"Wes" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Feb 4, 2:35 pm, "Yuri Blanarovich" wrote:
[snip]

Tony,
by using hairpin matching, you take out portion of the highest current on
the element and fold it into the hairpin where it is taken out of antenna
"participation" for the price of match.

You're kidding right?

Disclosu I use a hairpin (beta) match on my HB Yagi.


In that case I must be :-)

Can you elaborate why would I be kidding?

As far as I know:

If you use hair pin inserted in the middle of the element, you get the
shorter physical length of the element - smaller high current carrying
length.
Half wave resonant element has maximum current in the center, by folding
portion of that element into a hair pin we take that portion "out of the
picture". Just like a loading coil at the base of the vertical - current
drop along the coil.

Hairpin is usually folded back on the boom, 90 deg. to radiator, with any
current left, not participating in the plane of the elements.

Hairpin loading stubs were proven to be worse loading elements than good
quality coils.

You would be better off by inserting coil at the feedpoint instead of (Beta
match) hairpin, or use Delta match, or offset feeding at the 50 ohm pointas
mentioned before.

We might be splitting hairs here, but I hate to lose even fraction of dB if
there is a better way.

I know Beta match works, I used it in some antennas (don't like Gamma
matches), even made a QSO with a ligthbulb as an antenna. It's all relative.
Contesters like to chase every fraction of a dB lost, soon they can add up
to some noticeable real dBs.

YMMV

73 Yuri, K3BU