HF Antenna

[jazzboypro]

Hello all,

I finished installing antennas for my 8600 and 9700 and I'm satisfied so far. Now i need an antenna for HF the antenna will be used with a 7610. Towers and beams are out of the question right now.

I was thinking about a horizontal V or a dipole. I do not have a tuner but don't mind buying one if necessary. I would like to be able to use as many band as possible but i would like at least 20 and 40. I'm interested in FT8, voice and other digital modes. I don't plan on participating in any contest and 100 W is the maximum power i would be using. If possible I'd rather use a commercial antenna.

The usable space in my backyard (that's without passing under or over the power line) is about 48" x 40" and this is where the horizontal V would have to go. If I go with a dipole, the feed point would be located on a small mast that i would attached to the chimney. That chimney is already hosting a GP3 antenna. One leg of the dipole would be attached to a pine tree in my backyard and the other leg would be attached to another pine tree in the front yard. The dipole would not be fully horizontal because i would have to give an angle to the leg going to the pine tree in the front yard. I am of course open to suggestions.

 

[MDScanFan]

That is a nine line up of radios! What would be the height of the apex of the dipole for the installation you are describing?

It would be worth considering a multiband fan vertical, such as the DX Commander. With a decent radial field they work well and they don't take up much space.

 

[jazzboypro]

I would say something around 25 feet is the best I can do for now. Thanks for the suggestion I will look into this this antenna.

 

[vagrant]

I was going to suggest an Off Center Fed inverted V, but you just posted the 25' apex. If you could do 35' it would help. The legs then slope down or could be horizontal or some of this and some of that. It's reasonably forgiving, but if both legs were horizontal the TX/RX would be improved broadside. I have mine in an inverted V, not horizontal at all and it works well on 40 and 20.

Review this type of antenna. It will put more RF options into your brain, even if you decide against it. Adding their RF choke at the feed point as well reduced my noise level significantly, but that's my location. Other operators have added an additional choke at the radio which reduced their noise floor further.

OCF-4010E-3K – MyAntennas.com

 

[jazzboypro]

This could be interesting, i have to explore the possibilities

 

[vagrant]

Take your time. Imagination is very helpful when considering methods to string up an antenna. Others will probably chime in about vertical options with ground radials as MDScanFan did as well as end fed antennas that can have the wire in various positions.

* A loop antenna is an option, but I prefer a wire over a loop all day as the loop will need constant tuning from band to band, as well as within a band. Many wire options will offer harmonics on other bands as well. My OCF and End Fed antennas easily clean up with a built-in 3:1 tuner to keep things tidy. I am not down talking a loop. I use one and it has it's place as another tool in the tool box.

 

[jwt873]

If you don't mind giving up 80 meters, one option might be a G5RV junior. Junior G5RV It's only 51 feet long and should fit in your lot if you can get the apex up 25-30 feet. While it won't transmit on 80, it should do reasonably well receiving HF frequencies below 7 MHz for SWL purposes.

Two points. Your IC-7610 has a built in tuner.. And, if you're a do-it-your-selfer, you can build a G5RV Junior for much less than you'd pay for a commercial one.

 

[jazzboypro]

Take your time. Imagination is very helpful when considering methods to string up an antenna. Others will probably chime in about vertical options with ground radials as MDScanFan did as well as end fed antennas that can have the wire in various positions.

* A loop antenna is an option, but I prefer a wire over a loop all day as the loop will need constant tuning from band to band, as well as within a band. Many wire options will offer harmonics on other bands as well. My OCF and End Fed antennas easily clean up with a built-in 3:1 tuner to keep things tidy. I am not down talking a loop. I use one and it has it's place as another tool in the tool box.

I had a vertical once for 20 meter but it had only 4 elevated radials. The antenna was installed in a huge maple tree that I had in my backyard. The tree has been taken down because it was becoming a problem for me and 2 of my neighbors. I'll see what I can do about installing a vertical but I'd rather use a horizontal antenna if I can.

If you don't mind giving up 80 meters, one option might be a G5RV junior. Junior G5RV It's only 51 feet long and should fit in your lot if you can get the apex up 25-30 feet. While it won't transmit on 80, it should do reasonably well receiving HF frequencies below 7 MHz for SWL purposes.

Two points. Your IC-7610 has a built in tuner.. And, if you're a do-it-your-selfer, you can build a G5RV Junior for much less than you'd pay for a commercial one.

I am aware about the built-in tuner however the matching range is between 16.7 ~ 150 Ohms I'm not sure if this would be sufficient depending on the antenna being used.