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Author Topic: polarization question  (Read 434 times)

Offline tech53

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polarization question
« on: March 01, 2025, 0018 UTC »
what polarization do most shortwave pirates use? I know most hams use horizontal, but most marine stations which is what bands most pirates are in, use vertical, so im kinda wondering, I'm making a few antennas and I'm kinda thinking of making one tuned specifically for one of the pirate bands.

Offline Robot Matrix

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Re: polarization question
« Reply #1 on: March 01, 2025, 0356 UTC »
what polarization do most shortwave pirates use? I know most hams use horizontal, but most marine stations which is what bands most pirates are in, use vertical, so im kinda wondering, I'm making a few antennas and I'm kinda thinking of making one tuned specifically for one of the pirate bands.
Polarization, once a radio wave reaches the ionosphere, becomes circular or elliptical, so in that regard it doesn't really matter whether you put up a vertical or a horizontal antenna.

However, it matters if you want an omni-directional vs directional, plus other factors. A 34 foot vertical (6.9 MHz 1/4 wave) with decent radials would be a good omni-directional. An inverted L would work too as it's MOSTLY omni-directional. A loop, end fed, off center fed, or dipole is going to be directional. Google all this and you'll get a good idea.

Or we can talk shop in the equipment thread. Good luck!
eQSL: RobotMatrix@proton.me
NESDR Smart V5, Ham It Up upconverter v1.3, WEB-888 SDR, Inverted L Antenna 20' up and 30' over with adjustable base loading coil, and various other antennas to cover 1kHz-1+GHz. Unless otherwise noted, all signals or broadcasts are received at my QTH with my own gear.

 

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