David

I have had good success with a vertical wire of whip that is longer that
a 1/4 wave on the lowest frequency with a variable capacitor at the base
for tuning. I use a sectional military vehicle whip that is about 20'
long mounted on a wooden broom handle that is pushed into the ground.
The capacitor is connected between the centre of the coaxial feed and
the bottom of the whip. Then it is just a case of connecting a couple of
radials for the band that you want to work and tuning the cap for
minimum VSWR. I have worked all over the world on the higher bands using
my FT-817 with 5W. it takes only a couple of minutes to set up and is
very efficient. The whole antenna weighs about a pound and will fit
inside a rucksack. I have used it with 100W even with a receiving
capacitor, as the cap is at a low voltage point there is no worry of
flashover.

If you want more information please email me and I will send you a picture.

Jon G2FHF



David B. Thomas wrote:
For portable operation in the 14-30 MHz range, I use a small, handheld
transmitting loop. Here is a web page describing it and how to build
one from inexpensive materials. The page also links to other pages
with good information on loops.

http://dt.prohosting.com/hacks/antenna/magloop.html

I chose the loop because it is actually possible to operate while
walking around. Obviously if you are able to erect a larger antenna
at your operating site, you would be able to get better performance.
My loop is about 30% efficient at 14 MHz, theoretically delivering
about one S-unit less than a half wave dipole.

David
http://www.qrz.com/n5izu