Antenna Wire

Submitted by NA1DX on Thu, 03/09/2017 - 12:43
Forums: 
Homebrew, construction, kit-building, soldering

Here is a good source for durable wire for antennas. K3ZO and W3LPL highly recommend the Poly-Stealth over THHN. K3ZO uses it on his 15m Quad Loops and has had no breakages (knock-on-wood) from wind or ice storms.

https://www.k1cra.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=DAVISPOLYS%2D13

RFConnection also sources it in Rockville: http://therfc.com/

Poly-STEALTH ™ High Strength Aerial Wires are manufactured with high strength, high conductivity Bare Copper-Clad Steel (BCCS) and insulated with a high quality UV Resistant Polyethylene to provide you with one of the strongest and longest lasting antenna wires on the market today.

Available in three key sizes, there is a Poly-STEALTH ™ aerial wire designed to meet your requirements.

POLYS-13: The strongest wire of the group is ideal for the longest of wire runs with or without additional support. (This listing)
POLYS-18: Offering a balance between overall size and strength, this wire is capable of handling lengths in excess of 80 meters.
POLYS-26: Often referred to as "kite wire", this tiny wire packs amazing strength into a small package and is excellent for back-packing or even a temporary center supported dipole.

wa2mqk - Fri, 03/10/2017 - 07:53

Various colored insulation romex house wiring can easily be used for HF dipole antennas in my opinion. Three wire AWG 12/2 romex typically has a colored sheath with an internal insulated black, white and uninsulated copper wire. I twisted all three of the copper wires together at both ends of the two dipole segments and soldered them making sure that the solder connections did not create a single point where the wires might bend and break more easily. The insulation protects the copper wires from oxidation. However, if you want a stealthier antenna wire with lower visibility, Barry's antenna wire above would be better.

Bob Weber, WA2MQK

NA1DX - Fri, 03/10/2017 - 08:04

Barry, I agree. But if your building an antenna that is really tough to maintain like a 15m quad look on the top of a 100' tower, I can see why K3ZO and W3LPL suggest the PolyStealth wire. Or if you have a wire that is very difficult to get up in trees and may chafe quite a bit, then it could be a good option.

My #12 THHN stranded wire works well. W3LPL suggest that solid vs. stranded may be better for chafing as it is may be more durable from that context.

73

N3ADF - Fri, 03/10/2017 - 10:31

http://thewireman.com
The Wire Man has very good prices on Copperweld (copper coated steel) antenna wire in #12 & #16 gauge solid and #14 gauge stranded is quite flexible and lasts a long time. My #16 gauge solid Copperweld G5RV antenna has been up for over 10 years and never come down.
The Wire Man web page is hard to navigate but has everything you could need for wire antennas.