Cheap antenna for new HF HAMSimple cheap foxhunting?What should I look for in an antenna for a DVBT Dongle used for SDR?Antenna for a cramped atticWhat ways are there to extend an antenna?Is cheap Chinese coax wire ok to use as an antenna?Simple antenna for an old Grundig Satellit 800Can an antenna be too powerful for certain receivers?Understanding RG6-75 ohm Cable ImpedanceTweak antenna resonant frequency higher
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Cheap antenna for new HF HAM
Simple cheap foxhunting?What should I look for in an antenna for a DVBT Dongle used for SDR?Antenna for a cramped atticWhat ways are there to extend an antenna?Is cheap Chinese coax wire ok to use as an antenna?Simple antenna for an old Grundig Satellit 800Can an antenna be too powerful for certain receivers?Understanding RG6-75 ohm Cable ImpedanceTweak antenna resonant frequency higher
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margin-bottom:0;
.everyonelovesstackoverflowposition:absolute;height:1px;width:1px;opacity:0;top:0;left:0;pointer-events:none;
$begingroup$
I just got a 100W HF radio and I am new at this. What is the cheapest antenna I can hook up without burning up my radio or shocking myself?
antenna wire-antenna rf-power
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
$endgroup$
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
I just got a 100W HF radio and I am new at this. What is the cheapest antenna I can hook up without burning up my radio or shocking myself?
antenna wire-antenna rf-power
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
$endgroup$
1
$begingroup$
That's a pretty broad question, but my go-to is an inverted-V dipole cut to whatever band it is you're interested in. My second choice is a random wire thrown into the top of a tree, but that requires a tuner, which (usually) isn't free.
$endgroup$
– Duston
Sep 18 at 13:46
$begingroup$
It makes quite a difference what band you're going for. With 70cm/2m size isn't much of a problem, but bands 20m and higher you shouldn't forget your space-budget. What bands does your license allow for?
$endgroup$
– Mast
Sep 19 at 9:28
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
I just got a 100W HF radio and I am new at this. What is the cheapest antenna I can hook up without burning up my radio or shocking myself?
antenna wire-antenna rf-power
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
$endgroup$
I just got a 100W HF radio and I am new at this. What is the cheapest antenna I can hook up without burning up my radio or shocking myself?
antenna wire-antenna rf-power
antenna wire-antenna rf-power
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
asked Sep 18 at 11:49
PugzPugz
1512 bronze badges
1512 bronze badges
1
$begingroup$
That's a pretty broad question, but my go-to is an inverted-V dipole cut to whatever band it is you're interested in. My second choice is a random wire thrown into the top of a tree, but that requires a tuner, which (usually) isn't free.
$endgroup$
– Duston
Sep 18 at 13:46
$begingroup$
It makes quite a difference what band you're going for. With 70cm/2m size isn't much of a problem, but bands 20m and higher you shouldn't forget your space-budget. What bands does your license allow for?
$endgroup$
– Mast
Sep 19 at 9:28
add a comment
|
1
$begingroup$
That's a pretty broad question, but my go-to is an inverted-V dipole cut to whatever band it is you're interested in. My second choice is a random wire thrown into the top of a tree, but that requires a tuner, which (usually) isn't free.
$endgroup$
– Duston
Sep 18 at 13:46
$begingroup$
It makes quite a difference what band you're going for. With 70cm/2m size isn't much of a problem, but bands 20m and higher you shouldn't forget your space-budget. What bands does your license allow for?
$endgroup$
– Mast
Sep 19 at 9:28
1
1
$begingroup$
That's a pretty broad question, but my go-to is an inverted-V dipole cut to whatever band it is you're interested in. My second choice is a random wire thrown into the top of a tree, but that requires a tuner, which (usually) isn't free.
$endgroup$
– Duston
Sep 18 at 13:46
$begingroup$
That's a pretty broad question, but my go-to is an inverted-V dipole cut to whatever band it is you're interested in. My second choice is a random wire thrown into the top of a tree, but that requires a tuner, which (usually) isn't free.
$endgroup$
– Duston
Sep 18 at 13:46
$begingroup$
It makes quite a difference what band you're going for. With 70cm/2m size isn't much of a problem, but bands 20m and higher you shouldn't forget your space-budget. What bands does your license allow for?
$endgroup$
– Mast
Sep 19 at 9:28
$begingroup$
It makes quite a difference what band you're going for. With 70cm/2m size isn't much of a problem, but bands 20m and higher you shouldn't forget your space-budget. What bands does your license allow for?
