feet, and therefore closer to the SE guys. Still, we
should be able to make the geometry work and achieve the required clearance.
There are several options. The most obvious is to move the rope attachment
point in the SE corner of teh loop UPWARD which shortens the overall length
of the downleg and widens the angle at the apex when the corner is pulled
away I suggest we start by moving the corner attachment point up between
10 and 15 feet (roughly 8% of the of the leg length) to see if this will
make clearing the SE guyset obstructions possible.
The second option is to rotate the loop somewhat, so the south attachment
point ends up further west, and the north attachment point further east. In
this configuration the loop won't be exactly broadside to the NE sloper, but
its a good bet this slight deviation will not meaningfully impact array
performance. Try this change after moving the attachment point as described
above.
The third option is to abandon trying to install the loop apex above the 6th
guy level, drop the pull rope and apex just below the 6th guy, and proceed.
Note: A pre-requisite to this work is extension of the 8X feedline off the
sloper side of the tower......it needs to be detached and let out as much as
possible, at least 40 to 50 feet, enough so the ground end just makes it to
the hardline connection. Then temporarily reattach to the tower until final
adjustments are needed when all the wire work is done Right now the NE
sloper is not anywhere near fully extended and we don't want the feedline to
become a constraint when manipulating the loop around guys.
Again, it would be a huge plus to have 5 people out in the marsh to
manipulate the antenna and ropes, especially if conditions are windy.
_____________________________________________________________-
That covers all the critical tasks that I'm aware of at this time.
Comments? Other observations or suggestions? Items we should be concerned
with?
Someone still needs to walk the full length of the Southwest Beverage, and
1/2 of the NW beverage, starting from it's feedpoint (I didn't get to do
these two before dark on Sunday). But this isn't critical and can be done
on contest day as time permits.
73,
GD/3
_____
From: w2gd at hotmail.com
To: n2oo at comcast.net; sjdxa at mailman.qth.net; w1gd at aol.com; w2cg at comcast.net;
k2tw at arrl.net; w2no at optonline.net; w2rq at embarqmail.com
CC: k2sg at comcast.net; dave.n3rd at verizon.net; bob at wyrs.org; k4za at juno.com;
n2nc at optonline.net
Subject: West Creek TX Array Issues and Install Status Report
Date: Sun, 13 Nov 2011 20:53:54 -0500
Hi All....
We had good weather, and we accomplished about 70% of what we hoped today.
1. Acom 2S1 switch test was a complete success with the 2 K3s and the
AL811H amp.
2. The loop and NE sloper are about 85% complete. If you were unaware,
the pull ropes have been moved up the tower about 50 feet, so the geometry
of the array has changed, and therefore how it is installed has be be
relearned by trial and error (e.g. what guy sets have to be crossed, etc).
A few adjustments are still needed, in particular the attachment point away
from the tower must be moved further out by 55 to 75 feet to achieve the
needed angle of the radiators. Right now the NE antenna is about 60 khz
wide, but this will improve when we get the geometry zeroed in. Thanks to
W2CG, W1GD, K2TW, and N2HM for their MANY HOURS of discomfort spent in the
marsh today.
3. As a result of the issues faced with raising the the NE TX antenna, the
SW/W element of the TX array did not get installed today. Fortunately there
are no guy wire issues so this should go somewhat faster and with less
complicationsd.
4. As you know its been an active weather year....lots of wind and rain.
Many trees came down in the woods, and as a result there were many repairs
to be made to the beverages. Every beverage had at least one large tree
fall, and some as many as 4 or 5. At this point only the SW and NW
beverages haven't been walked in their entire length. All of the Beverages
have transformers and feedlines installed. The key S, W, and NE antennas
are all fully in the air and ready. Thanks to W2ARP for his assistance.
5. We did not work on the backup Inverted L TX antenna today.
Still plenty to do between now and 2100z on December 2nd - when ARRL 160
begins.
I understand there will be a shack rewiring party on Thursday. Details from
N2OO to follow.
73,
John W2GD
_____
From: n2oo at comcast.net
To: sjdxa at mailman.qth.net
Date: Sat, 12 Nov 2011 14:39:54 -0500
Subject: [SJDXA] FW: West Creek Array Issues and Install
SJDXA members;
Work Party reminder. See below. John has asked for help tomorrow at the site
(Sunday).
