Ferrite Beads on HF Radio Installation

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

You mean ring frames like this? You can just go through them...

It sounds like the boat has an inner lining/shell? Those will stop most projects, turning them into h@ll

Inner liner? Sacrilege! This is the English built Moody.

Yes, ring frames like that. "Just go through them" is not a structural compromise I'm willing to make. Creating a new duct in a proper way would be a big job, much bigger than simply installing a dynaplate directly below the tuner.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Inner liner? Sacrilege! This is the English built Moody.

Yes, ring frames like that. "Just go through them" is not a structural compromise I'm willing to make. Creating a new duct in a proper way would be a big job, much bigger than simply installing a dynaplate directly below the tuner.

Through the center of the ring frames, not through the material. The copper strap can go between the frame and cabin sole, it’s thin like a foil.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Through the center of the ring frames, not through the material. The copper strap can go between the frame and cabin sole, it’s thin like a foil.

Even if it were that easy -- it's still more trtouble than a dynaplate right under the tuner, which is a better solution than a through-hull 5 meters away.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Even if it were that easy -- it's still more trtouble than a dynaplate right under the tuner, which is a better solution than a through-hull 5 meters away.

Yes of course, but I’m trying to stay within the conditions you set and not drilling a hole in the hull was one of those conditions earlier on. Niw that you let go of that one, sure, the Dynaplate will work great.

To install that in a cored hull is easy. Attached some pictures of my method, which leaves the outer skin intact while replacing core material with filler.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

Yes of course, but I’m trying to stay within the conditions you set and not drilling a hole in the hull was one of those conditions earlier on. Niw that you let go of that one, sure, the Dynaplate will work great.

To install that in a cored hull is easy. Attached some pictures of my method, which leaves the outer skin intact while replacing core material with filler.

Those are dynaplates?


But I thought Sundeers had the copper screen capacitative ground already laminated in. Is that not true, or was it not satisfactory?

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

Those are dynaplates?


But I thought Sundeers had the copper screen capacitative ground already laminated in. Is that not true, or was it not satisfactory?

Those are Frigoboat keel coolers that I’m removing next week. I added the pictures to demonstrate the technique for mounting it in a cored hull.

The HF ground plane in the Sundeers is the bees knees: it’s boatbuilder ignorance that not all boats have it

[Jim Cate]

it’s boatbuilder ignorance that not all boats have it

Not ignorance, Nick... their sales department noted that the ground didn't help sat-phone performance, so why add the cost!

Radio nerds are a dying race, I fear, and Dick Tracy wrist radios have replaced us.

Jim

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Not ignorance, Nick... their sales department noted that the ground didn't help sat-phone performance, so why add the cost!

Radio nerds are a dying race, I fear, and Dick Tracy wrist radios have replaced us.

Jim

Hmmm... when Starlink becomes available for sailboats then yes it will kill marine SSB for good and only HAM’s will be left. I have been using Inmarsat since 2002 and Iridium since 2018 and don’t see an improvement with those.. not even easier to operate.

[Brian.D]

There is too much faith in satellites. There are too many things that can go wrong. Too many. The only thing that will kill SSB is if the atmosphere is torn apart. In that case, nothing will matter anymore. Even in bad solar cycles, some form of communications is possible with SSB, be it morse, digital, or what ever.

Satellites are great, until their end of life then they are just more space debris.

JMHO

[becrux]

Have you considered plates on the rudder? You could bond it/them to the rudder stock if there is a sufficient gap.

Advantages:
- No hull penetration
- Short path from tuner to rudder stock
- Excellent counterpoise physically distant from electronics
- Easy to observe physical state of plate / foil.

Disadvantages
- Flexing of connection between tuner and stock (repairable at sea)
- Possible obstruction of emergency tiller

73 de N7LZ

[Dockhead]

So here is the rest of the story:


Got the station on line today -- and it seems to work perfectly!


Immediately made a contact on 20 meters in Slovenia, a couple thousand km away. 5 x 9 on low power. There is ZERO noise, and no apparent interference with nav gear. Incomparably better than the station worked before I moved the tuner.


I'm going to try to make some more contacts to see if maybe only I just caught a lucky bounce. But if it goes on like this -- I'm chuffed!


And that's with the battery cable to the engine room throughhull for a ground.

[Brian.D]

Excellent. Well done. Now, not going to assume you have your ham license, but if you do, try 14300 kHz which is the Maritime Mobile Service Network. They are on 24 hours a day.

I would still recommend a common mode choke between the radio and the input to the tuner. Keep the choke at the input to the tuner. You can buy one and install it. It will help keep any stray RF feeding back to the radio

Good luck in the race.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Brian.D

Excellent. Well done. Now, not going to assume you have your ham license, but if you do, try 14300 kHz which is the Maritime Mobile Service Network. They are on 24 hours a day.. ..

I'm an Extra Class amateur operator. I will be pleased to listen in on the Net.

[Dockhead]

So I've had several more very satisfactory contacts. After sundown, 40 meters was working better with great propaganda, and I got another 5 by 9 report from near Lake Como, from a guy interested in what kind of antenna I have.


I think the rig is working fine, in any case, incomparably better than it was before I reinstalled it.


The only bad thing is that the radio is interfering with my electronics -- again, the autopilot. I hope I'll be able to use reduced power when I'm pulling GRIBs over Winlink.

[Brian.D]

Is that interference on the lower bands as opposed to the upper bands? That might be the common mode current I was talking about. Just thinking out loud.