No Space for a 160m Antenna? Possible Solution!

By Ron KBØNRG

A couple of weeks ago, I started looking for 160 meter antennas.  I have a 50 x 150 lot, and there is only one tree.  It's difficult to get a decent HF antenna in the air.  I have an end-fed inverted V, for some bands, but 160 and 80 were out of the question.  I finally settled on a Helically Wound Vertical design wound on three pieces of PVC electrical conduit telescoped into a 24.5ft vertical.  It seemed a little more rigid  than ordinary PVC pipe.

http://www.hamuniverse.com/k6mm160metervertical.html

I wound  249.5 ft of 14ga stranded THHN electrical wire with both .5" and .75" pitch turns on the three pipes to spread out the windings on the entire mast, following the directions on the Internet.  The pipes were wound separately, inside the house, using hot-melt glue to secure the windings, and wire-nutted together when assembled outside.  I used a wood post with a hinge at the bottom, so that it could be easily walked up and have support at the bottom, and the 6ft point.  It DID need guyed with polyester rope, as it leaned WAY too much with the 30mph wind today.

The top hat worked per the plans.   As-is, the resonant frequency was above the 160m band, according to the antenna analyzer.  I used a loading coil that I saw in a different set of plans, 12 close-wound turns of 12ga wire on a piece of 4" PVC.   3 taps on the loading coil cover most of 160.  Nothing but  the lower portion of 160 on tap 12.  I had already looked to see if other bands might tune on that tap.  With a thunderstorm approaching, I didn't sit outside and scan other bands to see if the 10 and 8 turn taps might give me another band.

The antenna was tested before the band went bad with constant lightning crashes in the early afternoon .  I had a nice QSO with n0igz with a report of a good signal on 1960kHz.  Evening tests seemed to have similar reception as several other local hams were getting.  In the data below, from the antenna analyzer, these are the SWR's showed for various frequencies on the listed taps.  The lowest SWR is the resonant frequency for each tap of the loading coil.  The auto tuner in my Yaesu 991 seemed to tune OK  at  any frequency with an SWR less than 3, as expected.  The reported SWR with the auto-tuner was 1.3 on 1960kHz

Tap 12
1828   3.01
1860   2.15
1888   3.0

Tap 10
1870   3.06
1904   2.18
1932   2.91

Tap 8
1908   3.05
1952   1.78
1996   2.93
2000   3.19

Coffee QSO and QSL's

It was a good turnout for the Coffee QSO today and some of us brought a few of our favorite QSL cards to share. Joe WØMQY even brought in his original logbook from 1955. Very interesting to see and hear some of the stories. QSL's are a part of Amateur Radio that has faded some with the new digital options but nothing like getting a card in the mail!

The "Joy of QRP" .....and Donuts

Great meeting Saturday... if you missed it, hopefully we will see you at the next one !! Thanks again Joe for a great presentation! If anyone has any ideas for a guest speaker or topic please let us know and we will work on getting them here !! 73

SEKARC April Meeting Saturday

Hello, the April meeting of SEKARC will be Saturday April 30th. 9 am at the Pittsburg Fire Station #1 on West 4th Street in Pittsburg. We will have breakfast, coffee and juice available along with some great fellowship. Joe Porter WØMQY will be giving a presentation on QRP and portable work. Bring your portable set up and show us what you have put together!

SEKARC SS CW NET LIVES

The SEKARC SS (slow speed) NET is planning to restart again on Wednesday April 27 at 8:30 pm after the 2 meter net and on the second and forth Wednesday of each month there after.  Depending on how this works out for everyone it may be adjusted later.  The purpose of the net is practice for CW operators and to make us proficient if we ever have to use net controlled traffic.

It is a SLOW SPEED net and is designed for the new CW operator and those of us who need the practice or are just learning.  Please try and keep your speed below 8 wpm.  Our operating frequency will be between 7.057 and 7.058 MHz .  I will try to use 7.057.5 but if it is busy QSY up or down between the above.  Let's have a good time and use the equipment that works for you.

                                                     CHECKING IN

Step 1:  Net Control (NC) calls "QRL? QRL?" to see if the frequency is in use.  This is a good time to zero beat NCS's signal.

Step 2:  Net Control calls "CQ CQ CQ SEKARC SS CW NET DE WD0CFH WD0CFH NC QNI K".  That means it's time for stations to send their call signs to Net Control to copy.  Our net is a slow speed net so please keep your speed under 8 words a minute.

Step 3:  "LISTEN" for other stations first.  When you don't hear anyone trying to check in, then send "DE <space> YOUR CALLSIGN".  The space is important so that you can listen and make sure that you are not "doubling" with someone.  If NCS misses your call he will ask "AGN ?" and you should resend your call.

Step 4:  At the end of initial check in NC will acknowledge by repeating all calls.  Example: "R R  W0MQY ES KD0RTX ES N0WKZ AS".  "AS" means standby, I will return later for your comments.  NCS will again again call "QNI K" to pick up remaining stations who did not check in earlier.

Step 5:  Wait for NC to call you again.  Example: "W0MQY DE K0SEK KN".  KN means NC is calling you and only you to make some comments.  You can say "73" if you wish and end with "K0SEK DE W0MQY KN" if you have no comments.

Step 6:  NC will call "QNI K" after a few comments to see if other stations wish to check in.  If you have not yet been acknowledged by Net Control, keep trying until I hear you.
Remember:  DE <space> "YOURCALLSIGN".
NC will call the entire list until everyone has had a chance to comment, giving more opportunities to QNI in between.  Please be patient.  If NC doesn't copy your call I will ask "AGN ?".  You can then send your call again.

