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HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
|
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows: 1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.?? 2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county. 3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
|
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.? Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
-------- Original message -------- From: "John Szwarc via groups.io" <johnszwarc@...> Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00) Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows: 1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.?? 2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county. 3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
|
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.? Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message -------- Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00) Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows: 1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.?? 2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county. 3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
|
Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna? | |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Mar 11, 2025, at 6:19?AM, John Szwarc via groups.io <johnszwarc@...> wrote:
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
As long as that covers all the bands you¡¯d want it looks like a good deal to me. Small and resonant with up to 1500 watts. I¡¯d agree that at that price they should think much about it.?
Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
That's something like I was talking about, reasonable price, and if mounted with a pulley, we can check it ourselves, if it needs service, so it gets my vote
As long as that covers all the bands you¡¯d want it looks like a good deal to me. Small and resonant with up to 1500 watts. I¡¯d agree that at that price they should think much about it.? Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
My only concern is that the reviews aren¡¯t great.
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 10:21?AM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: That's something like I was talking about, reasonable price, and if mounted with a pulley, we can check it ourselves, if it needs service, so it gets my vote
As long as that covers all the bands you¡¯d want it looks like a good deal to me. Small and resonant with up to 1500 watts. I¡¯d agree that at that price they should think much about it.? Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
It looks like most of the negative reviews center around the antenna being out of tune and a couple mention the center connector having loose hardware.
?Antennas like this are typically shipped a bit long so they can be tuned (shortened) to the frequency desired. ?Tuning should be done prior to installing it. ? This is due to a variety of factors that can affect the resonant frequency of the antenna. ?It¡¯s better to ship an antenna that needs shortened rather than cut it for a specific frequency only to find that it¡¯s too short (frequency is too high) due to environmental issues. ?
As far as the loose hardware at the center connector, I suppose it should be checked before instating it. ?And sealed as best as possible. ?
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Mar 11, 2025, at 10:55?AM, Ed Kumm via groups.io <edkumm@...> wrote:
? My only concern is that the reviews aren¡¯t great. On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 10:21?AM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: That's something like I was talking about, reasonable price, and if mounted with a pulley, we can check it ourselves, if it needs service, so it gets my vote
As long as that covers all the bands you¡¯d want it looks like a good deal to me. Small and resonant with up to 1500 watts. I¡¯d agree that at that price they should think much about it.? Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do
toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Mar 11, 2025, at 9:38?AM, John Szwarc via groups.io <johnszwarc@...> wrote:
? Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
On Mar 11, 2025, at 6:19?AM, John Szwarc via groups.io <johnszwarc@...> wrote:
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
Kb3wbt again, after looking at reviews as Ed said, we might have to keep looking, but concept is good
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do ?Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
Sorry, I missed the net this week, does anyone? have? a list of who checked?in this week?? I have a list from?day one and would like?to keep in going.
Rich
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 12:17?PM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: Kb3wbt again, after looking at reviews as Ed said, we might have to keep looking, but concept is good
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do ?Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
Here is a link to an antenna?I was actually thinking about buying?for myself. Not sure if it would work for our purposes or not.
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 9:17?PM Richard Brnik via <rich.brnik= [email protected]> wrote: Sorry, I missed the net this week, does anyone? have? a list of who checked?in this week?? I have a list from?day one and would like?to keep in going.
Rich
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 12:17?PM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: Kb3wbt again, after looking at reviews as Ed said, we might have to keep looking, but concept is good
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do ?Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
--
Hi all, will try to come early, to look at possible antenna solutions, while day light
Here is a link to an antenna?I was actually thinking about buying?for myself. Not sure if it would work for our purposes or not.
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 9:17?PM Richard Brnik via <rich.brnik= [email protected]> wrote: Sorry, I missed the net this week, does anyone? have? a list of who checked?in this week?? I have a list from?day one and would like?to keep in going.
Rich
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 12:17?PM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: Kb3wbt again, after looking at reviews as Ed said, we might have to keep looking, but concept is good
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do ?Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
--
Thanks everyone for a nice gathering!
Now antenna, so we can really "reach out"
Hi all, will try to come early, to look at possible antenna solutions, while day light
Here is a link to an antenna?I was actually thinking about buying?for myself. Not sure if it would work for our purposes or not.
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 9:17?PM Richard Brnik via <rich.brnik= [email protected]> wrote: Sorry, I missed the net this week, does anyone? have? a list of who checked?in this week?? I have a list from?day one and would like?to keep in going.
Rich
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 12:17?PM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: Kb3wbt again, after looking at reviews as Ed said, we might have to keep looking, but concept is good
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do ?Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
| |
This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
--
I'll second that!? I didn't get to turn any knobs or play radio last night?as I seemed to be too busy talking.? But last night's Radio Night was a fun evening and we got the HF station?up and running.??
If you didn't hear while we were there, Allen agreed to leave the "field drop" antenna coax in place so we can attach the antenna of our choice as needed.? A second coax will go to the yet to be determined HF antenna on the tower.? Going forward that will give us the option to have two HF antennas during operations.??
