Say Goodbye to that G5RV! Look at the ZS6BKW
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- Опубліковано 4 жов 2024
- Marc, N4UFP, and I get together to talk about, build and test the ZS6BKW antenna. This is a much MUCH better performer than the heavily marketed G5RV! If you're only going to have one antenna, this is THE ONE to have. Easily built with readily available parts. The only thing you can't really get from your local hardware store is the ladder line, but you can almost always find it at any hamfest or from your favorite ham radio retailer.
I can speak from experience as I reached my DXCC Mixed & SSB with this very antenna. So before you go out and purchase that G5RV or another wire antenna, take a look at this.
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Each leg of the radiator is 46’ 10”. Use 14ga stranded. The matching section is 39’ 1.5” of 450 ohm ladder line. What you use for insulators is up to you.
What bands will this cover with tuner?
With a tuner you should be able to get on all of the HF bands. An internal auto-tuner should easily handle it
AE4VJ thank you!
Are the measurements shown final cuts?
Obviously tieing and bending shortens things , do we need to compensate for this?
You do not need to compensate for this as these amounts are negligible
Thank you, for doing this excellent presentation on the ZSBKW antenna! Not only did you build one for us, you went to the trouble of doing a video, too - and, that extra effort is greatly appreciated! I would like to make a couple of observations for consideration:
Remember, ALL antennas represent some kind of compromise and this one is no exception. Despite its benefits, it may not be the best antenna for you. For one thing, it requires two sturdy supports for the ends that are also at a decent height (at least 40 feet to keep the ladder line from lying on the ground). If you have a couple of tall trees available, that's not a problem - but, operating in an open field or on a beach may present a significant challenge that you may not be able to overcome. Secondly, if you have only one support available to you, it will need to be erected in an inverted V configuration that may compromise the match it presents on the various bands. Furthermore, in a portable operation scenario with only one support that is less than 40 feet tall (common limitation), this antenna may not be the best option.
Thanks, again, for presenting this as a viable option in many situations!
73
AI4IJ
Thank you guys for your time. I really enjoyed it.
Thanks for taking the time to watch!
I just finished the build and the tuning on mine. Got all of 40, 20, 17, 12 and the BOTTOM 2/3 of 10 meters. Tomorrow my elmer is loaning me a rig and I'll be calling CQ. Maybe I'll catch some of you having your night cap.
That is fantastic! Nice work and Congratulations!!!!!
A good source of antenna insulators is your local farm store. Electric fence insulators are the same thing. It would have been more helpful if you included the SWR readings upon completion. The apparent wardrobe malfunction was a nice touch!
I love wire antennas. I have an inverted L with an extensive radial field, a Half Square ( excellent performer), Ocf, and resonate dipoles. Still my ZS6BKW is my workhorse! It out hears and gives me more contacts. Period. Build them, they will come.
I built my own ladder line as its made of unobtainium here in S. Africa. So far it was one of the most fun parts of this project. Hope to have the tower up soon and test my first ever home brew antenna in a couple days.
Tim, thanks to your video, I’m going to built this antenna with home made ladder line as well.
By adjusting the spacers, one can achieve customized impedance on the ladder line.
@@Stepclimb You got it! Have fun and enjoy the build, its very, very rewarding. 73
I build ALL my own antennas & want to thank you boys for a very informative video. The antenna is common bits & pieces, & the balanced line can be made easily (I make my own) but I realise that for the cost of window line, it is not worth the effort in your case. Great video boys. Cheers! VE6XX
+Brian Hind thank you Brian!
Well done guys. What a beautiful place too....love the "sound" of spring.
Thank you!
Thanks for the video. First hf antenna I built was the g5rv, the second was the g7fek, finally I just bought a 404-ul antenna that works amazing for my setup. Hard to know what to do in the beginning but videos like these are really helpful!
Thank you Jared! Good luck and have fun in the hobby. What’s your call sign?
VA6MRJ
I use a commercially made heavy duty version of this antenna with a balun at the 450/coax junction and it works very well at 45 feet off the ground. I can also use it on 75, but it is below my full size 75 meter dipole in performance. This is the best multiband wire antenna I have used in my 49 years on HF. I highly recommend you try one.
+Bill A. Thanks for sharing Bill! Excellent info for someone who is needs a nudge to build one.
What is the brand/name of the commercial version?
