Simple Ham Radio Antennas

If you can't view this video, please enter this title URL into your browser search box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmjboqLhxO4. In this video, EA2BD shows us several simple ways to take antenna wire with you to portable operations such as the Summits On The Air (SOTA) without the wire tangling or snarling up into a mess.  These suggestions will come in handy when you prepare your ARRL Field Day antennas or make antennas for RACES, ARES, or SATERN service. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit these websites: http://www.HawaiiARRL.info. https://oahuarrlnews.wordpress.com. https://bigislandarrlnews.wordpress.com. http://www.kh6jrm.info (breaking news for radio amateurs). http://www.arrl.org. Be sure to check the blog sidebars for more antenna and propagation articles. Opinions expressed in this blog are mine unless otherwise stated. Thanks for joining us today. Aloha es 73 de Russ (KH6JRM)

If you can't view this video, please insert this title URL into your browser search box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofmUK8o7Jxg. Here's an ultra simple and effective multiband HF antenna for both portable and emergency use.  This antenna could also be used in the upcoming ARRL Field Day event on 24-25 June 2017. In this video, "rcobo107" (AC2RJ) wraps 35 feet/10.67 meters of speaker wire around a 20 foot/6.097 meters long fiberglass pole, creating a HF vertical helix antenna.  The copper shield of his coaxial feed line serves as the antenna counterpoise.  An antenna "tuner" is used to reduce the SWR on the antenna. This homebrewed antenna works on several HF bands, including 6 meters as evidenced by contacts made during the recording of this video.  You may want to make one of these simple antennas for portable use. The antenna can be stored easily in your vehicle. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit these websites:

If you can't view this video, please insert this title URL into your browser search box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Mgd06UAHbU. You don't have to belong to an Amateur Radio Club to participate in the 2017 ARRL Field Day on 24 and 25 June 2017.  With a little ingenuity and a few pieces of furniture from your home or shack, you can operate portable from your backyard and still have lots of fun.  In fact, there is a special category for home stations, using power from the electrical mains or power from alternative means, such as generators, solar panels, or batteries. In this video, "motoforlyfe" shows us his simple backyard Field Day station, complete with a venerable ICOM-730, power supply, and a homebrew inverted Vee Dipole antenna.  Log all of your contacts and send them into the ARRL. You could win your category. Good luck this year.  Have fun and make some memorable contacts. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, please visit these websi

If you can't view this video, please insert this title URL into your browser search box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4jGNFGN-RQ. Here's a handy item that will make using an end-fed random length wire antenna easier and more efficient.  A 9-1 unun used in combination with an antenna "tuner" and a good ground radial or counterpoise system will make that random wire perform better than expected. This short video tutorial from "mk1tina" guides you through the process of designing, building, and using a 9-1 unun for your end-fed antennas.  According to "mk1tina", the core used is a T200-2 with 9 trifilar turns of enamel wire. The case is fairly small, measuring 120mm by 80mm.  Although the unit is rated at 400 watts, it may be best to run power levels below 100 watts to keep components cool.  You may want to bring one of these 9-1 ununs with you to the ARRL Field Day, just in case you may be using a random length wire antenna. For the late

If you can't view this video, please insert this title URL into your browser search box: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK6oxWVtGI. While there is no "perfect" antenna, this simple, proven design for a monoband HF vertical using a 1/4 wavelength vertical radiator and four, 1/4 wavelength sloping radial wires comes very close to being a foolproof design that will give you many hours of operating pleasure.  In effect, this antenna is a variation of the familiar ground plane antenna seen in many omnidirectional VHF and UHF antennas.  A ground plane antenna designed for any HF band from 20 meters to 6 meters should work very well with locally made materials. I have a 20 meter version of this antenna fed with RG-8 coaxial cable, and it works quite well, considering the poor state of HF propagation these days.  I use an old Drake MN-4 antenna "tuner" to reduce the small amount of SWR found in this antenna. For the latest Amateur Radio news and information, ple