Outdoor Adventure USA

Here's a link to the YouTube channel for Transworld Antennas.
Some who saw it at the last BassProShops M&G had some questions. Well, a quick discussion of it came up again recently while talking with another member here.... so, I've decided to post this link. It shows best how quickly this antenna can be deployed.
It covers HF bands from 10-20m, and there is some mention on their site that it does a decent job on 2m as well, although I've never tried it.
It only has two quirks that are worth mentioning. First, being that it is a vertical dipole it likes to couple to anything near it.... so, it likes to be set up outside camp away from vehicles with about 75' of coax. I use RG8X for most remote work because it's lighter and easier to handle than either RG8 or RG213 and most of my runs are under 100' and so resultant losses are imperceptable. Secondly the feedline needs to depart from the center matching unit/balun at a minimum angle of 45 degrees or the SWR goes to diarrhea.
Aside from these two characteristics (which it shares with all vert. dipoles) the antenna works unbelievably well, especially for DX. Being that it's a dipole turned on its ear, it acts more like a vertical than a traditional flat-top or sloper dipole. It radiates with a very low take-off angle. This type of antenna is most commonly found on DXpedtions (Force 12's Sigma series is another example) for this reason and one other HUGE advantage......no radials! Being that it's a balanced antenna in itself, it requires none of the radials necessary with standard verticals.
Anyhow, I'll post this link which shows a quick clip of both setup and striking the unit. The link has add'l links to their website and Eham for add'l reviews.
http://www.youtube.com/user/TransWorldAnt
Oh, and BTW, I will have this setup at our Field Day in June if anyone wants to see it or better yet, take the mike and use it. It will be our main 20m antenna.
ciao

Randy:

Two and a half minutes to set up AND take down. WOW! Perfect for the active traveler.

The video was a little fuzzy but it looked like there is no whip, true? How does it compare to a wire antenna.

DaveK wrote:Randy:

Two and a half minutes to set up AND take down. WOW! Perfect for the active traveler.

The video was a little fuzzy but it looked like there is no whip, true? How does it compare to a wire antenna.

Dave,
No whip, I normally associate whips with standard vertical types. You have to think of this antenna as a rigid dipole that is stood on end vertically. The upper and lower sections (above and below the matching unit) are insulated from each other, just as with a dipole. Using coax, the feedline has the center conductor going to one half and the outer conductor to the other, again just like a dipole. I know it's tough to envision that when looking at this thing because of it's shape. The two horizontal sections at the top and bottom are capacity hats which act to make the antenna feel electrically longer and help it to develop a similar envelope to a dipole.

The comparison to a wire can be done a couple of ways.
First, as for performance. It's not physically a full-sized half-wave dipole as built, so gain is probably down an S unit on receive. Using my remote switch from home, I've A/B'd it against a 1/4 wave vertical that I've worked the world with, and no difference was noticed. I haven't compared it against a resonant wire on receive. But, I think I can safely stand on theory by saying it will definitely have a lower angle of radiation than either a sloper or flat-top dipole at half-wave height when transmitting.
Secondly, picture this....you're in Pinto Valley and you have a 20m wire dipole in your hand that needs to be 33' off the ground to begin to function properly...................doh! What now? Putting up a dipole in the desert is a major deal, usually requiring push-up poles and guylines or mutant pucker bushes....no joy. I had looked into the Buddipole line of products which are cheaper, but they also require tuning and are not as sturdy as this product. When I pick a product like this, in my mind I conjure the worst possible conditions I might encounter while setting it up. I'm thinking 16 degree temps, 40 mph gusts and trying to deploy it with numb fingers and hands. Now, the guy in the video used to sell Ginzu knives so he's got it dialed. So, his combined time is probably how long it takes me to set it up. It's very fast. Sometimes, I'll just unscrew the ATAS and hook the coax directly to the K400 lipmount instead, then walk the antenna (very light) out into the weeds dragging the coax behind me until I find a clear spot to place it. Then I jump back in the truck and I'm on the air. It completely blows away the ATAS on both transmit and receive.....duh. But, I would imagine it would outperform just about any screwdriver style due to its being closer to natural resonance and it's balanced design.