RadioBanter - View Single Post - Let's design a short antenna just for fun

John S · November 8th 14, 05:37 PM posted to rec.radio.amateur.antenna

On 11/8/2014 11:11 AM, wrote:
Lostgallifreyan wrote:
After posting, I remembered one important one, electrical resistance. That
might strongly reject austenitic stainless as a choice, if the antenna is
small or otherwise makes low resistance critical.

On the other hand its high strwength to weight ratio might be another strong
plus to add to any others, it can save nasty accidents with underestimating
wind loads, breaking strains and such when testing a new build. (For wires,
I'm less sure about towers, I haven't learned enough to make suggestions for
materials and structural forms and dimensions for those).

The resistivity of stainless steel is about 35 times that of copper and
about 20 times that of aluminum.

This will make a big difference for a wire antenna, but less for one
of fat tubing or rod, however stainless tubing is both heavy and expensive.

It would all be a bunch of engineering trade offs that would depend on
what one wants to accomplish.

If it happens that your brother-in-law can get you stainless at a good
price...

Thanks for that, Jim. I don't know where I got the idea that SS was
close to that of copper.