HF antenna and broadcastify concerns

[thesavo]

I passed extra in late February and went to participate in a special event station at a local club that same day.
I got my first experience with HF and am really enjoyed working the lower bands.

I hope to enjoy the HF bands this year with my own rig. I have to find a radio, and get an antenna cable out of the house. I have to setup something for an antenna that has a nice NULL shadow on the antenna I use for all my broadcastify feeds.

I was thinking of about something that doesn't interfere with or worse, de-sense the broadcasifty radios.

I had asked a local ham about setting up a fan dipole. Something that covers most of HF as I have no idea what band to chose. He had suggested a DX commander vertical instead. I get that something more broadbanded is more compromised.

I need to start with something.

There is another local ham offering a Kenwood ts-430for $400. I was thinking about that for a starter HF Rig. He's including the tuner and speaker, but byo powersupply.

 

[AK9R]

$400 for a radio that's been out of production over 30 years sounds a little high...unless it's in perfect condition and has been checked out by a qualified technician.

Hams who are new to HF often seem to want to drink from the fire hose. In other words, they want a multiband antenna so they can exercise ALL of those new privileges. I think that's a mistake. Put up a simple dipole for 40m or 20m and spend a few months concentrating on just one band. Get to know how propagation affects that band and get to know what kinds of communications you can hear on that band. Then, move onto something else.

As for interference to your scanners, that shouldn't happen. Your scanners are most likely operating above 150 MHz and your HF radio will most likely be operating below 30 MHz. That said, a good low pass filter between your HF radio and antenna would be good insurance.

 

[thesavo]

Thanks for advice on the low pass filter. I hadn't even thought of filtering.
What would be a good starter radio for 20/40 meters with a $300-400 budget?

 

[AK9R]

It will be difficult to buy a radio just for those bands. Yes, there are some single-band QRP radios, but I don't think I'd bother.

It's also difficult to get a decent HF radio for less than $500. I'd look for an Icom IC-746 (Pro or non-Pro) or IC-718 or Kenwood TS-450 or TS-570. I don't know the Yaesu radios of that vintage well enough to make a suggestion...maybe the FT-920. Find someone in your area to go with you when you look at the radio to help you check it out. One of the issues we are running into with older radios is that they can't be repaired because specialized parts are no longer available. So, the trick is to find a radio that doesn't have issues or one that is so widely used that the issues are well-known.

That said, I recently sold a looks-bad, works-good Kenwood TS-440SAT for $225.

 

[mass-man]

Thanks for advice on the low pass filter. I hadn't even thought of filtering.
What would be a good starter radio for 20/40 meters with a $300-400 budget?

You’ll have the capability of all of the HF bands with most any rig...the advice is pick a band and sit there for awhile! If the radio doesn’t have the WARC bands, 30/17/12 meters, skip it! and FYI I operate 90% of the time on 40 mtrs, it’s a very good place to hang your ham hat...

 

[Lauri-CoyoteFrostbite]

.For $300-$400 your options are rather sparse The-Vo.
It sounds to me you have limited hf experience and going the used equipment route may-- may be ok, or maybe a nightmare.

If you up your budget to around $1000 you are in a more reasonable range.

I just helped a new general-class set up her station for around that figure... $600 for a new Icom 718, $160 for an Astron RS-20 A power supply.... coax cables and incidentals --extras
I advised her to go simple for an antenna, and spend a little extra for a good terminated folded dipole (Icom AH 710)--- I suggested this because she has zero experiences with antennas, and it would work 'right out of the box."--- No tuner needed, ---160 to 10 metre's.
(I know there is going to be a lot of fall out over that suggestion.)

She assembled the station herself, and she called me saying her very first contact was that evening --- it was with a station in the UK on 40 metre's.

Be careful of the 'advise' you receive, you will get plenty !

Lauri


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[Chronic]

Check with your local clubs , sometimes you can pick up stuff from a SK estate sale . families commonly dont know anything about the equipment and many donate it to a club or have someone from the club liquidate it for them .

 

[chrgaughan]

I have a Yeasu FT-450 with an internal antenna tuner and A OCF dipole antenna about 40 feet high, I have 109 confirmed countries all under 100 watts.

 

[mass-man]

The ICOM 718 or the Yaesu FT-450 (used) will come close to your budget and would be a good rig to start with. I like the idea of the broadband antenna so you don't have to mess with tuners. The power supply is important, maybe don't skimp there. If you move on into the hobby it can serve you well, if you sell it, it's the one item that could get you a bit of a return.

Joining a local club could be the path to your ham salvation...many OG ops are glad to loan or sell cheap a rig and help you with the antenna and whatever you might need. The last club I was in had a closet of rigs that they loaned to new hams...when that ham moved on, they returned the rig and often donated another.