RadioBanter - View Single Post

Richard Clark · October 15th 09, 10:26 PM posted to rec.radio.amateur.antenna

On Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:38:52 -0400, lid
wrote:

The company which sells the antenna says that because the antenna has a
vertical section which radiates; the antenna is omni-directional.

That should be the end of it, then.

But others say that it radiates best in the direction of the ends.

Amusing but false.

Some disagree saying that a dipole is a dipole and so its antenna
pattern would be optimally broadside to the antenna.

Possibly so, if the company who sells the antenna is wrong. Or
possibly so, if the user who bought the antenna from the company
doesn't follow installation instructions which lead to a vertical
section that radiates.

Since the antenna is not center-fed; if it were a dipole the lobes along
the longer section would produce more signal; is that the case here.

Amusing but false.

Is this a good antenna or just so much bs?

Many users are satisfied. If they were to replace it tomorrow with a
design that was roughly the same over-all length, with the same
over-all match, then it they would report no differences could be
observed.

The only consideration that may fail in this proposed substitution
would be in the vertical section that radiates. The significance of
that polarization could be high, especially if the orientation of the
horizontal sections are not particularly well suited to your intended
propagation path.

In some points of the compass, your windom may exhibit interesting
polarization diversity that comes as a happy surprise; at other points
of the compass, you may need this diversity, and it isn't there
bringing a brooding disappointment. Such oddities spread over the
population of users make blood enemies and faithful converts.

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC