Simple Ham Radio Antennas

STEALTH ANTENNAS During the past few weeks, I've read many articles from amateur radio operators who are facing restricted options because of HOAs, CC&Rs, and limited space.  Although I'm not in a restricted zone, my small lot and proximity to power lines makes me feel some of their pain.  People move into restricted quarters for a variety of reasons, so I'm not going to rehash the obvious arguments presented in the media.  Suffice to say, we amateurs must use our creativity if we are to enjoy our hobby to the fullest. I've made a practice of reading as much information as I can about stealth and hidden antennas to get an idea of what's possible for my hobby.  Every once in a while I come across articles which peek my interest and get the creative juices flowing.  Today, for example, I ran across WB0DGF's Antenna Site (wb0dgf.com/stealth.htm), which provides a practical antenna plan for a home and various links to antenna designs and options.  Amon...

ANOTHER SIMPLE ANTENNA PROJECT How would you like to make a simple, portable antenna that you can use on vacation or in your home?  Such an antenna would be useful for those in restricted operating environments.  I ran across an article by Craig La Barge, WB3GCK, while I was researching limited space antennas.  As you know, my antenna farm is confined to a small backyard, and limited space antennas are what I'm accustomed to using.  Anyway, the article called "The Up and Outter Antenna" gave me a few ideas for stringing up yet another skyhook to warm the ether. La Barge used approximately 30-feet of light gauge wire attached to a long pvc pole with another 30-foot piece of wire running through his vacation home on the Outter Banks of North Carolina.  That wire served as a counterpoise for the vertical element.  He fed the antenna system with open wire to minimize losses.  La Barge said the design may go back as far as the 1920's or 1930's.  H...

The ARRL's annual Field Day communications exercise is coming 23 June 2012.  Field Day is one of the largest operating events in the United States and Canada.  Whether you operate from a multi-station position or run emergency power from your home, Field Day will test your creativity, endurance, and ability to withstand the forces of nature for at least one day. Since I'm commited to announcer duties for that weekend at the Hilo Drag Strip, my participation will be limited.  I plan to run class 1-C mobile from the Drag Strip using my emergency kit stashed in the Odyssey van.  While I camp overnight at the race track, I will set up the Yaesu FT-7, a few hamsticks on a mag mount with several radials, and a deep cycle marine service battery for several hours during the event.  This should be a good test under field conditions. If the first day of racing finishes early, I most likely will meet members of the Big Island Amateur Radio Club at Hilo's Wailoa Commun...

Today, I had a break from my normal substitute teaching duties at Laupahoehoe High and Elementary School.  Now that I had a free day, I could spend a few hours catching up on email and various amateur-related posts. I came across an interesting  article in today's edition of eham.net, which encapsulated much of what I feel is right with amateur radio.  Don Keith, N4KC, wrote a nicely-paced short story called "A Dark and Stormy Night".  The plot revolves around a back porch discussion between a newly licensed 15-year old ham and two older hams, who happen to be husband and wife.  The trio was reviewing what it meant to be an amateur radio operator while a thunderstorm and a power outage played out on a warm summer night.  All of the usual reasons for being an amateur radio operator and the service hams bring to their communities are given in an easy to understand, conversational tone.  Keith has the unusual ability to make you feel part of the story. ...

With Memorial Day weekend fast upon us, activity in the news room will surely be hectic.  The radio station is tied up with a variety of remote broadcasts, including the traditional Memorial Day weekend drag races (I have the job of tower announcer) and the Moku O Hawaii Outrigger Canoe Races in Kailua-Kona.  Both of these events won't leave much time to chase down DX or to ragchew with the locals.  At least the racing calendar will keep the weekend full and will provide a break from the normal news cycle.  Some other station members will be working at the Honokaa weekend rodeo, so this weekend won't allow for any slack time.  If I can get home early on Sunday, I may try an hour or two of ham radio. Presently, I'm in the process of redoing my "antenna farm" in the back yard.  Stringing radials for the 40-meter vertical has always been a compromise affair considering the small lot I call home.  This time around, I will return to the inverted "v" arran...

Thanksgiving is fast upon us.  It's hard to believe the holidays are coming so quickly.  I guess time seems to accelerate as one gets older.  Despite all the doom and gloom surrounding us, there is still much to be thankful for--the ability to get up in the morning, good health, decent food, and the love of family. Others would add the basic freedoms guaranteed by our founding documents--I agree, but these freedoms are getting eroded daily by the growing crudeness, crassness, and lack of respect for nearly everything these days.  I run into this situation every- day as I prepare and read the news on the commercial station I call my home away from home.  Sometimes, I wonder what kind of society we call these United States.  Every now and then, I feel we as a nation have lost our way and have failed to take responsibility for our own lives.  That's why I retreat into the amateur radio universe after a long day.  Despite the well- k...