I was just going to add that for anyone who has a G5RV laying about you could modify it to the dimensions given for the ZS6BKW. This is already written by others here. I have always made my own antennas or modernized others to suit my requirements. I am an Ex class A1 Combat Radioman by trade. 16 years in the R. Signals. I would normally go to the stores and drew out copper wire, insulators and halyards. Coax usually came 50 or 100 ft lengths terminated with plugs on. If you wanted a antenna for a set of frequencies, you measured and cut the wire with insulators in between for different frequencies. With a jumper wire in-between to join up or shorten the total length. Any frequencies different to the ones already cut and made you would have to make up out in the field. Preferably in daylight. We normally did security frequency changes at midnight. All good stuff to give you the know-how to do it and get it write first time. Have fun everyone. The more you do it the easier it becomes. de John - G0WXU.
That story right there is why I love amateur radio the practical know how folks apply to problem solving. Cheers from KF5OWH in Arkansas
Saludos hermano estoy muy interesado en hacer la antena ZS6BKW tengo todo el materia solo me falta hacer la escalerita que separacion tengo que colocar para que me de los 450 ohms ---yv4fzf desde venezuela 73
Why would you modify a g4rv
Great presentation guys! Yours is the first antenna video that I have seen that poo pooed the end insulators! I have never used end insulators. I have always use the same rope that you talked about and I do not know the name of the knot that I use at the end but it was taught to me by my father-in-law to secure ropes. Again great job and thanks for sharing!
Just got mine up today and SWR is 1.2-1.4 on 40, 20,17,12 got it 25 feet up inverted V. Made contacts in Ukraine, UK, and a few US stations over 1000 miles away !! great antenna !!
Thanks for sharing! Love hearing these reports
i like the friendship qualities you both display in this great hobby !
I appreciate it! We lost Marc last May and it’s been really hard on me.
@@AE4VJ I am so sorry to hear that ! Greg VK2GMC
Simple but Effective! I never hear of this design so thanks for sharing and for creating such an informative and straight-forward video.
Thanks Rick!
Modifed my G5RV to the specs you gents provided. I happened to have a roll of 450 ohm ladder about so down it came, trim, trim add, up again. Viola ! tunes up all over the place with minimal effort, havent made any contacts yet but the waterfall has more features in it now, especially on the 12,15 & 17M bands.. And now tunes all over 10M ZS6BKW for the win, 73 VK2JFK
Excellent to hear John! Hope to see you in the log soon!
Thank you guys for the video. You got me out of the house and made me order some ladder line, and build something again. Here are some real world results from a careful builder.
“If you have a G5RV, you should probably take it down…..”
I listened to you guys with interest and took down my venerable G5RV that had served me well (of course, with a MFJ antenna tuner) for about 3 years.
Anxious to cut the tuner out of the equation, I carefully built according to your instructions measuring 3x and cutting once, being careful to leave a extra foot on each end for possible trimming issues. I had the G5RV mounted at 35’ between 2 trees in the back yard with ample spacing, so I put the ZS6BKW in it’s place, hanging it with the same paracord. The ZS6BKW’s ladder line is longer, so for initial testing I left the extra ladder running across the deck about 10’ off the ground in the back yard.
Using an antenna analyzer, the SWR results are fantastic on 40M with the SWR across the entire band less than 2.0!!! I can only use about half of 20M without the tuner, 30M, 15M, 60M are totally off of the scale. 12M and 17M are between 3 and 4 SWR. I did pickup the lower part of 10M, which I didn’t have with the G5RV.
I spent a day shortening and lengthening the wire to trim, sliding back and forth hoping for some magic positioning. Your original lengths are about the best at 46’6” per side and 39’3” for ladder line. I raised the antenna to put the ZS6BKW’s ladder line at full length, but this made very little measureable SWR difference.
RESULT? Hanging in MY trees at MY house, the G5RV SWR results are better on 80M and 20M (overall). The ZS6BKW is better on 40M and part of 20M. 17 and 12 are tuneable with my radio’s built-in tuner (but, alas…. little if any activity there). I do gain part of 10M. My results… yours, of course, are different.
It would be great to see SWR across individual bands with your setup to compare to mine. I only see you testing 40M and 20M with a radio, which are the best on my setup as well.
+Kenneth Bell it is true to expect different results with different installations you may want to take a look at the G0GSF antenna if you have the height as it takes half the space of the zs6bkw. I’m glad that got you out of the house and experiencing the essence of the hobby! Remember, a resonant antenna doesn’t always mean a 1:1 swr.
I appreciate this analysis. I truly do. Thank you for this hard work.
