Tom,

The ladderline does not have to be straight, up and down or otherwise.  It 
should be at right angle to the flat top, but it can slope or, even, may be 
loosely rolled near the bottom.

I ran one for years at our cabin with the ladderline at a 45 degree angle to 
the ground, and had great results.  The elements of the antenna were not 
quite straight, either.
I worked all hf bands with a MFJ tuner.

Good luck.


73,
Gale
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----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tom Behler" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, August 16, 2012 8:07 PM
Subject: Another G5RV Question


Hi, folks.

Upon further inspection, it turns out that there is a nice tall oak tree
behind our RV that I might be able to use as the center point for my G5RV.

But, here's the question:

I am not sure how high I'll be able to get the center up into that tree, and
since the XYL might be helping me with this entire operation, I have to be
careful.

My question is this:  Is is absolutely essential for the ladder line to be
vertical, or could a few feet on the bottom be horizontal without degrading
the antenna's performance substantially?

I don't think we'd have trouble getting the center up about 20 feet, but 30
might be pushing it.

It's just going to be hard to use a slingshot or whatever to safely get the
center of the antenna up as high as I would like, given the close quarters
of the camp ground, and given my desire to save life and limb.

Thanks for tolerating all of these questions, and I'll keep everyone posted
if we can get something accomplished this week-end.

73 from Tom Behler: KB8TYJ
73,
Gale
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