[LCC] 80 meter antenna recommendations?

[Don Hill AA5AU]

How well did your previously dipole work? If you liked it, go back with another one. I love my 80M inverted vee. The apex is only
50' but it gets out very well. The biggest problem with 80, for me is receive. If I can hear someone, I can usually work them, DX or
not. So I bought a Pixel receiving loop from Ted, KN5O, and I have it atop my 55' tower with a rotor after taking my damaged SteppIR
off that tower. This morning I could not copy the 3D2 on 80 CW on the inverted vee, but I could copy him on the loop.

 

The other night, I was working 80M JT-65 and was monitoring the reverse beacon network and my 30 watt signal was being decoded in
Russia on a consistent basis. The thing about an inverted vee is that it is not directional whereas a dipole is. Of course, living
here in the south, you can run a dipole east and west and cover just about every populated area in the world. Big advantage for us.

 

As far as verticals are concerned, I don't have any experience with them other than an HF2 I installed one time ground-mounted with
a bunch of radials. It was great on long distance DX like to EU, but not good to stateside as compared to my inverted vee. I had
both antennas installed at the same time.

 

73, Don AA5AU

 

From: lcc-bounces at louisianacontestclub.org [mailto:lcc-bounces at louisianacontestclub.org] On Behalf Of Mark, K5ER
Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2012 4:54 PM
To: lcc at louisianacontestclub.org
Subject: [LCC] 80 meter antenna recommendations?

 

Okay, now its my turn to ask the group. HFTA doesn't model these combinations, and I'm not good enough with EZNEC to trust I get
them built right within that software. I plan to review info from the antenna book, as well as Low Band DXing, but there is
collectively A LOT of knowledge within this club, so I'd like to tap into that, too. 

I need to replace my 80 meter antenna, and am considering three options:
#1. go back up with a flat top dipole (actually, center always seems slightly below ends) height abt 55 feet
#2. replace with inverted vee - feedpoint can be about 75-80 feet
#3. ground mounted vertical - feed point at 6" above ground, one #12 thhn conductor running up in an oak tree, one ground rod and
(maybe) only one radial.*

 *The #3 antenna started out from the NCJ article last year "an easy inverted-L for 160. They showed with only ONE radial, it should
give close to a 50 ohm match, not needing a tuner or inductor/capacitor tuning at base. Since there are FAR more contacts on 80, as
compared to 160, I could convert this inv-L to a vertical by simply cutting off the excess (leave it about 67' long). My issue here
is I buried hardline from shack to feedpoint (about 260 feet), but did not realize I had used 75 ohm hardline for the last 120 feet
of the run. I may have a mis-match to deal with at the feedpoint, so I would need to address that. On the radial issue, I only have
abt 30 feet of yard in one direction, and the septic field lines are in the other, so a complete set of radials is out of the
question. I might be able to get 4-8, MAX, but only if my wife goes somewhere for a weekend this winter and I get them stapled in
without getting caught.

Everything I have seen on other reflectors compares flat tops and inv-vee's at the same height. I have read that a inv-vee is better
for DX, but also read that at the same height an inv-vee is 1/2 to 1 db down from a flat-top. Because of tree location, in my case,
the inv-vee feedpoint would be higher, (20-25') than I could get a flat-top.

My standard reply when someone ask me about antenna is "who do you want to talk to?" Although I enjoy SWEEPS, I haven't worked it
from home is several years. I do not regularly participate in 80 meter traffic nets, (though it would be nice to be able to check in
during emergency situation). I DO like the NAQP contests in January and July. I have recently become more interested in DX, and
should have 4 band DXCC within a month or two, but I am only 1/2 way there on 80, so I guess my primary focus will be DX, but
without giving up "some" domestic. There is a chance I could get away with EITHER #1 or #2, and still do #3 as well.

What would YOU put up, and why?

Thanks and 73,
Mark, K5ER

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