$endgroup$
– Mast
Sep 19 at 9:28
add a comment
|
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
The cheapest antenna you can set up is a speaker wire dipole. A spool of speaker wire long enough to split the conductors and make a center fed half wave dipole ought to cost around ten dollars US (or less). You can get useful radiation with supports made from cheap stud lumber from the home improvement store (8-10 dollars per support to get 5 meters off ground -- low for an HF dipole, but it will work). Insulators can be made from bungee cord or zip ties (since the poles aren't conductive).
The only thing you have to spend real money on is a suitable length of 50 ohm coaxial cable and an adapter to connect the antenna wires. You most likely don't even need a balun with a center fed dipole.
This close to the ground, you won't get the very low takeoff angle for DX, but you'll get plenty of ground wave contacts -- when 40 and 80 m are behaving a little (gray line or at night) you should be able to cover a few hundred miles, anyway.
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Hello and welcome to the hobby!
Generally speaking, it depends on your conditions and area available. Assuming it's not a problem (e.g. you live in a suburb area and have a backyard or are willing to travel to the nearest forest) the simplest, cheapest and quite efficient antenna you can build is a dipole / inverted-V. There are a few ways to build one. I believe there is little sense to describe them here because there is a lot of information on this topic online and in the literature as well. I would like only to leave a few hints here:
- A 10-meters long fishing rod is a good and cheap mast for a 7Mhz or 14Mhz dipole. Use three ropes and screwdrivers to make guys.
- A 1:1 balun made of 8 turns of RG58 coax on FT240-31 or FT240-43 ferrite core will improve the performance of the antenna.
- You can build a multiband antenna, so called fan dipole, if you connect multiple arms for each band
- "ARRL Handbook" and "ARRL Antenna Handbook" are great source of information on antennas.
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
$endgroup$
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Wire antenna are usually the easiest for beginners. The standard is a dipole with 1/4 wavelengths on each side connected in the center to your coax. Another easy antenna is a end fed half wave. It requires a bit more equipment as you need a transformer to match the high impedance.
You can buy or make your antennas. Home brew antennas are a popular way to get started in making equipment instead of buying. While there are many web resources with information on making EFHW antenna, here is good presentation that is relatively recent, http://gnarc.org/wp-content/uploads/The-End-Fed-Half-Wave-Antenna.pdf
I made a 40 meter end fed half wave antenna with a 49:1 transformer with 2 type 43 cores. I have made over 2500 contacts using it, primarily digital modes like FT8 and FT4, using mostly 40 meter, a few 30 meter, some 20 meter,a couple of 17 meter and 15 meter.
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
$endgroup$
add a comment
|
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3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
The cheapest antenna you can set up is a speaker wire dipole. A spool of speaker wire long enough to split the conductors and make a center fed half wave dipole ought to cost around ten dollars US (or less). You can get useful radiation with supports made from cheap stud lumber from the home improvement store (8-10 dollars per support to get 5 meters off ground -- low for an HF dipole, but it will work). Insulators can be made from bungee cord or zip ties (since the poles aren't conductive).
The only thing you have to spend real money on is a suitable length of 50 ohm coaxial cable and an adapter to connect the antenna wires. You most likely don't even need a balun with a center fed dipole.
This close to the ground, you won't get the very low takeoff angle for DX, but you'll get plenty of ground wave contacts -- when 40 and 80 m are behaving a little (gray line or at night) you should be able to cover a few hundred miles, anyway.
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
The cheapest antenna you can set up is a speaker wire dipole. A spool of speaker wire long enough to split the conductors and make a center fed half wave dipole ought to cost around ten dollars US (or less). You can get useful radiation with supports made from cheap stud lumber from the home improvement store (8-10 dollars per support to get 5 meters off ground -- low for an HF dipole, but it will work). Insulators can be made from bungee cord or zip ties (since the poles aren't conductive).
The only thing you have to spend real money on is a suitable length of 50 ohm coaxial cable and an adapter to connect the antenna wires. You most likely don't even need a balun with a center fed dipole.
This close to the ground, you won't get the very low takeoff angle for DX, but you'll get plenty of ground wave contacts -- when 40 and 80 m are behaving a little (gray line or at night) you should be able to cover a few hundred miles, anyway.
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
The cheapest antenna you can set up is a speaker wire dipole. A spool of speaker wire long enough to split the conductors and make a center fed half wave dipole ought to cost around ten dollars US (or less). You can get useful radiation with supports made from cheap stud lumber from the home improvement store (8-10 dollars per support to get 5 meters off ground -- low for an HF dipole, but it will work). Insulators can be made from bungee cord or zip ties (since the poles aren't conductive).
The only thing you have to spend real money on is a suitable length of 50 ohm coaxial cable and an adapter to connect the antenna wires. You most likely don't even need a balun with a center fed dipole.
