Brenda et al:

This statement facinates me:

related by someone in Saudi Arabia
who
wrapped 1.2 kM of wire around a piece of PVC and vastly improved their
reception of WWV in the states.

1.2 kM of wire; Heck of a lot of capture area !

Is there some ratio of loop diameter and spacing between the wire loops that
results in the most capture area?

There is a nice ratio of mirror diameter to magnification limits in telescopes
This is the analogy I was thinking of.

Dan


Inductance isn't all there is to an antenna.. you need capture area, too.
Broomstick antennas are not all that good, and are not very efficient. Yes,
they look good on paper, as the 'electrical length' is much longer than that
much straight wire, but without capture area, the efficeincy drops way off.
You're better with a longwire, even just a few meters (yards) run along the
eaves of your house.