There's always a way.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Anthony Vece" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, February 23, 2008 12:48 PM
Subject: Re: My Limited Experience with a Counterpoize


> Hi Mike;
>
> They are excellent tips.
>
> Susan and I are in a townhouse so, I'll keep them in mind.
>
> 73 De Anthony W2AJV
> [log in to unmask]
> ECHOLINK NODE NUMBER: 74389
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Mike Duke, K5XU" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Saturday, February 23, 2008 8:57 AM
> Subject: My Limited Experience with a Counterpoize
>
>
>>I lived in apartments for many years, but managed to stay on hf with
>> whatever amount of wire I could get out a window to a tree.
>>
>> Howard is correct about a counterpoise.
>>
>> I had one for 40, 30, and 20 meters. You can connect them all to the
>> ground
>> terminal of your tuner. I found that I didn't need to remove any of them
>> from the circuit at any time.
>>
>> Just as with a dipole or 1/4 wave vertical, the 40 meter counterpoise 
>> will
>> tune 15 meters reasonably, and the 30 meter wire will do the same for 10
>> meters.
>>
>> The length isn't too critical. I used cheap speaker wire from Wally 
>> World,
>> which I pulled apart and cut into approximate 1/4 wave lengths for the 3
>> bands.
>>
>> The lengths were approximately 33, 23, and 16 feet.
>>
>> My end fed wire was about 100 feet.
>>
>> With these counterpoise wires connected, everything tuned much better,
>> even
>> 80 meters. I never tried to wrap an 80 meter counterpoise around the
>> apartment.
>>
>> With the wire length I was using, I couldn't tune 30 meters at all 
>> without
>> a
>> counterpoise.
>>
>> I also made one for 10 and 15 meters, but found I didn't really need them
>> with the other 3 connected.
>>
>> When I first started working with them, I would toss the 40 meter wire 
>> out
>> the window late at night in order to have more of it stretched out. I got
>> tired of having to reel the thing in and out every time I wanted to
>> operate,
>> and just ran it around the baseboard of my bedroom. I found that running
>> it
>> that way didn't make a significant difference in the way the antenna 
>> tuned
>> vs tossing it out the window.
>>
>> You do have to remember to not grab the wires while transmitting. Even at
>> 5
>> watts they will get your attention!
>>
>> The counterpoise is a much more economical form of hocus pocus than the
>> "artificial ground" boxes.
>>
>> Mike Duke, K5XU
>> American Council of Blind Radio Amateurs
>>
>>
>