Hello LF Group

        Many thanks for all comments and advice - most interesting.

        I drilled out the wooden dowels on the loading coil and replaced
them with lengths of 15 mm plastic water pipe.
        I was unable to obtain plastic rod at short notice and my XYL
wouldn't let me have her knitting needles !
        The pipe was not really rigid enough and bent slightly but was
sufficient to prove the experiment.
        With this new arrangement I obtained my personal best Q of about
250..

        Placing the new coil in the aerial circuit made a slight improvement
to the aerial current - from about 1.2 A to 1.5 A
        I would have thought that as most of the losses were in the coil a
bigger current improvement would have been achieved.

        I share my office with some young electronics engineers and was
surprised that they know very little about RF inductors or Q factor.
        It must be a dying art !

        My next improvement will be to raise the 'droopy' end of my aerial,
presently at a height of about 5 metres
        Unfortunately two neighbours' telephone wires pass over my garden
where the mast was to be situated.
        Any suggestions - should I go over the wires or keep well clear of
them and cut a length off the aerial ?
        Presumably I can't get the phone company to move their wires !!

        73 Chris G3XIZ

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