I am a huge proponent of this antenna. I’ve worked on 100 W literally 8000 miles east to west using it at 48 feet high with the ends at least 35 feet high. This is the best wire antenna very few talk about.
Would like to use part of this video for my channel that helps to teach hamRadio as well as the importance of a quality Antenna. I’ll be sure to credit your channel in the description section as well as show the locations of the contacts that you made. Great job on this one guys!
Larry
de K7HN
I’m goo with it Larry!
Thank you for viewing and the comments!
Great video. Thanks for posting. I’m totally jealous of that beautiful yard and tall trees !
Look at that ham radio Heaven. You have Enough land and high trees to make a project like this a snap and a success. In The Tristate area we have lots generally 50 feet wide and 100 ft deep max and challenges at every turn.. Wow would love to have a place like that!
Move out to the country Mike, you only live once Sir. Cheers.
Just built and installed mine, don’t have room for a beam, worked VK and YV on 17 CW and YC on 20M SSB. Big reports on 40M around the U.K. pleased
That’s excellent!
i see this video couple times fantastic antenna and low power
I had a ZS6BKW up for several years. It was a commercial one I bought and it flat out worked well. Sadly it broke in a Tropical Storm and I bought another one but have not put it back up. Do not have the room or trees where I am now.
I was distracted with the open zipper fly. Sheesh!
I would also simply solder those connections to the ladder line instead of trying to justify using different materials and argue which one gives the least amount of trouble. A good solder joint won't provide changing SWR readings due to corrosion or rust. It only consumes at the most 1/2 inch of lead material and you simply leave it alone. Of course, you can just do what you did in the field on the fly, but there doesn't seem to be enough "fly" experience here.
lol. Yeah well he is no longer with us. Marc was a phd in electrical engineering. I usually crimp then solder.
This was simply a demonstration of the antenna. A good practice video may be a good idea.
Thanks for making this video. I was going to build the G5RV, but saw this and was curious.... I built this antenna over the last few days. It performs great over my attic dipole. There was a 10-15 db rise in signal strength. The attic dipole used to perform "pretty good" until I had the solar cells installed on the rooftop. I'm sure those deflected the signal..... Anyway, I used 14ga stranded, coated wire and made the center insulator for it from a section of clear acrylic that I have (I'm a small sign maker) and used rope that I purchased from Rural King as the end pieces. One end is fastened to my house and the other end I shot up in a huge oak tree over a branch with a bow & arrow using thin rope as a leader. On its downside, I attached a 2.5 lb weight that hangs against the tree trunk and it keeps the line taught, but will give when the tree moves....which isn't often....it's a HUGE tree. I used 3" to 2" PVC pipe as the center support (I know, I know) and used one guy from the house for stability. Great little project. Maybe I'll catch you on. de KA3DON.
Awesome Don! Glad you are have a good experience with it! Hope to see you in the log soon!
@@AE4VJ Great story! I have tons of bamboo in my yard, I may give that a try vs. the PVC. Great video and comments! Congrats on your antenna!!! How do you keep the PVC pipe in place?
I may have to watch this again to refresh my memory of the pvc pipe.
Just about any antenna will work good if you put it up in trees that are a 100 feet in the air. Try using trees in Arizona where about 15 feet is as high as they get.
If you are only going to have one antenna up in the air, a ladder line fed loop or doublet is the best antenna you can build period. NOTHING will work more bands as reliably and with excellent results as either one of these antennas. You can easily build every piece of it yourself including the feedline and tuner if you choose. Make the antenna as long as the lowest band you plan to operate and it will work great on every band above that. With the right homemade tuner, I've even seen very short antennas work lower (than ant designed length) bands with excellent results. (ie 70 foot overall antenna length working 75 meters with Link-coupled--or inductively-coupled--antenna tuners with no obvious loss of signal strength)
Marc and I received an email from G0GSF (ex ZS6BKW). The following is part of his email:
Just this morning a friend of mine, Keith G4OKT, alerted me to your video on the ZS6BKW, the antenna I designed way back in the early 1980s. I had a look at it and enjoyed it very much. Congratulations on such a lucid explanation of how the antenna performs and also how you went about constructing it. I noticed a number of comments from others, too, so you're certainly generating some interest.
