Do Slinky Antennas work?
Shayne
works fine most of the time for me. Do the slinky antennas currently
available in ebay work? If so, what is the best way to use one?
Shayne
AussieDrifter
I have a cliff dweller 2 slinky dipole for 50ohm match, and have it connected to the Kenwood R1000 and Icom R75, and it works perfectly.
That said I did hassle in one QTH place I rented and it was so noisey it wasn't funny. The noise was from a Caltex petrol station and
Woolworth shopping complex 400 m down the road :(
Regards
Mark
------------------------------------------------------------------
Location: Canberra Australia
Radio: Icom R75 with DSP options
Antenna: Cliff Dweller 2
Website: http://aussiedrifter.blogspot.com/
Listen Live via USTREAM.TV:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/aussiedrifter-live-shortwave-listening
RHF
-
- I currently clip a 50 foot wire to the whip of my
- Sangean ATS-909 whip.
Hopefully it is Outside and Up-in-the-Air.
- it works fine most of the time for me.
Good to hear.
- Do the slinky antennas currently available in ebay work?
Yes about the same as you 500 Foot Wire Antenna.
- If so, what is the best way to use one?
- Shayne
Outside and Up-in-the-Air and away from the House.
Try a Slinky Dipole Antenna connected to your Radio
via the 1/8" External Antenna Jack.
hope this helps ~ RHF
.
nowayjose
I doubt a slinky antenna would "work" better than your 50-ft. wire on
most shortwave bands but the slinky might be more sensitive and/or
directional on certain frequency ranges (bands).
RHF
Build -DIY- The One Slinky Vertical Antenna -for-
Simplified Shortwave Listening (SWL)
Use a One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element that is located
as far-away from the House and Man Made Sources of Noise
as possible for your House and Property.
http://cgi.ebay.com/_W0QQitemZ180196824523
Note - Requires only one 23 Feet or Higher Mounting-Rigging*
Point for the Top-End of the Vertical Antenna Element.
* Rig with Nylon Mason Line.
Tip - The Original {Standard} Slinky Stretches-Out to an
'Optimum' Length of 21~23 Feet. So this One Slinky Antenna
need only be 21~23 Feet long between the Low-End near the
Ground and it's High-End up in the Air.
Use an 4~8 Foot Ground Rod at the Base of the Slinky with
the Top-End 4~8 Inches above the surface of the ground.
Use a Coax Cable as a feed-in-line between the Antenna
and the Radio. Run the Coax along the surface of the
Ground -or- Bury the Coax a few Inches under the Ground.
Important - Add a 9:1 Matching Transformer between the
One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element and the Ground Rod.
The Vertical Antenna Reality for Shortwave Listeners :
When you can not "Go" Horizontal and Space is Limited a
One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element can be a reasonable
'choice' for a Shortwave Listening (SWL) Antenna for
many Shortwave Radio Listeners (SWL'ers}.
iane ~ RHF {pomkia}
.
Shortwave Listener (SWL) Antennas Group => http://tinyurl.com/ogvcf
GoTo => http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
The SWL Antenna Discussion Group => http://tinyurl.com/ogvcf
Shortwave Listener (SWL) Antenna HELP => http://tinyurl.com/ogvcf
Shortwave Listener (SWL) Antenna NEWS => http://tinyurl.com/ogvcf
Shortwave Listener (SWL) Antenna INFO => http://tinyurl.com/ogvcf
* * * All Are Welcome : Including ELMERS and 'Want-to-be-Elmers'
plus plain old "Mister-Know-It-Alls"; and even those Newbees with
"I Know This Is A Really Dumb Question - But _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ "
.
Shortwave Radio Listener QSL Reports News & Info Group
http://groups.google.com/group/shortwave-listener-qsl-reports
Read & Post Your Shortwave Listener (SWL) Reception Reports
SWL-QSL-REPORTS => http://tinyurl.com/3awlyr
.
The Shortwave Listener's Blessing :
SWL BLESSING => http://tinyurl.com/s2bjm
May You Never Tire of Listening to the Radio and Always
have Strong Signals and Noise Free Reception ~ RHF {ibid}
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/message/9233
.
Tous Sont Bienvenus ! - - - Groupe par Radio
d'auditeur d'onde courte pour des Antennes de SWL
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
.
Alle Sind Willkommen ! - - - Shortwave Radiozuhörer
Gruppe für SWL Antennen
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
.
Tutti Sono Benvenuti ! - - - Gruppo Radiofonico
dell'ascoltatore di onda corta per le Antenne di SWL
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
.
Todos São Bem-vindos ! - - - Grupo de Rádio
do ouvinte do Shortwave para Antenas de SWL
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
.
¡Todos Son Agradables! - - - Grupo de Radio del oyente
de la onda corta para las Antenas de SWL
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
.