Step 7:  NC will close the net after the last comment with "73 SEKARC SS CW NET IS NOW CLOSED DE WD0CFH NC SK"

That's it guys.  This will be a whole new experience for me as NC and probably for a few more who have never checked into a net.  We are a "slow speed" net so don't hesitate to ask "QRS" (slow down) if you are having trouble copying.  No one is going to make more mistakes than ME.

Jack ... WD0CFH

SEKARC SS CW NET LIVES

The SEKARC SS (slow speed) NET is planning to restart again on Wednesday April 27 at 8:30 pm after the 2 meter net and on the second and forth Wednesday of each month there after.  Depending on how this works out for everyone it may be adjusted later.  The purpose of the net is practice for CW operators and to make us proficient if we ever have to use net controlled traffic.

It is a SLOW SPEED net and is designed for the new CW operator and those of us who need the practice or are just learning.  Please try and keep your speed below 8 wpm.  Our operating frequency will be between 7.057 and 7.058 MHz .  I will try to use 7.057.5 but if it is busy QSY up or down between the above.  Let's have a good time and use the equipment that works for you.

                                                     CHECKING IN

Step 1:  Net Control (NC) calls "QRL? QRL?" to see if the frequency is in use.  This is a good time to zero beat NCS's signal.

Step 2:  Net Control calls "CQ CQ CQ SEKARC SS CW NET DE WD0CFH WD0CFH NC QNI K".  That means it's time for stations to send their call signs to Net Control to copy.  Our net is a slow speed net so please keep your speed under 8 words a minute.

Step 3:  "LISTEN" for other stations first.  When you don't hear anyone trying to check in, then send "DE <space> YOUR CALLSIGN".  The space is important so that you can listen and make sure that you are not "doubling" with someone.  If NCS misses your call he will ask "AGN ?" and you should resend your call.

Step 4:  At the end of initial check in NC will acknowledge by repeating all calls.  Example: "R R  W0MQY ES KD0RTX ES N0WKZ AS".  "AS" means standby, I will return later for your comments.  NCS will again again call "QNI K" to pick up remaining stations who did not check in earlier.

Step 5:  Wait for NC to call you again.  Example: "W0MQY DE K0SEK KN".  KN means NC is calling you and only you to make some comments.  You can say "73" if you wish and end with "K0SEK DE W0MQY KN" if you have no comments.

Step 6:  NC will call "QNI K" after a few comments to see if other stations wish to check in.  If you have not yet been acknowledged by Net Control, keep trying until I hear you.
Remember:  DE <space> "YOURCALLSIGN".
NC will call the entire list until everyone has had a chance to comment, giving more opportunities to QNI in between.  Please be patient.  If NC doesn't copy your call I will ask "AGN ?".  You can then send your call again.

Step 7:  NC will close the net after the last comment with "73 SEKARC SS CW NET IS NOW CLOSED DE WD0CFH NC SK"

That's it guys.  This will be a whole new experience for me as NC and probably for a few more who have never checked into a net.  We are a "slow speed" net so don't hesitate to ask "QRS" (slow down) if you are having trouble copying.  No one is going to make more mistakes than ME.

Jack ... WD0CFH

SEKARC SS CW NET LIVES

The SEKARC SS (slow speed) NET is planning to restart again on Wednesday April 27 at 8:30 pm after the 2 meter net and on the second and forth Wednesday of each month there after.  Depending on how this works out for everyone it may be adjusted later.  The purpose of the net is practice for CW operators and to make us proficient if we ever have to use net controlled traffic.

It is a SLOW SPEED net and is designed for the new CW operator and those of us who need the practice or are just learning.  Please try and keep your speed below 8 wpm.  Our operating frequency will be between 7.057 and 7.058 MHz .  I will try to use 7.057.5 but if it is busy QSY up or down between the above.  Let's have a good time and use the equipment that works for you.

                                                     CHECKING IN

Step 1:  Net Control (NC) calls "QRL? QRL?" to see if the frequency is in use.  This is a good time to zero beat NCS's signal.

Step 2:  Net Control calls "CQ CQ CQ SEKARC SS CW NET DE WD0CFH WD0CFH NC QNI K".  That means it's time for stations to send their call signs to Net Control to copy.  Our net is a slow speed net so please keep your speed under 8 words a minute.

Step 3:  "LISTEN" for other stations first.  When you don't hear anyone trying to check in, then send "DE <space> YOUR CALLSIGN".  The space is important so that you can listen and make sure that you are not "doubling" with someone.  If NCS misses your call he will ask "AGN ?" and you should resend your call.

Step 4:  At the end of initial check in NC will acknowledge by repeating all calls.  Example: "R R  W0MQY ES KD0RTX ES N0WKZ AS".  "AS" means standby, I will return later for your comments.  NCS will again again call "QNI K" to pick up remaining stations who did not check in earlier.

Step 5:  Wait for NC to call you again.  Example: "W0MQY DE K0SEK KN".  KN means NC is calling you and only you to make some comments.  You can say "73" if you wish and end with "K0SEK DE W0MQY KN" if you have no comments.

Step 6:  NC will call "QNI K" after a few comments to see if other stations wish to check in.  If you have not yet been acknowledged by Net Control, keep trying until I hear you.
Remember:  DE <space> "YOURCALLSIGN".
NC will call the entire list until everyone has had a chance to comment, giving more opportunities to QNI in between.  Please be patient.  If NC doesn't copy your call I will ask "AGN ?".  You can then send your call again.

Step 7:  NC will close the net after the last comment with "73 SEKARC SS CW NET IS NOW CLOSED DE WD0CFH NC SK"

That's it guys.  This will be a whole new experience for me as NC and probably for a few more who have never checked into a net.  We are a "slow speed" net so don't hesitate to ask "QRS" (slow down) if you are having trouble copying.  No one is going to make more mistakes than ME.

Jack ... WD0CFH