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Old August 21st 07, 01:29 AM posted to rec.radio.amateur.antenna
Rick (W-A-one-R-K-T) Rick (W-A-one-R-K-T) is offline
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First recorded activity by RadioBanter: Apr 2007
Posts: 150
Default Off-center fed dipole, questions


On page 7-10 of the 20th edition of the ARRL Antenna Book is a description
of an off-center fed dipole. I have the necessary materials around here
so I thought I'd experiment with that a bit and see how it does.

I'm a little confused about the balun.

I don't have a 4:1 or 6:1 current balun, but I do have a 4:1 W2AU-type
balun and an MFJ-915 RF Isolator, what they call a "1:1 current balun"
(actually an unun). I figured on connecting the latter to the former with
a double male PL-259 adapter and then connecting the coax to the other end
of the unun ... rather heavy, and no way to support it at the balun, and
it'll no doubt droop like a 400-pound beer belly, but I guess I'll jump
off of that bridge when I come to it...

The instruction sheet for the MFJ-915 says I should put the unun in the
line at the transmitter end, and yet the discussion of the OCF dipole in
the Antenna Book shows the 4:1 current balun at the antenna and a length
of coax to the transmitter.

So, should I connect the unun to the balun as I have it, or should I
connect it at the transmitter end as MFJ advises?

It does seem that if the objective is to keep RF off the outside of the
coax, the unun really should go up at the antenna end.

What say you?