This is the only video I have seen that would inspire a new Ham to actually build their own antenna. Am an older ham and I am excited to try out your recommendations. This is what Amateur Radio should be all about. Thank you very much...
It's great to see some one who explains the technology in easy to understand terms. So many tutorials are geared to the already experienced and goes completely over a new hams head. In my 47+ years I have always tried to teach on the level of the student. Great job! By the way, I may be an "old dog" but you have taught me a new trick or two as well. Hi Hi! Keep up the great work. 73s DE wb7veq
Thank you so very much! The one thing about physics, engineering and almost anything that involves science is that humans will overthink it. I really just try to keep everything simple. 73 my friend
Thanks for another helpful video! The way you put this together was perfect. I added it to my technical journal. I take notes in a journal when I come across useful information so I have it close at hand. So many new amateur radio operators mismatch antennas and Baluns/Ununs because they don't have a clear guide regarding what goes with what. Your video breaks it down into terms that are easy to understand. Thanks again...73...Hugh...KN6KNB
Excellent video! I'm an old ham but continue to learn even 54 years later! Antenna theory is where the real magic happens. Forget the amplifiers and work on your antenna systems.
I always feel like I'm starting to get a grab on this after watching your videos, Walt. Yours are the best for simple, practical explanations. This one really is excellent. Thanks for this.
Thanks Walt. You hit a good one today. As a newer licensed ham, you see people using these all over RU-vid, but no explanations as to why or under what Circumstances they should be used. This is a good basic intro and I for one will be culling through this video numerous times and taking notes. Love the background. It looks to me like you love your instruments as much as the radio. I have the same bug with a wide collection of stringed instruments. My strum stick is my late night just before bed go to for playing. 73’s my friend.
Thanks again Walt! Great information. I know manual tuners aren't popular these days but making and using one really does help a person understand theory and practice of how matching works.
Walt, the difference between your videos and other guy's videos is, I don't have to fight falling asleep while watching and listening to their 'dull' presentations. You keep it lively and chuckle from time to time. Others? Not so much. I'm brand new to HF and am soaking up all I can, especially from your videos. Thanks for making the un-understandable understandable.
Great video getting into the thick of things. Not exactly an adventure in the typical sense, but a productive exploration all the same. Thanks. Cheers and 73!
I'm a big fan of remote, or "at the feedpoint" tuners. Like the antenna matcher you showed, they work sort of like an automatic, infinitely variable unun to give you an (almost) perfect match on (almost) any wire length. Your 50 ohm coax always (theoretically) matches your rig, so the impedance mismatch you need to address is where the coax meets the wire. In-rig and at-the-rig tuners are great for protecting your rig, but have much higher losses than matching at the feedpoint. This is just food for thought - thanks for the great videos!
I watch a lot of videos to further my education on antennas and some of those old guys are real smart but have the most horrible drawings and handwriting, you have the cleanest illustrations and I know it may be a small thing, but I really appreciate being able to make out what you are drawing. Hey that brown Uke behind you looks a lot like my mahogany Martin Tenor! Aloha , AL
After I got my General ticket it took me several months on my own to figure out all the things you covered in one video. If you had only made this 5 years ago! Keep up the good work.
Less-young (78) ham here and I keep learning from you every video. Love your enthusiasm for our fantastic hobby. You also encourage me to try new antennas so when I go off in my caravan in a few days I'll be trying a wire vertical or two. Maybe see you on the Southern Cross 14238 net again. 73 from VK4BOB
Hi Bob! I’ve been tuning in to the Southern Cross Net as much as possible. I can guarantee to will catch me there soon as conditions are starting to favor it. 73, Walt
Thanks Walt. You made this really easy to understand and I look forward to using this info for my antenna projects and experiments. That's half the fun of HF for me. 73
Thanks Walt! I'm a new ham and know little about antennas, this video had lots of good info! The unun/balun discussion and reasoning provided a much clearer understanding of their purpose and use. Also your drawings were clear and understandable. Not only did I learn something, I was impressed by your collection of ukuleles!
