Simple Antennas for Amateur Radio Operators--a continuing series
KH6JRM's Amateur Radio Blog Post #181 A small loop antenna for limited space--the MFJ-1788 Super Hi-Q magnetic loop. I'm a huge fan of loops. They are quiet and can be hidden if creatively designed. These antennas can be fed with either coaxial cable, ladder line, or ordinary 300-ohm television twin lead for a simple, effective antenna. Loops do have their drawbacks. A full-size 40-meter loop can be large--with a total length of approximately 141 feet. In my situation, a large full-wave 40-meter loop fits under my house which is raised off the ground by pier and post construction. A 20-meter full-wave loop is fastened under my garage roof. Both of these antennas are invisible from the street or from nearby neighbors. Since these loops are fairly low to the ground, they serve as NVIS (near vertical incident skywave) antennas, which give me strong signals out to 200 to 300 miles. That range is perfect for afternoon nets and local emergency work. The 40-meter loop