Locating Air Horn near SSB whip antenna

[Al Thomason]

How concerned do I need to be about an Air Horn (Buell, 17/23") near a
SSB antenna? The location I am going to put the whip in has an air
horn perhaps 1' forward. Should I relocate the horn to the other
side?

Thank you
-al-

 

[Jack Erbes]

How concerned do I need to be about an Air Horn (Buell, 17/23") near a
SSB antenna? The location I am going to put the whip in has an air
horn perhaps 1' forward. Should I relocate the horn to the other
side?

The blast effect or "felt" air pressure from those horns is actually
very little. I doubt that there would be any effect with the antenna
one foot away. If they are good horns, you'll need someone to put their
fingers in your ears while you test my statement.

A good set of Buell's is a requisite for any power boat that wants to
have any credibility. And then you can tune them too, did you know
that? If you can put small an inline regulator on the main feed line
and on one or both individual air lines to the horns, you can get the
sound to go into harmonic oscillations on the longer blasts. It is a
beautiful thing when it starts happening after one or two seconds. It
adds a real "I'd better pay attention and start looking for this guy!"
quality. A good skipper does not use his horns a lot but needs to be
heard when he does.

I have a Buell motorcycle, I often think of air horns when I look at it.
That big, lovely, Harley-Davidson V-Twin dinosaur engine seems to have
something in common with a pair of air horns. And I'd like to have a
set of Buells on my Buell but there is not really room for them.

Jack

 

[Bruce in Alaska]

The blast effect or "felt" air pressure from those horns is actually
very little. I doubt that there would be any effect with the antenna
one foot away. If they are good horns, you'll need someone to put their
fingers in your ears while you test my statement.

A good set of Buell's is a requisite for any power boat that wants to
have any credibility. And then you can tune them too, did you know
that? If you can put small an inline regulator on the main feed line
and on one or both individual air lines to the horns, you can get the
sound to go into harmonic oscillations on the longer blasts. It is a
beautiful thing when it starts happening after one or two seconds. It
adds a real "I'd better pay attention and start looking for this guy!"
quality. A good skipper does not use his horns a lot but needs to be
heard when he does.

I have a Buell motorcycle, I often think of air horns when I look at it.
That big, lovely, Harley-Davidson V-Twin dinosaur engine seems to have
something in common with a pair of air horns. And I'd like to have a
set of Buells on my Buell but there is not really room for them.

Jack

Jack, he wasn't worried about how the antenna effected the air horn...
he was worried if the air horn would effect the antenna......

Answer is, wait for it...... NO

Bruce in alaska

 

[Al Thomason]

Thanks, yes, effect on the SSB was what I was asking about.

Like the idea of tuning the Buell horns though! Just might look at
that.

re: location: great, can leave them on the Port side, away from my
ears when I sound them

-al-

 

[brad]

How concerned do I need to be about an Air Horn (Buell, 17/23") near a
SSB antenna? The location I am going to put the whip in has an air
horn perhaps 1' forward. Should I relocate the horn to the other
side?

Thank you
-al-

I can foresee two possible issues. The first is that the air horn might
interfere with the SWR of the antenna or have an effect on its radiation
pattern. Personally I wouldn't be all that worried... there's tons of
stuff on a boat that has the potential to cause those problems. I doubt
if a horn will make that much of a difference.

The second issue has to do with RFI. I would not be surprised at all if
while transmitting with the ssb antenna you generate all sorts of noise
coming out of the horn. However, that can happen regardless of where on
the boat you place the horn. If it becomes annoying you can always try
to filter out the noise at the horn side.

 

[Bruce in Alaska]

How concerned do I need to be about an Air Horn (Buell, 17/23") near a
SSB antenna? The location I am going to put the whip in has an air
horn perhaps 1' forward. Should I relocate the horn to the other
side?

Thank you
-al-

I can foresee two possible issues. The first is that the air horn might
interfere with the SWR of the antenna or have an effect on its radiation
pattern. Personally I wouldn't be all that worried... there's tons of
stuff on a boat that has the potential to cause those problems. I doubt
if a horn will make that much of a difference.

The second issue has to do with RFI. I would not be surprised at all if
while transmitting with the ssb antenna you generate all sorts of noise
coming out of the horn. However, that can happen regardless of where on
the boat you place the horn. If it becomes annoying you can always try
to filter out the noise at the horn side.[/QUOTE]

Maybe you can explain just how the OP's "AIR HORN" would be suseptable
to RF Interference from a MF/HF Antenna/Radio system mounted in
proximity to the antenna. All the radiomen of the newsgroup would
certainly like to understand this amazing phenominon.
Then again, after you get done figuring that out, could you kindly
explain, just how the presence of a, presumably Grounded, "Air Horn"
would have any measureable effect on the SWR of an MF/HF Antenna
System that is driven by an AutoTuner, that would take into account any
Near Field Grounded Element, every time the AutoTuner retuned the
antenna at a Frequency change? The Capacity of a Grounded Element
One Foot away from the base of an MF/HF Antenna would be, at the
maximum, maybe 1 or 2 PicoFarads, which at MF, and even the High HF
Frequencies, would be insignificant compared to the other elements in the
Antenna Mounting Structures, and the active elements in the autotuner
itself. Maybe Lynn, Larry, or maybe even Gary S. can chime in with
"further Light and Knowledge", on the above issues.

