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The wire radials should placed as symmetrically as possible straight from the feedpoint around the
vertical antenna and spaced evenly, regardless of how many radials are used. Do not
cross or bunch any radial wires as this nullifies their effectiveness. If you have limited
space, put in as many straight radials as you can. The radials must be connected to the
shield of your feedline. The DXE-RADP-3 Stainless Steel Radial Plate is an ideal
optional item which provides an excellent system for attaching radial wires to your
vertical antenna system feedpoint.
Radial wires can be laid on the roots of the grass using DXE-STPL Radial Wire Anchor Pins to
hold them down. Using enough staples will ensure the wires will not be snagged by mowers,
people, or animals. Grass will quickly overgrow the radials and it will be virtually impossible to see
them. An article describing this process is available the DX Engineering website
www.dxengineering.com in the Tech Info section. Radials can also be buried just under the surface
by using a power edger to make a slit in the soil.
Mounting Pipe
Use a customer supplied thick-walled galvanized steel mounting pipe at least 4
feet long. This will allow approximately 2 feet or more to be below ground and
2 feet above ground. A thick-walled steel pipe 1-3/4" to 2" OD is recommended
with a minimum thickness of 1/8" (1/4" preferred) should be used. The standard
1-1/2" galvanized water pipe (with its 1.9" OD) is just fine for this application
and can usually be found at your local home building supply store. For
permanent mounting, use a post-hole digger to make a hole deep enough to
accommodate 2 feet of pipe and a couple inches of gravel at the bottom for
drainage. Set the pipe on the gravel, use the pre-mix concrete to fill around the
pipe, adding water and mixing as you fill or mix the concrete first, then pour in
the hole. Fill the hole until the concrete is level with the ground around it. Use a
level as you fill the hole to be sure the pipe is straight. Allow to set overnight.
Your location, landscape and ground conditions may require different
mounting solutions in order to have the steel mounting pipe and the
vertical antenna in a secure position.
Note: Steel, rather than aluminum, is much more suitable for mounting in concrete.
Aluminum will quickly corrode due to incompatibility with the materials used to
make concrete.
Note: The following assembly instructions are based on using a 2" OD Mounting
Pipe, with the optional DXE-RADP-3 Radial Plate and DXE-VFCC-H05-A
Vertical Feedline Current Choke. If you are not using these options, connection
of the radial system can be done in a number of ways but is not described here.
If not using the VFCC, connect the feedline to the antenna and the radial
system. (See the Alternate Feedline Connections section in this manual).