开云体育

I'm pretty new at this, been reading up what I can about tuners &
stuff. I'm also a bit overwelmed by all the advertising about this
tuner, that tuner, and I'm a little confused...

Is there a difference between a "Tuner" and a "Coupler" or do the
terms meaning the same thing?

Does a tuner or coupler tune a wire into resonance? Or does a tuner
or coupler match impedence?

Is using a tuner or coupler merely "presenting" a radio a low SWR
even when it is working into a mismatch?

Can a tuner or coupler make a less than optimum antenna more
efficient; can it increase gain?

Is it better to use a varable length antenna system, like a
Screwdriver, than to use a random length wire/tuner coupler?

I have a FT857D, I've passed the General written exam, & have about
got the code...(Yes, I know that it's been proposed dropping the code
requirement, & Yes, I still want to learn it.) I'm about ready to
start seriously building or buying my HF antenna(s), I'd like to
start on the right foot.

These questions I've stated will go along way toward the decisions I
may make.

Inquireing minds want to know...

Thanks in advance for any inputs that may come...

Bob KI4HEE

At 10:11 PM 8/16/2005, ki4hee wrote:

I'm pretty new at this, been reading up what I can about tuners &
stuff. I'm also a bit overwelmed by all the advertising about this
tuner, that tuner, and I'm a little confused...

I'm constantly in a state of confusion. ;-)

Is it better to use a varable length antenna system, like a
Screwdriver, than to use a random length wire/tuner coupler?

I use an ATAS-120 with my FT-857D in my truck and am really happy with it. I know there are better screwdriver antennas but the ATAS-120 is simple to install, and works right off the bat. Press the "tune" button wait a few seconds, and you're ready to transmit. It is cheaper than any other screwdrivers I've found, especially when you add in adapters to be able to tune from the "tune" button. It fits under the parking garage at work, and I've made a lot of 17M SSB DX & 40M SSB contacts with it. I've ordered a tuner for my FT-817 so that I can change or build antennas to suit my needs. I've never been all that interested in building antennas until about 6 months ago. Now I can't seem to quit experimenting. A tuner is more versatile than a screwdriver, and from the demonstrations I've seen, a tuner can be faster. So "better" depends upon your needs.

I have a FT857D, I've passed the General written exam, & have about
got the code...(Yes, I know that it's been proposed dropping the code
requirement, & Yes, I still want to learn it.) I'm about ready to
start seriously building or buying my HF antenna(s), I'd like to
start on the right foot.

Great. I upgraded my ticket to General in April. The 5 wpm exam is not impossible as some would like you to believe. I have a website I put together (nothing fancy) to explain what I did to learn the code. After I upgraded I had several requests for help. You can check it out at: I was really proud of myself for passing the code exam...I knew eventually the code exam would be dropped, but wanted to pass code instead of being handed HF privileges. Some would say that 5wpm=handed. Somewhere along the way I started enjoying copying code. Although I've not used it on HF yet I hope to start soon.

Even if they dropped the code exam a few months after I passed the exam I still will have the satisfaction of having passed. I know several Technicians who told me I should have just waited instead of putting myself through the torture of learning code. (One has been waiting for 2 years now. He bought a brand new FT-100 a couple of years ago) But I'm having a ball on HF! And they love hearing that I worked Nicaragua and Costa Rica and that I worked Maine on 2.5 watts & California on 5 watts last week.

Good luck passing the exam!

Bruce

--... ...--
Bruce Pullig
KD5CFM
kd5cfm@...