Comments on: An effective 10-20m DX antenna for deed restricted lots…

By: VE7JM Jim

VE7JM Jim — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 22:59:36 +0000

I’ve built this antenna from a 16foot aluminum pool skimmer handle.
Overall length is 16.75 feet with a small bit of very stiff copper wire on top..
Where the 2 sections join I have fastened it solid with sheet metal screw and placed a heavy copper ‘jumper’ wire over to the top section.
I made an ‘ugly balun’ attached at the feed point.
with 2 x 1/4wave radials for 10-15-20m.
It sits on top of a flat garage roof.
This antenna loads up with quite low swr on those 3 bands and the ATU in my FT-990 does the rest..with an outboard KW107 supermatch I can also run the bands in between. There is no RF in the shack unless a quite serious mismatch…the snow is starting so things seem to change a bit every day..

The sunspots are pretty good right now, and on all 5 bands I have been able to work anything I can hear all over the world 360degrees.

I’m actually quite surprised and very pleased at the performance…especially on 20m with a mere 1/4 wavelength or so..I have done no trimming or messing around with radial length.
Jim
VE7JM
Castlegar, BC, Canada

By: Bill Miniaci

Bill Miniaci — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 03:32:25 +0000

wooo ! i use this same type of antenna here in Cambodia i just run 63 ‘ of number 10 wire from my neighbor’s foof top/ down to my houses cement wall /with a glass wine bottle.. ! feed with rg59u coax; shield to a neer by cement wall ! 10watts am 1600 khz. ! lol ! 73s mr. Bill !

By: ruud abrahams PA0RAB

ruud abrahams PA0RAB — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 09:24:57 +0000

OM.
restricted by local and landlord laws and a smal yard i surfed the net looking for solutions to experiment. Some one’s are described as a wonder antenna but don’t believ it. All verticals use a ground or radials and are frequently monobanders. However, some known horizontal wire antennas can be erected to vertical and in mine opinion an antenna is like a coil and condensator You had to tune it. So one meets onpredictable problems ans solitions.
If you are restricted you can find on fleemarkets and hamevents material to experiment. and simon’s antenne is a fine example in recycling a CB antenna.
Simon said this kind of antenne had a high swr so start al you experiments with low power and a ATU the simpliest tuner saves your txr final a few euros spend to a (ferrit) coil and broadcast tuning condenser is cheaper then the power transistorrepai
the experimental antenna i build used a glasfiberfishing rod(old fashioned bamboo is o.k modern carbon is conductif)glued the pieces together an did not use the twiggy topsection. From foot to the top i wound copper wire approx 15 metres with a fingertip spation to start and 3mm 1/8 at the top
al windings glued with a drop epoxie.
First use eleved about 3 metres 10 feet by another piece of fishingrod tyraped together and uprected by 2mm steel guidewires some bands gives me a very high SWR difficult to tune away
Second attemp using a balun firts a cabelcurrent isolating a little better.but some bands not useable.
A second balun in the matching circuit first a 1 : 4 a lot better Then a 1 : 9 attemp again better.
The automatic ATU gives only a few clicks at changing bands and all bands are tuneable 50 – 1,8
for the experiment i dont use Amidon ferritcores but pieces of broken broadcast ferritantennas First tuning at 2 watts and when tuned i use for safety 60 watts but the sistem hold un
wanted accidentical full power 115 watts
the next eperiments are something with the radials shortened from 0,28 wavelength to 1,50 m 60″ and each band tuned by a coil like a shortened dipol
So simones antenne gives a lot of low cost experimenting and the results may suprise you
55 +73 Ruud

By: Leigh M5GWH

Leigh M5GWH — Fri, 14 May 2010 12:11:05 +0000

Hi – I made Bob’s K7ZB 20m to 10m vertical and also his stealth 40m vertical (http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=7544) – and both work really well.

Both are simple designs, straightforward to make and very cost effective too!

Plan to put another 20m to 10m one into service at my new home to work alonside my lower HF wires and rid my yard of commercially made HF antennas.

By: Mike

Mike — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 06:32:35 +0000

In america and canada, due to ham radio being classified as an emergency service, you can skirt around all local and state/provincial antenna-height laws. good idea though.

By: Chris Tucker

Chris Tucker — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 03:54:46 +0000

Great article for those of us in Tampa on deed restricted lots.

By: TIm G. Bate

TIm G. Bate — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:18:06 +0000

Clean workmanship! Good looking antenna….

I might suggest using a telescopic aluminum flagpole, as you can raise or lower it to work various bands.

73′s!

KD0DVS

By: satyan

satyan — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 11:34:41 +0000

cud u pls send some rough drawings by mail pls, i am newly licensed fom india, call sign vu3mes

73s satyan