~ CCD Antenna for 40 and 20 meters ~
These images of a Controlled Current Distribution (CCD) antenna are at the home of ham radio operators AA6SC and N6TOH in Tehachapi. Antenna leads are artificially colored white to make them visible. Steel pipe masts are yellow for the same reason. The center mast is 36 feet high. 11-foot masts are at the low ends. Friends Kelsey and Cris agreed to capture these images. Cris is out in the field flying the drone while Kelsey, with property owners N6TOH and AA6SC, can be viewed in a brightened circle near the center. Antenna length is 114 feet, and it resonates on 40 and 20 meters. Technical details and information can be found at Dave Kelley’s CCD ANTENNA web site.
This shows more of the 10-acre parcel, which has been in N6TOH’s family since 1948, with the house located on a knoll 51 feet above the road. At this elevation, the antenna’s 36-foot center mast reaches a height of 87 feet above the road, with the CCD’s balun one foot below that. Look closely at the top of the center mast where a 1-foot length of nylon line allows the balun to hang away from the mast a bit. The two legs are at 90 degrees, an experiment that seems to have paid off.
Snow on the ground remains from a week-old storm that dropped 11 inches in less than two days (December 14-15, 2021).
Here an attempt was made to follow the antenna’s slight droop with the added white line.
The black “barber pole spiral” encircling the center mast is the coaxial transmission line being held firmly in place, undisturbed by wind.
A closeup at the top of the center mast showing how the nylon line supporting the balun is slackened to allow the antenna some distance from the steel pipe… that is, moving it out of the field, even if only a small amount. Looking at the top lead running off to the right, a circuit board containing one of the capacitors can be seen.
Take a 42-second flight from below the knoll to the top of the antenna.
A view showing the magnitude of the knoll above the road. Sharp eyes will spot the antenna’s center mast to the right of the house.
—Photographs and video by Cris
MYSTERY AND MAGIC OF THE CCD—This is the third station belonging to AA6SC equipped with a CCD antenna, and is also the most effective with regard to consistently successful transmission distances; even better in reception. Most days it is used on 40 meters with good results. AD7MD and AI7R, developers of the modern dual-band CCD, rate these antennæ at a maximum power input of 800 watts. While on the topic of AD7MD, here is a link to a paper he published during 2000.
https://coutant.com/ccdaerials/charlie.html
This view requires no Photoshop embellishment, since the white line is genuine snow on the antenna.