You may be interested in a shortened version of the antenna (there was at least query along those lines in the comments section). I designed it around a year ago and after subjecting it to the usual computer simulations with EZNEC6, my local amateur radio club (Chester & District Radio Society) built the antenna and specifically the matching section for it. There is an optimum impedance for L2, the 'series-section matching transformer', to give it its fancy name, which is somewhat lower than 450 ohms but the antenna is very tolerant as you demonstrated so will probably work with 450 ohms too. We were aiming for 380 ohms and Bruce M0CVP achieved 388 ohms at his first pass. That was absolutely fine. Of course the velocity factor is important and so we measured that too and found it to be very close to 0.9 for the open-wire line he built.
Maybe you'd like to try the compact version of this multiband antenna but call it the G0GSF since that's my call these days, as it has been for the past thirty years?
73 Brian G0GSF (ex ZS6BKW).
Marc and I plan on building one soon to give it a go and a video on it as well so stay tuned. The weather isn’t looking good for this weekend so it probably won’t be the next video published, but I expect it to be after the next one.
I would be very interested in seeing the shortened version and know if it would perform on 80m with a match box.
So, did you go ahead with that?
Looking for options to put in the attic. So I am interested in this shorter version and don't mind trying something new! Please send me dimensions and if you have a video of it it would help.
We do have a video. It’s the G0GSF antenna video
The ZS6BKW jr Better known as The G0GSF Antenna compact ZS6BKW
Hello from KC4HNS in Columbia SC. Hope to be able to build this antenna soon. Am physically handicapped but hopefully I will be able to get some help from some Columbia hams.
Nice video guys i have been using this antenna for several years now, the Great Steve Hunt G3TXQ SK once wrote just make a coax fed dipole resonant on 5 mhz. then remove the coax add 41 feet of ladder line to the feedpoint tune to 24.950 mhz. and trim the ladder line till lowest swr on 24.950 mhz. and it will work well on 40,20,17,12,10
+Daniel Sensing thank you sir for the comments! That’s a pretty good way to look at it!
How about trying an open wire fed doublet cut for 40? I finally got one up and it works great. 73
Yup, I am going to build one for field day or for camping, thanks guys!, 73 from Mark / NQ0A (Moab UT)
Mycoblue excellent! Let us know how it turns out!
nice frog calls in the background
All the great antenna ideas, but still need at least 45-50 vertical feet for the center line. How I wish I could put some of these great antenna ideas to work for me, but that center feed point height is a killer!
You really need to get the ladder line off the ground. You can pull it back, tie it off in a slope and get something to work.
Hi fellow York Co. Hoodlums I had a G5RV for several years while moving around & after settled here. Age and weather (read as falling tree branch in the winter) finally put it out of action. I've been considering a replacement -- someday (HI HI) and this just may be it. 73 Al - WB8FEQ
+Albert Morris hey Al! I think you’ll be impressed with it! Also you may want to check out the G0GSF antenna. It’s a compact version of the BKW, but has some nice features.
I have a G5 that just broke in the last storm. I might bring the rest of it down and try this antenna.
I think you’ll be happy with it
HI buddy!
I just bought a new travel trailer. This may be the antenna I'll use when camping. I prefer to use a copper clad steel, stranded, insulated 18 ga. antenna wire from the Wireman. It's more just durable and will never stretch. It's very hard to see when it's up in the air, thanks to it's non-reflective black insulation. The insulation will never crack either.
The THHN wire is made for being pulled through conduits. It's outer clear insulation layer will deteriorate quickly, after UV exposure from the sun.
Andrew Evanoff very cool!
Nice job. I like the insulator ideas and the high trees. A program by W5DXP suggests a 55 foot dipole fed with 12 feet of LL should do 40, 17, 10 M without a tuner. Nice for portable use.
Interesting. However, unless I really missed something, the only difference between the two antenna types is the ZB6BKW is a little shorter than the G5Rv?
It's interesting, the SWR is indeed lower, but using antenna modeling software, the G5RV is actually a better radiator.
But the g5rv isn’t a multi band antenna
@@AE4VJ Sure it is.
I bought 2 of the ZS6BKW. Two just in case a tree snaps it. Also got a Balun Designs unit for it.
You bought two? From where?
Where at?
Assembled and installed one of these today works great on the 5 bands swr is acceptable on all.......
+MrJr669 that’s great! Nice job!
SWR is not a measure for performance or losses, it really is not. Just telling you the system is 50 Ohm like a dummyload. Resonance is mostly NOT 50 Ohm, it's uncommon it is with a multiband antenna. You take SWR as a performance reading and that is so incredibly wrong. Resonance has nothing to do with 50 Ohm or SWR, it has to do with the wavelength.
