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Old September 12th 04, 05:25 AM
4nradio
 
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Hi Steve,

I have a 450 ft. Beverage antenna at 270 degrees (West) and a 700 ft.
Beverage antenna oriented at 320 degrees (Northwest). They are
relay-switched with a single run of double-shielded Belden coax, and matched
with a homebrew impedance matcher. The coax shield is grounded in the middle
of the run with a Bentonite-enhanced ground system. The antennas are about 8
feet high on average, running through a very dense greenbelt behind my home.
The AC power mains are all underground for more than a half mile radius
around the neighborhood.

The downside of these quiet and directional antennas is all the
Seattle/Tacoma area mediumwave stations nearby! LOTS of RF in the air, many
MW signals running S9+50db to S9+65db. A Kiwa BCB filter + extension filter
is very helpful when DXing on shortwave, as the filters reduce RF blocking
effects. Unfortunately the antennas are pointing more or less in the
direction of my locals as I'm to the SE of Seattle and West of Tacoma.

For trans-Pacific MW DXing from home, nothing helps them get past the strong
domestic stations except good propagation, perseverance and luck! The
splatter and RF blocking/desensing can be really tough in the vicinity of
the strongest locals (ie, +/- 40 or 50 kHz).

Guy Atkins
Puyallup, WA USA
mod. Racal RA6790GM / mod. ICOM R-75
Kiwa MAP / ERGO / Timewave DSP-59+


"Steve" wrote in message
om...
I'm always curious about people's antennas, though they often go
unmentioned here. So, what's in your back yard (or on your roof, or in
your attic....)?

Steve