Simple Ham Radio Antennas--Dipole Center-Loaded with Ladder Line. Post #713.
If you're having trouble viewing this video, please insert this title link into your browser search box: https://youtu.be/FfLIL9yjy0A. One of the simplest, effective antennas you can make is the center-loaded dipole fed with 50 ohm ( RG-58 , RG-8 , RG-8X) cable or with 75 ohm ( RG-59 or RG-6 ) cable. This antenna is cut for the frequency band of your choice and is most effective and efficient as a monoband antenna. Multiband operation can be obtained by using 300 ohm television twin lead or 450 ohm ladder line connected to a balanced tuner or a balun to tuner combination. Stan Gibilisco (W1GV) does an excellent job of explaining the theory, design, and construction of this classic half wavelength dipole antenna , which can be used for a single band (coax fed into your transceiver) or multiband purposes with ladder line into a tuner. Most of the materials for this basic antenna can be bought at the nearest hardware store or home building supply outl...