yes i think cebik was a straightshooter,
im not saying he or anyone else gets everything correct but i don't think he made things up so he had something to write about,
w8ji and others also claim that sort of gain for a dipole above earth, since im not in space and have a mast and feedline i don't pay much attention to freespace models,
i don't know why you don't get feedback on your models eddie,
theres plenty of models for 1/4 1/2 5/8waves out there on the net and in books,
my main interest is in the controversial designs with differing views on what they are and how they operate,
cebik's warnings don't fill me with confidence that the issue will be resolved anytime soon,
i see the lower 1/4wave of astroplane as a transmissionline, as such the length of the mast/feedline will determine antenna mode impedance and the resulting current magnitude below the hoop, thats how i imagine the pattern been effected as per the patent claims, could i be wrong?, of course i could,
im going by what the patent states and what i have read about transmissionline antennas,
after reading the astrobeam article you sent me, i got the impression that avanti did not really understand how it worked either, i had hoped the article would have cleared up the speculation but it did not,
same frequency antennas in close proximity to each other do effect each other, i can set the laptop in clear view then walk about the car holding a 1/4wave fiberglass whip at different distances from the antenna on the car and watch the analyser readings change,
when i tested antennas i would lay one antenna on the ground away from the test antenna and at 90 degrees to it hoping thats good enough.
