Inverted L vs 160m loop @ low height for 160m and 80m?

[mr_fx]

Inverted L vs 160m loop @ low height for 160m and 80m?

I am trying to decide which I should build...

1.) 160m Inverted L and 80m vertical wire antennas on a common feedpoint, with a semi-crappy ground/radial system, feed with mini 8 coax

2.) 160m full wave loop, at heights ranging from 15 to 80 feet in a rectangle shape, with the broad sides facing east and west, fed with 300 ohm ladder line, feed point at about a 20 to 30 foot height

 

[wavrider]

Understanding Antennas For the Non-technical Ham by N4JA - An online Book!

Google is your friend for antenna building and theory.

Link above explains a lot.

In your QTH you will just have to build whatever antenna you want and see how it performs.

As you test it out you will see how the lobes are and if they are in the direction you want.

At that low a height, it doe snot really matter what you use for 160.

Top band, a 1/2 WL is 260t. If you can not get your 160 antenna to that height then it will be NVIS, so really does not matter what you use, dipole, loop etc etc.

the dipole is more predictable, omni pattern, the loop, if fed with ladderline, 450 ohm is heck of a lot better than 300 ohm tv twin lead. can be used for multi band use and have some gain at the higher bands, although no one knows where the lobes will go.

Build them both, try them both, see which one you prefer. Use it.

 

[Radioman1]

Antenna options

Go with option two (the loop)

YMMV, but I have been using one for years at 35' - 40'

Did I say it is the best wire antenna I have ever put up

Try it you will like it.............especially if you have the real estate.....Mac

 

[MudDuck442]

Go with the loop. Feed it with the 450 ohm ladder line. If you must you CAN use the halfway decent 300 ohm twin lead..just get the halfway decent foam type they have it at RadioShack. It will actually work believe it or not.

 

[6meter]

I can offer some comparison.

I have an 260 foot horizontal loop that is 20 to 30 foot high. Also I have a 75 meter inverted L.

The L has about 35 feet vertical and the horizontal section goes from 35 feet to about 40 feet above ground at the end. The inverted L has about 30 radials at the feed point ranging from 15 to 40 feet long.

My experience has been that I can hear better with the loop - lower noise level. But other stations hear me better when I transmit on the inverted L. On 40 meters the loop works pretty well for state side contacts but my vertical does better for 40 m DX.

I'm only running 100 watts and have many times where I could hear stations that couldn't hear me. So a bit more power would have been very helpful.

 

[northern35s]

I use neither, but here's a piece from W4RNL you may find of use:

My top 5 backyard multiband wire HF antennas

 

[mr_fx]

I decided to build BOTH, but for now I will just build the 160m L and the 80m vertical on the same feedpoint, WHY, because I have enough wire laying around to do so... seems like a great reason to me

I will build the loop at a later date

 

[Justme]

A such low loop will be a cloudburner on 160 and 80, but will work multiband.
My inverted L 77 feet high and 77 feet top section from 77 feet down to 45 feet and 3000 feet copperwires as radials is a serious DX antenna on 160/80/40/20 with the low angle of radiation and the MFJ 998 legal limit autotuner at the feedpoint.

I had a 160 meter loop up at one of the Jota's here where i provided the amateur gear, up at 40 feet fed with ladderline and the last 3 feet a 1:4 balun and 1:1 which worked quite fine on 160 -10.
On the higher bands the deep nulls made some directions less well working but it was a quiet recieve.

So, it depends on what you want to do DX or Local on 160 and 80, your choice or put up both to switch over.
My lengthened OCF also works from 160 -10 and there's a homemade recieve loop to pick out to use.
High bands i have a separate vertical on the roof, so each band from 160 - 10 i can pick a horizontal or vertical polarised antenna and the recieve loop to battle noise.

 

[mr_fx]

A such low loop will be a cloudburner on 160 and 80, but will work multiband.

Not according to the modeling, YES on 160m it will be a cloud burner, BUT a 160m at those heights being used on 80m should work out pretty good, not ideal, but good...