= = = = Plain Old American-English Translation = = = =
All are Welcome - - - To Join the Shortwave Listeners
(SWL) Antenna Group on YAHOO !
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shortwave-SWL-Antenna/
.
|
|
|
/ \
.......!.......
David
> Build -DIY- The One Slinky Vertical Antenna -for-
> Simplified Shortwave Listening (SWL)
>
> Use a One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element that is located
> as far-away from the House and Man Made Sources of Noise
> as possible for your House and Property.
> http://cgi.ebay.com/_W0QQitemZ180196824523
>
> Note - Requires only one 23 Feet or Higher Mounting-Rigging*
> Point for the Top-End of the Vertical Antenna Element.
> * Rig with Nylon Mason Line.
>
>
Is nylon mason line UV resistant?
Why a 9:1 transformer? The feed point is already at <100 Ohms.
RHF
> RHF wrote:
> > Build -DIY- The One Slinky Vertical Antenna -for-
> > Simplified Shortwave Listening (SWL)
>
> > Use a One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element that is located
> > as far-away from the House and Man Made Sources of Noise
> > as possible for your House and Property.
> >http://cgi.ebay.com/_W0QQitemZ180196824523
>
> > Note - Requires only one 23 Feet or Higher Mounting-Rigging*
> > Point for the Top-End of the Vertical Antenna Element.
> > * Rig with Nylon Mason Line.
- Is nylon mason line UV resistant?
No but it will work for a few years as a simple
Rigging line used to Hold-Up it's End of a Slinky.
- Why a 9:1 transformer?
- The feed point is already at <100 Ohms.
David - You could experiment with a different Matching
Transformers for this Single Element Vertical Antenna :
1:1 ~ 10 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
2:1 ~ 14 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
3:1 ~ 17 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
* 4:1 ~ 20 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
6:1 ~ 24 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
* 9:1 ~ 30 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
10:1 ~ 32 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
12:1 ~ 35 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
16:1 ~ 40 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
For Shortwave Listeners (SWLs)both the 4:1 for
Dipole 'type' {Balance} Antennas and 9:1 for Long-Wire
type {Un-Balanced} Antennas are good starting points.
Build a 4:1 Balun {Matching Transformer} for 160 to 10 Meters
-by- Clay Wynn
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/4_1balun.html
Build a 9:1 Balun {Matching Transformer}
-hosted by- Hard-Core-DX
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/9_1balun.html
Matching less Important for Reception
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/balun5.html
-by- John Doty
Matching Is Important - It Gives Better Reception
http://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/balun6.html
[ Matching Do Give Better Reception ]
-by- Guy Atkins
iane ~ RHF
.
RHF
> On Dec 18, 8:01 am, David <noth...@nowhere.org> wrote:
>
> > RHF wrote:
> > > Build -DIY- The One Slinky Vertical Antenna -for-
> > > Simplified Shortwave Listening (SWL)
>
> > > Use a One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element that is located
> > > as far-away from the House and Man Made Sources of Noise
> > > as possible for your House and Property.
> > >http://cgi.ebay.com/_W0QQitemZ180196824523
>
> > > Note - Requires only one 23 Feet or Higher Mounting-Rigging*
> > > Point for the Top-End of the Vertical Antenna Element.
> > > * Rig with Nylon Mason Line.
>
-
- No but it will work for a few years as a simple
- Rigging line used to Hold-Up it's End of a Slinky.
RIGGING : The One Slinky Vertical Antenna
Adding Mechanical Support for the Slinky against the Elements.
1 - Route the Nylon/Poly Mason Line through {down}
the Center of the Slinky Coils.
2 - Tie the Nylon/Poly Mason Line to the Ground Rod*.
* The Ground Rod is where the Matching Transformer is
mounted and the 'Bottom' of the Slinky is attached to
the Matching Transformer.
3 - Stretch-Out the Slinky to 22 Feet; being sure to
keep the Nylon/Poly Mason Line running down the Center
{inside} the Slinky Coils.
4 - Tie-Off the Nylon/Poly Mason Line at 22 Feet to the
'Top' of the Slinky.
5 - The remainder of the Nylon/Poly Mason Line is then
used to Rig the Slinky from what ever 22 Foot or Higher
support you have to Rig-it-to.
? WHY ? Strectch-Out the Slinky to 22 Feet ?
* The Original {Standard} Slinky Stretches-Out to an
'Optimum' Length of 21~23 Feet. So this One Slinky Antenna
need only be about 22 Feet long between the Low-End
near the Ground and it's High-End up in the Air.
* Original {Standard} Slinky is made-up of 100 Turns
(Coils) of Steel Wire that is 2 3/4" (2.75") in Diameter.
* The Optimum Spacing for an Inductor is when the Space
between the Coils is equal to the Diameter of the Coils.
