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OT: Portable Antenna for K2

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Dave White-3

OT: Portable Antenna for K2

I'm looking to take my K2 (10 watt) on holidays where we will be staying at
a 3-story lodge high atop a bluff overlooking the ocean. The lodge is
surrounded on 3 sides by some tall trees. The roof of the lodge has a table
that I can operate from. I haven't seen the location first-hand, but I
assume I can throw some wire from the roof into the trees. I have a 1 to 1
balun available and some lengths of "disposable" wire (about 50 - 75 ft)
that I can devote to the project. My K2 has the KAT2 ATU built in. I don't
want to spend any money on this, so a commercial antenna system is out.

Any ideas on the best configuration to use? Should it be a simple long wire?
Should I use the balun between the radio and the antenna? What about a
ground system?

Thanks

Dave White
[hidden email]

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william parker-4

Re: OT: Portable Antenna for K2

>From: Dave White <[hidden email]>
>Date: Sun Jun 11 07:30:54 CDT 2006
>To: Elecraft Reflector <[hidden email]>
>Subject: [Elecraft] OT: Portable Antenna for K2

Hi Dave,
Not sure if you can apply this to your application, but I designed the KA3IXF Apartment Antenna, which will be appearing in a upcoming QST Article within the next couple of months. The folks at MFJ and B/W are also looking at it for possible commercial retail application. It is no more than one or two long cardboard tubes wrapped up in electrical tape. You then make or buy a limited space 10 - 40m G5RV and place the feedline in the middle of the tube and then wrap the ends around the tube, leaving about a inch or so between each turn. It looks sort of like a slinky antenna. Then you again wrap the whole thing in electrical tape. I have it sitting outside my apartment on the window sill. With my K2/100, I work DX on a regular basis, on 20m CW. If you can get up to the top floor and place this on a window sill this works well with the K2.

Good Luck,
Bill KA3IXF

>I'm looking to take my K2 (10 watt) on holidays where we will be staying at
>a 3-story lodge high atop a bluff overlooking the ocean. The lodge is
>surrounded on 3 sides by some tall trees. The roof of the lodge has a table
>that I can operate from. I haven't seen the location first-hand, but I
>assume I can throw some wire from the roof into the trees. I have a 1 to 1
>balun available and some lengths of "disposable" wire (about 50 - 75 ft)
>that I can devote to the project. My K2 has the KAT2 ATU built in. I don't
>want to spend any money on this, so a commercial antenna system is out.
>
>Any ideas on the best configuration to use? Should it be a simple long wire?
>Should I use the balun between the radio and the antenna? What about a
>ground system?
>
>Thanks
>
>Dave White
>[hidden email]
>
>
>_______________________________________________
>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
>
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Don Wilhelm-3

RE: OT: Portable Antenna for K2

In reply to this post by Dave White-3

Dave,

I use a 44 foot center fed antenna successfully on all bands. It is good on
40 thru 10 and will do 80 meters in a pinch. Mine is constructed of #22
teflon insulated wire, and I have twisted 2 25 foot lengths of the same wire
together to use as a parallel feedline. I use a 1:1 balun at the end of the
feedline and then a short length of coax to the KAT2. The entire package is
small and relatively lightweight. I get my wire from Jim (N2GO) who
frequently has postings about wire availability on QRP-L

I deploy my antenna in a variety of ways - as a dipole if I have 2 supports,
as an inverted VEE if I have only one, or if the inverted VEE is not
practical, I support one end of the antenna up as high as I can get it and
operate it as a vertical with the other side of the antenna strung out
wherever I can get it as a counterpoise. I usually carry along a 32 foot
telescoping pole that aids me with the various configurations.

I have not done any real comparison tests, nor have I made any EZNEC plots
with the various configurations, but I have fun and I make contacts. I
figure any attempts to optimize anything would be nullified or compromised
in some way depending on the environment I find I have to deploy the
antenna, so I just use it and go on with life. I save the optimization for
the permanent home station antennas where I have control over many more
parameters.