This close to the ground, you won't get the very low takeoff angle for DX, but you'll get plenty of ground wave contacts -- when 40 and 80 m are behaving a little (gray line or at night) you should be able to cover a few hundred miles, anyway.
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
$endgroup$
The cheapest antenna you can set up is a speaker wire dipole. A spool of speaker wire long enough to split the conductors and make a center fed half wave dipole ought to cost around ten dollars US (or less). You can get useful radiation with supports made from cheap stud lumber from the home improvement store (8-10 dollars per support to get 5 meters off ground -- low for an HF dipole, but it will work). Insulators can be made from bungee cord or zip ties (since the poles aren't conductive).
The only thing you have to spend real money on is a suitable length of 50 ohm coaxial cable and an adapter to connect the antenna wires. You most likely don't even need a balun with a center fed dipole.
This close to the ground, you won't get the very low takeoff angle for DX, but you'll get plenty of ground wave contacts -- when 40 and 80 m are behaving a little (gray line or at night) you should be able to cover a few hundred miles, anyway.
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 13:53
Zeiss IkonZeiss Ikon
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
2,5112 silver badges18 bronze badges
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
This is exactly what I did to get on 40 meters around 1971. Held it up above my house with 3 2x2s probably 16' long (my dad helped me there). Heard lots of stuff, but my crap Hallicrafters SX-100 drifted so badly that by the time I answered a CQ (at my terrible 5WPM) the receiver was nowhere near the right frequency for me to hear the response ...
$endgroup$
– davidbak
Sep 19 at 0:01
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
Adapter to connect the coax to the antenna? Cheap? Try wire nuts.
$endgroup$
– user10489
Sep 21 at 21:41
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
$begingroup$
@user10489 Coax (239/259 to two wire) adapters are about $2 from Amazon, ship free with Prime.
$endgroup$
– Zeiss Ikon
Sep 23 at 10:55
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Hello and welcome to the hobby!
Generally speaking, it depends on your conditions and area available. Assuming it's not a problem (e.g. you live in a suburb area and have a backyard or are willing to travel to the nearest forest) the simplest, cheapest and quite efficient antenna you can build is a dipole / inverted-V. There are a few ways to build one. I believe there is little sense to describe them here because there is a lot of information on this topic online and in the literature as well. I would like only to leave a few hints here:
- A 10-meters long fishing rod is a good and cheap mast for a 7Mhz or 14Mhz dipole. Use three ropes and screwdrivers to make guys.
- A 1:1 balun made of 8 turns of RG58 coax on FT240-31 or FT240-43 ferrite core will improve the performance of the antenna.
- You can build a multiband antenna, so called fan dipole, if you connect multiple arms for each band
- "ARRL Handbook" and "ARRL Antenna Handbook" are great source of information on antennas.
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
$endgroup$
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Hello and welcome to the hobby!
Generally speaking, it depends on your conditions and area available. Assuming it's not a problem (e.g. you live in a suburb area and have a backyard or are willing to travel to the nearest forest) the simplest, cheapest and quite efficient antenna you can build is a dipole / inverted-V. There are a few ways to build one. I believe there is little sense to describe them here because there is a lot of information on this topic online and in the literature as well. I would like only to leave a few hints here:
- A 10-meters long fishing rod is a good and cheap mast for a 7Mhz or 14Mhz dipole. Use three ropes and screwdrivers to make guys.
- A 1:1 balun made of 8 turns of RG58 coax on FT240-31 or FT240-43 ferrite core will improve the performance of the antenna.
- You can build a multiband antenna, so called fan dipole, if you connect multiple arms for each band
- "ARRL Handbook" and "ARRL Antenna Handbook" are great source of information on antennas.
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
$endgroup$
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Hello and welcome to the hobby!
Generally speaking, it depends on your conditions and area available. Assuming it's not a problem (e.g. you live in a suburb area and have a backyard or are willing to travel to the nearest forest) the simplest, cheapest and quite efficient antenna you can build is a dipole / inverted-V. There are a few ways to build one. I believe there is little sense to describe them here because there is a lot of information on this topic online and in the literature as well. I would like only to leave a few hints here:
- A 10-meters long fishing rod is a good and cheap mast for a 7Mhz or 14Mhz dipole. Use three ropes and screwdrivers to make guys.
- A 1:1 balun made of 8 turns of RG58 coax on FT240-31 or FT240-43 ferrite core will improve the performance of the antenna.
- You can build a multiband antenna, so called fan dipole, if you connect multiple arms for each band
- "ARRL Handbook" and "ARRL Antenna Handbook" are great source of information on antennas.
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
$endgroup$
Hello and welcome to the hobby!
