Elecraft K1-20 - - Now Camping - Antennas

[Richard Powers]

Wow, What a support Group !!!! Thanks to all the oldsters out there who responded to my cataract problem (surgery went well yesterday by the way).
   
  Now my next question is what kind of antennas to use (mostly for 20 meters) when out camping. Here in Northeastern Illinois, most campsites have only one tree to hang a dipole on which would leave the ends to droop to the ground etc.
  What do most of you guys use when camping?
   
  Next question in line will be Power Supplies for the K1.
   
  Dick Powers WB9PWQ / AFA3DP
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[Bob Towers-3]

I use one of these 8 foot long two-piece magmount verticals for 20 metres. I just put it on top of the car - or a sheet of metal if I don't have the car - and it works a treat. Doesn't even need an ATU.

I've managed the States and Japan miles from here with 4 watts RTTY no problem.

73

Bob
2M0KDZ
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[n6wg]

Dick
Don't let just a single tree in a campsite hold you back.
Use it and have fun.  Drooping dipoles work just fine.

When the xyl and I were camping in Oregon, there were only some
rose bushes by our campsite and no trees.  So I laid out my
40m dipole over the bushes, about 4 ft above ground, fired
up my old HW-8 and had a number of nice QSOs.  Great time,
sitting at the picnic table with my lantern and a 12v lantern
battery for the HW-8.

Good luck and 73
Bob N6WG
The Little Station with Attitude

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces+n6wg=[hidden email]
[mailto:elecraft-bounces+n6wg=[hidden email]]On Behalf Of
Richard Powers
Sent: Friday, March 24, 2006 8:09 AM
To: Elecraft
Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft K1-20 - - Now Camping - Antennas


Wow, What a support Group !!!! Thanks to all the oldsters out there who
responded to my cataract problem (surgery went well yesterday by the way).

  Now my next question is what kind of antennas to use (mostly for 20
meters) when out camping. Here in Northeastern Illinois, most campsites have
only one tree to hang a dipole on which would leave the ends to droop to the
ground etc.
  What do most of you guys use when camping?

  Next question in line will be Power Supplies for the K1.

  Dick Powers WB9PWQ / AFA3DP
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[Craig Smith]

For 20 meters my favorite is a ground plane.  Use a 20 foot "Black Widow"
telescoping fishing pole for a support.  Clip one end of a 16.5 foot AWG 26
wire to the loop at the tip with a fishing swivel.  Support the pole with a
single peg driven into the ground (slip the pole over the peg).  Twist the
pole to spiral the wire around the pole a couple times to keep it from
blowing in the wind.  The bottom end the wire will now be about 4 ft above
the ground.  I use a female BNC to terminate the bottom end of the wire.  I
secure the BNC to the pole with a Velcro wrap, but a piece of tape would
work as well.  Cut 3 radials each 16.5 ft long and attach to the ground side
of the BNC.  A light cord at the end of each radial then runs to 3 tent
stakes which are positioned to keep the radials off the ground and act as
support guys for the pole.  Feed with run of RG58 to your rig.  This will
give you nice low angle radiation for working DX on 20.  The internal tuner
in any of the Elecraft rigs will also easily tune it on 30, 17 and 15.  Last
time I had it up, I worked New Zealand from Colorado with 5W on 15 meters.
If you precut the wires and make all the connections ahead of time, this
antenna can easily be put up by one person in 10 minutes.  The poles are
available from Cabellas for $17 if I remember correctly.  Quite a bargain -
I bought two.

If you're more horizontally oriented and want to go first class, the
Buddipole system will give you lots of options for dipoles on several bands
as well as the ability to configure verticals.  Buddipole dipoles at their
normal 10 to 20 foot heights will give you higher angle radiation than the
ground plane, which may be desirable if you're after stateside QSOs rather
than chasing DX.

   Have fun in the woods!
                                 ... Craig   AC0DS




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[James1787]

I have a portable dipole that I use for camping. I bought it off ebay.
The doublets each roll up in a plastic wind-up contraption. It's kind
of like a yo yo tenna deluxe (not made by the same company). The center
insulator has two screw terminals that I connect my 300 ohm ladder line
to.

I've found it's easy to set it up as an inverted vee. I really only
have to get the center up as high as I can. Getting the end of the
doublets up semi-high is no big deal. It's alot less time and less
aggravation then trying to set it up in a true dipole configuration
with both ends being up. From NJ running 5 watts into the antenna I
worked Switzerland with no problem.

73,

James KB2FCV

-----Original Message-----
From: Robert Tellefsen <[hidden email]>
To: Richard Powers <[hidden email]>; Elecraft
<[hidden email]>
Sent: Fri, 24 Mar 2006 08:45:31 -0800
Subject: RE: [Elecraft] Elecraft K1-20 - - Now Camping - Antennas

Dick
Don't let just a single tree in a campsite hold you back.
Use it and have fun.  Drooping dipoles work just fine.

