Antenna Advice

[nick59349]

Hello All,

I'm looking for a good vertical antenna that covers 10 and 6 meters for FT8. I currently have an Imax 2000 which doesnt cover 6 m and seems very noisey despite a filter. I also have a Myantennas 4010 which covers 10m also but due to its design I can't get it nearly as high as the vertical Imax. I is very quiet though. I see that Myantennas makes one that is all band through 6m but I would prefer a vertcal if possible.

Any ideas?

Nick

 

[popnokick]

6 and 10 Meter FT8 is almost all horizontally polarized. You can get away with a vertical on 10M when signals arrive cross-polarized from ionospheric reflection. Groundwave signals out to about 150-200 miles will suffer on a vertical because most stations run horizontal polarization. On 6 Meters the effects are even more pronounced with as much as 15-20 dB loss on vertical polarization trying to receive horizontal signals. Stick with a good OCFD or EFHW wire antenna for 6 & 10..,, or consider a beam.

 

[nick59349]

How about this one? It says it requires a tuner though. Not sure if the tuner built into my FT991a is suuficient for tht or not?

EFLW-3K – MyAntennas.com

I won't be able to get is high as a vertical but I'm able to get plenty of signals on 20 meters with my 4010 although I can't transmit as of yet.

 

[KB4MSZ]

The ideal here would be a LogP that covers these two bands. It would give you horizontal polarization and put both bands on the same antenna. This frequency spread would be relatively easy to achieve.

 

[nick59349]

Do you have a link? I can’t seem to find any on a google search?

 

[KB4MSZ]

Well, you caught me with my pants down on that one. This is something that needs to be factored (engineered) and then constructed. It really isn't that complicated, just takes some familiarizing yourself with the theory involved. I have built a number of these for the HF bands. Designing one for the 10 and 6 meter bands would be both relatively small and would provide good gain. I don't know of any manufacturer who is currently producing a LogP that covers just 10 and 6 meters. Of course, this is a directional beam, you would need a means of rotating it. Just thought I would throw the idea out there.

 

[vagrant]

Diamond makes a 6 & 10 meter vertical ( CP610 ) with ground plane elements, but I have not used one. Alternatively, there are variants of the hexbeam design ( K4KIO ) that will get you 6 and 10 meters, plus other lower bands. A rotor would be very helpful for that antenna, not mandatory...but really helpful as it has directivity.

As to FT8 on 6 meters I have zero experience. Is FT8 that busy on 6, or just occasionally when it rolls in? I haven't even listened for it.

 

[popnokick]

If you’re ready to spend $$$ check out “hexbeams” which will handle 6, 10, and other bands. But you know how well your EFHW is working on HF. A longer one such as the Myantennas you linked will work well on 6M at a fraction of the price of a hexbeam.

 

[popnokick]

FYI - FT8 is THE mode now on 6M. ARRL said it accounts for about 2/3 of all 6M activity.

 

[SuperG900]

How about this one? It says it requires a tuner though. Not sure if the tuner built into my FT991a is suuficient for tht or not?

EFLW-3K – MyAntennas.com

I won't be able to get is high as a vertical but I'm able to get plenty of signals on 20 meters with my 4010 although I can't transmit as of yet.

For that one - yes, it'll need an external tuner as it's only a 9:1 balun. Built-in tuners are usually only good up to a 3:1 mismatch (150 ohms impedance).

 

[popnokick]

The EFLW-3K might require a tuner other than the internal AT in the 991A. It depends upon what the SWR of the installed antenna ends up being, and that is influenced by height above the earth, nearby objects, angle of installation, etc. Your installation may result in 3 to 1 or better on the frequencies where you'll be transmitting. Don't confuse the balun ratio with the SWR.... the latter is dependent on factors other than the balun / un-un. Install the antenna, try it with the internal AT on the 991A.... and then get an external tuner if you need one.