You have a point Mark. I agree that a simple 1/4 wave groundplane is more
study and very easy to make using an so-239 and some piano wire. Steel wire
can be soldered right into the back, four bolts with nuts and four more
peaces of wire around 19" long with a bit of a downward bend and you have a
very good antenna.

It's worth noting that you don't actually need four radials. Two
radials (on opposite sides of the feedpoint, bent down at around 45
degrees) will produce a perfectly satisfactory ground-plane. The
patterns of 2- and 4-radial ground plane antennas are almost
indistinguishable. A 4-radial antenna may *look* as if it would
produce a much more circular pattern than a 2-radial antenna, but this
doesn't turn out to actually be the case.


--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Friends of Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
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