73,
Don W3FPR

> -----Original Message-----
>
> I'm looking to take my K2 (10 watt) on holidays where we will be
> staying at
> a 3-story lodge high atop a bluff overlooking the ocean. The lodge is
> surrounded on 3 sides by some tall trees. The roof of the lodge
> has a table
> that I can operate from. I haven't seen the location first-hand, but I
> assume I can throw some wire from the roof into the trees. I
> have a 1 to 1
> balun available and some lengths of "disposable" wire (about 50 - 75 ft)
> that I can devote to the project. My K2 has the KAT2 ATU built
> in. I don't
> want to spend any money on this, so a commercial antenna system is out.
>
> Any ideas on the best configuration to use? Should it be a simple
> long wire?
> Should I use the balun between the radio and the antenna? What about a
> ground system?
>
> Thanks
>
> Dave White
> [hidden email]
>

Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy-2

Re: OT: Portable Antenna for K2

In reply to this post by william parker-4

Bill KA3IXF wrote on Sunday, June 11, 2006 2:00 PM

>Not sure if you can apply this to your application, but I designed the
>KA3IXF Apartment Antenna, which will be appearing in a upcoming QST Article
>within the next couple of months. The >folks at MFJ and B/W are also
>looking at it for possible commercial retail application. It is no more
>than one or two long cardboard tubes wrapped up in electrical tape. You
>then make or buy a >limited space 10 - 40m G5RV and place the feedline in
>the middle of the tube and then wrap the ends around the tube, leaving
>about a inch or so between each turn. It looks sort of like a slinky
> >antenna. Then you again wrap the whole thing in electrical tape. I have it
>sitting outside my apartment on the window sill. With my K2/100, I work DX
>on a regular basis, on 20m CW. If you >can get up to the top floor and
>place this on a window sill this works well with the K2.
>
> Good Luck,
> Bill KA3IXF

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Bill,

When camping or during Field Day it should be possible to use two of your
gizmos to make a short boom yagi or phased array. My first 40m beam in VE2
land had 22ft lengths of bamboo on which the normal mode helices were
wound - worked like a charm once tuned.

Good luck with the commercial folk.

73,
Geoff
GM4ESD

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william parker-4

Re: Re: OT: Portable Antenna for K2

In reply to this post by Dave White-3

>From: Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy <[hidden email]>
>Date: Sun Jun 11 14:23:52 CDT 2006
>To: Elecraft Discussion List <[hidden email]>
>Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT: Portable Antenna for K2

OK on the bamboo, well that is interesting, I actually used 2 cardboard tubes from some Christmas wrapping paper, thats the secret, Hi ! The antenna cost me a wopping $20.00 when I was done. Just talked over to G4 and LZ last evening along with a WA6 from the east coast. I cant asked for any better considering the cost and my location.

Cheers
Bill KA3IXF

>Bill KA3IXF wrote on Sunday, June 11, 2006 2:00 PM
>
>>Not sure if you can apply this to your application, but I designed the
>>KA3IXF Apartment Antenna, which will be appearing in a upcoming QST Article
>>within the next couple of months. The >folks at MFJ and B/W are also
>>looking at it for possible commercial retail application. It is no more
>>than one or two long cardboard tubes wrapped up in electrical tape. You
>>then make or buy a >limited space 10 - 40m G5RV and place the feedline in
>>the middle of the tube and then wrap the ends around the tube, leaving
>>about a inch or so between each turn. It looks sort of like a slinky
>> >antenna. Then you again wrap the whole thing in electrical tape. I have it
>>sitting outside my apartment on the window sill. With my K2/100, I work DX
>>on a regular basis, on 20m CW. If you >can get up to the top floor and
>>place this on a window sill this works well with the K2.
>>
>> Good Luck,
>> Bill KA3IXF
>
>------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Hi Bill,
>
>When camping or during Field Day it should be possible to use two of your
>gizmos to make a short boom yagi or phased array. My first 40m beam in VE2
>land had 22ft lengths of bamboo on which the normal mode helices were
>wound - worked like a charm once tuned.
>
>Good luck with the commercial folk.
>
>73,
>Geoff
>GM4ESD
>
>
>
>_______________________________________________
>Elecraft mailing list
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>You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
>Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
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>
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william parker-4

Re: Re: OT: Portable Antenna for K2

In reply to this post by Dave White-3

>From: Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy <[hidden email]>
>Date: Sun Jun 11 14:23:52 CDT 2006
>To: Elecraft Discussion List <[hidden email]>
>Subject: Re: [Elecraft] OT: Portable Antenna for K2

Just a brief pitch on the commercial version. I had the idea of a pvc or hard plastic model that would be expandable whereas, it could be pulled out to fit snug in between any window sill application. It would also come in many colors, ie: red for brick builing, where it would be unseen. As there are many hams in apartment buildings with no balcony or cannot have a antenna, vertical type sticking out of the window, this seems like a great soloution. Guess I will wait and see.

Bill KA3IXF