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MALDOL whip - SWR kinda crummy?
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Using only the built in SWR meter on the FT-817 as a point of
reference, it seems the SWR using the 20M Maldol loading coil & whip is a bit high. Played with the whip length, not much of a change. Tried a counterpoise, no improvement to speak of. Just picked up the antenna today and I know there have been discussions about the Maldol in the past, but I'm curious to know if anyone has thrown one of those things on their rigs and seen less than 4 bars across the screen using the built in SWR meter. Can't really tell what the "true" SWR is. Went back to my makeshift dipole for the time being. Anyone? Jason (NF6E) |
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--- In FT817@y..., my_online_id@y... wrote:
Using only the built in SWR meter on the FT-817 as a point ofwhip is a bit high. Played with the whip length, not much of a change.if anyone has thrown one of those things on their rigs and seen lessmakeshift dipole for the time being.never heard of it before.
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Fred Winter
--- In FT817@y..., bringmethecatsass@y... wrote:
--- In FT817@y..., my_online_id@y... wrote:change.Using only the built in SWR meter on the FT-817 as a point ofwhip Using a counterpoise I get a perfect match on my Oak Hills QRPTried a counterpoise, no improvement to speak of.if wattmeter (1:1.0) & no bars on the FT-817)on all bands with the MADOL whip & the corresponding loading coil. Fred KD7T |
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jon ericson
is me me who is me the cats ass
--- bringmethecatsass@... wrote: --- In FT817@y..., my_online_id@y... wrote:Using only the built in SWR meter on the FT-817 asa point ofreference, it seems the SWR using the 20M Maldolloading coil & __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail |
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Nope, with the 20 meter Maldol mounted directly on the FT-817, I get 4 to 5
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bars in on the SWR display and have been completely unable to adjust that or make a contact with it. Mounting it on the Z11 tuner will give you a perfect match and then it also works! ----- 73, Rich - W3ZJ www.w3zj.com -----Original Message-----
From: jon ericson [mailto:bringmethecatsass@...] Sent: Wednesday, June 20, 2001 12:52 AM To: FT817@... Subject: Re: [FT817] Re: MALDOL whip - SWR kinda crummy? is me me who is me the cats ass --- bringmethecatsass@... wrote: > --- In FT817@y..., my_online_id@y... wrote: > > Using only the built in SWR meter on the FT-817 as > a point of > > reference, it seems the SWR using the 20M Maldol > loading coil & > whip > > is a bit high. Played with the whip length, not > much of a change. > > Tried a counterpoise, no improvement to speak of. > > > > Just picked up the antenna today and I know there > have been > > discussions about the Maldol in the past, but I'm > curious to know > if > > anyone has thrown one of those things on their > rigs and seen less > > than 4 bars across the screen using the built in > SWR meter. > > > > Can't really tell what the "true" SWR is. Went > back to my > makeshift > > dipole for the time being. > > > > Anyone?what is a conterpoise? > never heard of it before. > > > > Jason (NF6E) > > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail Yahoo! Groups Sponsor Click for Details To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: FT817-unsubscribe@... and for a great FAQ ( Frequently Asked Questions ) see Please note that your messages and files sent to this group become public domain upon submission and may appear anywhere on the Internet or in print without notice or compensation. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. |
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Anybody having trouble with getting these animals to resonate after adding a
counterpoise might try adding a capacity hat over the coil made with a couple of stiff wires and aligator clips - I've found this to be effective on several homemade whips I've fiddled with over the last month - it's particularly easy to work out if you're using an antenna analyzer, although a 2.5 meg shift to 20 meters might be a bit of stretch..... .......And if you're looking for a cheap, light weight, insulated whip shaft, you might try one of the $2-3 4 or 6 foot garden poles with the green plastic on the outside, cheap metal on the inside. The ones I've seen are just the right size to screw a 3/8-24 stud into (use an allen wrench type stud if you want to spend up, or cut the head off a bolt if you're cheap and use a vice grip to turn it in - once you cut the ends open the studs can be force threaded in to form a really light weight, relatively strong insulated mast - if you don't like green you may have to spend 2$ for spray paint - I screw 10/15/17/20 meter Hustler resonators on top and don't have any trouble hitting resonance with a three foot mast. It won't get ya on 40, but I'd be willing to bet it eats an ATX for lunch on the higher frequency bands. Press on, Field Day's almost here...73 Scott |
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Kinda is not even close.
