[geeks] Moved to geeks: Cheap Ham radios (was Dayton Hamfest)

[wa2egp at att.net]

> The other surprise is the antenna requirements for HF. I have a UHF 1/4 wave
> ground plane that cost me $4.00 to build and it sits on top of a bookcase. My
> HF antenna is an 80M inverted V that so far has cost about $200.00 (mast,
> ropes, balun, etc.). The inverted V requires a huge footprint in the yard. The
> mast guys are spaced at 20 feet out from the pole and the V ends are about 120
> feet apart. So far I haven't found any compact HF antennas that perform well.

Small magnetic loops work quite well on transmit for their small footprint but, due to their size, don't "hear" as well because they intercept a smaller part of the wave (so I'm told).  Only problem is their narrow bandwidth and need for low resistance connections.

Bob