As most of you know, the feeding coax center conductor goes to that ring, and the ring goes to the radiating part of the antenna AND to the part of the antenna that is mounted to the mast (ground side?).
I don't understand why the "hot" rf feedline goes to both places. Someone please enlighten me.
(Note this is condensed/simple version) ( with an attempt at humor )
RF is a strange thing indeed, to look at it, one would think that
"hey this will never work, it is a DC short, from hot to ground"
Ahhh but RF is AC, and it is a picky beast, it goes were it feels comfortable, and the Rf being feed to that ring is really wanting a 50 ohm load, and it finds it at the feedpoint were it is tapped on the ring.
This is another way to look at it very simply.
I have been playing with Mobile HF antennas, a lot of times, you can have an antenna cut to the right length, but it will NOT show a 50 ohm load.
And often to get them to match, I have been using a hand wound coil at the base of the antenna, one end is hooked to ground, and the other to the antenna itself. Now to look at it, it is a direct DC short to ground, but by taping the coil at the right point with the center lead of the coax.....Ahhhh I find the spot were that RF sees a 50 ohm load (or close) and it decides to go up and out, rather than just going to ground. It really wants to find a 50 ohm load.
Here is something to remeber with RF.
The maximum power transfer occurs when the loads ares matched, so 50 output at the radio, 50 ohm coax and a 50 ohm feedpoint looks much better to the RF than that DC short.
to put it simply.
That help?
Now Don`t go beating me up because I did not quote the ARRL Hand book, and 12,147 math equations explaining how RF reallys works... I use the K.I.S.S method
LOL
And every time I start rattling on like this I think I should change my name to something like "Doc"
( who needs holiday inn? )
73
Jeff
