2. Antenna Presentation Utah Amateur Radio Club Jed W. Petrovich, AD7KG March 6, 2008

3. Introduction Starting out Homebrew vs. Commercial VHF/UHF Going the distance HFProjects Q & A

4. Most Important?

5. Your First Radio

6. Hey, is this really going to work?

7. First Experiences Roll up J-Pole Ladder Line J-Pole Copper Cactus Aluminum J-Pole Going Mobile

8. There are Limitations!

9. HF Antennas Compromise Performance Weight and Size Cost Available Space Restrictions Etc.

10. Perhaps the #1 Consideration?

11. The 1/2 Wave Dipole Length of dipole in feet = 468 468 f (MHz)

12. The 1/2 Wave Dipole Radiation pattern for a dipole antenna looking down from above the antenna

13. The 1/4 Wave Vertical Length of vertical in feet = Length of vertical in feet = 234 234 f (MHz)

14. The 1/4 Wave Vertical A side view of the radiation pattern of a 1/4 wave vertical. From above the pattern is round like a doughnut. A perfect ground would be a car roof.

15. The Yagi The yagi is perhaps the hams favorite directional antenna. They usually consist of one driven element, and several parasitic (un-driven) elements. Reflector (longer than driver) Driven Element (1/2 wave dipole) One or more Directors (shorter than the driven element)

16. The Yagi A 3 element HF Yagi A 3 element HF Yagi A VHF Yagi A VHF Yagi

17. The Yagi Gain Boom Feedline Reflector Director Driver The reflector acts like a mirror The director acts like a lens

18. The Yagi The yagi antenna focuses RF energy in one direction, giving the appearance of getting free power. This free power is called Antenna Gain.

19. HexBeam

20. HexBeam Design ClassicBroadband

21. Size Comparison

22. Sound Check Iceland/UK 20 Meters – HexBeam USA/UK 20 Meters – HexBeam USA/UK 20 Meters – Doublet vs. HexBeam

23. Portable Operations

24. Safety Matters!

25. Antenna Safety Dont put antennas. where they could fall across power lines Dont climb towers without a safety belt. Dont do tower work without a ground crew. If youre working under the tower, wear a hard hat.

26. Lightning Ground antennas when not in use. Ground the tower structure itself. Ground rods should be copper or copper clad steel and 8 ft. long. Disconnect AC power mains during storms, or use line conditioners or surge suppressors. GET OFF THE AIR DURING SEVERE STORMS!!

27. Radio Frequency Safety RF Energy High Voltages

28. SWR – Protect Your Rig SWR (standing wave ratio) is a mathematical expression of the power going to an antenna and the power being reflected back. The idea is to get as close to 1:1 as possible. Most hams are happy with SWR of 1.5:1. The best way to get a good SWR is to cut the antenna to resonance.

29. Feed lines Feed line connects your radio to the antenna. Feed lines are either balanced (neither side grounded) like ladder-line or unbalanced (one side grounded) like coaxial cable. Either type can be used in your station. Coax is more popular and easier to work with.

30. Coaxvs.Ladder Line Can be buried or run near metal objects. Less RFI since outer shield is usually grounded. Weatherproof Easy to handle and connect Very low signal loss Can tolerate high SWR Can tolerate high current

31. Why join the ARRL? Since 1914 the American Radio Relay League has represented the interests of Radio Amateurs before the FCC and Congress. While there is room for policy debate, those who do not support the ARRL have virtually no voice in matters concerning ham radio. Also, the QST magazine is an excellent educational tool, full of interesting articles and fun projects.

32. Resources AD7KG@arrl.net http://www.ad7kg.com http://www.cebik.com/ Hexbeam http://www.leoshoemaker.com/hexbeambyk4kio/g eneral.html http://karinya.net/g3txq/hexbeam/ ARRL Other Hams (Elmers)

33. In Summary… Projects Questions? Comments?