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» Vhf And Uhf At My Original QthMy previous QTH was rented accommodation in the heart of London, with no garden. But it did have an accessible roof with a convenient wall on top, to which I fixed a variety of aerials. These included a pair of stacked 21 element beams for 70cm underneath a 9 element beam for 2m. This caused some alarm within the local authority (Tower Hamlets council) who promptly insisted that I arrange public liability insurance cover, as the array was overhanging the street and the base of the mast was three storeys above ground level. How I got away without planning permission I'll never know!
Also on the roof was a HF + 6m vertical, a 4m halo, and a 2m / 70cm collinear. Obviously I didn't start off with such a large aerial farm on the 3.5m x 7m roof. Having sought permission from my land lord I installed the collinear. Then slowly added more and more aluminium. Although it was a relatively tall building it was surrounded by even larger ones, so I was quite surprised by how well the system worked. I’m also amazed that the residents of the three local tower blocks didn't complain of TVI when I was pumping an estimated 4KW ERP of UHF towards the continent, with their apartments directly in line with my array. Unfortunately the beams never made it across the Irish Sea, and in any case I’d need a tower to do them justice from this location.
One of these years, when I have the time and the money, it would be nice to get a really good 2m and 70cm station together again. But for the moment my priority is to reassemble the HF + 6m vertical that got blown down in February 2002. Yes the same one that spent several years on that London roof top. I still have the occasional 2m DX contacts to Italy and the Britain, but 70cm has always given me the most fun, and is the band I pine for. I still manage some occasional DX on 70cm - but it's mainly during events like the VHF Field Day. I do try to operate on six metres a few times each year though, as the "magic band" can be relied on for a couple of decent openings.
File under: Category Amateur Radio, Category VHFand Up.
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File under: Category Amateur Radio, Category VHFand Up.
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