Dave wrote:
. . .
. . .Seems I read
somewhere that contrary to conventional wisdom, the shield on a shielded
loop doesn't actually shield at all, but becomes the antenna element.
Anyone know anything about that line of thought? I obviously know nothing,
and am trying to learn. Just don't know where to focus my energies.

That's been discussed on this newsgroup a number of times. You should be
able to find the relevant threads via groups.google.com.

Yes, the "shield" doesn't shield the antenna -- in fact, the outside of
the "shield" *is* the antenna. What it does is aid in balancing the
antenna, reducing common mode pickup which can reduce the null depth.
"Conventional wisdom" that holds otherwise isn't wisdom at all, but a
lack of understanding of some basic electromagnetic principles.

There's undoubtedly a massive amount of information easily available on
the web regarding building and using small loop antennas. All you have
to do is ignore the ubiquitous "conventional wisdom" explanations of how
a "shielded" loop operates.

Roy Lewallen, W7EL