Dimension-wise, K2AV's Inverted L since 2015, plus Isolation Transformer and FCP is very ordinary and only middle-sized, so YES ...
... IF you account for amplifier vs. no amplifier ...
and IF you also follow the specifications on this web site ...
and IF you also deal with
items lurking in your own environment and installation ...
then YES, you can/should have the same kind of signal as K2AV. Perhaps better.
K2AV's signal should be ordinary ... not because his signal is mediocre, but because his loud signal should be only one of hundreds of loud small lot signals.
That's the point! It's not that K2AV is so great. It's that so many small lot 160 meter setups are drowning in loss, as are a fair number of not-so-small-lot setups. K2AV's installation is entirely by this web site's specifications, and he has done the work to fix his items. But some don't know or believe that the losses even exist. Some don't believe they could make such a large difference.
Hams usually will want some kind of assurance before tackling a big improvement project like a 160m inverted L over FCP. It's too much physical and mental work to expend without some confidence that it will work. Unfortunately, nay-sayers abound.
There's the guy at the radio club, whose ARRL Antenna Handbook doesn't mention an FCP, who will ask you questions you can't answer because you haven't memorized everything on k2av.com. There's the skeptic, who simply disbelieves various assertions on this site, especially certain unbending specifications for design and materials.
So, we really do understand where you're at. As they say, "Been there, done that." Wish we had a Franklin for every time someone told us that's wrong or that can't possibly work. We really do understand.
With that in mind, we invite the reader to avail themselves of these tools to have a look:
1) On the air comparisons.
2) RBN data and comparisons
3) Word of mouth, success stories from trusted sources.
4) Reports of difficult stations worked.
5) K2AV contest scores, slow improvement over time as antenna issues and improvements emerged.
The easiest way to evaluate an L over FCP is to listen from afar to a signal from someone else's L over FCP. You can do this with a sked, but most effectively in a contest situation with many signals creating a comparison landscape. If you don't know someone, K2AV has an L over FCP. His L/IsoT/FCP is per the web site specifications and has been scraped clean with
Circumstances permitting, K2AV will be found in all the regular 160 meter contests: CQ 160 CW & SSB, ARRL 160, all four Stew Perry's. He tends to run early in the contest, when you can find him with RBN spots. He may also work a serious 80 meter single band entry in the CQWW DX CW or the ARRL DX CW.
K2AV can frequently be heard Wednesday nights (Thursday Zulu) on CW in the weekly 0300-0400Z CWOPS Minitest (CWT). Look for a lot of stations bunched together sending "CQ CWT".
K2AV will be on 160 in the last 30 or 20 minutes of the CWT, mostly running, going to search and pounce in the last 3,4,5 minutes. In the CWT 160m is most active 0345-0400Z.
If K2AV is on 80 in the CWT, it will be in the first 30 or 40 minutes. His 80/75 meter operation will be using the dual banding circuit on this web site.
If you know station locations or don't mind looking them up, comparing signals from the same coast, region, or metro area will produce the most accurate results from this approximate method.
This method works best comparing serious CW contest efforts from stations calling CQ from the same metro/local area, e.g. comparing K2AV, N1LN, N4XD, and N4YDU if he's not remote, all in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill area of North Carolina. One or two days after the contest, use the RBN spot analysis tool to compare 2, 3, or 4 stations' spots, one RBN node at a time. One or two of the compared contestants should be stations with known strong signals.
N1LN identified some persistent subtle troubles using this technique. He compared his contest RBNs with K2AV's, 20.7 miles away. After loss mitigations, Bruce's later contest RBN comparisons with K2AV improved by 4 or 5 dB. Contest results at N1LN to Europe and the West Coast showed an improvement consistent with the improved RBN comparisons.
This is the best kind of reference, especially if it includes an opportunity to operate the station with the FCP. Frequently these come from face-to-face encounters at radio clubs. Stories can also come from reflectors, but only a tiny percentage of reflector subscribers actually ever post about anything.
If you have had success with an FCP, posting to TopBand will likely help someone trying to figure his next move. But if you're waiting for an endorsement to surface before taking the plunge, you may be waiting a long time, even if there are fifty subscribers with positive experiences. It's most likely that none of the fifty will ever post about it. They either don't like writing, or they don't want to put up with the criticisms of success so often seen on the reflector.
This fuzzy conclusion category includes taking less time in pileups, or crashing pileups, or being able to work the station in the pileup at all. While these results are very satisfying outcomes to the reporting ham, it is very hard to generate valid statistics from them for guiding antenna decisions.
One Scottish station's frustrating 160m "before" experience was being able to work the UK, but considerable difficulty working the Continent past the western coasts, most often failing. Forget North America. After installing a 160m L/IsoT/FCP with only a 25 foot vertical wire on a lot with a 23 foot x 71 foot back yard, the "after" 160m experience included working the TX5K DXpedition on the far side of North America in the Eastern Pacific.