Bruce in alaska

 

[Gary Schafer]

How concerned do I need to be about an Air Horn (Buell, 17/23") near a
SSB antenna? The location I am going to put the whip in has an air
horn perhaps 1' forward. Should I relocate the horn to the other
side?

Thank you
-al-

I can foresee two possible issues. The first is that the air horn might
interfere with the SWR of the antenna or have an effect on its radiation
pattern. Personally I wouldn't be all that worried... there's tons of
stuff on a boat that has the potential to cause those problems. I doubt
if a horn will make that much of a difference.

The second issue has to do with RFI. I would not be surprised at all if
while transmitting with the ssb antenna you generate all sorts of noise
coming out of the horn. However, that can happen regardless of where on
the boat you place the horn. If it becomes annoying you can always try
to filter out the noise at the horn side.

Maybe you can explain just how the OP's "AIR HORN" would be suseptable
to RF Interference from a MF/HF Antenna/Radio system mounted in
proximity to the antenna. All the radiomen of the newsgroup would
certainly like to understand this amazing phenominon.
Then again, after you get done figuring that out, could you kindly
explain, just how the presence of a, presumably Grounded, "Air Horn"
would have any measureable effect on the SWR of an MF/HF Antenna
System that is driven by an AutoTuner, that would take into account any
Near Field Grounded Element, every time the AutoTuner retuned the
antenna at a Frequency change? The Capacity of a Grounded Element
One Foot away from the base of an MF/HF Antenna would be, at the
maximum, maybe 1 or 2 PicoFarads, which at MF, and even the High HF
Frequencies, would be insignificant compared to the other elements in the
Antenna Mounting Structures, and the active elements in the autotuner
itself. Maybe Lynn, Larry, or maybe even Gary S. can chime in with
"further Light and Knowledge", on the above issues.

Bruce in alaska[/QUOTE]

Well, you know Bruce; with all that air around the horn being heated
by the RF in close proximity there is bound to be some interference.
Not to mention the possibility of the horn being resonant and setting
up self oscillations of its own in the presence of the RF. :>)

Regards
Gary

 

[Lynn Coffelt]

How concerned do I need to be about an Air Horn (Buell, 17/23") near a
SSB antenna? The location I am going to put the whip in has an air
horn perhaps 1' forward. Should I relocate the horn to the other
side?

Thank you
-al-

I can foresee two possible issues. The first is that the air horn might
interfere with the SWR of the antenna or have an effect on its radiation
pattern. Personally I wouldn't be all that worried... there's tons of
stuff on a boat that has the potential to cause those problems. I doubt
if a horn will make that much of a difference.

The second issue has to do with RFI. I would not be surprised at all if
while transmitting with the ssb antenna you generate all sorts of noise
coming out of the horn. However, that can happen regardless of where on
the boat you place the horn. If it becomes annoying you can always try
to filter out the noise at the horn side.

Maybe you can explain just how the OP's "AIR HORN" would be suseptable
to RF Interference from a MF/HF Antenna/Radio system mounted in
proximity to the antenna. All the radiomen of the newsgroup would
certainly like to understand this amazing phenominon.
Then again, after you get done figuring that out, could you kindly
explain, just how the presence of a, presumably Grounded, "Air Horn"
would have any measureable effect on the SWR of an MF/HF Antenna
System that is driven by an AutoTuner, that would take into account any
Near Field Grounded Element, every time the AutoTuner retuned the
antenna at a Frequency change? The Capacity of a Grounded Element
One Foot away from the base of an MF/HF Antenna would be, at the
maximum, maybe 1 or 2 PicoFarads, which at MF, and even the High HF
Frequencies, would be insignificant compared to the other elements in the
Antenna Mounting Structures, and the active elements in the autotuner
itself. Maybe Lynn, Larry, or maybe even Gary S. can chime in with
"further Light and Knowledge", on the above issues.

Bruce in alaska[/QUOTE]

Snicker, snicker, snort, snort!
Old Chief Lynn

 

[Bruce in Alaska]

Well, you know Bruce; with all that air around the horn being heated
by the RF in close proximity there is bound to be some interference.
Not to mention the possibility of the horn being resonant and setting
up self oscillations of its own in the presence of the RF. :>)

Regards
Gary

Hi Gary, I wasn't sure you were still lurking around the group. Nice
to see ya......

Well, I suppost there is a very minor chance of that, BUT.........

Bruce in alaska

 

[Gary Schafer]

Hi Gary, I wasn't sure you were still lurking around the group. Nice
to see ya......

Well, I suppost there is a very minor chance of that, BUT.........

Bruce in alaska

Hi Bruce,

So minor that you can probably win the lottery 3 times in a row first.
:>)

Still lurking once in awhile.

Regards
Gary