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Two Band Dipole......

WX2MIG

Still Alive & Well
Dec 10, 2008
730
5
28
39° 19' 23" N X 74° 36' 30" W
So now that I have what I hope to be a working HF radio on it's way here....(Kenwood TS-130)....I need to get serious about putting some wire up.

Using scapped materials I did manage to produce a working 10m dipole, never got it up high enough to be really effective, but it worked and had a low 1.2:1 SWR over most of the band.

Now I need to consider what bands I'll want to operate on out of the gate here on this Kenwood HF rig, and I figure for now anyway, I'll get on 40m and 20m to start. Once I can swing an antenna tuner then it'll be a different story, but for now I need to string up a band specific tuned antenna.

I've got the room for 40m, so 20m is not problem, and I'm figuring on a double band fan type configuration with the 40m on top, and the 20m hanging below it.

I got the hardware assembled today, and took some photo's of the project so far.....
The materials I had to buy from the local hardware store....$15.25
Dipole11.jpg


The SO-239 I scrapped off my J-Pole project.....
Dipole10.jpg


Spacers and insulators cut from scrap PVC pipe I had laying around, and painted Olive Drab to help it blend in with the trees.....
Dipole9.jpg


Mounted the SO-239 to one of the 1 1/2" end caps.....
Dipole7.jpg


From the inside.....
Dipole8.jpg


The finished product complete with stainless steel eye bolts for hanging, and to connect the wires.....
Dipole6.jpg


The whole assembly was glued with PVC solvent cement, and reinforced with #8 X 5/8" stainless screws to keep it from pulling apart.

Once I get this jury rig up in the air, I'll take some photo's with the good camera and post them here, with a report on the antenna's performance....
 

The only suggestion I'd make about that center connector is to run the wires from the SO-239 out the end caps instead of to those eye-bolts. Certainly use the eye-bolts to hold the antenna wires, but they are the pits to make electrical connections to (that's why the wires out the end-caps). Not a biggy by any means, but you'll see before you're through. ;)
- 'Doc
 
I have to agree with Doc. Getting a good, solid electrical connection through an eyebolt, whether it's stainless or galvanized, is difficult, if not impossible. Remember, your received signal has to come in the same way. A loose connection will sometimes arc over a bit when you transmit; receiving can be a big problem.
 
Don't they make brass eye bolts?

They do, but I live at the sea shore, and if it ain't made of stainless, it won't last very long.....

Oh yeah, since it's so big, did you make a balun in there?

No balun, just a straight 1:1 connection, the reason I used 1 1/2" PVC was so the SO-239 connector would fit.....

Well the 2 band dipole idea didn't pan out the way I had it planned, using #14 solid copper wire, this stuff is not very forgiving, and the two wouldn't fan, they just kept getting twisted yp on each other, so I cut the 20m section off, and went with a straight 40m wire. Don't have an HF SWR meter so I'm just listening for now, but it's bringing in signals from Montana, to the Virgin Islands so far, and that was on both 40m and 20m.....

Here's a couple of photo's....
KenwoodTS130001.jpg


Looking at from the front of the house......
KenwoodTS130003.jpg



A closer look at the feed point......
KenwoodTS130002.jpg


Today was about the worst day to be doing antenna work, it's been blowing a steady 35 to 40 with gusts up to 50 mph, certainly added to the challenge....
 
Do you always get wind speeds that high?
Look at it as the test to the quality of your work!

I have to outside and put up the Solarcon IMAX 2000 now, as I've been waiting for a week to get here. Put it together already, and now I have to climb on the roof.
C2 - if you are reading this, I will be on 27.335mhz USB or 17 AM and calling for ya!
 
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To keep the two wires from getting tangled up, put the longer wire on top and the shorter wire below. Use spacers of some kind to keep them apart. You can make your own pretty easily. Look at the Alpha Delta DX-CC antenna for ideas.
 
To keep the two wires from getting tangled up, put the longer wire on top and the shorter wire below. Use spacers of some kind to keep them apart. You can make your own pretty easily. Look at the Alpha Delta DX-CC antenna for ideas.

That's exactly what I "tried" to do Mole. I cut sections of 3/4" PVC pipe for spacers, and it looked great while it was on the ground, but as soon as I tried to hoist it up in the air that stiff unforgiving #14 solid copper got a mind of it's own and twisted the whole works into a big knot.
Now had I used stranded wire it would have been a different story, that stuff is much more forgiving. But when you're building on a budget, you go with what you got, besides I plan to add an antenna tuner soon, and that will remedy the situation.
Tried to get a QSO going this evening on 40m, but that is one busy band, listened to a lot of stations all around the states, Canada, and a couple in the Virgin Islands. Put out my call sign on one frequency and asked if the frequency was busy, and a guy with a deep southern draw responded that it was, I moved on before finding out exactly where he was, but I figured it was somewhere's along the Gulf coast......

I've got a home made 20m wire that was given to me, tomorrow I might lower the 10m dipole, and hoist this 20m in it's place, I just hope this blasted wind dies down, it was close to hurricane force winds today...damn near blew me off the roof at one point......
 
Don't worry, be happy! It'll all work out.
I've made more junk outta perfectly good antenna wire/tubing than anyone I know. Sometimes its the learning process, sometimes mis-information, or poor tools and meters. Sometimes you get lucky and the Martians call, asking you to QRP!

Heres a link for a homebrew aerial like the EF-40 I recently got:http://http://www.zerobeat.net/g3ycc/endfed.htm

(Pssst, I got the Comet CHA250BX a few days ago! Don't tell anyone, I'd rather they think I was on a coathanger!)
 
It should have worked with the solid wire. The Alpha Delta DX-CC is solid wire also. I wonder if you were able to take a little tension out of the wire if it would work better? One thing you have to do it make sure the spacers are fastened to the wire in some way so that they don't twist easily. One way to do this is to twist solid wire around the main wire and around the spacer. I live where they have "Santa Ana" winds twice a year...gusts up to 70+mph. I manage to keep mine straight. The other thing you can do is take the other wire in a different direction. Imagine a May Pole. If you try to get that second wire up again, take some pictures and post them. Maybe we all can collaborate to help you get it figured out.
 
I've found that if you sort of stretch that wire a bit, it tends to stay straighter. Tie one end to something and then really 'lean' into it (away from it) at the other end. A sort of longer spacer at the outer end, maybe with a little weight added to it also tends to hold things straighter, sort of. Or, do like 'Mole' said and tie those ends off in different directions. Dang near anything will work, a dipole's just not that 'picky'. Just depends on what you happen to have available to do it all with.
- 'Doc
 

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