Even with the statistically frail "stations worked" comparison, if the comparison difference is extreme enough, it can probably be taken to the bank.
It's tricky to use contest scores to rate an antenna. A lot of things go into a particular contest performance, and any one or two stellar aspects might drive an exceptional score.
An individual contest score, when compared to the universe of scores from that contest, could solidly recommend an antenna if the score was high enough that most would think other factors also had to be well-oiled and at peak. But that's unusual. Even a stellar performance like N4YDU's 7 meg SOHP score from TI5W in the 2018 ARRL DX generated diverse opinions about the role of the TI5W antennas.
In a particular contest, propagation, or a new rig, or stellar operating skills, or operator health on the contest weekend, or operator recent sleep status, or all of the station making it through the entire contest, or whatever... make trying to scientifically gauge an antenna based on ONE score in ONE contest quite difficult if not impossible.
However, a single contest with exceptional improvement over the previous year's running, while perhaps not proving anything scientifically, may be quite enough to rouse curiosity and turn a single contest into a long project of discovery. That would be like K2AV's first 160 contest (Jan 2011 CQ160CW) after switching to an isolation transformer at his inverted L's feedpoint, creating his first experience with the basic L/IsoT/FCP. That tale is related in
What about long term trends, say contest scores from a single station over a decade, particularly if a good number of aspects are held constant. Perhaps in a HISTORY of contest scores, some things will stand out. If the history has a clear trend, then the longer the history, the less chance of one-off events distorting perception. A decade of K2AV with L/IsoT/FCP 160m contest scores follows.
The scores date range will not be extended beyond 2021. The 2022 addition of RX antennas, and another period of health issues, breaks the comparisons criteria of non-TX-antenna things held constant.
Please understand this is not a brag session. Again, it's not that K2AV's signal is so great...
Please compare the Jan 1998 CQ160CW with the Jan 2011. This shows the big jump in performance pre-FCP to post-FCP. The scores are roughly equal. But what took 1500 watts in '98, without the FCP, only took 100 watts in '11 with the FCP. It's almost impossible to not start wondering about a very large improvement.
The '98 score was a full time effort, easily K2AV's best home 160 score before the FCP, including two JA and a VK among 71 ten point QSO's. The '98 setup was an FT1000MP + AL1200, high end for the time.
The '98 antenna was an Inv L up 63', out 70', unfortunately with 5 irregular, quite bent on-ground radials. The house and support trees limited radial wire azimuth coverage to only 220° of 360.
There were no RX antennas in '98. At that time hearing the DX was not the problem. The '98 problem was being unable to work much of what could be heard.
As the 2011 CQ160CW ended K2AV knew he had surpassed his '98 score without the help of his AL1200, running his K3 barefoot to an L over FCP. The comparison suggested a hard-to-believe 12+ dB antenna improvement, L over FCP vs. L over sparse irregular ground radials. See for why the AL1200 was deliberately turned off.
Many consider winter 1997-98 160 propagation the best of their lifetime, adding to the accomplishment of '11 beating '98 with 12 dB less power. K2AV didn't know he had also done it without still-in-the-future 2012-18 Loss List improvements now helping produce top ten scores in the highly competitive high power classes.
The '11 K3's overall better RX vs. the '98 MP was no factor comparing '11 to '98. In '98 at home, QRO, K2AV could not work everything he heard on the MP.
At NY4A, it was a very different story. The same K3 carried out to NY4A clearly improved RX to Europe on the monster 40m five element quad on a 200' catenary. The quad's huge RX levels, including 60 over 9 stuff in the 7 MHz broadcast band, did not overload the K3 as we now know they were overloading the MP, creating what we thought was basic band noise. At NY4A the K3 exposed a whole new layer of weak EU stations to work.
Note: The Jan 1998 score is not listed in Dec '98 CQ mag or derived listings. TRLog's log, summary and dupe sheets were recently discovered on 3.5 inch floppy disk at K2AV. Calls in the log match calls in the CQ mag listing. No ranking is inferred. The score is only listed here to provide the highest scoring available comparison from pre-FCP K2AV. Explanation why this score is not listed in CQ is not available. The non-inclusion was discovered for the first time February 10, 2020, over two decades later, just a tad late for remedy.
Remaining highlighting shows the gradually improving scores with-FCP, in red and pink highlighting, through light green and green highlighting, finally to blue highlighting with loss-list-work-finished. Top ten official USA and/or top ten official call area or ARRL division scores in class are noted - actual scores in the listing are all claimed scores. "x" as a USA rank means the score was not in official USA top ten, but was in official call area or division top ten.
What could have improved gradually over a decade?