Meet time 9:00 AM
We should have a nice day.
(I have a prior commitment to attend an Eagle Scout court of honor and will
have to leave early (10am) , but I will be there at 9am with ARP and Gerry
W1GD to test the Acom 2S1 with 2 K3's and one amp (will use the AL811H).
We'll do it on 80 or 40 I guess.)
Also, we can run the same test using a K3 and our MKV. Should work as well.
Yes, I have an extra screw anchor.
Bob W2ARP maybe you can set the shack up for testing the two 160 antennas
(see below) with the MKV or with Gerry's K3. I'll be bringing mine back home
after we run the 2S1 test.
See ya' in the Pileups!
73!
Bob Schenck, N2OO
President SJDXA
GO SJDXA!!! www.sjdxa.org
From: John Crovelli [mailto:w2gd at hotmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, November 12, 2011 1:24 PM
To: w1gd at aol.com; K2TW; Marty Grozinski; N2OO; N2HM
Subject: RE: West Creek Array Issues and Install
Importance: High
I gather the top element of each sloper is supposed to be spaced roughly 20
feet from the loop at least the NE works out to be this distance.
MARTY and BOB: note 1GD's comments about placement of the NE element tieoff
point out in the marsh - 50 feet further out per his geometry
exercise.....do we have another screw in anchor to put out there?
So it would follow the West sloper should be the same distance from the
loop. But since the loop is further away on the opposite side of the tower,
I would seem to me the length of the leader rope attached to the West pull
up rope should be somewhat shorter, instead of 30 feet, maybe 15 to 20 feet,
to maintain the correct West element spacing relative to the loop. The
height of the element does not have to be the exactly the same as the NE
element...eg. 208 feet. It can be a little higher without issues I think.
Feedline extensions are made and tested and in my car.
Lets mount some small pulleys at 30 feet with closed loop ropes to allow
easy lowering/adjustment of the bottom of the driven elements. As 1GD
pointed out we don't want to be climbing in the winter cold just for a minor
tweak.
Looks like we need at least two additional 100 foot runs of nylon rope. If
you have rope .... bring it.
BOB, we'll need at least one if not TWO SJDXA guys out in the swamp to help
with the TX antenna install. Hope Randy is available...maybe Bob too.
SEE all at 9 am. tomorrow.
Bob, if you could set up the shack for testing antennas with the FT1000 that
would be very good.....maybe set it up with a coax switch to make it easy to
switch back and forth.between the two yagis.
2GD/3
_____
To: w2gd at hotmail.com; k2tw at arrl.net; w2cg at comcast.net
Subject: West Creek Array
From: w1gd at aol.com
Date: Sat, 12 Nov 2011 10:13:05 -0500
As promised, these are "important" measurements (used in the modeling) for
the loop/sloper installation:
Loop:
Top is up 230 feet and 2 feet away from the tower. (Reality is that we can
pull the top pretty much up to the pulley on the new yard arm.)
Bottom is up around 69 feet and approximately 18 feet from the tower.
(Note, we're not changing the shape or dimensions of the existing loop. We
will have to get the loop over the 5th level of guys. I think this will
take some work to raise the loop with the base open and then lower the loop
enough to close up the loop base.)
NE Sloper:
Top is up at 208 feet (i.e., 22 feet below the top of the loop) and out
about 24 feet from the tower. I think we need a 30 foot rope from the top
of the loop to the sloper insulator to make this work.
Bottom should be about 23 feet up although we may want to try it at a more
easily manageable height like 8-10 feet for adjustments.
We need to move the far en anchor point at least 40 feet further out (50
feet would be better) to make the geometry work. This means moving the
anchor or putting in a new one.
W Sloper
Top is at 208 feet (same level as NE sloper) and 20 feet from the tower.
Bottom should be about 23 feet up (or same as NE sloper)
I'm sure we'll need a new anchor point for the far rope. From what I recall
of the trees out therre, this could be our biggest obstacle.
See you all Sunday morning.
Gerry, W1GD
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