Random Wire Antenna Lengths. Post #1296
Random Wire Antenna Lengths (https://udel.edu/~mm/ham/radio/randomWire/ Author: University of Delaware. Accessed on 30 October 2017, 2055 UTC, Post #1296. Comment: When you're on the trail, at the annual Field Day, or wherever a good antenna is unavailable, a random wire antenna "can save the day" if you know its limitations. This article does an excellent job of describing the theory, construction, and use of random wire antennas and the wire lengths you should avoid if you want an efficient, effective operation without excessive SWR. Of particular note is the series of graphs showing various wire lengths to avoid for different sets of amateur radio bands. The basic guidance is clear: "The fewer bands, the fewer high impedance regions to avoid." According to the article, you want the wire antenna to be at least 1/4 wavelength long for each band you want to use. For example, to work the 40 meter amateur radio band (7 mHz), make sure the antenna