Better transceiver? No. -- K3 was the transceiver in use for all with-FCP scores. K3 was introduced in 2007.
Better, bigger Amp? No. -- After Low power entries in the Jan, Dec 2011 contests, amps used since: Alpha 8410, Acom 2000A, KPA1500, all full 1.5 kW.
Better RX antenna? No. -- Very poor or no RX antenna the entire time (a long story). The scores on the new L were all receiving on the TX antenna as improved over time with a properly connected isolation transformer in line.
Different TX antenna? No. -- The Dec 2010 contest did not have an isolation transformer. But otherwise all contests used an isolation transformer feeding inverted L over FCP.
Operator skills improving? No. -- K2AV estimates that if anything, over the last ten years he's lost a few steps in the race.
He broke into serious DX contesting as 40m op at W4KXV M/M station in early 60's. He continued as 40m op at world class M/M W4BVV late 60's early 70's. Operated some 80m at world class W2PV M/M after moved to NY. In North Carolina mostly 40m at multi/x NY4A(@N4AF), from 1999 until Howie ceased multi operations. NY4A time included one top world WPX CW M/M, top USA M/2 in ARRLDX CW and CQWWDX CW. All these were before the L/FCP decade in the listing.
Sunspot count leaning on the score? No. -- Earliest period (lowest scores) and latest period (highest scores) both occurred in a sunspot minimum.
Change in residence to a better QTH between early and late scores? No. -- K2AV has operated at his current location since 1990.
Was there anything that got better starting in 2010, continued improvement over the decade, and currently stands at it's best? Yes. --
Over time, the FCP project accumulated refinements to the design, materials and implementation of the L/IsoT/FCP, and importantly solved loss issues discovered by FCP installers and added to Refinements and loss mitigations were gradually all implemented at K2AV.
Thus it began with a wire, back when K2AV's unconscious assumption was that only the shape and length of the aerial wire(s) mattered, as long as you could get to it with a feedline without too much loss. When lightning blew up a 120 foot tulip poplar tree down by the creek, a clear space was opened up that would allow a large 160 meter inverted L. The grand experiment, already under way at W0UCE's small lot QTH, was now on at the long and narrow K2AV property, quite too narrow and cluttered for the gold standard ¼ wave ground radials needed for the poor-at-RF North Carolina sand and red clay dirt.
Using the "Old" inverted L down over the creek: FCP at 6 feet, 84 foot vertical wire, 105 foot horizontal wire (3/8 wave L). This predates adoption of the isolation transformer. A very compact and easy-to-support FCP was made from WireMan #554 450 ohm window line. The 33 foot first wire was threaded through holes in the center of the bars between the 66 foot window line wires. However, this implementation proved remarkably lossy and was replaced before the Jan 2011 CQ 160 CW contest. Various QRO pre-isolation-transformer antenna feed experiments produced devices too hot to touch, or even outright destroyed.
Still using the old inverted L, but now with a 4:1 impedance ratio isolation transformer with a trifilar winding on a T400A-2 powdered iron core with PTFE (e.g. Teflon™) sleeved double polyimide #14. The 90 ohm feed R of the long L was stepped up to 360 ohms to match the measured Z0 of the Wireman #554 window line back up to the shack. The net inductive reactance was tuned out with a vacuum cap. Also now using an FCP made from solid #14 THHN (PVC insulated house electrical wire) and 73CNC™ ladder snaps every 18 inches. This is the time point in where over 400 watts to the antenna shut down K2AV's and his neighbor's Uverse gateway boxes.
Used in an FCP, THHN plus ladder snaps proved lossy. At W0UCE almost a dB was reclaimed by replacing a similar FCP with today's specified solid bare #12 at 4 inches with widely spaced 1/2 inch PVC spacers. This replacement was not done at K2AV until relocating the L due to a couple years outdoor work lost to serious health problems.
The L/FCP is now up at the house due to power line construction on the service road. The tree supporting the far end of the old horizontal wire could fall into the new 13 kV primary lines and the L could not be safely raised or lowered once the lines were energized, in addition to possible increased RX noise and other issues.
Conveniently for the 160m situation, the excellent 80 meter end-fed halfwave inverted L (80EFHWL) previously taking up airspace at the house had been evaporated by a lightning strike.
That 80EFHWL wire, in theory also a useful quarter wave on 160, worked poorly on 160 despite an excellent and broad SWR. We now know the 160 problem was unavoidably very inefficient sparse and irregular on-ground radials over poor soil, improvement stymied by residence, outbuilding placement and property lines.
Up at the house the new L was installed to replace the evaporated L, this time an FCP from bare solid #12, as 160 counterpoise.
K2AV notes that suggestion and placement for both 160 inverted L's used in the score listing came from lightning strikes. Hard to ignore.
