In my ever continuing quest to get a signal out of my apartment, I came up with another idea. Rather than a magnetic loop for 2 meters, how about a directly driven full wave loop? Where on earth did that come from?
For a year or year and a half now, I've been experimenting with TV antennas. The area we live in still has 2 channels on VHF-HI (7 and 9). And if you live in a garden level apartment like I do, pulling them in is next to impossible. I was perusing the net one Saturday afternoon, and found the website digitalhome.ca. On there, there is a section dedicated to experimental antennas. After reading for quite some time, I decided to make a loop antenna without a reflector. Something that could be hung in a window or door. The loop in question is 23 1/2 inches in diameter, 80+ inches long. And if you work that out, that fits the 2 meter band fairly well. The loop itself is made from 1/4 copper tubing purchased from a local home improvement store. And after having made a couple of them, I actually cut a form out of particle board. Makes it much easier to take the cut piece of copper and form it into a circle.
I already had one that I'd made up a few months back to experiment with, so I grabbed it and removed the 300-75 ohm balun that was on it. I decided to make a half-wave match as depicted on this website http://www.buxcomm.com/antennas.htm, made out of rg-58 coax that I had on hand.
The results were very satisfactory. I'll have to hook it up to my Icom radio to actually check the signal, but I tested using my HT, and was able to hit the repeater. The receive sounded as good as when I use my yagi-uda antenna. Hopefully, I'll be able to hang this one from the curtain rod in the livingroom, position it for best signal, and then leave it up. Once I get it finalized, I'll take a couple pictures and put them in this post.
And of course it's well past my bedtime, and I have to go to work tomorrow. So until next time:
73
Steve
KDØWSW
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