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In this cases, the dipole/inverted vee and the ground plane were for 20m, and the delta loop was for 10m, but they can be built for other bands. Nominal dimensions for various shaped loops for most bands are here: practicalantennas.com/designs/loops/loop-sizes/ Nominal dipole dimensions are here: practicalantennas.com/designs/dipole/dipoletables/

Thanks for reply. Generally single band

I often connect dipoles for 2 or more bands to the center insulator at the same time, then tie them off in different directions. That gives me multiple bands without needing a tuner or changing the antenna. I often have used such a combination for 80/40/20/15/10m. practicalantennas.com/designs/dipole/dipole-kit/ The ground plane approach uses the same sets of wires, although it may be a bit more difficult to use vertical wires for multiple bands at the same time. The loop tends to be a monoband antenna, although it may be useful over a 2 : 1 frequency range (about 2/3 to 3/2 wavelength) with ladder line and a wide-range tuner. A horizontal loop makes a better multiband antenna than one in a vertical plane.

Do you NEED a balun? No Is a balun a good idea? Yes. A balun makes antenna behavior more predictable. I certainly recommend them, especially if you are in an environment with lots of electronic noise makers, as they can help reduce the noise level on the antenna. But sometimes, such as for portable operation (and especially backpacking), I make a conscious decision to leave them off to save weight, or for simplicity. That doesn't mean that the antenna doesn't work, but that one might sometimes encounter quirks, like stray resonances due to to the coax length rather than the wire lengths, or RF in the shack that makes my keyer continue sending after I let go of the paddles, or plugging in my headphones changes the SWR. And often, you may not notice any side effects. So, yes, a balun is a good idea, but don't let the lack of one stop you from putting up an antenna and getting on the air. I do have a dipole kit with a built-in balun (shown in my article here: practicalantennas.com/designs/dipole/dipole-kit/) I'm still experimenting with good designs for them.

That's an interesting combination! Look forward to seeing your 160m loop results!

The mast is from Max-Gain Systems www.mgs4u.com

The mast is from Max-Gain Systems www.mgs4u.com. The Speed Cinch is available on Amazon - just ignore all the straps for horse saddles.

Someone else remembers paper tapes! Actually learned that for winding surveyor’s chains working summers in college. Started at a computer job, still using paper and mylar TTY tapes to boot some of the old machines. My mentor was carefully showing how to do it. I grabbed another tape and had it done before he finished his demo. But it serves the same purpose: rolling up the material without twisting it. The twists are easier to see with flat tape, but will cause kinking and tangles. In fact, I have a separate video just on winding wire and rope using that method.

@@practicalantennas1754 I was a Navy Radioman. Learned it there. I still use it almost daily to store everything from antennas to usb cords. Always love seeing the bewildered look on peoples faces who have never seen it being done.

Thanks for the sub! More practical antenna videos coming soon :)

Why is being across the street from an airport an issue ?

@@Thinks-First I'm sure there are city regulations about tower proximity to the airport. We're not talking miles. We're talking yards.

@@MrTommy001 Maybe not as much as you may think. If you are next to the side of a runway/s you should be able to at least put up a 45 fiberglass pole to hang some antennas on. Been a pilot and ham for decades and never heard of a problem with that. Even private communities I've flown into that have their own runways have no problem with towers and masts.

Is it possible to link details on your mast. Really good and informative video, thanks and 73

The mast is from Max Gain systems: www.mgs4u.com. Others have said that DX Engineering also carries them (or something similar).

You’re welcome! I’m glad you liked it.

Yes, or a 50 ohm rectangular loop: practicalantennas.com/designs/loops/loop-sizes/ The Hentenna may have a slight advantage if high enough in the air, but things are more complicated over ground, where increased spacing between the wires (which improves gain in free space) is counteracted by the lower wire being closer to the ground, thereby contributing less to low angle radiation. For a further discussion see practicalantennas.com/theory/loop/full-wave/. Up to around 1 wavelength (top height), there isn’t a significant difference among them, with the delta (point down) having a slight advantage due to more radiation from the top wire, and it is easier to build then a Hentenna.