And the ZS6BKW is too short to resonate on low bands, even when the SWR is 1:1 it will not radiate because the radiators are not in resonance with the frequency. Nothing more to it.
@@BasHeijermans but it works because it's a variation of Tesla's 94ft random. I think I trust his opinion
No doubt about this antenna. The Zs6bkw is amazing. You wont be sorry, best bang for buck you can get. Zs1we
Thanks for the comment Brandon!
I have a doublet that has 40 ft of latterline and the 51ft traditional each side, it will be simple enough to shorten. If this will resonate everywhere you say, it certainly will be great.
+America's Way Out you would need to trim it, but in theory it should work if the ladder line is correct
@@AE4VJ I have an MFJ 1:1 that has the pressure insert style wire hookup with coax so239 on the other side, should it work to lower the common current and also make the transition to coax?
It should
LOL...that 500' roll of #14 AWG is about $70 now.....dang copper!! I was hoping you'd put the dimensions in the section above but I got it.
Jeff Wimmer Southwire Building Wire Stranded Copper 14 Ga, 1 Conductor 15 Amp 600 V 90 Deg C 500 ' Red www.amazon.com/dp/B0089PYXUG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_vQ40Cb259KVND
about $47 at Lowe's
www.lowes.com/pd/southwire-500-ft-14-awg-stranded-blue-copper-thhn-wire-by-the-roll/50149800?cm_mmc=shp-_-c-_-prd-_-rpe-_-google-_-lia-_-106-_-electricalcable-_-50149800-_-0&kpid&store_code=663&k_clickID=go_1793722707_69617672072_346785626058_pla-397718858554_m_9012725&gclid=Cj0KCQjwz6PnBRCPARIsANOtCw31-Gmu1Q4ctQ11luaHBkg9dAEe3MqtVfdxNSm-gWLeB6DqwJiM1d8aApDlEALw_wcB
Took your video to heart. Did as you pointed out and I am very pleased with the results. Thank you for making the video. Wi9i
+George Hinkle thanks for the comment George! Great to hear!
I've been using my own ladder line for years and it works great. I highly recommend building your own.
Do you have any pointers on building your own?
Too much messing around with both coax and ladder line for me. I just use a dipole cut to what ever band I want to be the lowest frequency I want to use, IE 40M or 80M , then run ladder line to a small "Balanced" match box I built with 1:1 Balun or standard match box, one with a 4:1 Balun inside. (1:1) Balun better for a true balanced tuner) Tunes any band easily that is at the cut frequency or above. It's call a Doublet and works great. I use for POTA activations where I don'r have to worry about running the balanced feed line into houses etc. I'm sure this variation works to and doesn't require a balanced tuner, so it is simpler in some ways , and nice video!
The zs6bkw is in the doublet family
Thanks for taking a view and your comments.
Forget the nuts and bolts at the center insulator. Burndy split-bolt connectors all the way!
Greetings from Ontario Canada. VE3NCV Gary. I watched your video and got a lot of information from it. I will be building this antenna soon. Thanks for sharing. 73s
+Gary Southam excellent! Thanks for watching!
I have a full size g5rv that a friend gave me that he never used...brand new...i think im gonna try the zs6bkw before winter sets in!!!!.....
Robert Shine I think that is an excellent idea! Let us know how it works for you.
I’ve literally just built a 94 foot doublet with 31 feet of 450 going into a 1:1 Balun and coax to a tuner. What the heck.. I’ll add another 8 plus feet to the 450 and see what happens, how lucky was I?! Nice video! Subscribed 73
Haha! That worked out! Thank you so much for the comment and the sub! Let us know how it turns out.
@@AE4VJ I will thanks 👍
Well I definitely want to see more now I'm more interested
Have you ever noticed that when you're dealing with SSB con testers, you always get 5 × 9 although they have no clue what it means.
The way they use the term it has very little meaning at all. This is a shame as if you kept a log electronic or paper, it would give you an indication of how the band was performing and also how your receive audio was, hence the original system. Just the musings of an old guy ham... Great antenna job though guys. Nice to see somebody that still home makes wire antennas. Congrats of the highest order.
73
K4WJM, Bill
ever givem a real report. lol mess`s them all up oh your 55 with qsb.
