My Week in Radio
I managed to get my 107-ft random wire
a little higher in the tree
before the leaves fully filled in.
I also made some CW contacts
in the 7-zone QSO Party
and the Delaware QSO Party.
My Question
I’m contemplating an even longer wire
for my antenna setup:
an 80m EFHW, totaling 40M in length.
I’m wondering if there are any downsides to this,
such as a weird radiation pattern
or needing more power.
- NA3CW, Chuck:
Suggested that at certain lengths and frequencies,
the antenna might start firing off the end of the wire.
- AA3LH, Leon:
Shared his experience with a 135ft dipole,
which he uses on 10, 20, 40, and 75 meters.
It’s fed with 30ft of ladder line,
25ft of coax,
and a 4:1 balun,
and he says it works great.
Consider a dipole with 600ohm ladder line.
- KC3NZT, Harvey:
Recommended using a 9:1 unun
for a random wire
and looking into a resonant end-fed antenna.
He also mentioned using an AH4 tuner
at the wire and that a resonant antenna would be more sensitive.
He suggested switching to a 49:1 unun.
- KC3RFG, Jim:
He went from a 49:1
to a 71-foot end-fed long-wire with a 9:1 unun
and found the 71-foot to be quieter.
He also mentioned a 53-foot wire
and that super-long wires can receive a lot,
but also a lot of noise.
- KC3SQI, Wayne:
Check the
udel.edu
for information on random wire antennas.
He pointed out that as you extend the wire too far,
you get too many harmonics and the antenna can become imbalanced.
Palomar ununs are among the best.
- AF3Z, Jim:
Consider what bands I want to use.
- KC3WWC, John:
Is familiar with the 40m EFHW
and is going to try a 80m EFHW.
It’s encouraging to hear that the EFHW
may offer better receive performance.
I’ve used UDEL’s site for non-resonant lengths
and will switch to a 49:1 for the EFHW.
I’m also considering whether his 71ft EFRW was better than 107ft,
noting that conditions probably changed.