It is a delightful explanation into each type of antenna and the matching feed-line impedance. I have now built ten different antennae for my amateur fun and this is a great place to start! Thanks for the great video!
Thanks Walt. Great information for new and old hams the same. I've learned so much from you guys this past year. Ape taught me how to build AND test my Balun's and UNUN's. You taught me to have fun and not sweat the small s$it. Grateful to you both, and several others, that take the time to share their knowledge and experiences.
My daughter and I built one a few years ago for a school project. I almost enjoy playing it more than my six string. They're such a versatile instrument. Enjoy your videos, keep them coming, please. I've been studying for my technician license and hope to be on the air soon.
Great video. Thank you very much, Walt. I watch your videos the most. I made my first DX contact yesterday with Maritime Mobile Service Network using your 29 ft vertical, 9:1 unun, 1:1 unun, with the classic DX Commander design. The net control operator was in Texas. I used the Xiegu G90 at 20 watts. I was using the flagpole tire support to support the DX Commander pole on my back deck. I used weights as an anchor. You have a treasure of information and it helped me very much. It was simple and it worked great.
As always Walt a great video with great info. Sometimes hams need to use compromise antennas such as myself, people need to realise not all have the space to put antennas up, i have a random wire that runs up a 12 meter pole that is strapped against a tree yet i have contacts from around the world... for me the Unun's work along with the Baluns. Im on air so thats what counts. You have great info Walt, thanks and 73 de ZL1MY
Excellent video and one of my favorite Ham channels. Thank you for this explanation. I'm new to amateur radio and you're videos have helped me tremendously with antenna building and understanding terminology and theory.
Excellent video Walt. You explained the basics very well. If people watching have questions, I suggest they do research before making stupid comments. I love low cost, homemade antennas that work and you show so many very good ones. You don't need to spend $200. to $500. for the latest "New" or "Tactical" antenna to make solid contacts, especially when working portable. Thank Walt ! 73
Hi, this video was very useful for me as a novice ham operator, thank you very much, I will probably watch in a few times to get a better grip of toppics. Many thanks. 73.
Great video Walt. I have a 55ft vertical up a tree with a 9 to 1 UNUN about 3ft off of the ground with 1 36ft counter pois elevated off the ground. It works great.
Fantastic information and without getting dizzy friend -👍. You do great work and on top of that you demonstrate its positive results. It's a pleasure to follow you.
Walt - really appreciate how you use simple gear and are constantly experimenting. I recently set up an end-fed 41’ random wire with a 9:1 Unun. Pretty good results. After adding a 1:1 Unun RF choke, I was surprised by the improvement. Now getting tons of international QSOs on 5W. I recognize this antenna knowhow is widely available, but you make it accessible and approachable. Thanks and keep up the great videos.
Hello! The closer the wire size is to 1:1, 1:2, 1:4, to the wavelength, the lower the losses in the antenna will be. Also, in order to reduce losses when adjusting resistance, it is easier and more convenient to use L-Match than transformer rings that heat up and give significant losses.
Great video, thank you! I teach licensing classes for our local club, and I'll likely point some of our new (and more tenured) hams in your direction. Really enjoyed the explanation, will definitely watch more of your videos.
Crawl by amateur here, another good vid, Walt. I always enjoy the results of your experiments. I'm getting antsy to get outdoors and play portable radio too. Still kinda winter here in New England.
Walt, this video is great and to the point. I have tried various types of configurations over the 60 years of being a ham and had so much fun. Still looking for the perfect antenna (Hi Hi) but everything is a compromise due to all the unseen variables! I currently use a 29ft vertical with a 9:1. It works great and matches my environmental requirements while living in an HOA. Thank you for your practical and useful videos. Harv K5NR
I really enjoy your videos. Have always enjoyed tinkering with wires. Those who tout resonate antennas seldom have a resonate match. Love my tuners. The proof is in the received signal that peeks when tuned. I've seen test that prove that theres little to no loss in a tuner in the hf bands. I'm down with medical issues so going out with you, through RU-vid is great. Keep them comming!