So... 2.75" x 100 = 275 Inches = 22 Feet 11 Inches
-Note- Some Count the Slinky's Coils and only come up
with about 90 Coils - So Adjust your Math accordingly.
NOTE - If you are in a Bad Weather Area you may wish to
use Camouflage Nylon Parachute Cord or even 3/16" Black
Poly Rope as your Rigging Line with the Slinky.
iane ~ RHF
.
> - Why a 9:1 transformer?
> - The feed point is already at <100 Ohms.
>
> David - You could experiment with a different Matching
> Transformers for this Single Element Vertical Antenna :
> 1:1 ~ 10 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 2:1 ~ 14 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 3:1 ~ 17 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> * 4:1 ~ 20 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 6:1 ~ 24 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> * 9:1 ~ 30 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 10:1 ~ 32 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 12:1 ~ 35 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 16:1 ~ 40 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
>
> For Shortwave Listeners (SWLs)both the 4:1 for
> Dipole 'type' {Balance} Antennas and 9:1 for Long-Wire
> type {Un-Balanced} Antennas are good starting points.
>
> Build a 4:1 Balun {Matching Transformer} for 160 to 10 Meters
> -by- Clay Wynnhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/4_1balun.html
>
> Build a 9:1 Balun {Matching Transformer}
> -hosted by- Hard-Core-DXhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/9_1balun.html
>
> Matching less Important for Receptionhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/balun5.html
> -by- John Doty
>
> Matching Is Important - It Gives Better Receptionhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/balun6.html
RHF
>
> > RHF wrote:
> > > Build -DIY- The One Slinky Vertical Antenna -for-
> > > Simplified Shortwave Listening (SWL)
>
> > > Use a One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element that is located
> > > as far-away from the House and Man Made Sources of Noise
> > > as possible for your House and Property.
> > >http://cgi.ebay.com/_W0QQitemZ180196824523
>
> > > Note - Requires only one 23 Feet or Higher Mounting-Rigging*
> > > Point for the Top-End of the Vertical Antenna Element.
> > > * Rig with Nylon Mason Line.
>
> - Is nylon mason line UV resistant?
>
> No but it will work for a few years as a simple
> Rigging line used to Hold-Up it's End of a Slinky.
>
- - Why a 9:1 transformer?
- - The feed point is already at <100 Ohms.
David,
The 9:1 Matching Transformer 'couples' the Antenna to
the Coax Cable feed-in-line and 'reduces' the effects
of any points of Anti-Resonance that may occur across
http://www.answers.com/topic/antiresonance?cat=technology
the Frequency Range that the Shortwave Listener (SWL)
intends to use the Antenna.
READ - The "SWL Longwire" -by- John Doty
[ Effective 'Coupling' of the Shortwave Listener (SWL)
Longwire Antenna to the Coax Cable feed-in-line. ]
http://www.google.com/group/rec.radio.shortwave/msg/9e3dd73e36381d46
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.radio.shortwave/msg/9e3dd73e36381d46
* Actually, a fixed matching transformer can dramatically
reduce the wild swings in antenna efficiency that a coax
fed wire antenna exhibits.
Hope this Helps to Explain My-Choice of the 9:1 Matching
Transformer with this One Slinky SWL Antenna. ~ RHF
.
>
> David - You could experiment with a different Matching
> Transformers for this Single Element Vertical Antenna :
> 1:1 ~ 10 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 2:1 ~ 14 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 3:1 ~ 17 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> * 4:1 ~ 20 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 6:1 ~ 24 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> * 9:1 ~ 30 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 10:1 ~ 32 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 12:1 ~ 35 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
> 16:1 ~ 40 Turns Antenna-Side to 10 Turns Coax-Side
>
> For Shortwave Listeners (SWLs)both the 4:1 for
> Dipole 'type' {Balance} Antennas and 9:1 for Long-Wire
> type {Un-Balanced} Antennas are good starting points.
>
> Build a 4:1 Balun {Matching Transformer} for 160 to 10 Meters
> -by- Clay Wynnhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/4_1balun.html
>
> Build a 9:1 Balun {Matching Transformer}
> -hosted by- Hard-Core-DXhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/9_1balun.html
>
> Matching less Important for Receptionhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/balun5.html
> -by- John Doty
>
> Matching Is Important - It Gives Better Receptionhttp://www.hard-core-dx.com/nordicdx/antenna/feed/balun6.html
RHF
> On Dec 18, 4:13 pm, RHF <rhf-newsgro...@pacbell.net> wrote:> On Dec 18, 8:01 am, David <noth...@nowhere.org> wrote:
>
> > > RHF wrote:
> > > > Build -DIY- The One Slinky Vertical Antenna -for-
> > > > Simplified Shortwave Listening (SWL)
>
> > > > Use a One Slinky Vertical Antenna Element that is located
> > > > as far-away from the House and Man Made Sources of Noise
> > > > as possible for your House and Property.
