Lightening protection technic you may have forgotten!

[@N2RRAny]

As per a small 14awg, 12awg wire to a 500mc wire I assure you the 500MC wire "will not" vaporize. If you want to bleed off static build up then a flat copper strap (wider the better) has less resistance than 12awg wire. The small 12awg wire seen in photo also has a potential to cause "skin effect" reducing the ability to bleed R.F. ,or static build up.

[@DarkStarPDX]

I gotta agree with qhack. The purpose of grounding metal objects is to bring it to the same "potential" as ground, minimizing the likelihood of a direct lightning strike (I call this "safety grounding"). Even if you're using a thick ground wire, a direct strike will still likely vaporize the wire.

[@DarkStarPDX]

Given those criteria, I would best pick "earth grounding." BTW, I think a grounding technic is some sort of record player that is used on the ground. :-)

[@TonyNap1]

Didn't even know you shot video of this! Cool video...Where have you been? Hope all is well...73

[@N2RRAny]

qhack, you are correct about static build up and of course you left out stray R.F. but you are wrong about what the main purpose of the type of grounding I'm showing in this vid. Guess you missed the point! What you see in the video is purely "lightening protection grounding" at a commercial level. I can assure you that tower has been hit many times and that type of ground has served it's purpose.

[@N2RRAny]

DarkStarPDX, you still don't get it. That's okay! My bad for forgetting not everyone is technically knowledgable enough to know better what the video was conveying. In fact I'm going to change the title just for those people. Thanks!

[@qhack]

I think you miss the point of grounding your antenna... It isn't to provide a path for the lightning to travel (though it would be smart to have a ground system that can handle that) No the point of grounding the antenna is to bleed off the static build up, so that lightning doesn't strike your antenna. The little ground wire you claim won't do anything is actually doing quite a lot. However, if lightning did strike it, you are correct, it would vaporize.

[@N2RRAny]

All is well! Was gonna Lang line you the other day but as usual hot busy. Got tired of calling you guys on HWW. Damn machine is always dead! TTY soon!

[@N2RRAny]

DarkStarPDX, there is no such thing, or term called "safety grounding" as you call it. There is such terms as grid grounding, isolation ground, lightening protection grounding, earth ground and an electrical ground.

[@OK2BCK]

technique? I miss thunderstorms