Depends which antenna… For the dipole, one wire connects to the coax center conductor, and one connects to the shield. A balun is often a good idea, but not always needed when weight is a critical factor. For the ground plane antenna, both dipole wires are connected to the coax SHIELD to form the radials, and the added wire is connected to the center conductor to make the vertical part. For the loop, one end of the wire connects to the coax center and the other end to the shield. You can also make the loop by starting with the dipole and connecting the far ends of the wires together, but you need to add a bit more wire to get it to resonate properly.

@@practicalantennas1754 Thank you kindly for your reply.

@@practicalantennas1754I never thought of using a wire antenna to make a vertical before. That sounds like something fun to try out along with the delta loop. I had just been making dipoles or variations and end fed wire antennas. 73!

@highflyer584: Check out: DX Engineering Complete Fiberglass Tubing and Cam Lock Clamp Kits DXE-TFK46-HD

The mast is from Max-Gain Systems www.mgs4u.com

Max-Gain Systems www.mgs4u.com

@usbp151check out: DX Engineering Complete Fiberglass Tubing and Cam Lock Clamp Kits DXE-TFK46-HD

That’s a lot to cover in this format! And I haven’t gotten a lot of that material written for my web site yet at PracticalAntennas.com. I’d suggest posting your question on the forums at eHam.net, or a similar site that is more conducive to an extended discussion with more participants. Just for starters: What is your background noise level? If the S-meter reads S6 on background, you need to solve your noise problem in order to hear weaker stations. Are you listening on the right bands when they are open? I’d suggest using VOACAP (www.voacap.com/hf/) to see which bands will be open at what times of day to various cities. I’m in Hawaii at the moment, and it shows (for 50 watts CW) the highest probability for a 20m contact is 65% at 0500Z, while 17m, 15m, and 12m have about the same chance at 1700Z. Then, of course, there is the question of what times hams at the other end will be on the air… On the other hand, if you get on the air during a DX contest weekend, you are likely to hear lots DX stations, although they won’t be in the mood for an extended chat. That’s even before we start talking about antenna choices.

I am in England and waiting for your call my Brother

Glad you found it useful. Makes it easy to put up a triband yagi for Field Day. I use the same approach with other types of sectional masts as well (like sectional tent poles)..

The mast is from Max Gain Systems: www.mgs4u.com This one uses 4’ sections, but 6’ and 8’ are available. MFJ used to sell a similar mast for about the same price (I haven’t compared them) and you might save on shipping cost if you can pick it up at a local ham store.

It' similar to one made by DX engineering which I just bought and installed and it's excellent. Since he takes it down when not using it he doesn't need guy ropes, but if you're going to leave up all the time as I do it's useful to put in at least two levels of guy ropes which is very very very easy to do.

@ Thanks 73s

Thanks! That’s just what my backyard antenna range looks like. Makes life interesting. Currently on Maui - will see if I get a chance to try setting up the ground plane on the beach. Aloha!

Glad you liked it. I’ve been using it for around 40 years now, and I’m still learning new things: practicalantennas.com/construction/masts/bucket/ The quality of the rope does make a difference (especially in getting the weight back down), and a narrower bucket seems to result in fewer tangles. Now experimenting with a nylon bag instead of a bucket.

haha! working on getting the Seapac video up soon, so hopefully other people can enjoy. thanks for your kind words :)

Thank you for your feedback! Iʻll suggest a video/article that breaks down some of the vocabulary.

Haha! Iʻm Moss, Daleʻs Videographer and Editor. I do most of the voiceovers, and my voice is a little.... higher pitched shall we say.

Hi Tom, Glad you found it useful. I tried to keep the video simple, so I didn't include the halyard or other additions on the mast to avoid confusion. I discuss those on the website, including photos of supports for dual halyards, etc. I've had many hams try this technique at my Field Antenna Workshops, and even those who weren't very tall or strong could set it up to 28' by themselves, although some might stop at 20' (which is often high enough). I made the video to share the technique with others who aren't local - it really is fairly easy to do. - Dale WB6BYU

@@practicalantennas1754 Fantastic video.