Fellow Contesters: The following is a summary of responses to my 3/17/98 query about field day antenna setups specifically for Michigan. I found the exercise to be very informative and useful. Thanks to all you who answered: Tom K1KY/TN, Hank K2UVG/FL, Steve KM0L/KC, Cleve, Milt N5IA/AZ, Lee K0WA, Dale K5MM, John W2GD, Mike W1NR/MA, Jim K8MR/OH, Bill W8LVN/IL, & Dennis W5RZ/ARK. Original Message: >Discussion has begun about which antennas would be best for >operating Field Day in Michigan. The radio club can >probably operate on all bands, SSB/CW. Which antennas did >you find especially useful in previous years? >Please reply directly to me and I will summarize for the reflector. >TNX for the bandwidth. >Pete W8RTU 74727.1066@compuserve.com >From k1ky@bellsouth.net: I used a 500' loop strung between four trees. Awesome! Thomas M. Delker - K1KY CFO#395 - Smyrna / Gallatin / Short Mtn. TN >From k2uvg@gnt.net: I have been FD Chair for 5 years and here is what I have developed for northwest Florida (due south of Indianapolis on the Gulf of Mexico). Here are the HF antennas. Don't forget the VHF antennas though. 80 meters - a full wave loop cut for 3500 khz fed with 450 ohm ladder line at 50 ft or higher. I use a Double-L Balanced Tuner on this antenna. It works out well considering the QRN at this time of the year. 40 meters - 2 element wire beam at 50 feet and pointed about 330 deg. 20 meters - TH-3 at 60 ft 15 meters - TA-33 at 35 ft 10 meters - 3 elm HyGain at 30 ft. If 10 is open, just about any antenna will work! 73, Hank/K2UVG Niceville, FL >From km0l@tfs.net: My club has used HF6V verticals for a number of years with very good results in FD. We consistently make over 1,000 Q's on cw from here in midwest. We also work RS-12 satellite with the verts. Last year we put up a multi-band dipole at 40' thinking it would be an improvement- the results were about the same as with the verticals, and we can get the vert up in about 20 minutes! Good luck to you guys- and be looking for K0GQ on all bands in FD. 73 de KM0L Steve in KC >From miltj@aepnet.com: I am the Field Day operation coordinator for the Eastern Arizona Amateur Radio Society, Inc. EAARS normally operates Field Day from a 10,000' mountain top in the 2A class. The 40/80 meter antennas are dual band inverted Vees, separate elements for each band, and separate antennas for each mode. The 10, 15, 20 Meter antennas are the smaller three element tri-band types like the Moseley Classic 33 and the HyGain TH-3. Nothing fancy, but very effective with 100 Watt transceivers when operated at the elevation that we do. Good luck, es 73 de Milt, N5IA >From dleclair@efn.org: ...phased verticals. 1/4 wave with elevated radials on 40m [abt head hi] and we are testing a set for 15m ... 1/4 wave with 3/4 wave to one and 1/4 wave to the other. feed with a t connector to radio. put the one with 3/4 toward the area u want. we are test this w/o radials. >From k0wa@southwind.net: This is too good a question not to have on the reflector.... My vote is for the following: 1. A double Zepp for 40 and works on 80 really well. Ladder line uses a lot of the 100 watts of most rigs. 2 Crossed 40 meter Dipoles feed with the same coax as high as you can get them 3. Any beam you can get up at any height. Yes, even a TA-33 Lee - k0wa@southwind.net >From : ddjones@nas.com You didn't say what category you will be operating in, and that DOES make a difference. Do you want to be a very competitive station, or do you just want to have some fun with the hams & their families? That makes a big difference, too. But my belief is that for reasonable success in any category, you MUST have a beam. I believe a TH6 BIG tribander is best, and in fact if you can swing it -- TWO of them from your location. One generally pointed toward Wash DC, and one toward......say......Denver or Salt Lake City. If you can't swing a TH6, then a 3 element tribander is the minimum I believe you should consider for the 2 or 3 low freq bands, I've preferred FOLDED DIPOLES, made out of TV Twin lead. They exhibit broader frequency coverage, are low noise and easy to put up. You'll need a tuner for each one, or a 4:1 balun, though. Their performance is worth the effort though. I've used the above from All over the USA as well as in Europe during my years of living there. They work, and you can hold your frequency. GL and 73 Dale K5MM >From w2gd@hotmail.com: I have been chairman or co-chairman of our 4A FD efforts for the past 20 years. We use 4 ele yagis on 10 thru 20 mounted on 40 or 50 foot 25G towers. On 40 its a 2 ele Cushcraft at 50 feet. Some years we put up a low 40m wire beam with driven element at 40 feet and reflector underneath it about 16 feet away for the high angle stuff. On 80 and 75 simple inverted v antennas mounted end to end to minimize interference. Haven't done 160 in many years. And we also put up one or two beverages to improve rx thru the QRN. On VHF its an 8 ele yagi on 6 and 15 ele on 2. Don't bother with 432 or 222 anymore. Non productive. Novices have an A4 Tribander and 40/80 doublet/inverted V at 40 feet. I suppose our setup is not exactly standard FD fair but sure makes a 100 watt station work well. 73, John >From w1nr@eecorp.com: Wire beams for 40 and 80 do wonders. However, in Michigan, you will need 2 per band. One facing SE and one facing SW. On the east-coast we just aim them ESE and cover most of the US quite well. It is nice being heard on the West coast with only 100 watts on 80 M. >From : k8mr@barf80.nshore.org This is a no brainer. Put up open wire dipoles (or variations like the double extended zepp) as high as you can, and with a tuner run them on all bands. In practice this means using trees or other existing structures, not push up masts, etc., in order to get the up at least 50 feet or so. If possible have them broadside towards Philadelphia. If this is difficult, at least don't have the ends pointing there. Forget about beams from this area. If the high bands are open with short (sporadic E) skip, dipoles do fine. From MI (at least the southern parts) 40 and 80 should be your big bands. If twenty spends some time being short, there will be as many people to the east as to the west. We typically make 1800+ qsos from Ohio in 1A, 100 watt category. Maybe 100 of these are VHF, the rest are with a 135 foot center fed dipole up about 60 feet. The best part is we can have everything down and be driving away 45 minutes after it ends. 73 - Jim K8MR >From wgl@mcs.com: When we operated field day at w8um and others, we got the most mileage out of dipoles, placed as high as possible. One or two years we tried a beam for some of the higher bands, but it was a lot of trouble to erect. We used the same philosiphy at the North Shore Radio Club here in Ill. If you are operating more than one band, it is imporant to use antennas that have low swr at the feed point, cause that means that the feedline is not radiating, and your cross-station interference will be as low as possible. Also, dipoles are omnidirectional enough that it works well for field day from the middle of the country. Directional antennas, as a rule, are pointing in the wrong direction. And, like I always say, getting a club involved in Field Day is a great way to do a lot of things, one of which is to get hams started in contesting. 73, w8lvn. >From w5rz@cswnet.com: Last year at K5PXP (Arkansas) we used a 40 M Extended Double Zepp. It was 180 or so feet long. It was broadside to N-S so worked best North and South on 40, not ideal for Ark. On 20, the pattern turned into a cloverleaf, favoring NE,SE, NW, and SW. Same for 15. Worked about like a dipole on 80, but maybe a little better. This was on the CW station - we made 993 Q's and spent the last few hours desperately seeking those we hadn't worked before. Was the best we had ever done, in spite of using beams and towers before. 73, Dennis (P.S. It took us 1 hour to set up and 15 minutes to tear down. The phone guys, with their beam, weren't so lucky!)