@@butterbean4195 brand new ham... Tech/Gen on 20 may and extra on 16 Jun... Already had a couple of contacts complain (trying to "Elmer" me) about anything other than 59 reports... Sorry, if someone is a 46, that's what's going in my logbook..
yea i dig it, the 5/9 thing kinda makes one eye brow go up when i hear it to but it is a contest so they dont care what the signal is they only care about winning/points soo i understand both sides of it to. to add to that when these contesters use a logging program they set it to default 5-9 report both ways and that alone may save a few seconds in time. points=winning. but it is fun to throw a true signal report ohhh say i read you 4-7 in there once in awhile and just sit back and smile. (guilty)!
If you get the Q in the log, does it matter the signal report?
@@AE4VJ
I guess if you are into collecting future toilet paper because that is all it will become when you're dead and gone. it doesn't matter at all except to you and your ego. Boost your ego infinitely by making all your contacts on a f t - 8. As it really doesn't matter at all of any type of report accept the contact. Vanity, all is Vanity!
I was unable to see how you connected the 450 ladder line to the coax. I would certainly like to see or hear about that. You have convinced me to build one since last week’s storm broke my G5RV.
Tommy. N4KBM.
I did a video on how to transition from coax to ladder line.
Mating your Coax to Ladder Line
ua-cam.com/video/3uw5fpFd0Sk/v-deo.html
Who buys wire antennas? Build your own!
I use a commercial version of this antenna with a one to one balun. It is the best all around wire antenna I have used, It is 10db under a full sized dipole in 75 meters, but excels on the higher bands including six meters.
Hey Bill, where'd you get the "commercial version" of this antenna? de W1SMC ..... thanks
Thanks for the heads up on this design.
Well i can see my inverted v is going away!! great info thanks
Excellent to hear! good luck and let us know how it works for you.
@@AE4VJ Definitely// KD2ICI..
Antenna is interesting. I would work on the audio part of your video and I think you could have shown much more on the "how" part of assembly. Like show the assembly of the center insulator. How did you and where did you tie off the ends? What's that knot you are describing? Where did you hang the center and how did you get it up there. And there is much more. You've got a great story but didn't tell it all. On a positive note...thanks for not slugging down beer or wine while you were doing the presentation.
South Carolina looks beautiful. Love the video. I will build this antenna. 73
+Chris Argueta KI6AMK excellent! Thanks for taking a look. You may be interested in the G0GSF antenna as well.
One very well done video. Been looking for a general purpose antenna for my Drake TR4 T4XB collection to transmit on from Las Vegas. I have a 60 foot width small back yard.
HI How did you determine that the ladder line should be 39' 1 1/2"? I've seen other builds of this antenna where they measured the velocity factor of the ladder line first and came up with 38 1/2 ". Would have liked to see the tuning process. Did you alter the original length of the ladder line, or just the dipole arms? Good video.
Thanks. Brent VA7HUM
Thanks for sharing that wonderful experience. 😊
Many greetings
Matthias 👋
DL1NDG
Thank you so very much! 🙏
@@AE4VJ I thank YOU! Have good contacts with your antenna and nice QSO's.
😉
I got my DXCC with it.
Getting ready to try my hand at building one. That's the thing about loving radio comms and being poor, everything has to be as homebrew as possible. LOL
Correct me if I’m wrong but it seems the only differences in this antenna and the G5RV is the radial length... where the G5RV is 102’ and the ZS6BKW is 94’...... Also the ladder line lengths differ where the ZS6BKW is 39’3” and the G5RV is 32’6” Both 450 Ohm......
450ohm ladder line
I wish other antenna video were as well presented.
I read the comments.
If you would consider multiband SSB only antenna for a small lot QRP.
I am not the only General Class radio amateur that has no interest in CW.
I would also like to have highly efficient all of 80-meter SSB for QRP, if only in tall trees.
QRZ W7CJD
Connie Dodson thank you for your kind words! G0GSF (ex ZS6BKW) contacted us after seeing our video and sent us a design that uses about half the space. Video on that coming soon. Marc and I want to build one and do some test first.
People like me with small suburban backyards can only dream
I understand.
The ZS6BKW is a very good Antenna........but when it´s needed to use a long Koax-feedline until the shack........isn´t there much loss?
The only loss is in the coax and on HF loss is generally low. How long of a run?
@@AE4VJ Okay - then it is not a problem. I had forgotten that the ZS6BKW resonates on different frequency bands. Big losses on the coax cables only arise if you go into the coax cable after the chicken conductor in the case of non-resonant antennas and the whole system has to be tuned with a tuner.
tnx for the Video and always "good propagations"....
@@michaelzehrfeld7766 if you use heiliax coax it won't be an issue
Thank you for doing this video. I appreciate it.