I tested some Maldol whips with an MFJ259B. At that time the 40, 20 and 10 meter versions were available from my local radio dealer. The 10m is fine, and resonates at a little less than 29meg. The 20m will not go under 16.5 mhz even with a counterpoise. The 40m is similarly high. The resonant points had reasonable SWRs, just too high in frequency in the 40 and 20 cases. I don't know how any of the other available bands work other than the 3 I tested. If someone could find a way to extend the whip a couple feet in a way that would be strong and light, they might work OK. tom wa2phw --- In FT817@y..., "Richard B Drake" <rich@w...> wrote: Nope, with the 20 meter Maldol mounted directly on the FT-817, I get4 to 5 bars in on the SWR display and have been completely unable to adjustthat or make a contact with it. Mounting it on the Z11 tuner will give you aperfect match and then it also works! |
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The curious thing about that is you would think that they would design them
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to be a little low in frequency so that all you would have to do is push the whip in a little to get it where you want it. But they make it high where you can't do a darned thing about it other than add an external loading device, or kludge up some kind of whip extension. ----- 73, Rich - W3ZJ www.w3zj.com -----Original Message-----
From: tar@... [mailto:tar@...] Sent: Wednesday, June 20, 2001 7:29 PM To: FT817@... Subject: [FT817] Re: MALDOL whip - SWR kinda crummy? Kinda is not even close. I tested some Maldol whips with an MFJ259B. At that time the 40, 20 and 10 meter versions were available from my local radio dealer. The 10m is fine, and resonates at a little less than 29meg. The 20m will not go under 16.5 mhz even with a counterpoise. The 40m is similarly high. The resonant points had reasonable SWRs, just too high in frequency in the 40 and 20 cases. I don't know how any of the other available bands work other than the 3 I tested. If someone could find a way to extend the whip a couple feet in a way that would be strong and light, they might work OK. tom wa2phw --- In FT817@y..., "Richard B Drake" <rich@w...> wrote: > Nope, with the 20 meter Maldol mounted directly on the FT-817, I get 4 to 5 > bars in on the SWR display and have been completely unable to adjust that or > make a contact with it. Mounting it on the Z11 tuner will give you a perfect > match and then it also works! Yahoo! Groups Sponsor To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: FT817-unsubscribe@... and for a great FAQ ( Frequently Asked Questions ) see Please note that your messages and files sent to this group become public domain upon submission and may appear anywhere on the Internet or in print without notice or compensation. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. |
Anybody having trouble with getting these animalsI just tried that. Clipping a piece of stiff wire to the tip of the whip. I did get it to resonate but it took 46 inches of wire and was mechanically pretty flimsy - don't breathe hard it will fall over. I think the "Miracle Whip" is looking better and better. The article in the July QST is quite good. ----- 73, Rich - W3ZJ www.w3zj.com |
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NF6E
All in product marketing I would guess.
The longer the whip, the larger the base diameter must be, right? And a larger base might not fit on the rig's BNC because it would bump against the SEL knob. I bet Maldol opted for what they could sell vs. what performs best. Because the same whip is used for all of the coils, Maldol had to create a "one size fits all" whip. And since the instructions that come with the whip state that adding a counterpoise is best for optimum performance, they more or less concede the fact that the whip is a bit too short for certain bands. That's OK though. Not a big deal to cut a piece of wire to assure "optimum performance." Even if the thing were flat without the added counterpoise I would only expect from it what it represents - a small whip on a low power rig with zero gain. It's still fun to play with. Jason - NF6E --- In FT817@y..., "Richard B Drake" <rich@w...> wrote: The curious thing about that is you would think that they woulddesign them to be a little low in frequency so that all you would have to do ispush the whip in a little to get it where you want it. But they make it highwhere you can't do a darned thing about it other than add an externalloading device, or kludge up some kind of whip extension.20 and 10 meter versions were available from my local radio dealer.frequency in the 40 and 20 cases.the 3 I tested.way that would be strong and light, they might work OK.I get 4 to 5adjust that oryou a perfectbecome public domain upon submission and may appear anywhere on the Internet orin print without notice or compensation.Service. |
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Yea - that is curious isn't it - - I suspect that it is the same