Next on the agenda is our March meeting on Thursday March 27th at 7 PM.? I believe?Carmine K3CWP will finally be giving a brief talk on the National Weather Service State College operations and EmComm communications.? It should be an interesting?evening and I'm looking forward to it.??
Oh. and the Tuesday weekly net.? Don't forget about the net!
John?
On Thu, Mar 13, 2025 at 9:26?PM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: Thanks everyone for a nice gathering!
Now antenna, so we can really "reach out"
Hi all, will try to come early, to look at possible antenna solutions, while day light
Here is a link to an antenna?I was actually thinking about buying?for myself. Not sure if it would work for our purposes or not.
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 9:17?PM Richard Brnik via <rich.brnik= [email protected]> wrote: Sorry, I missed the net this week, does anyone? have? a list of who checked?in this week?? I have a list from?day one and would like?to keep in going.
Rich
On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 12:17?PM Lasse kb3wbt via <kvantlars= [email protected]> wrote: Kb3wbt again, after looking at reviews as Ed said, we might have to keep looking, but concept is good
?Sounds like it would work for what we¡¯re wanting to do ?Does anyone have any thoughts on this antenna?
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This would give us the 80/40/20/15/10 meter bands. ??
Are there other antennas we should consider??
?
Good morning,
Mike, thank you for your input.? It's appreciated.
Everyone, After sending that first email on this topic, Allen K3HOC had a conversation with Scott, our EMA Director, and he wants to know sooner rather than later what it will cost for a new antenna.? So we really have a day or so to decide what it is we want and get that information to Scott.? He didn't say the county would purchase it, but he wants the info ASAP.? I suspect it's a matter of costs.? In the commercial world antennas cost thousands of dollars.? In the amateur radio world you can get a really high end HF antenna for about $1,000 or less.? A decently performing amateur antenna can be had for a couple hundred dollars or less.? It's a different?scale.? So I suspect that if this antenna is a couple hundred?dollars or less he's probably?going to green light a purchase.? Just my guess.? But we need to get information?to him about what it will cost soon. It's not going to wait until the next meeting.
So I believe?what we're looking for is a RESONANT multi-band antenna that can easily?be installed for not a lot of money.? By resonant, I mean one that can be used without an antenna tuner.? Something like a fan dipole or trap dipole antenna but not a G5RV.? The G5RV requires the use of an antenna tuner.? With that said, what specific antennas can anyone point us to for consideration??
Thank you.
John
Hi John. I sent my antenna thoughts to you by text message. Sorry I will miss our meeting Thursday.?
Mike
Sent from my Verizon, Samsung Galaxy smartphone
-------- Original message --------
Date: 3/10/25 12:30 PM (GMT-05:00)
Subject: [W3CPA] HF Antenna at Clearfield EMA Building
Everyone,
This morning a tower crew was on the tower at the Clearfield EMA building and, while doing other maintenance,?they took a peak at the non-functional HF dipole? inverted V antenna.? What they found was a center balun that was in really rough?shape.? Clearly it's not going to work.? As a result they brought the dipole down awaiting further instructions.
This antenna is owned by the Clearfield?County EMA.? ?Back in 2019 a MFJ G5RV antenna was purchased as a replacement by the county.? The selection of a G5RV antenna was made by the then CCARC President Gary W3CUB. For those not familiar with the G5RV antenna, it is a non-resonant antenna and requires the use of an antenna tuner.? The staff at the time from Centre Communications felt this antenna was the wrong type for the tower installation.? As a result this antenna was never installed and has since been lost.??
To facilitate?operations?at the EMA Allen K3HOC is leaving a coax on the ground near the tower fence line that we can temporarily?connect to the antenna of our choice.? Rich N3RBJ has a multi-band vertical stick antenna which he plans to bring on Thursday so we can use the HF radios for Radio?Night.? That gets us on the air for the moment.
At this point our choices are as follows:
1. Inform the county of the need for a new antenna and see if they have funding to replace it.??
2. The club could purchase a new antenna and donate it to the county.
3. Build a home brew antenna for use at the EMA building.
If we want the county to purchase one, or if we decide to purchase it ourselves, we will need to know what we want.? So we need to come up with a decision on this rather quickly.? The alternative is to build one home-brew style.? I have a home-brewed 20 meter dipole which I can bring on Thursday as a show and tell.? Building one like this as a multi-band fan dipole would be an easy project and would cost us about $20 to $30.?
So lots to think?about.? The Radio Night is this week, Thursday the 13th at 7 PM.? Last month we had a lot of fun getting acquainted with the digital mode FT8 on HF.? I'd expect that this month we can actually make some contacts with the mode.? Hoping to see a good crew there again.? The business meeting will be on Thursday March 27th and we'll need to come to a decision?at that point.??
Thank you to Allen K3HOC who made sure the?tower crew inspected the antenna while on the tower.? And thank you to Rich N3RBJ who has offered the temporary use of his vertical multi-band antenna.??
John N3SPW
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
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-- Cell Phone: (814) 553-5649
Lasse kb3wbt