welcome back art, glad you are still around or it could be a long cold
winter! i definately look forward to your rediculous theories to give me a
good laugh now and then. once the current flows back down inside the
antenna element, where does it go?

"Art Unwin" wrote in message
...
I can easily see myself as being viewed as an "unwashed ham" on this
newsgroup !
I am still of the belief that on a fractional wave antenna the current
travels on both the outside
and the inside of the radiator. This puts me in opposition to the
multitude of "washed" hams
who resist change even tho as yet I have not been proved as being in
error.
I suppose a "washed" ham is one who is of the opinion that "all is
known about antennas" and thus
"change" is to be avoided.
At the moment the consensus seems to be that current only flows on the
outside of a radiator as an open circuit where-as a few say the power
jumps from the end of the antennas to ground to complete a circuit.
One would tend to think that a newsgroup of "washed" hams would be
able to supply the definitive answer in line with "all is known".
Points to consider,
A fractional wavelength antenna is NOT in a state of equi;ibrium
( balanced forces if you prefer)
where a full wave radiator IS in a state of equilibrium ( balanced
forces where the sum of which equals zero) and all laws are based on a
state of equilibrium per classical physics
Best regards
Art