When the xyl and I were camping in Oregon, there were only some
rose bushes by our campsite and no trees.  So I laid out my
40m dipole over the bushes, about 4 ft above ground, fired
up my old HW-8 and had a number of nice QSOs.  Great time,
sitting at the picnic table with my lantern and a 12v lantern
battery for the HW-8.

Good luck and 73
Bob N6WG
The Little Station with Attitude

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces+n6wg=[hidden email]
[mailto:elecraft-bounces+n6wg=[hidden email]]On Behalf Of
Richard Powers
Sent: Friday, March 24, 2006 8:09 AM
To: Elecraft
Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft K1-20 - - Now Camping - Antennas


Wow, What a support Group !!!! Thanks to all the oldsters out there who
responded to my cataract problem (surgery went well yesterday by the
way).

  Now my next question is what kind of antennas to use (mostly for 20
meters) when out camping. Here in Northeastern Illinois, most campsites
have
only one tree to hang a dipole on which would leave the ends to droop
to the
ground etc.
  What do most of you guys use when camping?

  Next question in line will be Power Supplies for the K1.

  Dick Powers WB9PWQ / AFA3DP
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[Daniel Reynolds-2]

Along those same lines - back about 10 years ago while trying to participate in
field day with a group of local hams at a cabin in the U.P. of Michigan, I
ended up stringing an 80m dipole up about 6-10 feet off the ground, and made
dozens of contacts within 500 miles (MI, WI, MN, IA, IL, IN). I don't think I
was QRP (I believe it was a TenTec Scout at 50W), but it worked well, and I had
alot of fun.

Daniel AA0NI
Oklahoma City

--- Robert Tellefsen <[hidden email]> wrote:

> Dick
> Don't let just a single tree in a campsite hold you back.
> Use it and have fun.  Drooping dipoles work just fine.
>
> When the xyl and I were camping in Oregon, there were only some
> rose bushes by our campsite and no trees.  So I laid out my
> 40m dipole over the bushes, about 4 ft above ground, fired
> up my old HW-8 and had a number of nice QSOs.  Great time,
> sitting at the picnic table with my lantern and a 12v lantern
> battery for the HW-8.
>
> Good luck and 73
> Bob N6WG
> The Little Station with Attitude
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: elecraft-bounces+n6wg=[hidden email]
> [mailto:elecraft-bounces+n6wg=[hidden email]]On Behalf Of
> Richard Powers
> Sent: Friday, March 24, 2006 8:09 AM
> To: Elecraft
> Subject: [Elecraft] Elecraft K1-20 - - Now Camping - Antennas
>
>
> Wow, What a support Group !!!! Thanks to all the oldsters out there who
> responded to my cataract problem (surgery went well yesterday by the way).
>
>   Now my next question is what kind of antennas to use (mostly for 20
> meters) when out camping. Here in Northeastern Illinois, most campsites have
> only one tree to hang a dipole on which would leave the ends to droop to the
> ground etc.
>   What do most of you guys use when camping?
>
>   Next question in line will be Power Supplies for the K1.
>
>   Dick Powers WB9PWQ / AFA3DP
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
>  http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
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>
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>

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[Dick Ballard]

I use a method similar to my home installation of a 100 foot spool of
#16 insulated "primary" wire hanging from a limb high up in a big fir
tree. At home it drops from a 70 foot branch at a 45° angle. The
copper plumbing system in the crawl space is the "ground" half of the
system.

When camping I use the Hyperdog sling shot with mason's line and a 6
oz lead fishing weight to get my 100 foot wire as high as possible
into an available tree. I have another similar spool of wire which
could be the other half of a dipole if another tree is available. But
usually I just string it along the ground somewhere under the first
wire to act as a sort of radial.

I've used this method with my Icom703 and an MFJ-945C antenna tuner.
When camping, I use a short coax between the tuner and a binding post
adapter for the wires. That adapter ends up being quite low on a short
pole with only about 10-15 feet of coax from the tuner (which also
keeps losses at bay with the higher SWR's in this arrangement).

I set up the MFJ in the middle of a band (without the 703 tuner
engaged) and then use the 703 tuner to refine the match when I move
within the band. The MFJ settings are recorded so I can quickly switch
between bands. The resulting angles of this type of antenna produce a
mix of pattern and propagation characteristics of both horizontal and
vertical antennas.

Dick Ballard W7AND
[hidden email]
Beaverton OR (near Portland)


On Fri, 24 Mar 2006 08:09:20 -0800 (PST), you wrote:

>Wow, What a support Group !!!! Thanks to all the oldsters out there who responded to my cataract problem (surgery went well yesterday by the way).
>  
>  Now my next question is what kind of antennas to use (mostly for 20 meters) when out camping. Here in Northeastern Illinois, most campsites have only one tree to hang a dipole on which would leave the ends to droop to the ground etc.
>  What do most of you guys use when camping?
>  
>  Next question in line will be Power Supplies for the K1.
>  
>  Dick Powers WB9PWQ / AFA3DP


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