The news cycle is winding down at KKBG-FM/ KHLO-AM for the workweek.  Only half-days on Saturday and Sunday remain on the horizon. The break will give me plenty of time to work on my spartan "antenna farm" at the Laupahoehoe qth.  With my tropical climate and salt air, there is always something to do for the skyhooks.  Be- sides, the work gives me a break from the rather dismal series of events that is making everyday life more difficult than it should be.  I just finished an excellent article on the eham.net website by Phil Chambley, K4DPK, entitled "Your First Dipole."  Phil's article is a basic tutorial on an antenna that has served me well in the past. You can expand his idea into a "fan" dipole and get some added coverage for very little money. I may even string up one of his simple dipoles as an inverted vee and see what I can do.  My yard won't permit a fully extended dipole, hence my pref- erence for verticals and low slu...

Things are winding down at the KKBG-FM/KHLO news room after a peaceful weekend news cycle.  I use that term loosely, considering the various crises the world is facing. I'll leave the value judgements to those polically inclinded. All I do is report the news.  Once the Sunday shift is done and the story outlines for Monday prepared, I can return to the home shack for some casual operating before dinner and a good night's sleep.  I've finished some minor repairs to the 20-meter vertical dipole and the under the house 40-meter loop.  Both antennas are working well, propagation notwith- standing.  Just for a few laughs, I hooked up the loop to one of my homebrew crystal sets.  Pretty good results.  I was able to recieve all three Hilo AM stations with ease.  The Hilo stations are roughly 30 miles away from the commercial station I call "home" most of the time.  The 20-meter vertical dipole works for these crystal sets, too.  ...

'Just about ready to wrap up a week in the KKBG-FM/ KHLO-AM news room.  I've had sufficient excitement for the week with all of the stories on the oil spill, the Middle East crisis, and assorted local crime stories The weekend news shift begins on Saturday, but that shift is only for half-a-day, so the hours won't be too bad.  At least I have an enjoyable job.  Field Day beckons on 26/27 June--an event I will probably miss since I'm working the drag races that day.  I'll probably operate a bit from the home station, running 1E (emergency power).  While I was reading the eham.net site today, I found two Field Day articles that may prove useful to you or your radio club:  "900 Watt Generator for Field Day" by Mike Higgins, K6AER and "How to Come Back After Field Day" by Keith Wood, K1LDS.  Both articles contain some good, basic information.  Have a good weekend.  Aloha from Hawaii Island. KH6JRM.

This has been a fairly calm Saturday in the KKBG-FM and KHLO-AM news room.  I need a quiet day now and then.  Other than the Middle East crisis and the Gulf oil spill, things are alright. My deepest sympthies to our Gulf of Mexico friends--what a gawsh awful mess, both ecologically and economically.  With all this going on, the hurricane season has just begun. The station has been keeping Big Islanders informed on what to do and how to prepare themselves for what is expected to be an active storm season.  With that in mind, how well prepared are you? When I get home after my shift, I'll make sure all batteries are charged, spare antennas made, and the generator fully fueled.  I've got a good stock of food and the ole Tercel is topped off in fuel. Hopefully, the storms will miss you.  Have a good weekend. Aloha from the Big Island. 73. KH6JRM.

Now that the Memorial Day celebrations are over, I can return to some degree of "normalcy" at the KKBG-FM/KHLO-AM news room.  Of course, normal has all kinds of meaning in the news business, ranging from the usual crimes, crises, and weather changes to the bizarre stuff that crops up during the day. You wou't believe the number of strange calls I get before, during, and after holidays.  Anyway, I'll be able to squeeze in a few hours of operating this weekend.  Time at the old Swan 100 MX will provide the needed atitude adjustment from the near crisis mode that grips the news cycle.  On the docket for this weekend is further work on the 20- meter vertical dipole and minor repairs to the under the house loop that does the majority of local con- tacts.  I really enjoy getting out in the back yard and working with wire and portable masts.  I don't know if I'll be working with the Big Island Amateur Radio Club during the upcoming Field Day even...

Things are quiet at the KKBG-FM/KHLO-AM news room on this Memorial Day.  I just finished an exciting 2 days at the Hilo Drag Strip where the Big Island Auto Club celebrated the 40th edition of the Memorial Day Drags.  The station has broadcast coverage of the drag racing season for 27 years and that falls under my job description.  Extensive use of the FRS (family radio service) and MURS (multi use radio service) is used at the track to maintain contact with the tower, pit areas, drivers, security, and track crew.  Low power UHF FRS radios (0.5 watt TPO) and VHF MURS radios (2 watts TPO) give those of us in the tower a good 1.5 to 2.0 mile range.  The track also has a legal, 100mw AM station for the fans, who can tune in on the tower chatter at 1610 kHz. The 8' whip is on top of the tower and gives a decent signal out to a mile.  My reports are cell-phoned to the station (4 miles away) for broadcast.  Racing fans may want to get ...

Another week at the KKBG-FM/KHLO-AM news room is just about over.  There has been plenty of events to keep this new hound busy--from that BP oil leak to the latest crisis in the Middle East.  After the morning shift, I'm more than ready to head for the shack for some quality radio time.  The 20- meter vertical dipole is working well.  The antenna is supported by a 31-foot "jackite" mast and fed with 450-ohm balanced line.  I've put a bit of top and bottom loading to compensate for the short- ness of each element (about 1 1/2 feet).  The dipole fees well and the old Drake MN-4 seems to match everything up.  The antenna is usable on 20, 15, and 10 meters.  The performance on 40 leaves a lot to be desired, but I have a separate 40 meter vertical elsewhere in the yard, so that band is not a problem.  Getting on 80 meters is a tad difficult from my postage stamp lot, but perhaps I can erect a homebrew vertical helix tuned for 80...

