James Barrett wrote:



This thread has taken on a life of its own since I posted my first
question. I really don't understand any of this. I thought that I wanted
an antenna with zero reflected energy or as close to that as possible.
Now it sounds like that is not always the case. I need to learn all
about SWR and impedance in regards to Antennas, from start to finish. Is
there an easy-to-read tutorial out there for a beginner like me? Maybe
Ham Radio for Dummies has something about SWR and antennas?


I've been a ham since '58, and did 26 years in the navy in various areas
of communications and radar as an operator, technician, and manager. I have
done my best to learn about antennas and have quite a body of knowledge
accumulated, some of it good, some of it fallacious. Some of it remains
a complete mystery to me. There are a great many misconceptions when it
comes to antennas, feeders, SWR, and the like.

If I had paid attention to what some people say about SWR, conjugate
matches, and the like I would still be hesitant about putting up an
antenna. I'd still be looking for the perfect one.

Despite all the myths and misconceptions, many hams are surprised to find
out that regardless of how bad their antennas may seem in theory, in
practice they are getting out.

Put up an antenna, and 'tune' it for minimum SWR, then have fun. You
will find years of fun ahead and they will give you the time required
to learn more about antennas. Do not try to learn all there is -- you
won't get there. Instead, try to learn where the fallacies lie and
try to avoid them.

The hardest part is committing yourself to putting up an antenna which
you know from theory is not perfect. Once you get it up and find that you
can work the world with a few watts and a wet noodle, then you can
take the time to learn, experiment, and find an antenna that meets
most of your needs. Don't go looking for the perfect one -- it does
not exist.

Irv VE6BP (Heating the ionosphere and loving it!)