Dimension changes: The new L is downsized, 55 foot vertical wire over FCP at 11 feet and an 88 foot horizontal wire. The old L had 84 foot vertical wire over FCP at 6 feet, 105 foot horizontal wire.
Loss List remedies applied/accomplished and other changes when replacing old creekside L/FCP with new L/FCP up by the house:
1) New antenna's ground altitude is 330 feet ASL, affording better take-off, less locally tree-obscured to West and Northeast over 400 foot elevation terrain at half mile, mile distances. The old ground altitude was 300 feet, takeoff locally obscured in all directions by tall trees.
2) Feedline is now the 82 feet of coax which used to feed the 80EFHWL. Feedline to the old L was 90 feet of coax plus 9:1 impedance transformer and 450 feet of elevated Wireman #554 window line. The window line was subject to stretching from branches and trees falling on it. It was mounted too close to trees with electric fence insulators, adding loss. The tree-mounted supports gave opportunity to squirrels who gnawed PE off window line wires, which in turn allowed water to contaminate the stranded wires for about ±25 feet, more loss.
3) New FCP is bare, solid #12 and 7 PVC spacers. Old FCP was solid #14 THHN and sixty six 73CNC ladder snaps, two every 18 inches on 3 wire side, one every 18 inches on 2 wire side, proven lossy for use as an FCP at W0UCE.
4) New FCP is up at 11 feet, old at 6 feet.
5) New FCP is stretched over cleared and mowed backyard, driveway, and through center of a maintained 10 foot diameter "tunnel" cleared of any vegetation and tree trunks and branches. Old FCP was strung over creek-fed juicy vegetation growing right up to, through and past FCP height, and through one small tree.
Disadvantage at new L/FCP location: Three large oaks were inside the bend of the L. Site was chosen in spite of the oaks because it was the only remaining non-tower site on the property. See green highlighting for resolution.
Loss List remedies accomplished after winter 2015-16:
1) Three large oak trees inside the bend of the L were felled by tree pro's.
To support negotiations on tree removal, it was noted that the trees were dropping branches onto the roof and onto cars parked on the garage apron area. Also agreed, and accomplished, that space cleared on ground by felling the oaks was to be replanted with crepe myrtles, a low decorative flowering tree normally trimmed on top to improve appearance.
2) Trees in the area of the bend-support tree were severely trimmed at the trunk to entirely remove branches growing toward the vertical wire.
3) Large oak near far end of L was severely trimmed at the trunk to entirely remove branches growing toward the horizontal wire.
Last To-Be-Remedied Loss List Items: Late December 2018.
1) The 28-years-in-place RG8 type feedline was replaced with LDF4-50A 1/2 inch hardline, reclaiming 0.3 or 0.4 dB.
2) 7/16 Din connectors replaced the stock SO239/PL259 jack for that hardline on my trusty ATR-30 tuner. This eliminated an arc point, allowing full QRO by-the-numbers
L/FCP tuning up to a 2.0 MHz 11:1 SWR on an L/FCP tuned at the base to 1.825 MHz.
The truly ugly back-tormenting dig, in low crawlspace under the deck, was mainly responsible for the long delay replacing the feedline.
Pulling out the old 160m feed coax revealed it was unchanged and unmoved since installed to feed the 80EFHWL in 1990. The run had two sections spliced with a long forgotten and heavily corroded barrel connector (see left). One spliced section still had a tape tag on it, identifying it as at least 34 year old foam RG8, bought in early 80's when K2AV still lived in Mahopac, NY.
After the move to North Carolina, money was tight. Old coax lengths brought down in the move had to be connected together and reused. Once installed, memory of its origins was all but lost, including that pesky detail about a now hidden and unprotected barrel connector splice. During removal the barrel broke apart attempting to disconnect the coaxes. The SWR over the line was never bad if the antenna was working.
85 feet of hardline now runs from the isolation transformer to the back of the ATR-30 tuner in the shack without a break, allowing method T when needed. The antenna end of the hardline is isolated from the antenna itself by the 55 kV of insulation in the isolation transformer.
The hardline shield is grounded outside at the house entrance pipe and buried with other coax and control cables in conduit out to the tractor shed, eliminating a longstanding complaint about backyard cables and coax out to the northeast back yard.
Big three for three batting average in happy-wife-related loss list fixes:
1) FCP was camouflaged with "camo brown" spray paint. The FCP can't be seen from the kitchen window against the woodsy backdrop unless you know where to look.
2) Large oak trees inside the inverted L's bend were removed and replaced with pretty, long blooming and low Crepe Myrtle trees, and one now springtime-gorgeous White Dogwood that got healthy when the overhead sun block was removed.
3) Installed all-new coax and cables to NE back yard, laid in buried conduit between house and shed that can't be seen, snag the mower or make a bump to be tripped on.