Ralph Mowery wrote:

I don't see wasting time or money on a balun for just a simple dipole
. Sure it may make the patern vary from the normal textbook, but who
cares most of the time. Most people have to put the antenna up
wherever they can and lots of time it is not in the desired direction
anyway.

Very often, those are the same people who complain of "poor conditions"
and "noisy bands", and operate in constant fear of causing RFI. Many of
these problems are simply due to common-mode feedline currents bringing
RF back into the shack and coupling into the mains wiring.

In other words, people with limited antenna opportunities are often the
ones who need a balun - or more accurately, a common-mode choke - the
MOST.

The problems of desperate antenna locations cannot be entirely cured,
but they *can* be improved. Almost always, feedline chokes and/or baluns
will have a valuable part to play.

NOw a beam or some other antenna design is differant.

The largest difference is in the attitudes of the users. No matter what
your antenna is, or where you're forced to install it, it all comes down
to one simple question: do you want to give this antenna the best
possible chance to work correctly... or not?



--

73 from Ian GM3SEK 'In Practice' columnist for RadCom (RSGB)
http://www.ifwtech.co.uk/g3sek