syndrome that is affecting lots of engineers these days - engineering to the edge of the envelope and not allowing for any slop - i.e.:if the circut is @ 16v, then a capacitator rated at 16 v should do it.... wrong..... I have discussed this with folks I know that work in the tech engineering field that head engineering teams, and they confirm this..... It drives me (& them) nuts to see that the most common failure in a piece of equipment is in the power supply - something that is relativly easy to engineer. I don't have quite this bad a problem with the Maldol - I think mine actually might be ok - but I do with the ATX, and cured it by making a 4 spoke capacity hat out of 24 gauge solid wire and soldering it to a mini-aligator clip. Don W6ZO --- In FT817@y..., "Richard B Drake" <rich@w...> wrote: The curious thing about that is you would think that they woulddesign them to be a little low in frequency so that all you would have to do ispush the whip in a little to get it where you want it. But they make it highwhere you can't do a darned thing about it other than add an externalloading device, or kludge up some kind of whip extension.20 and 10 meter versions were available from my local radio dealer.frequency in the 40 and 20 cases.the 3 I tested.way that would be strong and light, they might work OK.I get 4 to 5adjust that oryou a perfectbecome public domain upon submission and may appear anywhere on the Internet orin print without notice or compensation.Service. |
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Oh, I clipped at the tip of the whip, a capacity hat. Are you saying it will
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have a greater affect if it's just above the coil? Well, what the heck, I'll try it, it's just a matter of moving a clip :-) ----- 73, Rich - W3ZJ www.w3zj.com -----Original Message-----
From: ka9p@... [mailto:ka9p@...] Sent: Thursday, June 21, 2001 9:58 PM To: rich@...; FT817@... Subject: Re: [FT817] Re: MALDOL whip - SWR kinda crummy? Rich - did you clip at just above the coil or at the tip of the whip? A shorter length should work just over the coil, or better, zo's round hat just over the coil. Good luck in any event. Yahoo! Groups Sponsor To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: FT817-unsubscribe@... and for a great FAQ ( Frequently Asked Questions ) see Please note that your messages and files sent to this group become public domain upon submission and may appear anywhere on the Internet or in print without notice or compensation. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. |
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Cortland
Here's the straight skinny on a cap hat addition: It'll do more for
tuning just above the coil, because it's closer to ground, but it'll add more to the signal at the tip. Closer to ground, it has more capacitance, but current that flows into its capacitance will not flow int the vertical part of the antenna above the coil, so even if you can TUNE, you may not have as good a signal as you could. If the added capacitance hat is at the top, then the current that flows in its capacitance will also flow through the radiation resistance (small as it may be) of the vertical part above the coil, and help your signal. (Additionally, a cap hat just above the coil makes more current flow in the coil turns, which are pretty lossy, compared to putting it higher.) And when ten meters is open... where's that noodle soup? I gotta try a wet noodle! Cortland --- In FT817@e..., "Richard B Drake" <rich@w...> wrote: Oh, I clipped at the tip of the whip, a capacity hat. Are you sayingit will have a greater affect if it's just above the coil? Well, what theheck, I'll try it, it's just a matter of moving a clip :-) |
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I have no personal experience with the Maldol whips.
I was just at Universal Radio and asked them about the Maldols, swr, and resonance. They said that they've had a couple folks come back with the same complaints listed here. Universal's experience was that the users had not screwed the whip into the coil *all* the way. Steve, KC8IDM (a salesman @ Universal) said he's checked all the Maldol coils with an MFJ analyzer & they *are* resonant within the appropriate band (w/whip), even without a counterpoise. When the whip isn't screwed in properly, he said they *do* resonate at a higher frequency (inter-thread capacitance, I wonder?). Again, just reporting what *one* vendor's experience has been. |
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No reflection on you Steve, but that total BS.
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----- 73, Rich - W3ZJ www.w3zj.com -----Original Message-----
From: Steve Howell [mailto:AB8JC@...] Sent: Tuesday, June 26, 2001 2:41 PM To: FT817@... Subject: [FT817] Re: MALDOL whip - SWR kinda crummy? I have no personal experience with the Maldol whips. I was just at Universal Radio and asked them about the Maldols, swr, and resonance. They said that they've had a couple folks come back with the same complaints listed here. Universal's experience was that the users had not screwed the whip into the coil *all* the way. Steve, KC8IDM (a salesman @ Universal) said he's checked all the Maldol coils with an MFJ analyzer & they *are* resonant within the appropriate band (w/whip), even without a counterpoise. When the whip isn't screwed in properly, he said they *do* resonate at a higher frequency (inter-thread capacitance, I wonder?). Again, just reporting what *one* vendor's experience has been. Yahoo! Groups Sponsor To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: FT817-unsubscribe@... and for a great FAQ ( Frequently Asked Questions ) see Please note that your messages and files sent to this group become public domain upon submission and may appear anywhere on the Internet or in print without notice or compensation. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. |
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