@Walt. Awesome video you should be a professor. I have a question on the off center and fed dipole. In your video you said that it required a 4 to 1 balun. Because it is off-center fed in the elements are two different lengths. Why wouldn’t that be considered an unbalanced antenna? I’ve been a hand for 25 years and I’ve learned more from you from your videos than any other resource. Thanks for your assistance and 73.
Thank you so much my friend. The OCF dipole is actually a balanced antenna as it finds the point on the wire where the impedance is approximately 200 ohm over several bands to make it a multiband antenna. Now think of balancing a pencil on your finger that has a heavy eraser at one end. You’re not balancing it dead center but closer to the heavy end. Same principle with balancing the dipole.
I put up a 20 meter long wire cut to length, using the nanovna-f, don't get me wrong it did work but not effectively. Till i learned about reactance. Swr was not every thing , resistance and capacitive balancing was quickly learned about. I guess digging deeper helped me understand why just swr is just a reference to other values. As i understand tuners are great given compromise antennas, however I wanted not to waste energy as heat. Great tutorial ! So down the rabbit hole I go again. Lol 😊
Hey Walt, just to say that I love what you're doing with the wire antennas by the sea. I've just returned to the air this week after a 12½ year break (health hasn't been great for a while..lol) and I'm getting my things together again to get out by a river estuary close to where I live in Norfolk England. "The salt water amplifier " is something I've worked with quite a lot in the past, and set the world record (along with G4AKC) for the first pedestrian mobile to pedestrian mobile contact between G and ZL3 when I was in Christchurch NZ operating as ZL3/G7LPW/Pedestrian Mobile on 20m. Unfortunately my pedestrian days are fairly much over now due to my health, but I plan to do similar to yourself and build wire antennas on the riverside and sit in my car with my trusty old Alinco DX70TH. Hope you're having fun, and maybe catch you on the air sometime. 73, de G7LPW (Keith in Norfolk England)
I make cigar box guitars and other instruments, cant believe you have a wall full of CBG and strumstiks etc. something else we have in common. Nice informative video.
Thanks Walt. My 29ft vertical was a perfect match on 10m with a 9:1 unun and a few ground radials. Tuned down into 40m though it didnt work real great it worked. 40m to 6m on 1 antenna was fun to play with. Also a good shtf antenna to have handy on a DX Commander pole
Roger that Jon! I got a 9:1 balun from a really cool dude and I think I’m going to build a dipole with two 29ft long wires which would come to 58ft long overall which is another good random length. Stay tuned lol
Not much to add. You covered things pretty well. If you operate on the go it's really hard to beat a 49:1 and/or a 9:1. Most of the time at home that is what I put out. The ability to band hop is worth the 20 odd percent loss implied in the transformer.
I was impressed when I read that end fed halfwave will work on every harmonic -- not just the odd harmonics. For example, my 66 ft / 20 meter long end fed halfwave at 7 MHz will also work on 14 Mhz and 21 Mhz and 28 MHz too. The SWR is very acceptable and many times I don't need to use a transmatch. I can also use it on the WARC bands with a transmatch. It's a very versatile antenna.
Walt thanks for spreading the truth. Slightly compromised antennas are great, only compromised by an unnoticeable amount. That means they WORK. I have used 29 foot wire with my home-built 49:1 unun on multiple successful portable adventures. Also other wire lengths for avoiding resonant wires, and the tuner makes it work GANGBUSTERS. Thanks Walt for encouraging people to try and see for themselves. It WORKS if you follow basic principles. And it's FUN. Keep striving, keep trying, keep having fun, Dave WA4NID
👍Nice overview, thanks Walt. I think your results on air are evidence that these "compromise" antennas work. If you think about it, arguably, every antenna is a compromise in some aspects.
