What is an "antenna shoot out," you ask?

A antenna comparison test, between several HAM's, mobile HF Antenna's (This also tests for proper installation, as this will greatly effect the antenna's performance, especially the antenna's grounding system (ground, ground, ground).

All the HAM's had, 100 Watt radios, drivers side mounted antenna's (hits less trees, this way), and the base feed point of the antenna's averaged three feet, and the tips averaged twelve feet tall.

The monitoring station was a full sized 40M vertical (at KO6RS's house) and a old HP Spectrum analyzer set to liner (Voltage) mode;  It's easier to see small differences, this way (was converted, later to db), and a 60 db variable attenuator. There was some differences seen between the first two test, as rain fell the previous day, on the first test.
 
 

Place (Ranking)	Call Sign	Antenna Type	Notes
1st	AC6DN	Don Johnson DK-3c	Using a High Sierra capacity hat
2nd	N6FM	Hi-Q-5/160 RT	Need more grounding work...
3rd	WA6HHQ	High sierra, Sidekick (shorty)	Need more grounding work...
4th	KG6AXD	102 inch CB whip	Using an AH-4*
5th	KO6RS	Modified HAM Stick	Also using an AH-4*
6th

* Note: AH-4's have a problem; Internal HV arching to ground. There is an antenna output relay used, that is mounted on the PCB, above the relay's coil ground. The antenna output relay terminal, has high voltage on it. And sense it sits at less than, 1/16th inch gap, between the board and the relay, it arc's, carbon tracks, and finally shorts out. This happened to both antenna tuner's, during this test at (CW) 100W (40/80M).
The solution is to replace the relay and cut out the relay's ground trace, rewire the relay's ground (avoiding the area around under the relay's), and install the relay with a HV insulator, or leave a gap underneath the relay...
 

Also Check out my pages on:

Neat trick, to easy mobile HF band, quick changes...
More (testing) to come...
AC6DN's HF mobile setup:
What is the minimum needed, to opperate HF Mobile?
List of Screwdriver Antenna Mfgrs....
The rest of my site...

First antenna tests (in pdf format. See the graph below)...

Note: AC6DN's South bound (S) location at number 4,  was incorrect (I was in the wrong place), so it doesn't correlate to the others...

WA6HHQ and N6FM, plans to add some ground straps to there installations. I (AC6DN) have added a two foot extension to my capacity hat, and chopped off, the top two feet, of the antenna.  It is believed, that it's best to get the cap hat, high up on the antenna as possible, and that any part of the antenna above the cap hat, dose not radiate much (and, I would have been over 13.8 Ft). Using over the air, A/B test, I gained about 6 db (an S-unit) on 80M (3840 kHz). And, Well, ah, I found that one of my main (two, 1/4 in. by five inches long) ground braids, had a cold soldier joint.  This has been fixed...