Simple Ham Radio Antennas

If you're having difficulty in viewing this video, please insert this title link into your browser search box: https://youtu.be/L3coh5JXZ0A. This is post #961 in a continuing series of simple ham radio antennas.  The 30 meter amateur radio band (10.100 MHz to 10.150 MHz) is a fascinating slice of the radio spectrum. The band is restricted to digital (including cw) signals only, so you won't find powerful SSB or AM signals disrupting your operations.  The band is usable during the day and night.  In this post from K2MIJ, we see how a most unusual and "stealthy" antenna can get you on the 30 meter band without nosey neighbors or HOA/CC&R enforcers restricting your on-air activities.  The antenna is fairly simple, with most of the work being done by a coil made from #26-24 gauge (AWG) wire wrapped around a 2 inch/5.08 cm diameter PVC pipe, some "limbo sticks", and a "halo" radiator made from #10 gauge (AWG) wire.  K2MIJ has had some excellent c...

If you can't view this video, please insert this title link into your browser search box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI6zWMZ1dEU.  Here's another simple antenna project that can be made from locally available materials.  In this video, Dave Tadlock (KG0ZZ) show us how to make a 2 Meter J-Pole antenna suitable for emergency or portable operations.   This antenna can be used by radio amateurs living in HOA/CC&R-controlled apartments.  The antenna is made from 300 ohm television twin lead and can be rolled up after use.  ARES ( Amateur Radio Emergency Service ) volunteers may want to pack one of these antennas in their emergency "go-Kit", since it will give a significant amount of gain over the "rubber duckie" antennas that come with most hand-held VHF/UHF transceivers.  I have one of Dave's creations suspended from a hook on my lanai (Hawaiian for porch) and can access several repeaters that were "invisible" to my HT.  This inex...

If you can't view the video, please insert this title link into your browser searchbox: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kjqo1TjBpAQ. This is post #959 in a continuing series of simple ham radio antennas . Exceptionally well-produced, clearly explained, and easy to follow tutorial from "Swizzradios" (HB9CV).  This antenna was made from an old 27 MHz ( CB ) 1/4 wavelength ground plane antenna from LEM.  The gamma match is made from a mobile antenna socket with a 3/8 inch/0.95 cm hy-gain rod.  Directors are made of six shortened pieces of the old CB antenna .  The boom is made of 2 X 2 cm/1 inch (approximately) aluminum tubing.  This antenna would make a nice weekend project for you or your club. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit my two news sites: http://www.kh6jrm.info (breaking news of interest for radio amateurs). https://bigislandarrlnews.wordpress.com ( ARRL news and information for Hawaii Island radio amateurs)....

If you can't see this video, please insert this title link into your browser search box: https://youtu.be/FbYfShh-OAU. A good basic introduction on how to build a three-element yagi antenna , with particular attention being paid to the element lengths and spacing between elements.  More antenna information, can be found in Stan Gibilisco 's (W1GV) book, "Ham and Shortwave Radio for the Electrical Hobbyist." For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit these sites: http://www.kh6jrm.info ( breaking news of interest to radio amateurs ). https://bigislandarrlnews.wordpress.com ( ARRL news and information for Hawaii Island radio amateurs). For the latest science and technology news, please visit: http://hawaiisciencedigest.com. For the latest developments in geopolitical intelligence, strategic forecasting , intelligence, terrorism, espionage, and cyber security , please visit: http://hawaiiintelligencedigest.com. Be sure to chec...

If you can't view this video, please insert this title link into your browser search box: https://youtu.be/cuQq4RptS4. This is post #957 in a continuing series on simple ham radio antennas . Nice video from Mike Fedler (N6TWW), who describes how to build a dual band mobile halo antenna for the 2 meter (144 MHz ) and 70 cm (432 MHz) amateur radio bands . Mike says this omnidirectional, unity gain mobile antenna is horizontally polarized .  This antenna could also be used in HOA and CC &R restricted environments. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit my two news sites: http://www.kh6jrm.info (breaking news of interest for radio amateurs ). https://bigislandarrlnews.wordpress.com ( ARRL news and information for Hawaii Island radio amateurs). For the latest science and technology news, please visit: http://hawaiisciencedigest.com. Be sure to check out the blog sidebars for more antenna and propagation articles. Opinions expressed in th...

Compact 20m Dipole Antenna (http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID-26466). Author:  Pleun Vermeulen (PA3HHO). Accessed on 19 November 2016, 04:15 hrs, UTC . Please click link or insert title URL to read the full article. Comment: Here's another great antenna idea for those who want a better signal on 20 meters but have only a restricted space to erect an antenna. Pleun Vermeulen (PA3HHO) has designed a simple, sturdy, and efficient 20 meter dipole made from aluminum tubing and materials available at your nearest hardware or home improvement outlet.  Pleun provides helpful drawings, antenna patterns, SWR readings, and general construction tips to help you make this simple, yet effective antenna. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit my two news sites: http://www.kh6jrm.info ( breaking news of interest to radio amateurs ). https://bigislandarrlnews.wordpress.com ( ARRL news and infromation for Hawaii Island radio amateurs)....

Balcony Antenna for 7, 10, 14 MHz (http://www.dxzone.com/cgi-bin/dir/jump2.cgi?ID=31441). (http://www.cqham.ru). Accessed on 18 November 2016, 04:45 hrs, UTC . Author:  Valerei Prodenov (UR5WCA). Please click the title link or insert the title URL into your browser search box to read the full article. Comment: Here's another great idea for an antenna suitable for a crowded urban area or in places where HOAs and CC&Rs limit the type of ham radio antennas available. Valerei does an excellent job of describing his vertical helix antenna which covers the 7, 10, and 14 MHz amateur radio bands.  He includes a list of materials and some helpful construction hints. I still use a vertical helix for 80 meter operations.  I feed my vertical helix with 450 ohm ladder line which terminates in a 4:1 balun/manual "tuner" arrangement.  Over the past few months, I've managed to lay approximately 25 quarter wave ground radials to improve the low efficiency of the ...