I now wonder what was used to seal the coax at antenna ends, I hope it
wasn't anything that might have had the wrong action.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Colin McDonald" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, July 11, 2014 9:59 PM
Subject: Re: Huge disappointment!
> yep, a standard dual band type antenna will show a short on an ohm meter
> across the feed point/coax that is connected...
> same with a balun.
> I would have thought maybe the balun is bad on the 80 meter loop, but
> because both coaxes are showing a short, I think it has to be connecters
> or
> coax if it's old or has been seriously damaged during installation.
> A serious excersism is in order me thinks.
>
> 73
> Colin, V A6BKX
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Butch Bussen" <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Friday, July 11, 2014 5:28 PM
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: Huge disappointment!
>
>> First thing to do is check coax with an ohm meter and see if you show a
>> short. Some antennas do and I usually check this out before just so I
>> know. You obviously have a short on the loop likely the coax. Who
>> soldered those and did they check after soldering? Stupid question I
>> know. Also, I am not sure if the dual band would show a short or not,
>> but I'd check it. SLimple thing to try is redo the connector on the
>> bottom end, easy to do and if you're lucky, that may be where the
>> problem is. Good luck.
>> 73
>> Butch
>> WA0VJR
>> Node 3148
>> Wallace, ks.
>>
>>
>> On Fri, 11 Jul 2014, Dr. Ronald E. Milliman wrote:
>>
>>> I was so excited. Last night I told my wife, Palma, that I felt like a
>>> kid
>>> on Christmas Eve in anticipation of finally getting the guys over this
>>> morning to help me get my antennas up. Well, the fellows from the local
>>> ham
>>> club came over early this morning, and we got busy working on all the
>>> little
>>> details in preparation for erecting my antennas, the Dual Band vertical
>>> for
>>> 144 and 440 and the full-wave, 80 meter loop. We drilled holes in the
>>> foundation and wall for my coax and ground wire, got the loop attached
>>> to
>>> the pulleys and the vertical on top of the mast. Finally, it was time to
>>> hoist up the mast and position it in the wall bracket and secure the
>>> base.
>>> Then, the time came to connect the coax fittings and check it out with
>>> the
>>> antenna analyzer. Much to everyone's shocked and massive disappointment,
>>> we
>>> got SWR readings of 25 to 1, and even 31 to 1, which is as high as the
>>> meter
>>> would go. That is when the sick feeling developed in my stomach. What
>>> greatly exacerbated the situation is that we got almost equally high SWR
>>> readings on both coaxial feedlines. Just to see what would happen, I
>>> connected the loop to my TS-590, and tuned across 20 meters and could
>>> hear
>>> nothing. I started unscrewing the coax fitting from my rig, and as I
>>> did,
>>> the noise level in my TS-590 got really loud and then, dropped back to
>>> very
>>> low. That is when I discovered that if I completely unscrewed the outer
>>> shell ground side of the PL259 and just kept the center conductor
>>> plugged
>>> into the antenna input jack, that the noise level remained quite high,
>>> and
>>> as I tuned across the band, I could hear several signals, still not what
>>> I
>>> would expect, but I could hear signals. As soon as I screwed the outer
>>> ground shield on the antenna jack, the radio went almost completely dead
>>> again. Sounds like something is shorted somewhere, huh?
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> To have one antenna system not work is one thing, but to have both of
>>> them
>>> not work is almost beyond chance. So, the guys left, and I still don't
>>> have
>>> any operational antennas. I'm not sure what we are going to do, but I
>>> think
>>> we need to do two things: One is to disconnect the coax from the ballun
>>> I
>>> have connected to the loop and connect a dummy load to the coax and see
>>> what
>>> it shows on the SWR meter, and second, connect the antenna analyzer
>>> directly
>>> up to the ballun which is connected to my loop and see what it shows us.
>>> Those steps will help us isolate the problem. As for the vertical, I
>>> don't
>>> know what to do with that one because it is way up on the top of the
>>> mast,
>>> and it was one hell of a job getting that mast erected up and in place.
>>> It
>>> took five guys to do it, and it was all they could do to keep it under
>>> control while they worked it up and in place.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> So, guys and gals, it will be a little longer before K8HSY is up and
>>> operational on the ham bands.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> 73,
>>>
>>> Ron, K8HSY
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Dr. Ronald E. Milliman
>>>
>>> Retired Professor of Marketing
>>>
>>> President: A3 Business Solutions (a3businesssolutions.com)
>>>
>>> President: M&M Properties
>>>
>>> Chair: American Council of the Blind's PR Committee
>>>
>>> Chair: American Council of the Blind's MMS Committee
>>>
>>> President: South Central Kentucky Council of the Blind (SCKCB.ORG)
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
|
