The VE3VRQ 6m Cubical Quad Antenna

I posted this portion as a message to the VHF Reflector, and thought that
it should be given wide spread veiwing by everyone who wishes to enter into 6m,
but may be somewhat sceptical whether it is worth going to a new VHF band.

		To all 2m operaters reading this message, I encurrage you to purchase the TenTec 1209 transverter.
	Connect it to  your present 2m rig.  Then build a simple Quad (3ele's).  My Quad was constructed from
	a boom of 2" x 2" x 11' Construction grade pine, with element holders being 1/2" dowels (12 of course).
	The elements themselves were from 2 Radioshack SW antenna hardware kits.  No. 12 bare copper wire in a
	package, with insulators.  I purchased the 2 SW (Shortwave) hardware kits to construct a longwire
	6m antenna.

		Having made only one QSO on 06APR98 with N2JMH, I decided to look into making a cheap Quad, hence
	I opened my ARRL Antenna Handbook, ARRL Handbook, and asked a few questions on the Internet, which lead
	me to the following URL:

	http://www.softcom.net/users/kd6dks/quad.html


		What follows is the VE3VRQ enhanced KD6DKS / ARRL Cubical Shoe String Quad!  Primed 'mathmatically'
	for 50.125!

		I converted every number into mm to ensure most accuracy during construction, as I was going to use
	my children to help construct the antenna, and they are fantastic distractors! :^]  Here is the final
	measurements I came up with all in mm (unless otherwise noted).


			Element        -A-         -B-         -C-
			Reflector  : 6,263mm     1,566mm     1,107mm   CUT ALL WIRES LONGER BY 200mm - 300mm
			Driven Ele : 6,112mm     1,528mm     1,080mm   TO TWIST ENDS TOGETHER MEASURE AND MARK
			Director #1: 5,929mm     1,482mm     1,048mm   (90deg bend in wire was good for me!)

			Optional Directors for enhanced work:

			Director #2: 5,751mm     1,437mm     1,017mm
			Director #3: 5,578mm     1,395mm       986mm
			Director #4: 5,411mm     1,352mm       956mm
			Director #5: 5,249mm     1,312mm       927mm

			** -> Director Spacing 1,411mm for EACH element

			A = Circumferance of each element
			B = 1 leg (1/4 cir)
			C = this measurement is where you would attach the element to the dowel.
			    - Measured from Boom Center out to Dowel Tip.
ASSEMBLY:
	Click HERE to view a detailed construction shot. (192k)

NOTE:	Measure TWICE and CUT once!  This is NOT a one man job!  2 people minimum!  The more the better.

	o Mark your measurements on the boom noting which end is forward with a 3" nail sticking out 2".  This
	  will be used to hold the element guy string together later.
	o Drill 2 x 1/2" holes through the boom crosswise to each other, where you have marked the location of
	  the Reflector and guck the holes with yellow wood glue.
	o Insert 2 x 1/2"  dowels horizontally,  so they butt up with  one another.  Hold for a min of 5 mins.
	o Insert 2 x 1/2"  dowels vertaclly  about  3/4" deep  into  each hole.   hold  for a  min of  5 mins.
	o Guck the next  set of holes for the  Driven Element  (noted as  the Director  in the picture),  and
	  insert dowels as instructed above.  Carry this on for each element location.
	o Measure and cut your elements to the above specified lengths.

NOTE:   Loop and tie the all element ends together, with the exception for the Driven Element (noted as  the
	  Director in the picture).  The ends of wire of the  Driven Element are  soldered to the coax (one to
	  the center conductor and the other end to the sheilding (I was UNABLE to solder my ends together, so
	  I used 2 small cable tie straps to secure the Driven Element to the Coax!).  Secure this end to  the
	  dowel with twine, ensuring the ends do NOT short together.

	o Measure and mark the locations where the elements are to be inserted onto the dowels.
	o I tied  the elements to the dowels  with butcher's  cotton twine,  then tied  each dowel  lengthwise
	  together to hold the elements in place.
	o Once assembled,  Find the balance point of the boom  and mark it.  Drill 2 x 1/4" or 5/16" holes for
	  the U-clamp to secure the boom to the mast.

	Make sure the twine secures the element tightly.  Butcher's cord is only a temp measure, since I'm sure
	it will rott away in time,  but it sure got me up &  running on 6m ASAP and on a  "shoe-string" budget.
	My 1st antenna construction  lasted 3 years before  it fell apart.  If you coat the wood with Verathane
	or Shelac this will give you a longer life, but also increases the cost of construction.

INFO:	  Unlike the picture, I have my Coax running up the dowel to the boom, and taped and tie strapped in
	  place, to the center of the boom, then down the mast to the ground, taped and tied as required so it
	  does NOT get tangled with the rotor (You can see this clearly in the ABOVE photo).
	  Also, in the picture I have included a boom support structure to be incorporated if you decided to
	  use more than 3 elements (4 - 7 element construction).

My 6m station consists of the following equipment: o Yaesu FT7221r (2m module installed) o TenTec 1209 2m / 6m Transverter (pre-assembled) o 3 element VE3VRQ enhanced KD6DKS / ARRL Cubical Shoe String Quad! And ONLY 6' in the air (Measured Boom <-> GND)! o Mirage A1015G 150w Amplifier w/Preamp o 2,000+ QSO's w/ 44+ countries & 332+ grids worked