> > > >http://cgi.ebay.com/_W0QQitemZ180196824523
>
> > > > Note - Requires only one 23 Feet or Higher Mounting-Rigging*
> > > > Point for the Top-End of the Vertical Antenna Element.
> > > > * Rig with Nylon Mason Line.
>
> - - Is nylon mason line UV resistant?
> -
> - No but it will work for a few years as a simple
> - Rigging line used to Hold-Up it's End of a Slinky.
- RIGGING : The One Slinky Vertical Antenna
- Adding Mechanical Support for the Slinky against the Elements.
-
- 1 - Route the Nylon/Poly Mason Line through {down}
- the Center of the Slinky Coils.
-
- 2 - Tie the Nylon/Poly Mason Line to the Ground Rod*.
- * The Ground Rod is where the Matching Transformer is
- mounted and the 'Bottom' of the Slinky is attached to
- the Matching Transformer.
-
- 3 - Stretch-Out the Slinky to 22 Feet; being sure to
- keep the Nylon/Poly Mason Line running down the Center
- {inside} the Slinky Coils.
-
- 4 - Tie-Off the Nylon/Poly Mason Line at 22 Feet to the
- 'Top' of the Slinky.
-
- 5 - The remainder of the Nylon/Poly Mason Line is then
- used to Rig the Slinky from what ever 22 Foot or Higher
- support you have to Rig-it-to.
-
- ? WHY ? Strectch-Out the Slinky to 22 Feet ?
- * The Original {Standard} Slinky Stretches-Out to an
- 'Optimum' Length of 21~23 Feet. So this One Slinky Antenna
- need only be about 22 Feet long between the Low-End
- near the Ground and it's High-End up in the Air.
- * Original {Standard} Slinky is made-up of 100 Turns
- (Coils) of Steel Wire that is 2 3/4" (2.75") in Diameter.
- * The Optimum Spacing for an Inductor is when the Space
- between the Coils is equal to the Diameter of the Coils.
- So... 2.75" x 100 = 275 Inches = 22 Feet 11 Inches
- -Note- Some Count the Slinky's Coils and only come up
- with about 90 Coils - So Adjust your Math accordingly.
-
- NOTE - If you are in a Bad Weather Area you may wish to
- use Camouflage Nylon Parachute Cord or even 3/16" Black
- Poly Rope as your Rigging Line with the Slinky.
-
- iane ~ RHF
- .
-
'Sloping' : The One Slinky Vertical Antenna
-aka- The One Slinky Not-So-Vertical Antenna
OK - So you do not have -or- can not build a 22 Foot or
Higher Support-Point to Rig your Antenna up to !
? Question - What Do I Do ?
? Question - Can I Slope It ? - 'Yes'
? How Much of a Slope ? - As little as Possible using
whatever Supports you do have available to use.
NOTE - The main reason for considering the One Slinky
Vertical Antenna was limited space; and a very small
Ground Foot-Print.
Plus - The Vertical Antenna is Omni-Directional which
allows the Shortwave Radio Listener (SWL) to hear from
all directions equally.
Safety - The One Slinky Vertical Antenna has very few
things 'on' and 'near' the Ground to trip and fall-over.
A 19 Foot High Antenna Support-Point will allow you to
Rig the 22 Foot One Slinky Not-So-Vertical Antenna at
60 Degrees with an 11 Foot Ground Foot-Print.
A 16 Foot High Antenna Support-Point will allow you to
Rig the 22 Foot One Slinky Not-So-Vertical Antenna at
45 Degrees with an 16 Foot Ground Foot-Print.
IMHO - If you do not have an Antenna Support-Point
that is at least 16 Foot High 'consider' some other
Shortwave Antenna to put-up and use.
* Life is a Compromise and Shortwave Antennas are the
Art-of-Compromise when it comes to this wonderful Hobby
of Shortwave Radio Listening (SWL'ing).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compromise
* A SWL'er Has To Know His Limits.
? Question - Will 'Sloping' the One Slinky Vertical Antenna
make it somewhat "Directional" ? - 'Yes'
Because it is now a One Slinky Not-So-Vertical Antenna ! :o)
NOTE - Usually the Directivity is toward the Skyward Side
of the Slope : So it is recommended that this Skyward
Side of the Slope not be pointed at your House.
-But- In The End - Do What You Got To Do
- To Make It Work For You.
TIP - It would be 'nice' if you could get the Coax Cable
feed-in-line to run-under the Sloping Slinky Antenna
Element.
-But Again- Do What You Got To Do.
Attention - RIGGING : The One Slinky Vertical Antenna
Sloping the Slinky Antenna Element means that Adding
Mechanical Support for the Slinky against Gravity and
the Elements is CRITICAL.
iane ~ RHF
.