Central Louisiana Amateur Radio Club

05/16/2026

This topic cannot be repeated enough.

STATION GROUNDING

We are certainly at risk from a lightning strike when we stick a piece of metal up just outside our home or on the roof. What is the
safest way to install your antennas near your home?

Keep in mind, electrical discharges from weather can go from the sky to ground, or from the ground up. A direct hit is less likely
than a partial hit from nearby lightning. We can not do much with a direct hit, but the partial discharges can be handled.

If you have a pole (metal) or a tower near your home, you will want to ground the structure to the earth. Using ground rod with a short
heavy wire or braid to the bottom of your pole or tower.

For a tower, 3 ground rods are recommend close to the tower. However, not in the concrete base. In the dirt.

A pole or mast, one ground rod is sufficient.

You can get ground rods from 2 feet to 8 feet. Which one do you
use?

Keep in mind, you are trying to dissipate a very high voltage. The earth can be referenced as 0 volts. When a storm comes in the
atmosphere can get heavily charged, either negative or positive. Therefore, a discharge can go either way.

You want as much surface area in your grounding to conductible earth as possible. Depending on your type of soil will determine
the type and size of your grounding system.

An eight foot ground rod in conductive soft soil may be sufficient. In some cases a 4 foot rod in harder, but conductive soil will
work.

Remember, it is area of contact you want to maximize. A horizontal ground system is quite affective. Much like a radial system, except
it does not need to be a tuned length and should be of heavy wire or rod.

Running a ground wire from your home to the grounding system of your antenna is a poor idea. You already have a coaxial cable
entering your home to burn it down. You do not want to invite an electrical discharge into your home any worse than you have to. In
most cases, it is best to use the grounding provided in your home for your equipment. Disconnecting during non-use is a good habit.

Your coax cable can be protected with coaxial lightning arresters. These can be placed at the tower or mast and grounded to the same
ground system. For added safety you can put one near your home with its own ground rod.

If your antenna is roof mounted, grounding is still important. Use a heavy ground wire connected to the base of your roof mount. Do
not lay it on the roof. Neatly run it over the side with stand-offs. Make sure none of it touches the building. This holds true
for the coax also.

Lightning is unpredictable, but using a few techniques can make your home and station safer.


~WD0EJA~

04/15/2026

https://www.mywabashvalley.com/news/itu-corp-acquires-hy-gain-cushcraft-from-mfj-enterprises/

LINTON, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — ITU Corporation is expanding its operations in Indiana after acquiring Hy-Gain and Cushcraft antennas, rotators and communications product lines from MFJ Enterprises. The…

04/13/2026

If you’ve ever been on the air around sunset or sunrise and noticed signals from the other side of the planet suddenly booming in—as if someone flipped a secret switch—you’ve experienced the Gray Line. In the ham radio world, we call this the "DX Magic Hour," and for good reason. It’s that brief, 30-to-45-minute window where the rules of physics seem to bend in our favor.

But what’s actually happening up there in the ionosphere?

The Science of the "Exterminator"

The Gray Line is essentially the Terminator—the moving boundary that separates day from night. The magic happens because of a perfect atmospheric "hand-off." During the day, the D-Layer is the enemy of low-band DX; it sits low in the atmosphere and gobbles up your signals on 160m, 80m, and 40m.

As the sun sets, the D-Layer disappears almost instantly because it needs direct sunlight to stay ionized. However, the higher F2-Layer is much thinner and takes a lot longer to lose its charge. For a short time, you have a clear path where your signal can bounce (refract) off the F2-Layer with almost zero absorption from the D-Layer. It’s like a high-speed tunnel for radio waves.

How to Ride the Wave

As you can see on the card I put together, the signals follow Great Circle paths along this twilight zone. This isn't just for the "Top Band" (160m) enthusiasts.

On 40m: This is the "bread and butter" of Gray Line work. You can often work stations halfway around the world with surprisingly low power.

On 160m and 80m: You’ll hear "impossible" signals. If you’re in South America at sunset, you might find yourself talking to someone in Asia who is just seeing their sunrise.

On 20m and 15m: It opens up unique polar paths that are usually closed during the dead of night or the heat of the day.

Tips for the Shack

The window is short, so you have to be ready. I always recommend using a real-time Gray Line map or a tool like VOACAP. The peak usually hits when both you and the DX station are sitting right on that terminator line. You’ll hear the noise floor drop, the signals rise, and for a few minutes, the world feels a lot smaller.

Next time you see the sky turning that deep orange or purple, don’t just admire the view—get on the rig. The Gray Line is nature’s own signal booster, and it’s waiting for you to jump in.

73 de PY6CJ - João Grisi