+CJ Taylor glad to do it! If you have some space limitations, you may want to check out the G0GSF video. It’s a variation of the ZS6BKW. We also have an interview with the man himself in that one.
@@AE4VJ I will watch that video for sure but I don't have space limitations. I'm in the country and I have trees. You actually made me realize I can use my trees. Suddenly, it's not a matter of "if" I could figure out an antenna. It's just a matter of "where"!
+CJ Taylor trees are the amatier’s friend for wire antennas :). To answer the “How”, check out the wire antenna maintenance video where I go over shooting lines in trees.
the problem with being a HAM in the southwest of the USA... we don't have what you call trees, people hate towers, and Mesquite doesn't grow that tall. Do you guys have any ideas for magnetic loops?
Will Gilliam Marc and I were just having lunch and discussing the next few projects. I think magnetic loops is a good topic. Can’t promise when, but I think it should be on the list. These type of comments and exactly what we need so thank you for that!
@@AE4VJ sucks having to be portable. Moved in next to a AM radio station, became a HAM. Felt the suck. HF antennas that are man portable from 160-40m. Even if i can only squeeze a 1000 Hz of bandwidth out of it, Its useful for the digital HAM :D 73
I have heard that a choke balun needs to NOT have the turns cross each other or you will lessen the effectiveness. You should have the turns be linear down a cylinder form like pvc at least till you get it formed and anchor the turns in line with hot glue, plastic strips, tie wraps or best just leave the pvc form in place.
73 N7KBC
It would be interesting to have the presenters add some text description for the proper coiling up of the RG8X choke balun.
That’s a great-looking antenna project and I really like the construction. I am using a G5RV jr because it even barely fits in my backyard. I just have a small city lot plus 2 big trees in the backyard so I don’t have the height that I would like to have. If I had the space in the yard I think that would be a fantastic antenna to put up at my QTH. Thanks for doing a great video on the antenna.
73
WD5ENH
Steve
Steve Griffin thanks Steve! Take a look in the comments. You can scale down the antenna, but you’ll loose a little bit. Thanks for taking a look!
Dipole with ladder feedline a million different names.
The Top Band version is 180' long, so again a good bit shorter than the equivalent (double size) G5RV of 204'. The matching section is 80' of 450 Ohm window line. This is easily tuned by the internal tuner of most rigs except on 160M itself and 15M. We have one at our local club made of stainless steel/copper electric fence cord. It works well with some very low quality 75 Ohm coax that was hanging around surplus to requirements. Improvements may include better quality 50 Ohm coax and getting it up higher than its' current 40'. The electric fence cord causes much less sag than heavier copper wire and was recommended to me by a G station that uses it for kite antennas. It seems OK with 100 Watts, but may not be adequate for higher power. End insulators give you the 'feel good factor' as they make the antenna look complete, but synthetic rope on its' own is a very good insulator and will provide a good, long creepage path even in wet weather. 73 Gareth GW4JPC
I have a ZS6BKW that was made by W8AMZ. It worked well on all the bands you mentioned but, I found it to be very noisy and took it down in favor of dipoles and even verticals with less noise. Could be the way I had it strung up in the trees. Did you guys notice increased noise?
AE4HZ the only time I notice elevated noise is when the wire insulation is chafed and sorting again a branch. This will eventually happen after some time in the sun and friction, no matter the antenna. With mine, this is the only time I’ll notice a lot of noise.
Yes, noise does increase on any ladder or open feedline as the vertical wire pick up the noise. Actually both ZS6BKW & G5RV are back to back L-antennas. That says it all.
Would the ladder-Line be 450 ohms? I am not sure that you folks mentioned that or not.
It would
fantastic job 73 from kb2uew
Thank you!
I got my 450 ohm ladder line on ebay from the R W antennastore
Thanks for sharing that! I’ll check it out too
Get some experience with a OFF center fed dipole. If it is made correctly, and installed with the correct BALUN at the correct height, it is an awesome antenna.
Hi, guys
I had the zs6bkw for years and it worked well on all those bands you mentionned . It was up on a metal post of about 10 m or so up the roof. But I had to put it down as the post didn’t stand a strong wind and then went on a loop antenna for upper band and a g5rv/ junior for 30 and 40 and even some portion of 80m .
I’d be very interested to try the shortened version of the zs6bkw ( I mean the G0GSF antenna).
