[Antennas] Fw: QUADS & BEAMS ??

Wed Oct 7 10:26:24 EDT 2009

> Quads have virtually no problem with rain or snow static because of the
> closed loop driven element. I have been unable to operate with my 20M 5el 
> yagi because of 20 db over 9 rain or snow static while my nearby friend 
> with a quad had no static at all.
>> I really can't think of too many advantages of a 2 el yagi over a 2 el 
> quad other than the durability and the yagi is in one plane while the quad 
> is 3 dimensional. My first directional antenna was a homebrew 2 el 20M 
> quad with the center of it at 35' up. Worked all over the world. I still 
> have 7 of the original 8 fiberglass wrapped bamboo spreader arms. Now they 
> are about 47 years old.
>> The Gem Quad (boomless) out of Canada was a great performer. I think they 
> are out of production. My friend has his up over 20 years. Sprays Blue 
> Rustoleum on the fiberglass arms about every 4 years. They look like new. 
> If you don't coat the fiberglass from time to time, the arms will 
> deteriorate from UV
> as years go by and they will eventually break.
>> An excellent way to feed a quad is with balanced transmission line and use 
> of a tuner. You can tie all of the driven elements together except for the 
> 10M driven. (See older ARRL Handbooks for details) That should be fed 
> separately as tests have shown interaction when the 20M driven element and 
> the 10M driven element were tied together. That interaction resulted in 
> degraded performance on 10M.
>> Then all you have to do is adjust each reflector for minimum signal off 
> the back at the freq U do most of your operating. Always tune the lowest 
> band first, then go up the bands. 14 Mhz, 18, 21, 28, 52.

Max F/B will occur over a very narrow part of each band. Maybe only 5-10 khz 
wide. Then it will taper off
> rapidly as U move away from the point of max.
>> Other than a dead band, there is nothing that quiets a receiver more than 
> about 30 db back rejection of signals near
your operating freq.
> >
> It is possible to make remote tunable reflector stubs that can be adjusted 
> for max F/B while the antenna is at full height and the person doing the 
> adjusting stands safely on the ground pulling a string! The remote stub 
> will get longer or shorter depending on which of 2 strings is pulled 
> downwards. Once Max F/B is attained, you can lower the antenna and fix the 
> tunable stubs in position permanently. I have photos of these adjustable 
> stubs if
interested.
>> Jay NE2Q
>>>>> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <SECOPSYS at aol.com>
> To: <w5jv at hotmail.com>; <>
> Sent: Saturday, October 03, 2009 10:38 PM
> Subject: Re: [Antennas] QUADS & BEAMS ??
>>>> Quads are quieter..many times I can copy weak signals on my quad 100% 
>> when
>> they are "there but not copiable" on my yagi.
>>>> Quads are much more broadbanded. Great SWR across entire band.
>>>> Quads are much more forgiving..spacing 2 elements 10 thru 13 feet (on
>> 20mtrs) and it'll still works very well..perhaps not optimized but works 
>> very
>> well.
>>>> A little patience, a slingshot, a roll of #14 THHN wire, and a decent 
>> tree
>> will give you 2 diamond shaped 20 meter elements (fed at botton of 
>> diamond)
>> in a fixed favored direction for very little money.
>>>> 73,
>> Richard
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