The coax question leaves me believing I ought to shop around. The Radio Shack price I got for 50' must be the top of the line or it's just over priced at that shop. I already bought the crimper and cable stripper for the lenght of RG59 I installed from there so If I don't find the spool of RG6 I still think I have somewhere, I'll get some at a fair price next time I get a chance to shop. That picture looks as close as I can tell to what is hanging under the rafters. Would there be a good antenna building guide you could recommend or a place to start with theory etc? Do you happen to know if the aluminum used in the typical rooftop antenna has a particular quality. It's not especially strong it seems to me. I surmise that there are cost effective reasons aluminum is what one always sees. Does aluminum have some property that lends itself to antenna fabrication beyond lightweight rigidity? In terms of reception is there anything better? I'm full of questions. In studying the antenna I have several things come to mind like: Is the thickness and hollowness of the long VHF elements, the specific shape of the ends formed during fabrication essential to gathering signal. I probably should just try to read up on this and not pester the forum with my curiosity but it would help to know as I get started.
Thanks for your comments mtownsend! herplace |
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There is also the Gray-Hoverman family of antennas that have been optimized for high performance. They all support UHF. Some variants support high VHF stations. I'm not sure if they've come up with any for low VHF. These antennas are a bit more complex to build (nothing that a handy person couldn't handle), but their raw performance is better. If you really want to get down to history and theory of antennas, then you can check out book resources like the ARRL Handbook and antenna analysis software like 4nec2 or ez-nec. Quote:
1) Beware of oxidation or other deterioration related to outdoor exposure. Some plastics are sensitive to UV, rust can cause some connections to stop conducting, temperature expansion/contraction might cause some parts to break or become loose, etc. Try to use materials and construction techniques that will stand the test of time. 2) If using mixed metals, beware of galvanic reactions. This can cause dissimilar metals to corrode if they are in close proximity to each other. 3) For longer (especially VHF-size) antenna elements, it's a good idea to use structures that can hold their shape well. The reason antenna "tubes" are used so often is because they are more rigid than a simple wires that might bend under their own weight. The mechanical properties of the materials you use will determine what kinds of steps you should take to have a structure that will hold its shape well over time and will resist some buffeting around by wind, snow/ice, and bird landings. Quote:
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However, the angles and spacing between the conductive elements does matter. Connection points, the length of the elements, their relative positions/angles/direction, and the amount of space between elements are all very important in determining antenna performance. Quote:
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