The 40 meter band can be a tricky one for backpack portable operators. The problem is that antennas for that band tend to be large and require a tall pole. In the last post we discussed using a backpack as a support for quarter wave whips or short poles. In that role it is gravitationally … Continue reading The “Titanic” 40m Field Expedient Backpack Portable Antenna
Category: Antennas
Experiments with portable, base station and highly unusual antennas
How to Take Backpack Portable Radio to the Next Level
I know many hams like to operate from inside the comfort of their vehicles. I do too, but only in the depths of winter. Winters in Canada and most of the northern states can often be very challenging so some form of shelter becomes essential. But, in the warmer months (both of them, hi hi) … Continue reading How to Take Backpack Portable Radio to the Next Level
3 Days, 3 Activations, 3 Antennas
My wife and I enjoyed a short early fall vacation to take advantage of a period of warm, sunny weather. I used the opportunity to attempt some POTA activations and compare the performance of three of my field antennas in challenging propagation conditions. I had several parks on my radar and too little time to … Continue reading 3 Days, 3 Activations, 3 Antennas
Random Wire Antennas – A Challenge to Common Knowledge
A random wire antenna's feedpoint impedance is 450 Ohms: True or False? It must be written on a stone tablet somewhere that an end-fed random wire antenna should be fed through a 9:1 impedance transformer. Common knowledge says a 9:1 transformer, in conjunction with a tuner will bring the impedance of a random wire antenna … Continue reading Random Wire Antennas – A Challenge to Common Knowledge
How Does the Speaker Wire “No Counterpoise Antenna” Work?
Fellow blogger Craig WB3GCK recently posted an account of his build of the speaker wire "No Counterpoise Antenna" and I was immediately intrigued. In fact I rushed out to the store and bought myself a couple of 50ft rolls of 18AWG speaker wire to experiment. After a couple of days of intense backyard wire whispering … Continue reading How Does the Speaker Wire “No Counterpoise Antenna” Work?
A 24ft Snake in my Back Yard – all lies and jest?
A snake in the grass! When singer/songwriter Paul Simon penned the lyrics to "The Boxer" in 1970 he may have anticipated my recent experiments with a particularly weird, unbelievable and incomprehensible antenna called "The Snake". A ham hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest The snake I wrestled for a couple of … Continue reading A 24ft Snake in my Back Yard – all lies and jest?
A Neat Trick with a 20m EFHW Wire Antenna
One of my favorite YouTube channels comes from the UK-based Waters and Stanton ham radio store. The presenter is Peter Waters G3OJV who delivers the content is a refreshingly unassuming, soft-spoken manner. Although it is a commercial channel, Peter introduces topics that are of general interest to hams with only modest company promotional content. A … Continue reading A Neat Trick with a 20m EFHW Wire Antenna
Cutting My Losses
I experienced a very rare event this past weekend. I had set up my QRP field portable station at a very busy Lake Huron beach on a hot, sunny July afternoon. The scene was idyllic; blue sky, calm water, thousands of happy people. Deep beneath our feet lay the huge underground caverns of the world's … Continue reading Cutting My Losses
Magically transform a single band ground plane into a multiband antenna – instantly
I call it "electromagnetrickery". You can learn a lot by building your own antennas, much more than if you buy commercial ones. But beware, it becomes addictive - I have a drawer full of empty wire spools to prove it. Sometimes the behaviour of those pesky electromagnetic wavicles delivers unexpected surprises. Here is the story … Continue reading Magically transform a single band ground plane into a multiband antenna – instantly
A Radio Road Trip with the QRP Labs QMX – lessons learned!
The XYL and I took a short break from routine and drove up to Ontario's Muskoka region for 4 days of recreation and radio activity. I packed my QRP Labs QMX transceiver and a selection of antennas hoping to complete a couple of POTA activations. Tour boats moored at Gravenhurst wharf on Lake Muskoka Muskoka … Continue reading A Radio Road Trip with the QRP Labs QMX – lessons learned!
Ham Radio Outside the Box 