Vy 73 de 7X5AV
+DJAMAL BENDAOUD excellent post! the G0GSF video will go live tomorrow. Marc and I modified the ZS6BKW to test and shoot the footage. We also have an interview with G0GSF in that video. It’s about an hour long but there is a lot of info in it.
Easy and cheap! All you need is is a bit of wire, window line, some loose hardware, and A GIANT TOWER AND TREES IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.
Just trees. No tower required.
How high up is the long wire thank you for the video
Sorry for the delayed response. I had a death in the family. It’s up about 40-45’
Just for kicks will this antenna work on eleven meter twenty seven mhz? Thanks Bob H. KC9LRA
I would like to see a comparison between your antenna and G5RV in more scientific fashion -- some measured values presented on a spreadsheet and why you came up with the design. I have the impression that your design was derived from the original G5RV, but I could be wrong. If so, it is important to show why yours is better. Have you presented your design to ARRL or some other recognized institutions? Simply showing that you made some QSO's with some stations that you think far away doesn't show how good your antenna is. I hope it is an excellent one, but have to see more objective information to believe your antenna is really superior to G5RV.
+KenpoOjoko this antenna has been around since the 1980’s. Many articles have been written on it, a quick google will prove this. The reason we feel it is superior is because it is resonance on multiple bands and not just a 20m antenna like the G5RV. We speak with Brian, the designer, in the G0GSF antenna vide and we talk about him, this antenna and his newly designed antenna. You may want to check that one out.
@@AE4VJ Thanks for the info. I googled around and found some articles inculding this one: www.w5ddl.org/files/Zs6bkw_vs_G5rv_20100221b.pdf I like it. It seems to perform better, but is not much different in size from G5RV. I've read a few articles talking about the need for 1:1 balun right below the ladder line and coax. Do you use one? If so, what kind?
+KenpoOjoko it’s a simple rf choke. 6 or so turns of coax about 6 inch diameter. We cover all of this in the video. I would recommend this choke on every horizontal wire antenna.
Hmm. Very interested in how you got a cup of warm coffee out there. 🤷🏽♂️
thanx guys that worse very helpful from M3 PFK
Glad you found it helpful!
What would be a minimal height to hang this. One end would be no issue. I have a 100 foot tower. The other end is the issue can it slope and still be effective
50’-60’ should work very nicely. It can slope and will be just fine.
Just get the ladder line off the ground. It can be pulled back to an arc if needed.
@@AE4VJ thanks for the reply
Great presentation. It would be fun to see an AA scan across the bands of interest.
what's an AA scan? i'm new
@@BL4CKFIRE64 Hi Matt... AA is Antenna Analyzer. Among other things, it should produce a plot of SWR -vs- Frequency on a particular band, which tends to show which part of the band you an use without an antenna tuner.
Gentle men excellent video well narrated , I'm not an HF person but will be soon as I have been put in charge of antennas for a group here in San Antonio so this information is much appreciated . Keep up the fine work. KC5ULU
Glad it helped! Thanks for the comment!
Great vid thanks fellas. Just got mine delivered to Australia from US took 5 weeks ! It's my first ham antenna and I hope I made a good choice. I'm hoping I can get is set up well. Can I extend the coax to shack and if so what is best to use ?
You can extend the coax. How much are you looking to add? That may depend on which coax you want to use. What antenna did you buy?
Love it!!!!!!!! One question. My tower is only 35ft. What is the best way to take care of the excess ladder line???? Thanks guys!!!!!
You don’t want the ladder line right up against the tower anyway as it could react with it. You can pull the ladder line back in an arc opposite of the tower. It doesn’t need to be perfectly straight, but you don’t want it laying on the ground.
goo to see a REAL video !
Thank you so much! I really appreciate the comment and I’m glad you enjoyed it!
I really enjoyed your video. I would like to make one. Im in New Zealand.
You should! Excellent way to spend some time these days. I think you’ll be happy with the results too
A friend of mine, Joey KJ4SI calls a G5RV and air cooled dummy load ;) AE4YW
ZS6BKW -- what would happen if you changed the driven element from a dipole into a closed loop (quad/diamond/rhombic)?
Pretty slick antenna, ... BUT... it wont fit in my HOA attic, however a G5RV jr does. RWYB. 73's
Change the feeder cable if it is coax to window feeder 300 or 450 ohms 😉
Built one, regular g5rv works better for me. swr is not everything. Zs6bkw does have better swr. But get higher signal on 75m 40m and 20m.
I would like to see a direct comparison between this and something like the carolina windom.