Generally speaking, it depends on your conditions and area available. Assuming it's not a problem (e.g. you live in a suburb area and have a backyard or are willing to travel to the nearest forest) the simplest, cheapest and quite efficient antenna you can build is a dipole / inverted-V. There are a few ways to build one. I believe there is little sense to describe them here because there is a lot of information on this topic online and in the literature as well. I would like only to leave a few hints here:
- A 10-meters long fishing rod is a good and cheap mast for a 7Mhz or 14Mhz dipole. Use three ropes and screwdrivers to make guys.
- A 1:1 balun made of 8 turns of RG58 coax on FT240-31 or FT240-43 ferrite core will improve the performance of the antenna.
- You can build a multiband antenna, so called fan dipole, if you connect multiple arms for each band
- "ARRL Handbook" and "ARRL Antenna Handbook" are great source of information on antennas.
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 13:45
Aleksander Alekseev - R2AUKAleksander Alekseev - R2AUK
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
2,0461 silver badge14 bronze badges
add a comment
|
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Wire antenna are usually the easiest for beginners. The standard is a dipole with 1/4 wavelengths on each side connected in the center to your coax. Another easy antenna is a end fed half wave. It requires a bit more equipment as you need a transformer to match the high impedance.
You can buy or make your antennas. Home brew antennas are a popular way to get started in making equipment instead of buying. While there are many web resources with information on making EFHW antenna, here is good presentation that is relatively recent, http://gnarc.org/wp-content/uploads/The-End-Fed-Half-Wave-Antenna.pdf
I made a 40 meter end fed half wave antenna with a 49:1 transformer with 2 type 43 cores. I have made over 2500 contacts using it, primarily digital modes like FT8 and FT4, using mostly 40 meter, a few 30 meter, some 20 meter,a couple of 17 meter and 15 meter.
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
$endgroup$
add a comment
|
$begingroup$
Wire antenna are usually the easiest for beginners. The standard is a dipole with 1/4 wavelengths on each side connected in the center to your coax. Another easy antenna is a end fed half wave. It requires a bit more equipment as you need a transformer to match the high impedance.
You can buy or make your antennas. Home brew antennas are a popular way to get started in making equipment instead of buying. While there are many web resources with information on making EFHW antenna, here is good presentation that is relatively recent, http://gnarc.org/wp-content/uploads/The-End-Fed-Half-Wave-Antenna.pdf
I made a 40 meter end fed half wave antenna with a 49:1 transformer with 2 type 43 cores. I have made over 2500 contacts using it, primarily digital modes like FT8 and FT4, using mostly 40 meter, a few 30 meter, some 20 meter,a couple of 17 meter and 15 meter.
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
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Wire antenna are usually the easiest for beginners. The standard is a dipole with 1/4 wavelengths on each side connected in the center to your coax. Another easy antenna is a end fed half wave. It requires a bit more equipment as you need a transformer to match the high impedance.
You can buy or make your antennas. Home brew antennas are a popular way to get started in making equipment instead of buying. While there are many web resources with information on making EFHW antenna, here is good presentation that is relatively recent, http://gnarc.org/wp-content/uploads/The-End-Fed-Half-Wave-Antenna.pdf
I made a 40 meter end fed half wave antenna with a 49:1 transformer with 2 type 43 cores. I have made over 2500 contacts using it, primarily digital modes like FT8 and FT4, using mostly 40 meter, a few 30 meter, some 20 meter,a couple of 17 meter and 15 meter.
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
$endgroup$
Wire antenna are usually the easiest for beginners. The standard is a dipole with 1/4 wavelengths on each side connected in the center to your coax. Another easy antenna is a end fed half wave. It requires a bit more equipment as you need a transformer to match the high impedance.
You can buy or make your antennas. Home brew antennas are a popular way to get started in making equipment instead of buying. While there are many web resources with information on making EFHW antenna, here is good presentation that is relatively recent, http://gnarc.org/wp-content/uploads/The-End-Fed-Half-Wave-Antenna.pdf
I made a 40 meter end fed half wave antenna with a 49:1 transformer with 2 type 43 cores. I have made over 2500 contacts using it, primarily digital modes like FT8 and FT4, using mostly 40 meter, a few 30 meter, some 20 meter,a couple of 17 meter and 15 meter.
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
answered Sep 18 at 15:26
JimJim
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
3891 silver badge6 bronze badges
add a comment
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add a comment
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That's a pretty broad question, but my go-to is an inverted-V dipole cut to whatever band it is you're interested in. My second choice is a random wire thrown into the top of a tree, but that requires a tuner, which (usually) isn't free.
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– Duston
Sep 18 at 13:46
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It makes quite a difference what band you're going for. With 70cm/2m size isn't much of a problem, but bands 20m and higher you shouldn't forget your space-budget. What bands does your license allow for?
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– Mast
Sep 19 at 9:28