Good video. I was working on the 25 foot with 4 to 1 and was having trouble with swr. Did not want to cut. I had a single wire connected to ground terminal on the UNUN to a plate with about 25 radials. My swr was not very good. so I finally took one group of radials off the plate and connected it directly to the ground on the UNUN things got better. Still not as good as I hoped but it's raining now so will wait until another day. fair weather antenna builder lol
I had an SWL antenna with a single wire feed which I converted for ham use by connecting the wire direct to the tuner. It worked pretty well and it was attic mounted, but had some RF in the shack on some bands. Fun times.
Walt, not only are your explanations great, your drawings are works of art. Have you ever considered publishing an antenna design booklet? I'd buy one!
Thanks so much! Yes I’m actually putting my sketchbook together and will definitely self publish it. Hopefully I can find the time to finish it soon. I appreciate your kind words my friend! 73, Walt
@@COASTALWAVESWIRES I'm so happy to hear that, Walt. I hope this serves as a tiny incentive. Posters would be cool, too. Pin-ups for nerds, hi, hi. Looking forward to that first QSO, my friend. 73, N7BWB
Being a newbie I thought size matters and so had a lot of antenna envy seeing my neighbors with their 330' tower antennas. Now I know that as in other things, it ain't the meat its the motion when it comes to efficient propagation.
Saving this one! Thanks Walt! Taking the test for general on Saturday. I want to make my own antenna(s) eventually but will ease into it. I’m using two 10 meter hamsticks in a dipole configuration now and have two 20 meter sticks in reserve for when I pass my test. These two set ups will get me started. But I want to make an EFHW that I can use on multiple bands that will work with the built-in tuner in the FT-710 I’m planning to purchase. Right now I use a 60 watt single band 10 meter radio. Thanks for your videos!
Thanks for the explanation, Walt! Just want to add a little thought: if you are using a balun or unun with a ferrite core, the core can become over saturated after a period of time and work less efficiently, which could lead to failure. It's very unlikely if you are a person who just making voice contacts or whatnot for a period of time similar to what you do, but if you're running a digital mode like JS8Call 24/7 where your radio is transmitting a lot, it can be a concern. In that case, maybe a resonate antenna might be better choice than say one which you need a balun or unun.
This video reminded me of the radiomen in the Navy while tuning up the FRT-39s. They had to drive the PA, then use dials connected to the caps and coils while looking at voltage and current meters. (basically tuning the antenna) Occasionaly they would connect the wrong antenna, get high SWR and the caps would start snapping and arcing. It would scare the crap outta them.
This helped a lot Walt. Of course this too shall cost me money. But like they say, you can't take it with you. I'm just going to get them all and save money on shipping.
In my experience a simple 1/2 wave dipole fed in the center will typically give you about 70 ohms which will at best give vswr of 1:1:5, and is ok, like your man says if your under 2:1 the antenna will work ok. Ive used a 9:1 unun with 84ft of wire and had great results.
Walt ... great rules of thumb for the real world. Couple what you mentioned with the realization that a doubling of power is 3 db or 1/2 S unit, even SWRs between 4:1 - 6:1 would hardly be noticed on the receiving end. However, the transmitter would not like them for long! 73 - KF6IF
Nice job explaining things. I added the 1:1 and 4:1 LDG baluns to my list of things to look for at Hamvention. Last year, Gigaparts had a nice sale on them.
I just watched a very interesting video by someone that fits beoadcast equipment He uses a circulator. Radio on port 1, antenna on port 2 and 50ohm dummy load on Port 3. He said that reflected power will come back down the coax and be directed to the dummy load, not into the transmitter. I've never seen one used like that before.
Walt, this is a "must save" video for most hams. You've done all the math and explained feed point impedance in an easy to understand manner. Question: what is the name of the antenna app that you use? I have an Android phone and could use an app like that. 73!
