If I hear it, I can work it!
I wanted to let you know that the traps I ordered on Monday arrived at my QTH this afternoon.
When I arrived home this afternoon, knowing that I’d have enough daylight left to install the traps in my 80 meter V. After unwrapping the package and reading the notes I went outside to lower my 80 meter V. I took my tape measure, wire cutters, electrical tape and pliers.
Before I received the traps I read remarks made by other hams on e-ham and besides the glowing comments I read that a recommended length for the CW portion of 40 was of 33 foot and 22 feet for the 80 meter section. I made the cuts, inserted the traps and hoisted the antenna in the air. I looked at the resonant points with my analyzer and sure enough I had great dips at 3.7 MHZ (a little higher in freq. than before and resonance on 7.080 MHZ, which was fine for my purposes). I wanted to operate in the extra CW portion of the 40 meter band and now am able to do so with my radios internal tuner. Not only that but I didn’t lose 30 meter coverage and I gained coverage on the entire 15 meter band.
My first try on 15 was with a PJ4 working a small pile-up. I was able to break through on the first call and my second call was to a TG9, again receiving an immediate response. I’m currently not using a balun on this antenna but I do use a W2DU current balun on my 20 meter V which is 60 feet in the air being fed by 75 foot of LMR-400.
I prefer CW but since putting that antenna up I’ve worked well over 100 countries on CW & SSB. So far this year I have 60 countries confirmed in the DXCC Diamond jubilee challenge, which uses the 1937 countries list and there were far fewer prefixes in 1937. The traps and balun have added enormously to my station and operating. At my old QTH I had a Hygain TH5 up but since moving to my present QTH in the late 1990’s I’ve been off the air. I’m finally back on HF vowing never to give it up again and am thoroughly enjoying the wire antennas which have outperformed my wildest dreams. ALl with 100 watts.
If I hear it, I can work it!
Thanks,
Dave WB2KSP
************UPDATE
Hello, First, thank you for posting my comments concerning the Reyco traps. I only wish I had proof read it before sending the e-mail. That aside, here’s an update.
I have just elevated my 80/40 V to hopefully, it’s final height of approx. 70 to 75 feet above ground. Since raising the antenna I have worked into Africa (5T0JL, 7X4AN*) and the Middle East (4X4PP, 5B/RN3QO*) on 40 meters. I easily worked GR100MGY , one of the Titanic memorial stations on 80 meters and it goes on and on.
I now have wire antennas to cover 80/75, 40, 30, 20, 25, & 17 meters and continue to have loads of fun on the HF ham bands all with 100 watts. For your viewing pleasure, if curious, I have placed pictures of my antennas (as well as one of the Reyco traps in action) on my QRZ page.
http://www.qrz.com/db/WB2KSP
Thanks for a great product!
Dave Saviet
From time to time we get comments from our customers and thought it would be nice to start adding them to our web site as they come in – and remember “don’t tighten the eye bolts on the baluns”. Without further delay:
Wanted to say thank you for the antenna trap manual for building up one of my new antennas and it works GREAT!
Will be ordering several other traps in about a month, when there is time for building.
Happy Wednesday………Walter – K5EST – Missouri
BTW: I have just installed your new 4:1 ladder line balun on the horizontal loop feedline. Great stuff, thanks for putting this new product on the market.
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Hello W2AU folks..
FYI I left a glowing review for the 40M coils set and the W2AU 1:1 balun on the eHam reviews section under wire/vertical antennas… I gave up on trying to figure out the OCF dipoles, ladder line and etc and just did what I did in 1978 when I moved to Vermont… bought the coil and the wire and the balun and put it on the air.
Immediate great results.. .thanks for a great product !
I’d like to add the 17 and 20 meter coil sets after a while.
Cheers.. Bob KK8ZZ Ohio
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I’m using your 20 meter trap for working 20/40 meters. Using only a barefoot FT450 I’ve worked 98 countries in the past three weeks. I’m truly impressed with the quality of your traps.
I small suggestion.
Put your design information on your website.
It will get people thinking about more than two band traps.
Thanks for all.
Urb, W2DEC
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Thanks for a great response.
I will continue to use your products and recommend them to others.
Bill N9sqv
and in the “you can’t please everyone” department…
Well it’s good to see you are still in the mfg mode because I have a complaint about the antenna traps ie:the KW-40 one’s
I have had mine up in 5 different states and I have had to rebuild them almost every time I moved
now they fell down again this past summer so now I guess I’ll have to buy some new ones because I have a coax dipole up for 80, but don’t have anything for 10,15,20,or 40 so where can I buy some 10,15&20 traps???
PS: Did I mention I bought my kw40 traps close to 59 years ago and have been up sumwheres every since !!!!
Lewis M hudgins W4LMH
Submitted on 2009/10/28 at 2:50pm
#1 by Steve Katz on March 11, 2011 – 4:44 pm
1. Do you sell single traps? I am making an inverted L or a vertical. I don’t need pairs.
2. The tagline in your website logo has a typo: Should be “its” instead of “it” before “advantages.” Anyone else ever notice this?
Thanks.
Steve N8WL
Granville, OH
#2 by Chris@Apple Roof Cleaning Tampa Florida on May 1, 2011 – 1:46 pm
Congratulations on your website! WordPress was a wise choice. Unadilla is a name I remember as a child, way before I was even a Ham. It is good to see you guys are still around, making a proven, quality product!
#3 by Cliff Belz on May 14, 2011 – 4:50 pm
I have bought 2 sets of the kw-40 coils in the last 5 years. Today my 3rd coil went bad. That’s 3 coils in 5 years. It says they can handle 2kw. I only run a max of 800w and when I tune it is into a dummy load. The coil windings seem fine. Is there anyway to fix these? I’m getting a small collection.
Cliff,
n9hsb
#4 by Louis House on June 12, 2012 – 8:36 am
Thanks again for you expeditious responce to my questions about trap orientaion in the dipole design.
I LOVE my UNADILLA!
It out performs any dipole that I have had before.
73, Louis, W5DP