'Back again after another exciting week in the KKBG-FM KHLO-AM news room.  Never a dull moment around here with more than enough oil spills, intrigue, and local corruption to cast forth on the airwaves. ' Sort of makes me glad to close shop and go back to the ole Swan 100-MX for some cw therapy.  I just finished reading an interesting series by Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, on "Plasma Physics for the Radio Amateur, I-IV."  This series is pretty good stuff, fully understandable, and easy to apply to one's current antenna situation.  You can find the series at hrrp://www.eham.com.  My antenna activities are doing well, with another vertical antenna modification in the works.  This time around the Smith Chart, I'll be building a vertical dipole for the 20- meter band.  I'll use my old 33' MFJ fiberglass mast for the project. 'Should be fun.  Meanwhile, under the house 40-meter loop is doing well as a NVIS antenna.  The loop also doe...

After a few busy weeks at the radio station news- room, it's time to break away and head for the amateur radio station at the ole qth.  I really haven't done to much operating because of work requirements...news is a 24/7 require- ment these days.  Anyway, it's time to re- place the old, weather-beaten MFJ mast which has taken a real beating from the trop- ical sun and rain.  I'll reposition my Jackite mast, which has served as a temporary back- up.  This mast is well-made and should do better than the MFJ.  The temporary arrange- ment using a 33' piece of wire, base tuner, and 4-tuned counterpoise wires will be used until I get some time to do a quality installation.  This system will be used with my under the house 40-meter loop to provide good local and DX contacts.  Nothing fancy here...but it works. Have a good weekend...good DX.  Aloha and 73 from the Big Island.  KH6JRM (Russ).

The 47th Annual Merrie Monarch Festival is wrapping up in Hilo today with a late morning parade and the final hula compeitition tonight.  The event has kept the radio station news room busy.  This event attracts contestants world-wide and is covered extensively by local tv and radio (hence my role today).  The Festival has also brought the Big Island some needed rain.  Hawaii Island has been griped by an extended drought which has raised the fears of farmers and residents alike. After the news shift, it's back to the QTH for some late afternoon cw and local ragchews.  Most likely, I'll be using the under the house 40-meter loop. I've disconnected the vertical because of thunderstorms and lightning.  If the heavy rains continue, I'll just unhook everything. No sense tempting Thor's hammer. A few years ago, a strike from above toasted a fiberglass mast I was using as an an- tenna support. Luckily, the antenna was grounded and all feeders dis...

Now that the holidays are over, it's back to work at the radio station news room (serving 4 Hawaii Island radio stations).  The big item this week is the 47th Annual Merrie Monarch Festival, the premier Hawaiian Cultural event of the year.  Most of the on-air staff will be busy with all of the events surrounding the festival, so I'll have to be creative when it comes to ham radio time.  Every once in a while, one gets a cheery note that adds a bit of perspective to the daily grind.  Today, I received a nice note from John, KS4D (ex-KH6JRN), one of my early contacts when I was a Novice operator.  It was so good to hear from him.  John found me on my other blog site and brought me up to date. Oh, do I remem- ber those optimistic days when our "peanut whistles" gave us access to the world.  Despite all of the truly advanced media in use today, there is a certain warm feeling for launching a signal into the "ether".  I must be gettin...

Another busy week at the radio station news room. Most of my time on the home rig was spent listening and working a bit of cw on the lower portion of 40 meters.  I spent some of my leisure time (what there is of it after a long day in the news room), checking out some interesting articles I found on the ARRL website.  Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, has a general interest column that always has a few gems to offer. If you're into QRP like I am, you'll find Stan's review of the following worth a visit:  "Amateur Radio on it's (sic) Edge blog " by Tobias Wellnitz, DH1TW; "The Garage Shoppe" by Pete Goodmann, NI9N; and , on http://www.eham.net/ , an article by Charles Cohen, VA7CPU, entitled "How to QRP--Operating Strategies for the Power Challenged".  All of these articles offer some excellent advice on how to pursue your QRP interest. Until next time, Aloha, 73, KH6JRM.

Well, after a few glitches and computer operator problems, the blog is up and running again.  I took a brief break to work on a few workplace projects while whatever was causing my blog to redirect to some weird sites passed through.  I suppose my inattention to detail had a lot to do with this. Multi- tasking can be a problem sometimes.  Between all of this, I did manage to work some nice cw on 40 meters, restring the vertical on my new Jackite fiber- glass mast (nice piece of work), and generally re- laxed at the rig.  The news department at the radio station has been a busy place with a tsunami warning last month (we did get a few small waves in Hilo Bay), a few moderate earthquakes in the Puna District, and drought induced brushfires in the Waikoloa area.  Big Island Amateurs were available for each of these situ- ations, and provided timely tidal information during the 27 February tsunami warning.  All told, we have been busy.  O...