Portable dipole ?'s for QRP setup

[WD0MYM]

http://www.davisrf.com/antenna-wire/polystealth.php

I purchased a commercially made End Fed antenna that used the wire above in #18. I liked the wire so much I ordered another 200' of it to use for wire dipoles. It is 6 pounds per 1000', which comes out to 4.8 Oz. for 50'. It coils well enough and looks strong enough for portable operation. I can't really speak about its lifespan yet (kinking, repeated bending, etc.). Have to get out some when this heat breaks.

[KC8QVO]

For wire I would highly recommend Wire Man #26 Silky Wire. It is stranded copper-clad steel, very tough stuff. I bought a batch of it at Hamvention 2 years ago and this year I bought a whole spool.

I believe this is the same wire that Buddipole uses for their commercial counterpoise kits that come with the Buddistick antennas (or at least it is nearly identical to what I have with mine).

One of my favorite past times is backpacking also. A dipole is a GREAT antenna for backpacking - I have been using one for about 3 years. My dipole is a jumper dipole - it is cut for all bands 6-40 meters. Every joint between each band has spade connectors there. So to get on a particular band all the jumpers from the feed point out to the longest element are connected, then the element just beyond the band of operation is disconnected. This ensures a resonant antenna - and no tuning required (past the initial building of the antenna).

The #26 Silky Wire holds up great in the pack environment. I had #26 gauge copper speaker wire before and ended up spending more time on the trail putting new connectors on than operating. The wire would fatigue and the connectors would break off. The copper-clad steel eliminates that problem (so far anyway).

Enjoy the MFJ rig. You have a great start, and 20m is a fantastic band.

If you get in to portable operating and are looking for a multi-band rig in the future I highly recommend you look in to the Elecraft KX3. I just got one and I am very anxiously awaiting the reduction in pack weight. I have a solar panel from PowerFilm to go along with it. When I get the internal charger a set of 8 NiMh AA batteries will run me indefinitely in the field - drape the solar panel over the pack while hiking during the day and the batteries will be fully charged by the time I get to camp and set up for the night.

Now where am I going to go off hiking to?? HIHI. As soon as I can break away and go I'll head out for a couple days, maybe 3.

Steve, KC8QVO

[KC8VWM]

Here's an all band, step by step portable QRP antenna project just for you.


http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php...nslulated-Wire

[KC8QVO]

Here's an all band, step by step portable QRP antenna project just for you.


http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php...nslulated-Wire

That is an interesting design. Simple, well thought out, and makes sense. One concern I have is how much does it weigh?

I have started using LMR-100 for the lighter weight. The feedline I use most is 35' long and this seems to work out perfectly in camp. I will have to weigh my dipole and see what it is (with the feed line and 50' 550 chord support rope).

[WA9SVD]

It can be surprising. When operating /p QRP I've never used 14.285 or any other particular spot in the band. Most of my QRP DXing has been on CW, but now and then I've done okay on SSB, and I never identify as "QRP" or anything like that. Just jump in, pile on, and get through.

From the beach in Malibu, and also from some very good mountaintops, I've "competed" with home stations using beams and high power and beaten them in many instances. It's just having the perfect location for the path, and good timing.

The MFJ, while not very feature-rich nor as stable or as accurate as most modern gear, does have something going for it: It has a good speech compressor built in which works and is very low distortion. Adds a lot of "punch," and can make its low power sound like more. I've compared "getting through" with the MFJ vs. my Yaesu FT-817ND (which is more stable, more accurate, and does more stuff) and there's absolutely no comparison. I can be heard with the MFJ when people don't even acknowledge a caller with the MFJ. The "talk power" difference is probably at least 6 dB, probably more than that.

I definitely agree with Steve. Skill, and timing can easily trump "high power" j**ks. (Jocks, or other epithets that shall remain unnamed.) You have to unserstand the timing used by the other station to have your call recognized, it's not always the loudest signal heard by a DX station. The antenna isn't the most important thing, it's how you USE the antenna you have. I've made contacts through pile-ups with a modest (actually, miserable) dipole on 20, 15, and 10 Meters but tried to wait for the critical time to give my callsign out, when I thought the DX station would hear it. There are many strategies to being heard, even if you consider yourself a ":QRP" station. Or even a <1500 Watt station. I've never operated more than 200 Watts. (Yaesu FT1000default ) or >100 Watts (club station or home station) and worked the world with a measly dipole, including many special event and Dxpedition stations. It does NOT require a super antenna (don't I WISH!) or high power (I'm working on that!) amplifier to work world-wide DX.

[KI6J]

Hauling coax sucks. Find something that feeds at ground level and your pack will instantly lighten.

[KC8VWM]

That is an interesting design. Simple, well thought out, and makes sense. One concern I have is how much does it weigh?

I have started using LMR-100 for the lighter weight. The feedline I use most is 35' long and this seems to work out perfectly in camp. I will have to weigh my dipole and see what it is (with the feed line and 50' 550 chord support rope).

Not much weight involved. Plastic antenna reels containing flexweave wire and dacron rope with the PVC feedpoint cap minus the feedline and tent pegs weighs about the same as holding a bottle of purified water in your hand. This is a packable yet maximized performance, multiband antenna I designed that's intended to easily fit inside a hiking backpack or small carry bag. The bag I store it all in includes the feedline and everything else you need to install a full length multiband antenna system intended to operate on any band from 6-40m bands, and yet it's only 20" long when everything is stored and packed away inside this bag.




I decided to use LMR 200 for the lower weight. It's smaller diameter makes it easy to roll up and pack away for storage, yet it exhibits lower loss and performs better even when used on the VHF bands when compared to heavier and lossier RG 8X.

I used it again this year on field day. In fact, I have been abusing this very same portable antenna since 2003. It REALLY performs well even at QRP power levels. It sets up very quickly in only a few minutes. No antenna tuner is ever required to pack along with this design.

Simple, effective, low cost, low maintenance and operates on any band you like.

[KC8QVO]

Just a quick update here. I am loading up for a backpacking trip this weekend (10 miles/2 days, short but gotta get out in the woods for at least a little bit!). I went through my Ham radio set up with the KX3 and measured all the weights.

The jumper dipole I have, including 35' RG-174 feedline and 50' of 550 chord for a support rope, is just 11.4 ounces.

The entire radio set up including KX3, antenna, 8AA's, mic, KXPD3 key, headphones, and solar panel is 3.74lbs.

This weekend I probably won't be using the AA's, instead a 7Ah SLA at 5.36lbs. Large weight gain, but it will offer more run time in camp at night with no sun to charge off of. Hiking during the day I can drape the solar panel over my pack and charge the SLA.

[K5JYD]

I go to the local parks around town and I use an ohr 20 qrp rig on cw. My antenna is a par-electronic 20m end fed wire. The fed point of the end fed is a ground level so 2 or 3 feet of coax will do. No tuner needed. its a very light weight set up.I have worked dx and stateside , no problem.
k5jyd