Credit for image.

I wanted to share an antenna build I found in a military book about ship antennas.

It is basically a 50′ wire and a 4:1 UNUN with a short ground wire.

For the radiating wire, I chose a 50′ section of #10 THHN.

To build the UNUN, I bought a FT240-43 Torroid and a waterproof Box from Amazon.

You will need one SO-239 connector which can be can be found here.

I drilled and mounted my hardware into the box as pictured below.

I like to use copper strap to tie the ground and SO-239 together. (Instead of the coax in the diagram)

It can be bought here for $4 per 10′.

Winding the torroid is 15 simple bifilar turns. I like to use this silicone wire.

If you follow the diagram, the wound torroid  should turn out like this…

It mounts in the box like this…

Chris and I used the air cannon to hang the 50′ vertical in a tree. A folding knife was used as a ground rod.

N4CPW making 40m contacts.

Video of 80m in early morning…

Video

Conclusion…

It was impressive how effortlessly the LDG auto-tuner matched 80/40/20/17/15/10. Looking back, I should have tried to tune 30m and 60m, but was taken into the distraction of chasing easy contacts on 80/40/20. I also should have tried the IC-7300’s internal tuner, but again, blame the aforementioned good time for not doing so. I should have run WSPR too. Darn.

N4CPW took the “UNTENNA” with him for further testing.

Maybe we can get the answers to those questions from him in a future update.

-KK1LL

The renovations on the courtyard look GREAT!

Short Video

On the horizon is a pair of digital repeaters to replace the 147.060 and 444.675 atop of 2 Wells Fargo in Uptown Charlotte.

There is currently a membership and donation drive to fund this project, as it will be a complete replacement and overhaul of the existing setup.

There is also a project in the works  to give W4CQ members Allstar access to a remote station, capable of accessing the 444.450 via internet!

Reach out to officers@w4cq.org if you wish to contribute to the cause!

Updates to follow.

Amateur Radio License Exam

Saturday, October 7th 2023 at 12 Noon. The Test Session will start promptly at 12 Noon, so please show up around 11:30 – 11:45, to fill out paperwork.

Any questions please email w4cq@w4cq.org

The Charlotte Amateur Radio Club is a qualified 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. This means that donations to the Club are tax-deductible.

To attain this status, we have to meet certain requirements. The types of organizations that can meet these these requirements include the following:

• Religious
• Charitable
• Scientific
• Testing for Public Safety
• Literary
• Educational
• Fostering of national or international amateur sports
• Prevention of cruelty to animals and children

We meet several of the criteria, but our primary focus is educational, with additional focus on testing for Public Safety (Field Day and other operational events) and scientific experimentation.

We certainly enjoy visiting with each other at meetings, but our primary focus must be with those activities that validates our status as a non-profit organization.

if you have ideas for a Club meeting topic, or if there is something you want to learn more about, please get your ideas to Mike Miranda or any other Club officer.

This Club is here for YOU, and we need YOU to help us all succeed.