View Single Post
Old 04-12-2015, 10:04 PM   #16
NN5I
Carl, nn5i
 
NN5I's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Tallahassee, FL
Posts: 1,441
Default

As long as they don't touch each other, nails and such shouldn't matter.

If they touch, and corrode a bit, the points where they touch could turn into diodes and generate noise.

Screws, for example, that hold metal brackets in place ought not to be a problem if the screws are tight and there aren't, for example, brass screws holding unplated steel brackets. So use stainless screws for steel brackets, or paint the whole thing after construction so nothing corrodes.

Or don't worry about it. All those pieces are way smaller than a wavelength at HF and VHF, so really they almost don't exist.

You could hold the whole thing together by gluing it with T-88. Use brads to hold it until the adhesive sets (24 hours), then pull out the brads. This is often done in aircraft-building, not for electronic reasons but to eliminate the weight of the brads. I kid you not. The motto in airplane construction is simplificate, and add lightness, and is taken seriously.
__________________
-- Carl
NN5I is offline   Reply With Quote